Syesha Mercado is catching her dream.

With a debut album on the way, the onetime “American Idol” finalist is keeping herself in the spotlight, in the glamorous role of Deena Jones in a production of “Dreamgirls.” It has been nearly two years since she was dismissed from “Idol,” an experience Mercado said prepared her well for the show business career she is now enjoying, as part of a touring company of the Broadway classic.

After a short run at the legendary Apollo Theatre in Harlem, the rags-to-riches musical opened this month at the CTG/Ahmanson Theatre, and has been playing to full houses every night. With music by Academy Award nominee Henry Krieger, it follows the story of an up-and-coming 1960s girl group, The Dreams, chronicling the triumphs and tribulations that come with their quick rise to fame.

In a telephone interview conducted prior to the show’s March 2 opening, Mercado was in the process of moving into a temporary apartment in the Hollywood area. She will only be in town through the show’s L.A. run, then it’s off to another city — then another, and another. The travel may be taxing, but she’s looking forward to sharing Deena’s story with audiences across the U.S. Perhaps that is because although she once dreamed of taking on the emotionally challenging role of Effie (which earned Jennifer Hudson an Academy Award), it is actually Deena’s trajectory with which Mercado identifies closely.

“Deena has her eyes on fame and making it in the music industry, and that’s been my goal, too,” said Mercado. “That’s the goal of these three sisters who want to be superstars. So I can relate. And Deena … she’s ambitious. I see myself like that, and [at] the same time, when I was younger I was very gullible — and at times I still am.”

While some performers might relish the seeming ease of taking on a character with whom they share so many similarities (a situation Mercado called “life imitating art”), she said it wasn’t necessarily easy to embrace the part. In her words, that’s because “when one shares a lot of similarities with a character, it’s harder to play the role, because the vulnerability is there. Playing Deena every night reminds me that one has to live life in the moment.”

Without question, Mercado has felt the pressure and uncertainty that comes with the fast track to prominence in the entertainment industry. “You find out who is on your side, who is there for you, very quickly,” she said. “Sometimes people think that [with fame] you’re changing, but they don’t understand that it’s just your life situation and circumstances that are changing, it’s not you. …You learn real quick who your real friends are, because people start treating you different. … So you have to sort of detach yourself from that sort of negative energy.”

For a young woman — she turned 23 in January — it might surprise some to learn that the glamour of “Dreamgirls” is not Mercado’s prime motivator on the road. There’s much more, she said. “These sisters’ stories show us the struggle that African-Americans had to [endure] to get their music to a larger audiences,” she said. “‘Dreamgirls’ deals with a lot of important themes that are still very relevant today, that people in the ‘60s had to deal with … that still need to be resolved.”

Since she will be in L.A. for a while, Mercado is taking advantage of her surroundings — and the limited down time — to work on her own music. With her own work, Mercado said she doesn’t want to be packaged into one particular genre.

“Genres put people in boxes,” she said. “If I could, I would title my music ‘universal,’ because there are so many sides to me and there are so many different elements that I love about music,” she said. “But don’t get me wrong, I love pop, and R&B, and the Beatles, I grew up in a musical family, I grew up exposed to different genres. But with my album, I want it to symbolize what speaks from my heart — so it will be a mixture of everything.”

“Dreamgirls” runs through April 4 at the Center Theatre Groups’ Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. (213) 972-4400