A family friend encouraged her to participate in the selection contest for the Portuguese Cinderella, she did not win the contest but those responsible for selecting the candidates liked the contestant and invited her to defend the theme “Don’t Be Bad for Me” at the RTP Festival of Song from 1986. The theme interpreted by Dora ended up winning and she went to represent Portugal in Berga, Norway, where she was classified in 14th place.
The international version of the song includes the themes “You’re Hurting Me” and “This Will Be The Last Time”. It is then that in 1986 she releases a single with the themes “Easy” and “Seventeen” and another with the themes “Our Love” and “You’ll Never Get Me”. The theme “Easy” is included in the soundtrack of the telenovela “Corpo Santo” by Rede Manchete and a maxi-single with the themes “Easy” and “17” is released in Brazil.
In July 1987, the single “Já Dei” was released. He ended up collaborating with Onda Choc on the theme “Being an Artist Isn’t Easy”, and it was in March 1988 that he won the 1st National Music Prize, held at the Casino Peninsular in Figueira da Foz, with the theme “Déjà Vu”. This theme was selected for the final of the Festival RTP da Canção that year, however the theme chosen to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest was “Voltarei”.
She participates in the musical “Enfim Sós”, and it is in this play that she meets her husband, Jorge Paiva. She even interrupts the performances in the play due to the honeymoon that took place in Brazil. In December 1988, Dulce Pontes replaced Dora in the play “Enfim Sós”. In 1990 she participates in the OTI Festival, held in Las Vegas, with the song “Quero Acordar”.
The return
She went to live in Brazil and returned in 2001. She participated in the soundtrack of the soap opera “Lusitana Paixão” and later performed in several shows at Casino Estoril, such as “Egoísta” and “Fruta Cores”. In 2007, she had a song on the soundtrack of the soap opera Fascínios, on TVI. More recently (2012) she participated in the program “A Tua Cara Não Me É Estranha”.
In early 2014 she worked at McDonald’s, but left due to media exposure.
In 2021 she debuts at Teatro de Revista with “Vamos ao Parque” at Teatro Maria Vitória, Parque Mayer.
The lyrics are so relatable; they speak to my soul.