Getting to know Chelsea Makela

The Wayans Brothers are back with an all new spoof-tacular film. Dance Flick (in theaters today!) takes our fave dance films (like Step Up and Stomp the Yard), and turns them into one hour and 23 minutes of non-stop entertainment.

Nineteen-year-old newcomer Chelsea Makela plays Tracy Transfat (aka Tracy Turnblad from Hairspray—get it?) in the movie. We got her on the phone and had her dish about everything from school and acting to dancing, of course. Here’s what she had to say…

She’s got the Beat
“[Tracy Transfat] is the upbeat and perky one. She likes to just be a part of everything and have fun. I had seen the musical Hairspray live, but I had only seen bits and pieces of the movie. But when I booked the role, I [had to watch all of it].”

Just a small town gal

Dance Flick is Chelsea’s first big-time film. She was born in a small town in Northern Cali and grew up performing with theater groups, gaining lots of experience along the way. But what’s one piece of advice she could give fellow girlies trying to follow in her footsteps? “Just keep at it,” she says. “Go to your community theater or any chance you get to perform. Take it!”—Thanks, Chels!

History’s history

Classes might be coming to a close, but there’s one blush-worthy school memory Chelsea (who was actually valedictorian of her class) will always take with her…“I was giving a speech in history class, and it was supposed to be on Julius Caesar, but I thought [my teacher] said Caesar Chavez (a Mexican American civil rights activist). My teacher literally let me give a 15 minute speech on something I had totally thrown together and he said, 'Well that’s a great speech.' I was so proud [but then] he goes, ‘But I assigned you Julius Caesar. We’re learning about Rome. Why would I assign you Caesar Chavez?' It was so embarrassing. He obviously knew [at that point] I hadn't been paying attention in class that week.”

Just a few of her favorite things

Wanna know more about Chelsea? We had her give us her “Must List” for everything entertainment. Check it out and see if her picks match yours…

Favorite TV showGossip Girl. Chuck Bass. Period. His storyline could be a whole show on its own. I love it.”


Favorite song to dance to “[Any of] Justin Timberlake’s music. I love
the versatility he gives. But my music kind of switches up. As new stuff comes out, I get new favorite songs.”

Favorite book “I am reading this really cool book right now called The Game of Life, which is about how your positive thinking and perseverance in life brings [you] positive things. But [I also] like classic books. I love The Lovely Bones and when I was younger my favorite book was Ramona Forever.”

She sounds pretty awesome, right? To learn more about Chelsea, or maybe even chat with her, check out her MySpace, Facebook and website—ChelseaMakela.com.

Are you going to see Dance Flick? Blog about it, babes.

-Sara Cummings

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5/22/2009 10:00:00 AM
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