BAKING YOU EVERYTHING!!
A Show for Kacey
给方欣的表演
A School, A Home and Draíocht, 2024
Join bubbly chef Bea on a quest to fulfill a special order for a new customer. Will she make it in time for the birthday party? An enchanting story filled with fun, friendship and a sprinkle of stardust. Performed through English, Irish and Mandarin Chinese.
Role: Writer
Team
Writer: Choy-Ping Ní Chléirigh-Ng 吳彩萍
Director: Jim Culleton
Performer: Hazel Clifford
Mandarin Chinese Translation and Voice Actor:
Michelle Chan Schmidt
Artistic Director of NEST: Veronica Coburn
Set and Costume Design: Deirdre Dwyer
Lighting Design: Sarah Jane Shiels
Sound Design: Jenny O'Malley
Stage Management: Órla Kelly Smith
Tech Management: John McCabe
Production Management: Barry (Baz) O'Donovan
Costume Assistant: Roisin Ní Ghabhann
Producer: Paula Quinn
Director of Draíocht: Emer McGowan
NEST is based on HOME THEATRE, an original idea by Marcus Vinicius Faustini (Brazil) and Kerry Kyriacos Michael (UK). Draíocht’s iteration, HOME THEATRE (Ireland), took place in 2018.
NEST is funded by ART: 2023, a Decade of Centenaries Collaboration between The Arts Council and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.
Process
NEST was a huge, ambitious project led by Artistic Director Veronica Coburn. 23 artists were paired with “hosts,” ranging from a few days old to 22 years old. I was one of these lucky artists. We each spent three days getting to know our host. We then we had two days to write a 20 minute piece inspired by them.
My host Kacey 方欣 is 8. I spent time with her at home and joined her in second class. BAKING YOU EVERYTHING!! was the first piece I’ve written for a young audience. It follows the story of a brave chef Bea, brought brilliantly to life by performer Hazel Clifford and director Jim Culleton. Bea goes on a daring quest to help a new customer feel at home. There was singing, dancing and a teleportation machine.
BAKING YOU EVERYTHING!! was performed twice in Kacey’s school, once in her living room and twice in Draíocht, where NEST has been based. The Draíocht performances were part of Spréacha Soar Festival for Children and Young People, where all the NEST pieces were shared in one week. More details about this special project can be found here.
Top photo: Kacey with her portrait by Una Sealy, commissioned as part of NEST. Middle photo: My drawing of Kacey. Bottom photo: From the left: Brigid Leahy (NEST writer/performer) and Hazel Clifford (performer) in costume at school, ready to premiere the new pieces.