Camren Bicondova
Catty
Sixteen-year-old Camren Bicondova has been tasked with the very unique duty of playing a teenage Cat-woman (or should we say girl?) Last season, FOXs Gotham introduced the very petite, yet mesmerizing former dancer as Selina Kyle, street kid, ally, and future feline-female. In a year, Bicondova’s life has changed considerably, with the success of the series. But what’s it like to be the youngest person to play the famed character? Let alone at an age fans had yet to see. Meet the new and frankly, gorgeous Selina Kyle.
Q: You’re a California girl, hailing from San Diego. What’s it been like for you filming Gotham in New York City?
A: It’s been an amazing transition from the West coast to the East Coast. I love it here! I love the people, I love the food. I definitely miss being close to the beach. The winters are really cold here. But other than that I’m really enjoying myself.
Q: You’ve been here for a full season and now you’re back for season two. Any favorite spots in the city?
A: I’m a bit of a foodie so I like trying new restaurants. I also like walking around, running by the river and just chilling hanging out. Nonetheless, eating is my favorite part though!
Q: What sticks out to you when you think back on your time on America’s Best Dance Crew?
A: It was definitely a growing experience. For one, I turned 13, so that was a big deal (laughs). Aside from that, I got to be sequestered for three months with a group of girls I was friends with, which was amazing. The difficult part was that we lost a group member’s mother to Cancer while we were competing, so that was definitely an event that taught me and the crew a lot. We learned to stay together through the good and bad. None of us really thought of it as a competition. We saw it as a showcase where we were able to showcase our art form. What’s great about dance is that you’re able to express how you feel without speaking. I would much rather express myself in movement than talk about it. In the end, we were able to form a dance dedicated to the mother of our group member, which showed how we were feeling at the time.
The show’s great, great casting all around. What was it like auditioning for Cat-woman?
It was a long process, that’s for sure. I auditioned four times or so. It was a mock audition. The name of my Character was Lucy. So, when I would read the breakdown it sounded a lot like cat-woman. I remember it describing her as an orphan, street thief, very,you know–agile. I thought, okay I’ll figure this out. For the final audition I choreographed a set of cat movements. My cat; Mr. G also helped me a bit. Although he was pretty annoyed with me because I wouldn’t leave him alone for about 3 days. I’d stalk him, see how he walked or how he jumped when I threw something; little stuff like that. I took some inspiration from him as well as my dance experience. A bit of everything and just put it together. Turns out I was playing Selina Kyle!
Q:What’s to come for Selina Kyle in season two?
A: She is going to be struggling to figure out where she fits in, whether she’s a good guy or bad guy. Because she knows the difference between right and wrong, she just has different perspectives on it. We’re also going to see a big part of her backstory, which I’m really excited about.
Q: Cat-woman has been played by a few names before you. Do you have a personal favorite?
A: I can’t pick. I feel like every woman who has played her has brought a different perspective. I love Julie Newmar because there’s this one scene in the 60s show where she’s trying to persuade Batman to do something, and he says; “you’re a beautiful woman cat-woman.” In response she goes; “Ugh, I know,” and I just thought that was the greatest thing. However, I also got to meet Lee Meriwether at Comiccon, that was pretty cool. I’m just happy to be a part of the cat-woman clan!
Q: I know the OC wasn’t exactly a show for your generation. However, did you freak out the slightest bit when you learned you’d be working alongside Benjamin Mckenzie?
A: Oh yeah! I loved Ben in the OC! I watched the OC with my parents. He’s great. I was excited when I saw the whole cast honestly. You know, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Donald Lowe, Ben Mckenzie, those are pretty big names and I was intimated to say the least. This being my first TV show, with all these big names. It was and is crazy.
Q: So, you and the the cast attended Comiccon in San Diego this past summer. What was that like for you?
A: It was tiring, but you have so much adrenaline that the day goes by really quickly. Last season when we went to comiccon, nobody knew what the show was going to be like, but there was still a lot of hype. This time around there was even more hype. It’s Great to know people are enjoying the work we put into it, because it’s a lot of work.
How old were you when you started dancing?
I was five years old when I started. My mother noticed that I liked to dance, so she found a studio in San Diego and she had me go to dance classes while she would go to the gym, and it just kind of happened from there. My first love was ballet,but I consider myself a Hip-Hop dancer. I think it’s kind of funny how that worked out. When I was little, my mother said I would dance around to classical music in my room. Now I’m listening to tupac and stuff like that, so that’s interesting.
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photography JOSH REED www.joshreed.com
styling TAYLOR SHERIDAN www.taylorstylist.com
makeup NICOLE WALMSLEY at The Wall Group using Kate Somerville and TARTE Cosmetics
hair IAN JAMES at The Wall Group
Production Bello Media Group | Words by Dio Anthony
