Rebel Girls

This season, we invited our credit readers to interview our storytellers. Today, you'll hear from Marcy Vaj who narrated the previous episode about Bebe Vio. If you haven't listened to last week's episode, now is a good time to go back and check it out! Vaj reveals how her violin bow has become her personal weapon, how feminism has changed as she's grown older, and more! [This episode originally aired June 2019.]

About Vaj:

MARCY VAJ is a busy violinist/violist, composer, personnel manager/contractor, and teacher. She has co-produced and orchestrated several albums and written countless arrangements. She received orchestration credit on "Prince of Egypt" and "Antz." Her credits include scoring the documentary "California Women Get The Vote" (2011) and the award-winning short film "Click Three Times." Since 2000, she has been a member of Composers Ensemble LA (CELA), a 12-piece composer/player workshop that writes concert pieces for the group. Marcy is a founding and touring member of The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra.

She was Sir Paul McCartney’s concertmaster for the 2012 Grammys, has a solo on the last albums of Glenn Frey (of the Eagles) and Charlie Haden (of Quartet West), and one on, Turkish piano star Kerem Gorsev’s in 2015. She also soloed in 12 chamber concerts in La Sainte Chappelle, Paris, served as concertmaster for the San Diego Chamber Orchestra under the baton of Thomas Conlin and the Zachery Opera Awards under Frank Fetta. Her string quartet is featured on the Paul Williams DVD, "I’m Going Back There Someday." In 2011 and 2012, she soloed and played principal in a chamber orchestra in London's Royal College of Music for the week of the Royal Wedding and again for the week of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

As a violinist/violist, she has accumulated hundreds of film credits including: TED, Ice Age, The Flintstones 1 & 2, Nutty Professor 1 & 2, Are We There Yet, Shrek, Armageddon, As Good As It Gets, and Matilda.

She is an adjunct professor of violin/viola at Santa Monica College and also teaches privately.

Credits:

This episode of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls is produced by Elena Favilli, Joy Fowlkes, and Meg Murnane. Sound design and original theme music by Elettra Bargiacchi. Mattia Marcelli was the sound mixer. Special thanks to Clio McClure for coordinating our credit readers and interviewers.

Once upon a time, there was a girl who wielded a sword. Her name was Beatrice Vio or “Bebe” for short. When Bebe was just 11 years old, she came down with a severe case of meningitis. She survived a quadruple amputation, forcing her to relearn almost everything. But Bebe wanted more than just to walk or brush her teeth—Bebe wanted to fence again. And beyond that, Bebe wanted to win. Using prostheses of her own invention, Bebe fenced all the way to the paralympic games. [This episode originally aired June 2019.]

About the Narrator:

MARCY VAJ is a busy violinist/violist, composer, personnel manager/contractor, and teacher. She has co-produced and orchestrated several albums and written countless arrangements. She received orchestration credit on "Prince of Egypt" and "Antz." Her credits include scoring the documentary "California Women Get The Vote" (2011) and the award-winning short film "Click Three Times." Since 2000, she has been a member of Composers Ensemble LA (CELA), a 12-piece composer/player workshop that writes concert pieces for the group. Marcy is a founding and touring member of The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. She was Sir Paul McCartney’s concertmaster for the 2012 Grammys, has a solo on the last albums of Glenn Frey (of the Eagles) and Charlie Haden (of Quartet West), and one on, Turkish piano star Kerem Gorsev’s in 2015. She also soloed in 12 chamber concerts in La Sainte Chappelle, Paris, served as concertmaster for the San Diego Chamber Orchestra under the baton of Thomas Conlin and the Zachery Opera Awards under Frank Fetta. Her string quartet is featured on the Paul Williams DVD, "I’m Going Back There Someday." In 2011 and 2012, she soloed and played principal in a chamber orchestra in London's Royal College of Music for the week of the Royal Wedding and again for the week of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. As a violinist/violist, she has accumulated hundreds of film credits including: TED, Ice Age, The Flintstones 1 & 2, Nutty Professor 1 & 2, Are We There Yet, Shrek, Armageddon, As Good As It Gets, and Matilda.

She is an adjunct professor of violin/viola at Santa Monica College and also teaches privately.

Credits:

This episode was produced by Elena Favilli, Joy Fowlkes, and Meg Murnane, with writing by Abby Sher and narration by Marcy Vaj. Jestine Ware edited all scripts and Janice Weaver fact-checked all scripts. Sound design and original theme music by Elettra Bargiacchi. Mattia Marcelli was the sound mixer. Special thanks to Clio McClure who coordinated all credit recordings and narrator donations.

Leslie Osborne, former USWNT member and co-founder of Bay FC, sat down with Junior Reporter Darcy to talk about playing in the World Cup, tearing her ACL days after making the 2008 Olympic team, and what 18 months of recovery taught her about life beyond soccer.

She also talks about the phone call that started Bay FC — and why women's sports in the Bay Area is having a major moment.

Play Rebel and Stay Rebel

Meet actress, activist, and author Diane Guerrero who brought us the story of activist and DREAMer, Lorella Praeli. Diane tells us the story of her own family’s experience with family separation and how we can all have hard conversations about immigration. [This episode originally aired December 2020.]

Born in Peru, Lorella Praeli became an activist at a young age when she stood up to middle school bullies in her small Connecticut town and, in college, came out as an undocumented immigrant. Within a few years, she became known as one of the foremost and fiercest youth advocates working to pass the DREAM Act, which would offer protections for undocumented youth. Though she became an American citizen in 2015, today, Lorella continues to fight for change and build power among immigrants in the U.S. [This episode originally aired December 2020.]

About the Narrator

Diane Guerrero is an American actress, activist and author. She is currently a Series Regular on DC Universe/HBO Max’s series DOOM PATROL. She plays “Crazy Jane,” the most powerful member of the show’s titular band of outcast superheroes. She is also known for her roles as “Sofia,” a series regular on the CBS comedy SUPERIOR DONUTS, “Maritza Ramos” on the award-winning, Emmy and Golden Globe nominated Netflix series ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK (for which she received THREE Screen Actors Guild awards) and as "Lina" in CW's break-out hit, JANE THE VIRGIN.

She was nominated for the 34th Imagen Awards, is the winner of the Lupe Ontiveros Indomitable Spirit Award by the National Hispanic Media Coalition and Variety had named her one of the top 10 Latina actresses to watch: Variety's Top Ten Latinas.

Credits

This episode was a production of Rebel Girls and Boom Integrated, a division of John Marshall Media. It’s based on the book series Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. Our Executive Producers were Jes Wolfe and Katie Sprenger. This season was produced by John Marshall Cheary, Victoria Gruenberg, and Robin Lai. Corinne Peterson was our Production Manager. This episode was written by Alexis Stratton and edited by Katie Sprenger. Proofread by Ariana Rosas. Elettra Bargiacchi created sound design, and composed and performed the original theme. Mattia Marcelli was the sound mixer.