The Buzz: Petaluma’s Katie Babb talks about returning to the stage

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Petaluma’s Katie Babb and her “Fantastical” return to the stage: It’s been six years since the last time Katie Babb performed on stage, but for several years there the NYU Theater major had high-profile roles in a number of professional touring shows, including “Into the Woods” (Cinderella), “Merrily We Roll Along” (Beth), and “Fiddler on the Roof,” with Harvey Fierstein as Tevye. She played Hodel in “Fiddler.”

Babb, by the way, is her stage name. In Petaluma, she’s better known as Katie Rain.

About seven years ago, she made a change, leaving the stage behind, becoming a mother to two kids, and eventually segueing into her current career as an award-winning photographer. She’s also recently earned a certification as a breath-work healer.

“I really didn’t plan to be back on stage any time soon,” she says. But then she heard from an old friend, Matthew Rossoff, with whom she’d worked for 18 months as part of the “Fiddler on the Roof” tour, in 2009 and 2010.

“I saw that he did a show with Transcendence Theatre Company,” Babb notes, “and when applications came out for this year’s season, I talked to Matthew and asked if he thought I should maybe apply to be a part of the company this year. And he said, ‘You should definitely be a part of this, and I’m going to be directing the “Fantastical Family Show,” and I want you to be in it.’?”

That’s how Babb found herself back on stage, last weekend, singing and dancing in circus-themed production that called for her to perform parts of such songs as “Remember Me,” from Disney-Pixar’s “Coco,” “Somewhere Out There,” from “An American Tail,” “This is Me,” from “The Greatest Showman,” and “Zero to Hero,” from Disney’s “Hercules.”

The “Fantastical Family” show was the second production of Transcendence’s four “Broadway Under the Stars” productions this summer, the next being “Shall We Dance,” running Aug. 3-19. For Babb, the experience - which included three weeks of rehearsals and two performances in front of about 1500 people – was the right way to ease back into performing.

“I think singing ‘Somewhere Out There’ in the second act was my favorite moment,” she says. “It’s so sweet and sentimental. In our show it was a nice, quiet moment. Honestly, it was all fun. Working with Transcendence is so amazing. And as a mother of two young kids, it helps that the contract is so short. It’s not like these long runs I used to do. And the whole team is so supportive and excited, the perfect environment for someone just getting back into it.”

Now that she’s taken that step, Babb says she’s open to do more Transcendence shows in the future.

“Maybe one of their holiday shows,” she says. “That looks like fun. Maybe one of the other summertime shows. I’m not sure, but I was happy to be on stage again, and I’d love to do more, if the stars align as well as they did this time.”

(Have an idea for a BUZZ item? Drop David Templeton a line at david.templeton@arguscourier.com)

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