She sits in the dressing room on her pink and brown striped bed. Her matching dish has the word "Diva" printed on it.
There is no sign of anxiety on her face. She has done this before.
Chula, the 7-pound, 8-inch-tall, tricolored Chihuahua, goes out on stage to perform her number. She is the reincarnation of Norma Desmond. Tilting her head back with the poise and pomp of the iconic 1950s fictional movie star, she appears in the arms of Kim Mead, her owner and an actress performing in the Hippodrome State Theatre's "The Great American Trailer Park Musical."
There is a rule in theater: Don't act with children or animals. They will upstage your performance.
But Chula's act alongside the seven other talented human castmates creates a more hysterical and realistic aspect to the musical set in a modern-day trailer park, Armadillo Acres, in Starke.
The play, which is the Hippodrome's most successful Mainstage performance in 36 years, has caused a commotion since opening day.
The first time the show ran in 2006, it sold nearly 22,000 tickets.
"The show is the best ever," said Rocky Draud, general manager at the Hippodrome Theatre. "We are hoping it beats its own record. We want to sell 25,000 tickets or even 26,000."
The box office has sold about 13,500 tickets since the show opened in June.
"I love it when something in town brings us all together to share a common bond," said the Hippodrome's Artistic Director, Lauren Caldwell.
Although the script does not include a dog, Caldwell told Mead that she could include Chula where she thought it could work.
Chula won over the crowd with her beady black eyes, but the glamorous puppy starlet was not always destined for the mainstage.
Mead adopted Chula, who was badly abused at a puppy mill, three years ago after finding her on www.petfinder.org.
"When I first met her she was afraid of everything," Mead said. "She hid from me under the chair. She didn't want anything to do with me, but something was telling me to take her home."
It took several months before Chula would become comfortable with her new lifestyle. While Mead helped rehabilitate her then 5.5-pound dog, she landed the role of Charlotta in the UF-produced "The Cherry Orchard."
In the script, Charlotta had a dog, so she thought it would be funny to include Chula.
After her successful debut, Chula reappeared on stage in the Hippodrome's "College: The Musical," directed by Caldwell, where by the end of the show's run she would bark along to the song in her scene.
"She just seemed to fit in," Caldwell said.
Chula, meaning "cute" in Spanish, does not come short of her name.
"We've had oohs and aahs when that dog comes in with its Harley Davidson outfit," Caldwell said. "People are dog lovers. Those that do come to the show always comment on the dog."
As she charms her way to the audience's hearts, it is clear that Chula is in a happier place.
"She's a one-woman dog," Caldwell said of Mead and Chula's bond. "They have a very interesting relationship."
Despite her rough past, Chula has learned to come out of her shell and to love again.
"Rescue dogs are very special," Mead said. "I had to be patient for her to love me, and that makes her more special."
The show has been extended to Aug. 16.
