STARDOM STARTS EARLY\2 teens add to credits with T.O. musical.

Byline: Alicia Doyle Daily News Staff Writer

Thirty minutes before going on stage for her first dress rehearsal of "The Goodbye Girl," 12-year-old Jamie Cronin reminisced about her first community performance at the Glendale Center Theater years ago.

"It was just a little 99-seater," said Jamie, a Moorpark resident who was cast as Molly in the musical "Annie" when she was 6. "But I guess you gotta start somewhere."

Since then, the spunky seventh-grader has moved on to bigger ventures.

For the past two weeks, Jamie has been perfecting her role as Lucy - a precocious 11-year-old - in "The Goodbye Girl," a musical running at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza through Sunday.

Based on the Neil Simon movie, the musical is about a down-and-out Broadway dancer, Paula, who unexpectedly finds love with a struggling New York actor named Elliot.

"It's a humorous love story," said Jamie, whose character is Paula's daughter. Jamie describes Lucy as clever and street smart, firm and tough.

"I like playing her because she's the total opposite of me," said Jamie, a straight-A honors student at Chaparral Middle School. "She acts bratty, and I'm not. I'm more sentimental in real life."

Jamie's professional career kicked off at age 8, when she was cast as Young Cosette with the third national tour of "Les Miserables." Several years later, she played Mary Lennox in the musical "The Secret Garden," which took her throughout the United States and Canada.

While daily rehearsals for the Thousand Oaks show have taken Jamie away from her friends at school, she is never starving for company on the set.

Thirteen-year-old Marisa Viramontes of Simi Valley, who plays Lucy's close friend Cynthia, is often by Jamie's side, in Jamie's dressing room and on the stage behind the scenes.

"We've become good friends working together," said Marisa, an eighth-grader at Sequoia Junior High.

The Neil Simon musical is Marisa's first professional performance, following an acting/singing/dancing career that began when she was 3.

Just last year, the youngster performed in musicals including "The King and I," "The Music Man," "Jesus Christ Superstar," and "Oliver."

In between rehearsals for "The Goodbye Girl," Marisa fits in four hours of independent study five days a week. While her calendar may be booked, the youngster doesn't have a hard time staying on top of things.

"It's easy," said Marisa, who maintains that being an actress isn't stressful at her age. "The first time I auditioned for a show, I was really scared. But now it's fun."

Despite the makeup, spotlights and high-profile roles, Marisa and Jamie are typical adolescents - young girls interested in friends, hobbies and music.

In her spare time, Jamie loves to roller-skate, swim and have sleep-overs. Her favorite actress is Sandra Bullock, whom she has seen several times in the movie "While You Were Sleeping."

Jamie already has mapped out her future: to be an actress in New York, and live in an apartment with her best friend, Joanna.

Marisa hopes to someday be a dance teacher, "it doesn't matter where." Meanwhile, she will spend time with friends and listen to her favorite R&B when she's not on stage or studying.

Following performances in Thousand Oaks, the show will move on to Glendale's Alex Theater for a Tuesday through Feb. 25 run. For the Alex shows, call Telecharge at [phone].

THE FACTS

WHAT: "The Goodbye Girl" by Neil Simon.

WHEN: 8 p.m. today and Saturday, 7 p.m. Sunday. Matinees at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

WHERE: Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd.

COST: $32.50.

INFORMATION: [phone].

CAPTION(S):

PHOTO

Photo (Color) Twelve-year-old Jamie Cronin of Moorpark, left, and 13-year-old Marisa Viramontes of Simi Valley appear in the musical "The Goodbye Girl" through Sunday. Adam Holzman/Special to the Daily News