In 2004, a few fans asked Melissa some questions and since then, Melissa has been answering these and more for us! Now, on the message board we have a special Question & Answer section where Melissa can answer your questions at her own pace! Here' are the Q&As so far! Enjoy! Jackie from Kent, OH: What's your favorite pizza topping? "Jackie, PIZZA!!! I love it so much, yet I rarely have it. (I don't do dairy nor can I have much tomato...singers sometimes have strange dietary issues) It has to be a treat for me. On Sunday nights, (the last show of the week for us at Wicked was Sundays), I would sometimes allow myself a slice (or TWO) and I was in complete heaven! The slices in NY were HUGE! I loved Luigi's, on 8th Ave./54th street. They also have the most incredible breaded chicken cutlet salad, w/huge olives and amazing dressing. Oh my Gawd, my mouth is watering!!! Favorite topping is so tough to answer...I'm one of those freaks who likes anchovies, also, mushrooms, or mushroom & fresh tomato, or just plain ...I'm so hungry, did I even eat dinner? Have you ever tried Canadian Bacon & Pinapple? SOOO good! There you go chickie, Melissa" Heather from Altoona, PA: What made you want to get into theatre? When you were younger, what did you want to be? What are some of your nicknames now and when you were little? "To Heather, Thanks for your questions! I feel like I've been in theatre all my life. I started in dance classes when I was three. My teachers always taught us "song and dance" type routines for the recitals, so I was singing and dancing from a very young age! My parents always brought my brothers and I to Broadway shows and to Radio City when we lived in New York. In California it didn't stop, we always went to theatre in L.A. (as well as took many trips back to NY to see shows) and we grew up on sound stages for TV shows, because my Dad was in TV production and syndication. My Dad is also a jazz musician (drummer), so I grew up with a ton of music! All I ever wanted was to be a performer... dance, music, acting...it all just came together as a package to me...a natural fit! (By the way, 2 of my brothers are actors, who also write and direct, one of which is also a stand up comedian, and my oldest brother is a jazz trombonist.) This is what we all do...it's What we ALL wanted! Nicknames, let's see: Mel, Missy, Melvin, Missy Melissy, Miss Meliss, Melly Mel, and my most favorite from Wicked: Fahny! Much happiness to you Heather! Melissa Fahn" Angie from Hagerstown, MD: What part of your personality is present in each of your characters? What was it like working with Jhonen Vasquez? If you could go to any country, which would you go to and why? "Hi Angie, Thanks for your questions and sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Well, I definitely loved playing EDWARD because of the sheer playfulness of her. She is so youthful and full of so much optimism and she is one smart cookie too. I drew from all of those parts of myself in creating her. GAZ and RIKA are tough little girls...tougher and stronger than I ever was as a little girl. Creating them was like creating who I would have liked to have been at their age. I somehow felt very close to RIKA and was so proud of her growth in the end! We felt each other's pain and grew up together sort of! Jhonen is quite an exceptional human being. He is articulate, intelligent and COMPLETELY OUT THERE!!! He had a very clear vision of what he wanted and I felt honored to work with him. Which country...hmmmm...I would have to say Italy. I have been there once before. We travelled through Rome, Florence and the entire Tuscan region and I simply did not get enough. I would go back again and again and again. I love to cook, it is a passion for me! We went to local markets and picked the freshest ingredients and made the most incredible meals!!! The flavors of Italy...wines, herbs, olives, breads and pastas, cured meats like you have never tasted. Don't get me wrong, though, we made sure we ate out a lot and it was just amazing!!! But you cannot mention Italy if you do not talk about the churches, cathedrals, museums...My God...The Colosseum and The Forum in Rome. The history and architecture are astounding and the people are wonderful!! Yes, Italy it is! Much Happiness to you Angie! Melissa Fahn" Anthony from North Olmsted, OH: What kind of music do you listen to? What's your favorite color? "Hi Anthony, Great questions...sorry for the delay in getting back to you! I really have an eclectic ear for music. I come from a family of jazz musicians (as well as actors) (and my hubby is a jazz musician)...so my brothers and I all grew up listening to Jazz. From Miles Davis to Antonio Carlos Jobim...I love everything from straight ahead and bebop to EVERYTHING Latin influenced...Brazilian and Salsa, oh my God, I love it! I really love Pat Metheny and an awesome bassist/singer named Richard Bona. Cesaria Evora is so beautiful too! I also really love the funk! From the oldies like Stevie Wonder, Donnie Hathaway, Earth Wind And Fire and Marvin Gaye to Jamiroquai, Donnie and Macy Gray. I really just love and appreciate music...I can sit and listen to classical and head banging rock too...I guess I just go with my moods!!! Favorite Color? That is so hard! I think my favorite colors of late are shades of deep red and burgundy. Thanks Anthony...My Best To You Always, Melissa Fahn" Sophia from El Paso, TX: What made you get into voice acting? What's your