Hats and Hot Cocoa: Fancy Nancy Holiday Tea

The only thing we at BACT love more than Fancy Nancy is drinking hot chocolate with her!  Last month, some very special fans and donors enjoyed a cup of hot cocoa and a behind the scenes talk with Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas creative team members costume designer, Amy Bobeda, and director, Hannah Dworkin.

Hannah presented the model box--a tiny version of the set, and explained the role of director, making comparisons to the responsibilities of a teacher managing a classroom.  She demonstrated how the scenes shift from store to living room, bedroom to neighbor's house.  Amy displayed several mood boards--a designer's tool for conveying mood, color, and fabric ideas, while explaining the challenges of buying costumes rather than buying clothes, especially for adults playing children.

Generously hosted by Revival Bar and Kitchen (which is family friendly and now open for brunch!), families enjoyed delicious treats, cocoa with extra marshmallows, and when they weren't snacking crafted fun foam wreathes to take home. 

After the presentation and "tea," guests were surprised by a special appearance by Fancy Nancy herself!  They struck their fanciest poses while comparing boas, tiaras, and fascinators--a fancy word for "tiny hat."

Thanks to all those fancy and fabulous guests who came out for what we're hoping is our first annual Fancy Nancy Tea Party, and to our friends at Revial Bar and Kitchen for the scrumptious treats!

If you're interested in future special events, make sure to subscribe to our mailing list, and follow us on social media!

Charlette's Blog: A Holiday Interview with Fancy Nancy

Charlette caught up with Fancy Nancy star, Allison Meneley, after a performance.  Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas

Tickets and More Info: http://bactheatre.org/shows/FancyNancyChristmas

November 26-December 29 at The Osher Studio in downtown Berkeley.

I interviewed Allison Meneley who plays Nancy in Fancy Nancy's Splendiferous Christmas. Her mother inspired her to act. When she was about 8 years old her mother put her in a drama camp during summer. She liked it so much she caught the theater bug. I asked what she liked most about this play. She said she really liked her theater family. She met them a few months ago. Her theater family makes it fun to act and work for B.A.C.T. She didn't like the hair piece because it's alot of maintenance which is a fancy word for alot to take care of. It's almost like it has its own part period. She got her experience by going to the same drama camp every summer, and then she even started to teach it.  She started with singing and loved it then she did dancing and loved that too.  She went to college, and now she's getting her masters in theater education, so she can inspire kids like me.

 When she started working for B.A.C.T.  she helped out back staged for the play Edward Tulane. She was an understudy which is a fancy word for someone that knows your part and can fill in for you when your too sick or tired, for the original Fancy Nancy, Rhonda the 2 sport twins. She also did the Lady Bug Girl tour. She really likes all her parts for many difference reasons. Like the original Fancy Nancy because she made all her best friends in that show. She read the Fancy Nancy books and she was so happy to bring it to life on stage.  She did have to look in the book to see how Fancy Nancy poses and her clothes. 

She grew up watching plays and her first one was Phantom of the Opera when she was 9. One of her favorite plays in New York is Spring Awakening.  She saw it last year.  She also really enjoyed Finding Neverland. The advice she would give all young actors is to never lose sight of who you are and don't lose sight in the fun.  She is a great actor and I hope I see her again. I really enjoyed the show. 

Julietta Blogs: Interview with Fancy Nancy!

BACT Blogger Julietta is back! This time, she got to sit down with Miss Fancy Nancy herself, the talented actor Catherine Bartomeo! Julietta is a Bay Area native.  She enjoys art, crafting, theater, nature, and outdoors. In 8 years of soaking up creative talents, she has found many outlets for her creative energy. Activities such as Rainbow Loom, 4-H classes, Lego building and cartwheels take up most of her time.

---

The Fancy Nancy play was magnefique!! The Fancy Nancy books are about a girl named Nancy who loves being fancy. The play was about the book Fancy Nancy and the Deep Sea Ballet, where Fancy Nancy is going to be in a school play about the ocean, and she wants to be a mermaid, but instead,she is a tree. When she finds out her best friend Bree is the mermaid, she is mad. She wants to be happy for Bree, but she wanted to be the mermaid. At the end, she finds out even though she is a tree in the play, she can still be fancy. My favorite part was the shark rap song. All the characters did a great job in the performance to make the play a fun and fancy experience. Even the audience dressed up fancy! I love reading Fancy Nancy and the play is very fun to see. I think Bay Area Children's Theatre does the best at plays and is my favorite theater to go to and watch plays. I cant wait for the next season for the theater and already know it is going to be amazing like always. I really love bay area childrens theater and highly recommend it to anyone who has never seen their plays.
 

Catherine Bartomeo as Fancy Nancy and Derricka Smith as Bree!

I got to interview with Katie who is playing Fancy Nancy. She gets into character by warming up with the cast by singing a song and thinking about her character. Her advice for kids who want to act is that they should take theater and voice lessons. Her favorite part of the fancy Nancy play is when she finds out she is a tree for the school play instead of a mermaid. Her favorite play she has been in was Cosette in Les Miserables. Her favorite Fancy Nancy book is Fancy Nancy and the Deep Sea Ballet. Her favorite fancy word is Ooh la la. Her favorite part of preparing for plays is getting to research her character. Her favorite fancy accessory is her seashell crown. She has loved being fancy and dressing up since she was little so she thinks it is very great and fun getting to play Fancy Nancy.
 

---

Fancy Nancy, the Musical runs thru May 3rd in Berkeley, May 9-17 in San Ramon (all performances are sold out!), May 23-June 7 in Mill Valley, and June 13-21 in San Francisco. Click here for tickets and more info!