Taina is an American teen sitcom created by Maria Perez-Brown and starring Christina Vidal. It aired on Nickelodeon from January 14, 2001, until May 11, 2002. Originally taped at Nickelodeon Studios in Orlando, Florida, it was the last sitcom filmed at the studio before moving to Nickelodeon on Sunset for its second season.
Contents
Premise
Taina Morales is a young Puerto Rican teenager who aspires to become a singer and actress. She and her best friend Renee Jones attend the Manhattan High School of the Performing Arts, where they reunite with Lamar, whom they have not seen since elementary school. The girls' nemesis Maritza Hogg, who knew them before high school, also attends the performing-arts school and hopes to be a singer/actress. Every episode features Taina daydreaming of eventual superstardom and occasionally performing a new song.
Cast and characters
Main
Christina Vidal as Taina Maria Morales, a young girl who dreams of becoming a professional singer and actress. She attends a performing arts school with her best friend Renée, rival Maritza, and friends Daniel and Lamar. She and her friends often get themselves into crazy situations in their search for stardom. Though Taina's impatience and impulsiveness occasionally get her into scraps, her honesty and compassion get her out. The name Taina is the female form of the name of the indigenous Puerto Rican people, the Tainos.
Khaliah Adams as Renée Aretha Jones, Taina's best friend. She is an aspiring comedienne and rapper. A boy-crazy girl, she often helps to ground Taina when her imagination runs away with her. Renée also tends to chase after boys frequently; unfortunately, her love interests aren't the right ones for her.
Chris Knowings as Lamar Carlos Johnson, Taina's friend and an aspiring director and writer. Not only does he serve as an editor of the performing art school's newspaper, he also has a crush on Taina and awaits the day she might finally come around. His best friend is Daniel, and the two often join forces to make a quick buck. He serves as a support for Taina and the others, often offering level-headed advice.
David Oliver Cohen as Daniel Nathaniel McDaniel, a multi-instrumentalist, who also shares the same school locker with Taina. Handsome and opinionated, his loves include writing songs, playing other instruments, and chasing after girls. Daniel prides himself on being quite the ladies' man but often ends up scorned. It's hinted that he had true feelings for Renée. He loves The Beatles, and usually accompanied Taina's songs on his guitar.
LaTangela Newsome as Maritza Hogg, Taina and Renée's rival. She also aspires to be an actress and singer but tends to be more ruthless than Taina. She liked to upstage others in her quest to become a star. However, she isn't all bad, and sometimes joins forces with Taina and her friends to make money or fight other rivals. She prides herself on being an "evil diva".
Recurring
Lisa Lisa as Gloria Elena Morales
Cristina Saralegui as Principal Rojas
Josh Cruze as Eduardo Morales
Manolo Villaverde as Gregorio "Abuelo" Sanchez
Brandon Iglesias as Santito Morales (season 1)
Selenis Leyva as Titi Rosa
Joseph Bertot as Hector Colon
Ruben Rabasa as Papito
Jacob Urrutia as Santito Morales (season 2)
Development and production
The show premiered on January 14, 2001, on Nickelodeon. New episodes aired on the TEENick block at launch on March 4, 2001, starting with its eighth episode. Taina was scheduled to air every Sunday at 6 pm. In July 2002, Nickelodeon canceled Taina after two seasons. According to Vidal, the show was replaced with Romeo!.
Episodes
Home releases
The series has seen no DVD releases in North America, however a single-release VHS/DVD was released by Maverick Entertainment in the United Kingdom in March 2004 named "Be Careful What You Wish For"', which features the first four aired episodes.
Current availability
As of June 2022, the original series is not available to stream on Paramount+ in the United States (though available in Spanish in Latin America), where many of its Nickelodeon counterparts can be streamed. The series is, however, available on the Paramount Streaming service Pluto TV as a Spanish-dubbed program. Despite these developments, YouTube remains the only means of viewing the program in its original English language.
Soundtrack
Taina: Original Television Soundtrack was released on February 19, 2002, by Nick Records and distributed through Jive Records/Zomba Recording Corporation and MTV Networks. The album contains songs featured in the show's second season, and none from the first season, with the exception of "Gonna Be A Star", the show's theme. The album primarily features the show's stars, Christina Vidal and LaTangela (who are credited as their characters), with two additional songs performed by girl groups 3LW and Dream, both of which made guest appearances during the show's first season.
Awards and nominations
ALMA Awards
2002 – Outstanding Children's Television Programming (Won)
2002 – Outstanding Actress in a Television Series – Christina Vidal (Nominated)
2002 – Outstanding Script for a Television Drama or Comedy – Fracaswell Hyman & Maria Perez-Brown for episode "Quinceanero"(Nominated)