Written by:
Jennifer Corday
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this Issue of Curve:
17#10
The third season of Dante’s Covehas a mysterious and vibrant lesbian buzz, with new characters, new magic spells and some hot lesbian sex scenes that will surely pique your interest. here! Networks, home to the drama series, is now available through subscription in over 40 million homes across the United States and, according to Senior Vice President of Original Programming Meredith Kadlec, the third season of Dante’s Covewill be groundbreaking. “We have some great new additions to the cast and we have some really great writers and actors. I think this is our signature series.”
Here! is battling Logo to be the flagship of gay TV and is well ahead of the industry in creating gay-themed shows for prime time. Even better: Dante’s Coveis the first ever prime-time show starring three out lesbian actors playing three out lesbian characters, programmed by—you got it—a lesbian executive.
“How great that our community has gotten to a place where a lesbian producer is talking to lesbian actors about what to do in a lesbian scene for lesbian viewers,” says Kadlec.
The series stars out actors Michelle Wolff, Jill Bennett and Jenny Shimizu in a love triangle, which required some interesting casting. Wolff plays Brit, the tall, muscular scuba buff (who looks hot in a bathing suit, I must add), whose role will be much more developed this season. “I’m not the bartender anymore,” Wolff explains. “I guess she decided to give that up.” Brit is now a full-time oceanographer, with a new girlfriend played by model-turned-actress Shimizu. The two butch women form a sexy and unique couple not commonly represented on screen.
“Both of us are, and play, androgynous women,” says Wolff. “I thought it was a really interesting choice to go with that. In terms of film and TV, you rarely see two butch women together.”
Shimizu agrees. “From an actor’s point of view I thought it was a good choice to have two really strong characters coming together. We’re both independent and secure in our own sexuality. You rarely see that represented on TV. Realistically, I think a lot of lesbians, in L.A. and New York at least, are attracted to similar styles.”
Shimizu plays Elena, an antique dealer vacationing at Dante’s Cove, only to fall for the sexy diver. “I wasn’t familiar with the show so I met Michelle [Wolff] on the set. I think it’s better that way.” Shimizu made the jump from modeling to acting and is enjoying the work on Dante’s Cove. “Acting is a little more exciting because you get to interact with other people. I really like that here! casts different types of people and I had been wanting to work with them for a long time.”
Newcomer Bennett plays Michelle, who stepped in this season to replace Erin Cummings in the role. “The timing just worked out perfectly,” explains Bennett, who had already played the role of Grace in the pilot, which never aired. Because of scheduling difficulties, she missed the boat on seasons one and two, but was called back to audition for the part of Michelle. “It was very last-minute. It’s never fun to be the person swooping in and replacing someone, but thankfully I already knew some of the cast members and Michelle [Wolff] and I were already good friends.” The sexy brunette beat out over 200 actresses competing for the role, and is thrilled to have landed the part.
“There was obviously something that I was doing that they liked. And because I am gay I think I really connected with the character.” Bennett says she believes the gay community is hungry for representation and is proud to be one of very few out lesbian actors in Los Angeles.
The character of Michelle was formerly played by a more vulnerable actor, so she had to make some adjustments. Replacing a recurring character isn’t always the network’s first choice, but soap operas can get away with it. “Because the character underwent a major transformation between season two and season three, it worked out,” Bennett says. “They didn’t have time to rewrite. They were in a panic. I was reading the script as I was flying to Hawaii. I got to the set at 10 p.m. Sunday night and at 8 a.m. the next day I was filming.”
To make things more difficult, she hadn’t actually seen the show. Bennett had her work cut out for her, but she impressed everyone with her professionalism. “Stylistically, it’s, well, a supernatural erotic-thriller soap opera—and it’s also a comedy. So more than anything, I was concerned about getting the style of it,” she says.
The style is quirky, magical and truly entertaining—Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Baywatch. “It’s campy, it’s fun and it’s completely addictive,” says Wolff. “It’s a guilty pleasure—basically a gay soap opera.”
And what’s a soap opera without a few steamy love scenes? Season three won’t let you down, with some very sexy bedroom footage of the ladies—not all at once, but in an interesting montage of flashbacks and fantasy.
Jumping into bed on camera is often an actor’s job, but was an especially interesting and exciting process. “Filming a love scene is based on trust,” says Bennett. “And it’s going to come across if people are holding back.” Doing a love scene with her friend Wolff was admittedly a little odd. “It was weird in that we’re friends, and she’s also friends with my girlfriend. But because of our friendship, there’s absolutely no question that we trust each other,” Bennett says. “We were not going to do anything to make each other uncomfortable. We had a glass of wine beforehand and sort of relaxed and said OK, let’s do this.”
The girls also had a pre-scene talk where they set some boundaries. They discussed what they would like to see on screen. “We wanted to see realistic love scenes, not two uncomfortable straight girls pawing at each other,” says Bennett. Though she acknowledges any great actor can pull off a great sex scene, she feels real lesbians have a slight edge. “There’s a reason why Leisha Hailey’s love scenes look better than everyone else’s on The L Word.”
Kadlec agrees. “Not to say there haven’t been outstanding lesbian scenes conceived by straight women, but we as lesbians know best what we want to see. It’s the mind connection that makes it hot, the build-up and the undressing of each other,” she says. “I think the hottest scenes in the movie Bound were when they were flirting in the elevator, and the part with them sitting on the couch. Sure, the hard-core is hot too, but I think what women really find erotic is the intense unveiling of each other.”
Gay director Sam Irvin admitted he had no idea what to tell the women to do in bed. “He left it up to us,” says Wolff. “So it was great working with Jenny and Jill. We all know what looks good and hot and sexy.” The love triangle will undoubtedly set the stage for some delicious lesbian drama in season three, making Dante’s Covea possible new fave for those of us craving some prime-time fun.
“I’m really proud to be on the show,” Wolff beams. “The writing is great this year and all the characters really have some depth, so it’s much more interesting. We all interact with one another, so it really feels like an ensemble.”
Kadlec is equally excited and confident that the series will get picked up for another season. “We gauge the reaction to the show based on a variety of things,” she says. “I’m thinking we’ll want to bring it back. I’m just really excited to get this season out there to have people see it.”
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