Nancy Thomas Papers, 1970-2018

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Background

Scope and content:

The collection spans the years early 1970s until 2018. It is arranged in 4 series: Series 1 The Personal, Series 2 The Political, Series 3 Fat Lip Readers Theater, Series 4 Ephemera

Biographical / historical:

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: In 1994 Nancy Thomas offered this description of herself: “Nancy Thomas is fat, feisty and 40. She is a writer, performer, workshop leader on theater and Fat Liberation, and is a founding member of FAT LIP Readers Theater. She is interested in documenting women’s struggles and triumphs in their journeys in loving themselves and their fat bodies.” Nancy Thomas was born in 1953 at the Oak Knoll Naval Station in Oakland, California. Her father was in the Navy in Korea. From an early age Nancy loved frolicking in the water, took to swimming like a fish (the otter was her “heart” animal). On land she was a natural when it came to music, playing instruments like flute and experimenting with art forms. These passions continued throughout her life. Nancy graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts, and went on to earn a Masters of Education with a focus on educational research, administration and planning. Motivated by her own experience, she dedicated her work life to the concept of inclusion, starting with five years at KIDS Project (Keys to Introducing Disabilities in Schools). She took such pleasure being with young children, bringing to them art and music and bubbles. That playful side of Nancy remained with her for her entire life. She worked for the Center for Independent Living, the Office of Special Education for the Berkeley School District, and finally, for over 25 years, at the Alameda County of Mental Health Clients, much of that time as Executive Director. She was a fierce advocate for mental health clients and served 3 years as President of the Board of the California Network of Mental Health Clients. She frequently went to Sacramento, the state capitol, to lobby on behalf of people with mental health challenges. She had particular empathy for these people because she was one of them. During her adolescence she was in psychiatric hospitals and her treatment included electro-shock therapy, which she was fervently opposed to later in life. This collection includes several papers which Nancy wrote about her mental illness from her high school and college years. She was active in the fat feminist forum of The National Association for the Advancement of Fat Acceptance (NAAFA). In the 1980s and ‘90s she attended “Making Waves”, a weekly swim and social for fat women in the East Bay, where she lived. She was the first to start the volleyball team in the shallows, and there was always much laughter coming from that end of the pool. Nancy’s artistic soul was fed by making theater and music. She was a founding member of FAT LIP Readers Theater (FLRT), performing from 1981-1993. She sang with the Labor Chorus and various other Community groups. She was particularly devoted to the Threshold Choir of the East Bay, a group which offers singing to those at or near the end of life. Whatever her activity, whomever she was with, she identified as a radical activist lesbian feminist. In FLRT she wrote copiously about her life experiences as a fat child and fat woman, and writing new lyrics to familiar old tunes, which FLRT frequently performed. One of these was to the song “I’ve grown accustomed to your face”, writing instead “I’ve grown accustomed to my size”, prancing around the stage with a feather boa with her “volupuettes” do-wopping in the background. She fully participated in every facet of this feminist theater company. In 1983, she was one of three Fat Lippers who were flown to Chicago by the Phil Donahue Show to be featured on one of his programs. This collection includes over 300 pieces of “fan mail” that FAT LIP received as a result of this appearance, as well as a videotape of that show. This collection also contains information on a myriad of fat-supportive organizations, performances, workshops, newsletters, and activities. Nancy Thomas was a consummate archivist at heart, saving and documenting precious material from the Fat Liberation movement in the Bay Area. Nancy Thomas died in 2018, serenaded by her colleagues in the Threshold Choir, surrounded by her family and friends. At her memorial the Threshold Choir serenaded, and old FAT LIP members performed some of Nancy’s written “pieces”, ending with “Our dear, dear friend, you will always be our Nancia and we will always be your volupuettes.” She leaves a legacy of memories, music, compelling writing, and commitment to collective change in social justice movements. ORGANIZATIONAL HISTORY: In March of 1981, in an Oakland apartment 10 fat women gathered. They were committed to political theater, feminist analysis, collective structure, and decision by consensus. Their goal was to present the lives of fat women and girls living with the discrimination and oppression of a fat hating culture. And they did so for the next 18 years on proscenium stages, street corners, conferences, workshops and trainings, as well as on radio and television, both local and national. They took their inspiration from Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective in the Bay Area, and in turn inspired other feminist theater companies to come, for example the Wry Crips Feminist Theater Collective, exploring the lives of people with disabilities. As they did their work on fat politics, FLRT also did the work of disability access by insisting all venues in which they performed and taught were to be accessible and sign language interpreted. Within several years of its founding FLRT welcomed a new member who was a sign language interpreter who would continue with them until the group disbanded in 1999. Nancy Thomas kept a very organized account of FAT LIP Readers Theater for all the years she was active in it from 1981-1993. The collection includes the scrapbook she made, along with many photographs, flyers, programs and correspondence. There are her meeting notes, and workshop materials used in trainings. There is an FLRT t-shirt and an FLRT fan. There is a VHS copy of the video they made called “Nothing to Lose”, which extended their reach across the country and in some cases around the world. There are many cassette tapes of meetings and performances. At various points in FLRT history the group was open to increasing their age range and racial diversity, and at these times, an influx of new members enlivened and energized the group as a whole. When the group struggled over internal issues, they sought and hired expert mediators to explore solutions. The process of honing their theatrical skills including acting, directing and producing, creating new material, and challenging themselves continued throughout their history. Using humor, songs, choreography and words, they created performances both enlightening and enjoyable. They were committed to providing entertaining political theater thereby creating an atmosphere for unlearning myths and changing attitudes in our fat phobic society.

Acquisition information:
Donated by sisters Vicky and Laura Thomas for the estate of Nancy Thomas, 2018

Access and use

Restrictions:

Advance appointment is required. The collection is open for research with the following exception: The writing piece entitled “Night Flight” by Judy Freespirit was not allowed to be performed before male audiences and therefore should not be available to male researchers in this collection.

Terms of access:

The owner of the collection is Bay Area Lesbian Archives (BALA). The copyright is retained by the estate of Nancy Thomas. All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from materials in the collection should be obtained from BALA staff.

Preferred citation:

Nancy Thomas Papers. Bay Area Lesbian Archives

Location of this collection:
P.O. Box 18684
Oakland, CA 94619-0684, US