Hey guys! So, Mallory Brown here with another great BAMM Event to report on. On September 10th, the BAMM Squad performed a “flash mob” at the Lafayette Library’s Celebrate the Magic Gala. For those of you who don’t know what a flash mob is (don’t worry, I didn’t know at first either!), it is basically a surprise performance in which people randomly jump out from inside a crowd and start singing and dancing to a choreographed song. So, basically, it is the most insane, fun, and crazy thing in the world! We performed two songs at this gala: “ABC” by the Jackson Five, and “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey, and we also danced and opened up the dance floor while the host band played “Celebrate”. We were a major hit! We emptied the entire library and the guests were excited and eager to be a part of the fun. After the flash mob ended, BAMM member Alissa Mercado said, “The PPF did a fantastic job at the library gala! We went above and beyond our expectations and had a blast pumping up the guests. Overall it was a lot of fun and well worth all our hard work.” I couldn’t have said it better myself! We spent countless hours perfecting the dance, (a big thanks to Justin Cole, our extremely talented choreographer), and making sure everything was just right. And thankfully, it turned out great! According to Nick Tarabini, “The Library Gala was one of the most successful events we have done, and I feel like it set a newer, better performance standard for the BAMM Squad and the PPF as a whole.” We can’t wait to have more performances like this, and we are especially excited for the upcoming abridged performance of Wish Upon A Star this November at Children’s Hospital in Oakland!

The night started off with Disney Karaoke while we waited for the sky to darken enough to watch the feature presentation. “I loved getting to sing my favorite Disney songs with my favorite people, and it was a great way to start the school year!” said family branch member Liza Horn. The Family Branch had planned this event weeks in advance and worked very hard to make the night special for everyone. Jess Walsh, co-leader of the family branch, said, “Movie night was so much fun! It was great to see everybody having a good time. This was definitely worth all of our hard work.” It was a perfect way for the PPF to kick off the new school year! And, if you missed this event or just can’t wait to hang out with your PPF friends again, the October family event will be a spook-tastic Halloween party, so start putting together your costumes and get ready for a night of tricks and treats!

An exciting new element has also been added to the cabaret nights: The Wild Card Box. Anyone who pays the $5 general admission to the cab night is able to sign up for a wild card pick. Several open slots are left open throughout the night, and the hosts select about three names at random for Wild Card Performances. Performance branch co-leader Cathrine Delos Santos said, “Cab night was so fun and so inspiring knowing that there are so many talented people in PPF. Also I loved hearing some songs I’ve never heard before, and hearing it for the first time from a PPFer is a million times better. The new Wild card box was really exciting not knowing who will get called or what they’ll do. It was a success and a lot of people actually signed up!” Be sure to sign up for our upcoming Cabaret Night in October, and mark your calendars for cab nights every last Sunday of the month.

Hey guys, Troy Carlson and Mallory Brown here with your first taste of TAMPH (Troy and Mallory’s Power Hour).

The first BAMM meeting of the year was last Sunday and it was productive to a degree absolutely out-of-this-world! According to Miles Inserra, our newly elected BAMM Squad President, “Compared to the first BAMM squad meeting five years ago, this meeting was 10 times better.” We couldn’t agree more, Miles! Sunday’s meeting covered not only our expectations for the new year of BAMM, but we also set up a mind-blowing 45 events for this upcoming year! Our vice president Audrey Vogel was sure right when she exclaimed that ‘this will be our best year yet’. Why the sudden boost in productivity you ask? Well, we asked first year BAMM member Tiana Paulding the exact same question. She replied, “I think BAMM is going to be very productive because we have a lot of people who are willing to make it so.” And boy was she right! Keep an eye out for more TAMPH articles right here, and check back soon for a PPF Calendar with every PPF and BAMM Squad event date from September to December. Also, don’t forget about auditions for The Thirteen Days of Christmas, written by our own Jayne Skinner and Andrew Cope, coming up on the third weekend of September. See you there!

The Day of Respect sounds exactly like what is it is. It is a day where middle schools students are taught what respect really is and how respecting others is essential and important in their own lives and others’. Nowadays teens sometimes forget how to be respectful of themselves and others around them. BAMM Squad was honored to be asked by Stanley Middle School to write and perform an assembly for their Day of Respect. So, the BAMM Squad got together and brainstormed ideas about how we wanted to portray the message of respect to these Stanley kids. We narrowed it down so that we could turn these ideas into a performance. We took each idea and made a short skit and then added narration to explain and point out important details about the different scenes and situations. We performed our 30-minute assembly twice in front of what totaled to be over 1,000 students, administrators, parents, and facilitators, and it was a huge success! Our three skits were about how racial comments, bullying and harassment are never okay. We talked about alternatives to these behaviors and even challenged the kids to say one nice thing to someone every single day.
The Day of Respect was one of the most influential and inspiring days the BAMM Squad has experienced in a long time. From the moment the kids walked through the doors to watch the assembly, we could feel the buzz of excitement coming from the curious students. They were attentive and responsive as we performed the assembly, and we caught a few moments that showed us how truly affected they were by our performance. As we sang the last note of the song Beautiful by Christina Aguilera, we noticed the awed audience: students were sitting there, completely star-struck, the administration (including the counselors who recruited us) was nodding in contented approval, and some parents, teachers, and students were even crying. After the assembly, all kinds of responses came in: some kids simply said “that was amazing, thank you,” while others came up to us in tears telling us they have either been the victims of what had been demonstrated in the skits we showed, or even admitted to doing what was demonstrated as well.
Teachers and facilitators thanked us for expressing so deeply what they see everyday, and were eager to get back to their classrooms to discuss what they had seen.
We later got reports that the kids were blown away by the BAMM Squad’s talent and sincerity. Teachers told us that it sparked conversation and discussion within the classrooms. Still weeks later, we are still reminded how important the assembly was to the students, and that it was the best part of their day.
The BAMM Squad was so honored to be a part of this incredible day at Stanley Middle School. We learned just as much as we taught, and still think everyday about what we demonstrated in the assembly and how we can live up to that example. We have learned that teaching is the best way to learn; through teaching the Stanley students about respect, we have taught ourselves the same lesson. All in all, performing this assembly was a perfect way to not only remind others how important respect is, but to also reflect upon our own lives and learn from our own words.

Tragedy, triumph, incredible talent, and a brush with stardom – Noel’s story has it all, and then some. She could have taken her talent elsewhere; the opportunities were certainly offered. She had (and still has) the artistry, drive, passion, and charisma to make it on Broadway, yet she made a conscientious decision to remain in the area so that she might inspire others to use their talents for positive change.

An accomplished and aspiring singer who dreamed of a Broadway career, Noel had just been offered a European gig by Luciano Pavarotti’s voice teacher, when she woke up on her 17th birthday unable to move her lower body. The diagnosis was Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare nerve disorder that paralyzed Noel and sent her to the hospital for months.

“It’s a deadly disease, but my doctor claims I saved my own life with my smile,” says the indefatigable Noel. “My positive attitude got me through, and I haven’t stopped smiling since.”

She managed to graduate from Acalanes High School in 1999, and proceeded to perform in local theater for the next few years while conducting private voice lessons and working at Max’s Opera Café. In 2002, she decided to combine her teaching and performing skills with her desire to help others and staged the first of many recitals benefiting Children’s Hospital Oakland.

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