A theater teen living her dream: Touring musical ‘&Juliet’ brings its 19-year-old star to Eugene

Fabiola Caraballo Quijada is 19 years old and living out a trajectory that sounds more like a fantasy for a musical theater-loving teen than her real life.

But it’s true: A year and half ago, the Venezuelan-born performer was a fresh high school graduate from Tyler, Texas, about to compete as the state’s representative in The National High School Musical Theatre Awards.

It was her third time in the competition, often called the Jimmy Awards. (In the theater world, they’re known as the youth equivalent of the Tonys.) She had previously made the cut as a nominee and a finalist in 2023 and 2024. Last year, she won.

Now, Quijada is playing one of the most famous characters in the English canon in the national touring production of the jukebox musical “&Juliet,” which opened in Eugene Tuesday, Oct. 6, at the Hult Center and runs through Sunday, Oct. 11.

The jukebox musical sees William Shakespeare’s wife Anne Hathaway telling the Bard to change the fate of Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet.”

Quijada plays a Juliet who doesn’t commit suicide over Romeo’s death, exploring life to the soundtrack of Max Martin-produced pop songs.

Quijada talked about her role as Juliet, her path to musical theater and what hopefuls for the Jimmy Awards (the Oregon version of the competition now is held at the Hult Center) can learn from her experience.

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Lookout Eugene-Springfield: What first got you into musical theater?

Quijada: It was by an absolute accident. I’ve always been a singer. I’ve grown up in a musical household, and I just love to sing.

When we immigrated to Texas when I was like 5, my mom was like, “Let’s have you do something.” So we started in our community theater, and I just started acting. Then someone told me you could put it together, and I was like, “Wait, you can sing and act at the same time? Why not?”

I discovered that love, and I just kept going.

You’re 19 years old. Knowing the songs in this musical are so 2000s, ’90s pop heavy, what is your relationship like to those songs?

I am such a music person. I wasn’t really like a jukebox musical person before this, but this show has completely changed the game for me. I’ve always been a fan of Britney Spears and Katy Perry. I literally grew up on their songs. I can still remember the Just Dance moves to some of these songs. 

Singing these songs every night, I know that it’s just as nostalgic for the audience as it is for me. The first time that I saw this show and I heard these songs being played out in front of me, I remember feeling this nostalgia. There’s a memory that is connected to every song that I hear on stage and now it’s being turned on its head; it’s being given a completely new context.

All of this, the dialogue and the music, the way that it transitions and segues, it tells the story so perfectly — it’s like, how did Britney Spears not write this? I think I’ve definitely become a Backstreet Boys fan after being in the show.

Knowing how different your life was even a year and a half ago, how do you not get whiplash?

It’s just being present: “This is what I’m doing today.” If anything, “This is what’s happening next week,” because that’s probably something I can at least anticipate. I try not to think about too much, “What am I going to do? In a couple of months, what’s going to happen here?” We don’t have control over that. There’s no way of knowing what the future has in store for us, so it’s best to just live in the present.

I’ve taken advantage of so many things on tour. With being helped with my housing and my travel, I can just focus on living and exploring. Something that I’ve always really wanted to do is travel. 

I grew up in a little East Texas town. I always wanted to step out of my comfort zone and see different places. Like, “I know the world is much bigger than this little town.” I’ve been able to see that now, and I’m getting to meet so many cool people, see so many cool places that I’d never seen before, and it’s just the United States. The world is huge.

Going back to the Jimmy Awards — what did that competition mean to you when you were a theater team looking to get out of Tyler?

Literally everything. I never expected to actually get nominated my first year. I was like, “Y’all sure y’all picked the right girl?” when they called my name. But it’s just that I didn’t see my potential, and the judges and the people at Broadway Dallas really did see that in me. 

I was very scared. I am a very extroverted person, but that socializing aspect has really taken some time for me to develop. So you know, sophomore year me, was terrified to go to the Jimmy Awards. Every year, it honestly just got better and better.

I grew more confident in who I am as a person and my craft. The Jimmy Awards definitely did prepare me for tour in a great aspect. I developed my locked-in military mode, as I like to call it when we’re working. 

They also taught me to step out of your comfort zone, talk to someone new, smile to someone, be kind to someone, because that’s really all it takes to make the world go round. I’m very grateful for that experience, and it’s a very different experience year to year, and every year I just kept climbing. It’s kind of crazy to think about what younger me was able to do, and now what I’m capable of doing. I’ve changed so much, I’ve been able to notice it, and I’m just very proud of the work I’ve done so far. Who knows what’s next? 

Knowing that this (the Hult Center) is where the Oregon state competition for the Jimmy Awards takes place, what advice or guidance would you tell a local musical theater kid who’s thinking, “Is this something that’s for me”

Take risks, because you never know where they’re going to lead. You might be very similar to me. There might be someone who sees something in you that you don’t necessarily see in yourself. So just give it a shot. 

Don’t be afraid to embarrass yourself. It’s a rite of passage, obviously, but I feel like if you’re not scared to do something that you’ve never done before, it’s just going to set you up for all the scary things in life, and it’s just going to mold you into a person that can adapt to any situation.

Even if you don’t end up on Broadway, or an actress or singer, just do what your heart tells you in the moment, because that might help you in ways that you could never imagine.