favorite role that you've played (theatre AND voice)? What's your favorite swear word? "Hi Sophia, Thanks for your questions and I apologize for the delay in getting back to you, I got into Voice acting on a complete lark! In a nutshell, when I moved out of my parents house, I took a part-time day job as a receptionist for a commercial editing house. It was a great job because they let me out for any auditions I had. One day I accepted a package from a voice-over casting director, in which she was hand delivering herself to my bosses. She asked me if I was an actor and if I had ever done voice-overs. Well, I had been acting since I was a kid and I had had several callbacks for the voice of The Little Mermaid, but that was through my theatrical agent and had never thought of pursuing voice acting...though many people, including this casting director, told me that I really should! She asked me to make a tape for her, but before I had a chance to , she called a few days later and asked me to come in and audition for the new voice of Betty Boop. I got it and the rest is history! My favorite role that I've played, thus far, in theatre is Maria in West Side Story. The music is classic and glorious and the part gets to grow and soar. I loved every moment! My favorite in voice-acting is so hard to answer. I had an amazing time creating EDWARD...the director gave me free reign to just play and play and to find all of the crazy little nuances that are ED...those were amazing sessions! Because there were so many episodes of Digimon, I spent the most time creating RIKA. I am really proud of how she grew on that show...and in a way, we sort of grew up together! I loved portraying her. Swear word? Well, I say F#@K ...so that must be the one!!! Sometime it's MUTHA F#@KA! But I can never say them with a straight face!! Take care Sophia and my best to you always, Melissa Fahn" Madonna from MN: What's your favourite song from the Cowboy Bebop soundtracks? What was your favourite non-Edward related Bebop session? "Hi Madonna, Well I am embarrassed to say that I don't own the soundtrack CD. Though my friend Emily Bindiger sang several tunes on the CD and I loved them when she played them for me! I do love the whole Jazz/Bebop influence throughout... because I am a lover of Jazz music and those are my roots! I also love all of Edward's little themes... especially the trick-or-treat pumpkin-on-the head sequences in the movie. Well, all of my sessions were Edward related and I always worked alone with the director and engineer, so your next question is super hard to answer. All of my Bebop sessions were truly amazing...we had an absolute blast creating the character and I really got to just play and play and play!! It's very gratifying for an actor to be able to really let go, enjoy the moment and just create! I hope that's a good enough answer! Happiness and Best Wishes to you Madonna, Melissa Fahn" Answered 12/21/04 on the board: Anthony: Hey Melissa. Some questions I have for you whenever you get around to answering. 1.) How did you hear about "Wicked" and how did you get cast in the ensemble. I was also curious about the character of Dorothy. I heard she was originally in the musical (I presume you played her?) but they had to cut her out because of legal issues or something. Just curious. 2.) Do you have plans to do any cartoons in the future? Two cartoons I'd love to hear you in, Teen Titans and The Batman (I think your voice would be perfect for Harley Quinn, if they ever put her in there). That's all. I could ask you questions all day but I won't. Thank you for doing this Melissa. You truly rock! Melissa: Anthony...YOU truly rock, Here's my WICKED story. Back in early fall 2000 I had a message on my answering machine from Mr. Stephen Schwartz himself, asking if I'd be interested in being involved in a reading of a new musical he wrote based on a novel of the same name. I had to listen to the message several times...not an assistant or a secretary calling...but HIM!!! I had never met him before either. I was instantly impressed! Myself and ensemble member Walter O'neill are the only two who started at that first reading who were asked to do all the readings and workshops and then Broadway. (Even before KC and IM)!!! At the same time, I was also asked to be a part of another Stephen Schwartz musical workshop called SNAPSHOTS...in which I did several of those too. Dorothy...yes she was a more significant part...I did play her from the very beginning...and yes there were licensing issues. Thanks for the questions! Melissa Jackie & Heather: Just out of curiosity because Heather and I are on the phone discussing vocal ranges and we know that you can hit hella high notes... what's your full range? Melissa: Hi Girlies, I'm what is called a coloratura soprano...which means I sing way up in the rafters! What's odd though, is that I also have a strong lower range too...and I love that! (Actual range is F below Low C to F above High C...3 octaves.) I tend to throw people off who are used to hearing my soprano and out comes the rich lower tones. I love singing, I love music and just using my voice...can you tell? I'm really a geek...huh? Heather: Dude. Melissa. What the eff is your middle name? I'm stumped! This could be like hangman... is there an.. M? Melissa: Dude, I don't have one! Just plain ol' Melissa Fahn!! There you guys go! Hopefully we'll have more in the future! Enjoy! This Page is a part of Mille Baci.