The Buzz Intro Interview | Botticelli Babes

Respondent: Casadie Smith
Position in Company: Co-creator, co-producer, co-director, and co-performer of Botticelli Babes
Company: Botticelli Babes
Show Title: Botticelli Babes

“Through this show, we have discovered that it isn’t only infamous women who have been flattened by the narratives written by a patriarchal system, but all women are flattened by these narratives.”

Why should people see your show?

History has taken the stories of women and has stripped them of their flesh, leaving us with nothing but the bones. However, the Botticelli Babes encourage audiences as hungry for the truth as they are to join them in sucking the marrow out of the untold stories of history’s most infamous women. This show aims to give audiences never-before-seen-or-heard perspectives of the lives of women whose reputations precede them, and who have been turned into incomplete archetypes by which women today are measured and judged. The hope of the Botticelli Babes, Casadie and Cynthia, is that by joining them for this interactive comedy storytelling experience, audiences will find themselves empowered and will in turn empower the women in their lives.

What about festivals intrigues you? And why the Atlanta Fringe?

Festivals, and specifically Fringe Festivals, are a place to truly romp and let the most unique parts of your artistry shine. Atlanta is a city deeply rooted in that unique artistry, and the Atlanta Fringe Festival is a gleaming example of that history. We have found storytelling to exist in the space between education and theatre, and this often means that our vocation and medium is misunderstood and hard to place. The Atlanta Fringe is a refuge for the artists who exist in the in-betweens, and we are very excited to be joining this year’s group of performers.

What inspired you to create this?

When Cynthia and I met, we were studying storytelling in our graduate program. We both had an instantaneous connection to women’s history as a focus of the stories we researched and told, but we were greatly disappointed by the profound lack of nuance that accompanied the stories we had read and heard about history’s infamous and misaligned women. One day, while sitting on the old yellow couch at Appalachian Moon Studio, we talked about how we could relate to the flattening of our own characters by men who write narratives that rightfully belong to us, and we joked about creating a show that made these women more multi-faceted and empowered, as we desire to be as modern women. As our laughs died down, we looked at one another with great sincerity, and asked, “But what if we actually…?” That summer, we spent hundreds of hours researching, writing, and crafting Botticelli Babes.

Life has been weird the last few years, to say the least. How has the “real world” affected the art you’re creating?

The COVID pandemic created a dire sense of isolation among many artists, and an increased sense of panic and urgency in the world-at-large has driven innovation and has pushed artists to connect in unexpected ways. We have found that through strife, the art that we create is how we build community, and how we ultimately survive. While the “real world” has made certain aspects of storytelling performance difficult to maintain, we have found that it has forced us to return to the foundations of our art form in order to advance it. As we understand it, stories are the basis of all human connection. It seems that as people seek new ways of connecting, stories remain the most powerful way to do so.

What have you learned from working on your show so far?

There is much to be learned from the lives of women, both throughout history and today. As we have researched the women we tell stories about, we have found that history has turned them into untouchable archetypes, forcing an unfair narrative and a limited understanding of them as people. Through this show, we have discovered that it isn’t only infamous women who have been flattened by the narratives written by a patriarchal system, but all women are flattened by these narratives. This show has helped us to be more equipped to empower ourselves, as well as the women around us. It has also taught us the importance and power of improv! Botticelli Babes is a show with a skeleton that we work within, but much that we deliver comes to us in the moment. In working on this show, we have learned how to better trust ourselves as performers who have thoroughly researched the women we share with audiences, as well as how to better trust one another to go with the flow and ride along with whatever might happen during each individual performance!

A mysterious stranger asks to meet you and your cast and crew after loving your show. In your WILDEST DREAMS, who is it? (Bonus points if your mysterious stranger is an Atlanta celeb.)

Does Cardi B still own a home in ATL? I think she’d really vibe with our show. Cardi has been very vocal about her appreciation for women’s history (Hello, Eleanor Roosevelt!), and her sense of humor and iconic laugh would be a great addition to any audience. Whether or not she ever sees our show, she’s already an honorary Botticelli Babe!

Fringes are the place to really push the boundaries so we gotta ask: are you inviting your family to this show are “Hey, maybe sit this one out you guys…”

Our show does contain some adult language and allusions to sex, murder, and other themes that may not be appropriate for all audiences. We recommend that anyone under the age of 18 is accompanied by an adult. While we think children are great, this may not be the show for them! Otherwise, this is something to which we’d invite our grandmas.

Will your show change the world?

It’s not our show that will change the world, but the people who use what they learn from it. As Toni Cade Bambara said, “The role of the artist is to make revolution irresistible.” Our job as artists is to present a vehicle for change, and our hope is that we make that desire for a better world–in which *all* women are empowered to dismantle the patriarchy that has so long flattened us–absolutely irresistible.

AI: the death of our art form or just a new tool to create?

AI presents such a terrifying (and yet incredibly interesting) challenge to artists. I believe that AI has proven time and time again that, while it can be a useful tool for creation, it will never be able to replace the humanity that is so intrinsic to art. We have seen what has been produced by AI, and it always rings hollow. It’s missing the most important piece of art: The soul.