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WABC
Diane D’Agostino and Michelle Champagne (Hair and Make-Up):“Halloween atLive with Kelly and Ryanis crazy, frenetic and fun. It’s always an energetic and creative experience. During the on-air live show, we only have commercial breaks to complete quick changes. This means there’s often more than one person working to switch out the hosts' costumes. There’s an exciting energy around to say the least. Between Kelly, Ryan, Gelman, and Art, we used around 40 wigs this year, transforming their looks completely. During the show, there’s always hats, lashes, glitter glue, flying everywhere. It’s a spooktacular event you won’t wanna miss! It’s scary-fun work, but someone’s gotta do it.”
02of 14Turn the Music UpWABCKelly Ripa(Host):“I never really considered myself a person that would gravitate towards neon green, but I’ve got to tell you I really dug that look and I loved the roots and the dark end color of my hair — I thought the wig was super chic. I liked the whole thing. And I thought Ryan was super adorable as Harry Styles.”
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Turn the Music Up
Kelly Ripa(Host):“I never really considered myself a person that would gravitate towards neon green, but I’ve got to tell you I really dug that look and I loved the roots and the dark end color of my hair — I thought the wig was super chic. I liked the whole thing. And I thought Ryan was super adorable as Harry Styles.”
03of 14More Treats Than TricksWABCElyssa Shapiro Hessler (Producer):“I’ve been working on the Halloween special for over 20 years and I love it! It gets bigger and more complex each year. We have our first Halloween meeting mid- summer to discuss the ideas I have been saving in my phone since Nov 1 of the previous year. We start writing and pulling costume looks in August. The fun begins when we start shooting in September and we work non-stop until the show wraps on Halloween.It’s a lot of work but we have a lot of laughs. A few weeks ago, I laughed so hard duringThe Bacheloretteshoot, I pulled a muscle.”
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More Treats Than Tricks
Elyssa Shapiro Hessler (Producer):“I’ve been working on the Halloween special for over 20 years and I love it! It gets bigger and more complex each year. We have our first Halloween meeting mid- summer to discuss the ideas I have been saving in my phone since Nov 1 of the previous year. We start writing and pulling costume looks in August. The fun begins when we start shooting in September and we work non-stop until the show wraps on Halloween.
It’s a lot of work but we have a lot of laughs. A few weeks ago, I laughed so hard duringThe Bacheloretteshoot, I pulled a muscle.”
04of 14Setting the StageWABCMichael Fagin (Set Designer): “This show in particular requires a close collaboration with the graphics, lighting and props departments to create environments that support the costumes that our hosts are wearing. It’s always a fun challenge integrating the video imagery with our real life hosts, dimensional props, and special effects. Figuring out the scale and perspective of the images is critical to making a realistic setting. Fun note — our set dog, Sammy often makes appearances in our Halloween show! This is his 25th Halloween here atLive.”
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Setting the Stage
Michael Fagin (Set Designer): “This show in particular requires a close collaboration with the graphics, lighting and props departments to create environments that support the costumes that our hosts are wearing. It’s always a fun challenge integrating the video imagery with our real life hosts, dimensional props, and special effects. Figuring out the scale and perspective of the images is critical to making a realistic setting. Fun note — our set dog, Sammy often makes appearances in our Halloween show! This is his 25th Halloween here atLive.”
05of 14Something ‘Strange’ Is HappeningWABCRyan Seacrest (Host):“This was a shot from ourStranger Thingsshoot, which is the opening of our Halloween show. To give some context, I’m transfixed backstage and wander into the Upside Down atLive. The set was full of dry ice fog and I had to crawl across the floor more times than I could count. The whole team was amazing with this crazy set — the fog, the red lights, all of it. Of all the shoots, this one was especially cool given how the team transformed our host area in such a remarkable way.”
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Something ‘Strange’ Is Happening
Ryan Seacrest (Host):“This was a shot from ourStranger Thingsshoot, which is the opening of our Halloween show. To give some context, I’m transfixed backstage and wander into the Upside Down atLive. The set was full of dry ice fog and I had to crawl across the floor more times than I could count. The whole team was amazing with this crazy set — the fog, the red lights, all of it. Of all the shoots, this one was especially cool given how the team transformed our host area in such a remarkable way.”
06of 14It Starts with a SketchWABCTori Sterling Kelly (Costume Designer):“This was my first year working on theLiveHalloween special and it was a blast! We easily pulled over 100 costumes for consideration and ended up using 79. The producers work with Kelly and Ryan and then let me know what themes we are going with and then my assistant, Clare, and I spring into action.This is a sketch I made forHouse of the Dragonfor Kelly. Sometimes we need a very specific look, other times we can have a wide variety of options.”
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It Starts with a Sketch
Tori Sterling Kelly (Costume Designer):“This was my first year working on theLiveHalloween special and it was a blast! We easily pulled over 100 costumes for consideration and ended up using 79. The producers work with Kelly and Ryan and then let me know what themes we are going with and then my assistant, Clare, and I spring into action.
This is a sketch I made forHouse of the Dragonfor Kelly. Sometimes we need a very specific look, other times we can have a wide variety of options.”
