It’s August 1999 and kids around the world are watching the countdown clock on a WWE Titantron. Chris Jericho makes his appearance under his iconic millennial Y2J gimmick, sequin jacket and high ponytail in tow, to take the wrestling Attitude Era by storm.
Little did he know, but “The Ayatollah of Rock ‘n Rolla” had just sparked a love of sports entertainment in Staten Island’s Marj Santaromana.
In time she would blend that passion to craft edible wonders for the attention of WWE legend John Cena, fabled metal band TOOL and Mr. Beast based on her baking skills.
The Attitude Era
The Attitude Era triggered a pop culture phenomenon that rippled through every layer of late-1990s and 2000s media. Movies, action figures and merch were rapidly churned out to meet the demand from kids infatuated with their favourite stars.
Video games were equally dominated by publishers eager to meet the need of a more violent string of wrestling milestones and the cash that came with it. Developers were under pressure to mirror real world promotions, who continued to up the ante with dangerous marquee stunts that fans wanted to reenact on their consoles.
The AKI Corporation in Japan released a string of pro wrestling games that evolved to include more immersion. Features such as character customisation, intro music and an arsenal of unique weapons to batter combatants all became gaming staples.
THQ partnered with AKI to publish WCW/nWo Revenge (1998) and WWF No Mercy (2000) which to date are seen as the pinnacle of wrestling games.
“No Mercy was definitely the game of my childhood. My obsession with the game and wrestling as a whole can probably be attributed, in part, to my childhood crush Chris Jericho.”
Marj would light the internet ablaze with her gaming cake creations, which are the product of years creating bespoke cakes for celebrities as a lead decorator in Brooklyn.
These included Pokemon, GameBoy and N64 cartridges and of course full consoles, with the latter sporting edible controllers and No Mercy replicated in fondant form.
“Growing up in a traditional, religious Filipino household, my family expected me to go into the fields of nursing or medicine that are typical in our culture. However, making a living as an artist was always my dream. I was determined to make my dream a reality.”
Growing up a wrestling obsessed little girl had predictable barriers which Marj vaulted or smashed with her creative powers, but it was no easy feat.
“I didn’t master cake art overnight. My journey began with making amateur cakes for friends and family out of my home kitchen. I decided to hone my craft by attending pastry school at the French Culinary Institute. I then worked my way up from being an intern to becoming the lead cake decorator at two prestigious cake studios.”
This led to Marj appearing on Food Network’s Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking in London.
“The show was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I was able to visit London and it was a privilege to work closely with some of the most talented chefs and cake artists in the world, who all ended up becoming family rather than opponents. We all became a part of the Harry Potter universe through the show.”
Marj would go on to work on a collaborative project for Mr. Beast’s “50 YouTube Legends” challenge. As part of the layers of Squid Game-like tests, the contestants had to guess which Lamborghini was made entirely of cake for a chance at a $1 million prize.
“This was definitely one of the most bizarre and challenging projects I’ve worked on, but I had a blast. My favorite part of these experiences is teaming with other talented people in the industry, making new connections, and learning so much from each other.”
Blending cakes and content“I love what I do, so work never really feels like work to me. My art typically speaks to fandoms and nerd culture. Believe it or not, I don’t always make wrestling-themed cakes. My inspiration also stems from nostalgia and video games like Pokemon and Animal Crossing.”
Marj’s work caught the attention of TOOL and they decided that her art was the best way to showcase a replica stack of Vinyl for the 25th anniversary of Lateralus.
“I was blown away when I was contacted to make a cake to celebrate one of TOOL’s albums. It ended up being for the 25th anniversary of Lateralus. It turns out that Adam, the guitarist, is a huge wrestling fan himself and an admirer of my work, so this cake commission was a nice surprise for him.”
Barbed wire and baking traysMarj is happiest attending wrestling shows and meeting the many stars that pepper the scene in the United States.
“I love attending comic-cons and at times, even working as a vendor. I enjoy cosplaying as some of my favourites, which includes Asuka, Rhea Ripley, and the many faces of Mick Foley. I love meeting and chatting with pro wrestlers, especially if I get lucky and it becomes an opportunity to network with them.”
Now living in Virginia, on the leyline of the wrestling circuit, Marj attends the many wrestling conventions and interacts with a growing list of superstar fans such as Kenny Omega and Shayna Baszler.
“I got to create a realistic cake resembling a ring bell for a match between Tommy Vendetta and Malcolm Munroe at ICW: No Holds Barred,” said Marj proudly as she ticket an item off her bucket list and became the first person to ever craft a replica of an illegal weapon for a show.
“When I’m not busy creating edible or traditional art, my other hobby is playing Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) with my partner.”
To date a lifesized cake replica has never been made of a DDR dance mat and console, but if there is one person capable of bending reality with baking it’s Marj Santaromana.
The post Exclusive interview: Cakes and consoles – the story of Marj Santaromana, gaming’s celebrity baker appeared first on The Escapist.