Entertainment
Lana Parrilla Can Carry A Tune In 'Once Upon A Time'
To be a villain in a Disney narrative, one must commit to being evil, commit to wearing fantastic outfits, and commit to sharing their secret plans via song. The Evil Queen of the Enchanted Forest will finally finish that list in the May 7 premiere of the Once Upon a Time musical episode. In this episode, Snow White and Charming will cast a spell that will make everyone break into song. Naturally this annoys the Evil Queen. And Lana Parrilla will really sing in the OUAT episode.
One of Lana Parrilla's many talents is the way she uses two different voices to portray both the Evil Queen and Regina. This is a talent she has cultivated over time, as Parrilla said in an interview with the Toronto Sun, "I studied voice for about 10 years, not for singing but for acting. I've always had a deep resonance, but I love vocal work, and I've been doing it for so many years." While she hasn't had much experience in musical theater, viewers will get a treat when they discover that Lana Parrilla really is singing as the Evil Queen.
Despite her lack of musical background, Parrilla has been known to break out into song, much to the delight of her fans. Before the big musical episode, here are a few little surprises courtesy of the Evil Queen:
She Can Rap
What fans may not know about Parrilla is that she was interesting in rapping in the OUAT musical episode. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Lana Parrilla said, "I’m hoping to rap. That’s just the Brooklyn girl in me that wants to rap. I just pitched that idea. I haven’t gotten a response. I am hoping to rap, but it’s highly unlikely.”
Even if Parrilla doesn't get her wish, fans can see a bit of her talents here, rapping a piece of The Pharcyde's "Ya Mama" at the 0:38 mark.
She Has Sung On TV Before
Before Parrilla got her start as the Evil Queen, she had a role in the episode, "Las Vegas vs. Johnson" on the short-lived series The Defenders. Parrilla played Betty Johnson, a woman on trial for her boyfriend's murder.
In this clip, viewers get a quick preview of Lana Parrilla's vocals as she sings along to Nick Morelli (Jim Belushi)'s piano playing.
She Has A Favorite Disney Song
In the episode "Ariel" from the third season, Lana Parrilla shocked OUAT fans when it was revealed that the Evil Queen was impersonating Ursula. Since then, Parrilla has expressed her love for the character in numerous interviews and even by sharing a drawing she did of Ursula on Twitter.
In this clip, Parrilla belts out a line from her favorite song in The Little Mermaid, which is — what else? — "Poor Unfortunate Souls."
She Can Sing Happy Birthday
Whenever she can, Lana Parrilla continues to surprise her fans with her impressive vocal skills. In this clip, she is singing "Happy Birthday" to a very excited crowd.
She Loves Her Fans
It's clear that Lana Parrilla loves her fans since most of her conversations with them require her breaking into song. Here she is singing along with them to "Demons" from Imagine Dragons.
As is the case with most of these clips, Parrilla is singling minimally, but the joy she takes from the experience and shares with the audience is fun to watch.
She's Sung With Her Costars Before
While the musical episode is the first real singing experience for the OUAT characters, Lana Parrilla has already sung with costars Meghan Ory (Ruby) and Colin O'Donoghue (Hook).
Together the trio perform a medley of "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?," "What's This?" from The Nightmare Before Christmas, and the beginning of "Poor Unfortunate Souls."
She Finally Sings As The Evil Queen
Luckily for OUAT fans, ABC has released a few promo clips of the big numbers before the musical episode airs.
"Love Doesn't Stand A Chance" is one of the Evil Queen's big solos in which she shares how she plans to take down Snow White and Charming once again. In this clip, fans can see how much fun Parrilla is having with the role and the number fits her range and style perfectly.
Parrilla's singing prowess may be brief, but she has fun performing for her fans. This time she gets a big musical number and the high fashion to show it off. Maybe fans can make a wish for Once Upon A Time to move beyond the screen and onto the Broadway stage?