07of 14Making the Halloween Special, SpecialWABCBrian Chapman (Director):“The Halloween special is one of the most unique shows that we do each year. It’s a complete 180 from what we do every day and it that presents it’s own challenges from a technical standpoint. It’s basically the Super Bowl ofLiveand I am here for it.”
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Making the Halloween Special, Special
Brian Chapman (Director):“The Halloween special is one of the most unique shows that we do each year. It’s a complete 180 from what we do every day and it that presents it’s own challenges from a technical standpoint. It’s basically the Super Bowl ofLiveand I am here for it.”
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All Hail the Queen
09of 14Jumping Into ActionWABCTori Sterling Kelly (Costume Designer):“The vibe during these shoots is pretty wild, we are always ready to make adjustments on the fly. We are team players, too! Out assistant Clare even got into the Dragon costume for a lighting check, which we still laugh about to this day. Who knew that was part of the job description? For months we were buried in costume racks, but it was all worth it. Definitely an awesome experience!”
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Jumping Into Action
Tori Sterling Kelly (Costume Designer):“The vibe during these shoots is pretty wild, we are always ready to make adjustments on the fly. We are team players, too! Out assistant Clare even got into the Dragon costume for a lighting check, which we still laugh about to this day. Who knew that was part of the job description? For months we were buried in costume racks, but it was all worth it. Definitely an awesome experience!”
10of 14Dragon Dinner PartyWABCElyssa Shapiro Hessler (Producer): “I always say that Art Moore is my muse. When I write my sketches, things really start to flow once I figure out which roles Art will play. He really brings the laughs. Kelly and Ryan are so talented. Kelly is a chameleon. Her acting and facial expressions are spot on. She can transform into just about anyone. She can do it all. She even learned an entire dance number in under 10 minutes! And Ryan continues to impress us withhisacting abilities.”
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Dragon Dinner Party
Elyssa Shapiro Hessler (Producer): “I always say that Art Moore is my muse. When I write my sketches, things really start to flow once I figure out which roles Art will play. He really brings the laughs. Kelly and Ryan are so talented. Kelly is a chameleon. Her acting and facial expressions are spot on. She can transform into just about anyone. She can do it all. She even learned an entire dance number in under 10 minutes! And Ryan continues to impress us withhisacting abilities.”
11of 14Seacrest Has Left the BuildingWABCRyan Seacrest (Host):“This year it was a lot of fun to transform into one of the biggest icons in music history, Elvis himself. Our costume team had a few iconic looks to choose from and I loved this suit. When I was in the makeup chair getting ready I was blasting Elvis songs to help get into character. In this picture I’m practicing my Elvis strut in front of the whole team.”
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Seacrest Has Left the Building
Ryan Seacrest (Host):“This year it was a lot of fun to transform into one of the biggest icons in music history, Elvis himself. Our costume team had a few iconic looks to choose from and I loved this suit. When I was in the makeup chair getting ready I was blasting Elvis songs to help get into character. In this picture I’m practicing my Elvis strut in front of the whole team.”
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Yes, Chef!
John Ogle (Producer):“I knew that Ryan was a fan ofThe Bearso I assumed he would be really into playing Chef Carmy. Ryan is always fun and funny during these shoots. But the second the Carmy wig was put on his head… he transformed into he character. He nailed it.”
13of 14Don’t Stop Gelman NowWABCMichael Gelman (Executive Producer):“I’ve been a huge fan of the rock group Queen, so to play Freddie Mercury was awesome. It was fun shouting and singing ‘We Are The Champions’ throughout the hallways and on stage to keep in character. Over the years, I’ve done more wigs and costumes than I can count. It’s a great time of year at the office for sure.”
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Don’t Stop Gelman Now
Michael Gelman (Executive Producer):“I’ve been a huge fan of the rock group Queen, so to play Freddie Mercury was awesome. It was fun shouting and singing ‘We Are The Champions’ throughout the hallways and on stage to keep in character. Over the years, I’ve done more wigs and costumes than I can count. It’s a great time of year at the office for sure.”
14of 14Putting It TogetherKelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest.WABCFrank Cortale (Stage Manager):“I’ve been the stage manager for 3 years atLiveand each day I stand outside the dressing rooms about 5 minutes before air. I have to say, I’m always so confident we will make it to air on time because both Kelly and Ryan are such professionals. Truly the best! We call ‘places’ 60 seconds out and then start walking 30 seconds before air, if you can believe it! Halloween is always so much fun, seeing everyone in their costumes. It’s also a thrill during the live show because of the ‘quick change’ element of changing costumes backstage, but we always manage to get it done — even though I recently had a dream that we were once 4 minutes late!”
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Putting It Together
Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest.WABC
Frank Cortale (Stage Manager):“I’ve been the stage manager for 3 years atLiveand each day I stand outside the dressing rooms about 5 minutes before air. I have to say, I’m always so confident we will make it to air on time because both Kelly and Ryan are such professionals. Truly the best! We call ‘places’ 60 seconds out and then start walking 30 seconds before air, if you can believe it! Halloween is always so much fun, seeing everyone in their costumes. It’s also a thrill during the live show because of the ‘quick change’ element of changing costumes backstage, but we always manage to get it done — even though I recently had a dream that we were once 4 minutes late!”
source: people.com
