In the 1980’s, America was captivated by memorable films with drama, humor and plenty of pretty moves on the dance floor. With hits like DIRTY DANCING, FOOTLOOSE and GIRLS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN, moviegoers were enchanted by both their incredible acting performances (Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in DIRTY DANCING, Kevin Bacon in FOOTLOOSE, etc.) and their equally enduring dance sequences. Even today, through DVD and TV airings, those films remain popular three decades later with viewers young and old alike.
Yet, before Youtube and social media, and before today’s reality TV competitions like AMERICAN IDOL, THE VOICE, DANCING WITH THE STARS and SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, viewers in the ‘80s followed the rise of undiscovered talent every week through the popular series STAR SEARCH. Hosted by Johnny Carson’s long time second banana Ed McMahon, the long-running program was the launching pad for some of today’s biggest names in entertainment, including Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and countless actors, comedians and singers too numerous to mention. (Of course, who could forget those gorgeous spokesmodels?)
Now, a new web series combines both great comedy with amazing choreography and original music to tell the story of two best friends whose lives have changed in vastly different ways after their dance team suffered a devastating loss over a decade ago – and who try to rekindle not only their friendship but also their competitive fire before a special show reunites the contestants from that fateful day.
Created by and co-starring Jennifer Lieberman and Rebecca Morgan, the mockumentary style series DUMPWATER DIVAS brings viewers both hilarious comedy and amazing dance sequences set to original music by Grammy winner C.J. Vanston (FAMILY TREE, BEST IN SHOW, A MIGHTY WIND). The series debuted on October 2, 2013 with 6 episodes and additional bonus footage from the show now streaming on its official web site and Youtube page.
Set in the fictional town of Dumpwater, Florida, DUMPWATER DIVAS stars Lieberman as former child dance star Christi Johnson, a newly baptized ‘Mormagain’ (that’s a born again Mormon) and highly provocative ‘ass-to-calf’ model who’s known for being its biggest success story; a title that she wears with pride much to the envy of her friends. Once, she was a part of a dance team called “Macaroni Heat” with her now estranged friend Lindsay (Morgan), who remained in Dumpwater to teach future generations of dancers how to strut their stuff as the owner of the Dumpwater Dance Academy.
Having been recently divorced, her life changed once Christi left her and Dumpwater for greater fame and fortune. Ever since then, she has never been able to forgive Christi for leaving her behind. Lindsay and Christi’s partnership in “Macaroni Heat” reached its peak when their team reached the semifinals of a talent competition called “Talent Stars” – only to fail to advance to the finals.
The series’ cast also includes Scott Cullen as Lindsay’s nephew Charlie, who just happened to be born on the night that Lindsay and Christi’s quest to excel in competitive dancing ended in defeat. Since then, Charlie has been desperate to achieve his own notoriety – but only because he wants to reunite with his estranged mother. In addition, Michael Gantz plays Charlie’s single father (and Lindsay’s older brother) Derek Whitney, a pizza delivery guy who seeks to become a dancing diva in his own right. The Dumpwater Dance Academy staff includes its resident Zumba instructor Carlos Miguel Jesus (Francisco Solorzano), Lindsay’s sexy new main squeeze – and a man whose past may not be what he claims.
Tyra Hughes-Brisco portrays Mrs. Annie, the studio’s original owner and former choreographer for “Macaroni Heat”, while Monica Hong plays its sneaky and devious receptionist, Zoe. Rounding out the ensemble is the mysterious Man In The Suit (played by Christopher Whalen). No one knows who he is, what he wants or why, but one thing is for certain: “You’ll just have to watch and see what this guy is all about,” Morgan says.
For both Morgan and Lieberman, their passion for dance was fueled not only by their participation in physical activities that are known for their emphasis on rhythm (dance and gymnastics), but also by seeing the pros bust a move on TV. “We were inspired as children of the 80’s who grew up with STAR SEARCH and THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB (with Britney, Christina, and Justin). We had both been those little girls who make up a dance routine in the living room and really believe that they will become famous off of it. Growing up I was a dancer and Jen was a gymnast, so it was a world that we were familiar with and excited to explore and spoof,” Morgan says.
Although Morgan and Lieberman were huge fans of dance in their childhood years, it wasn’t until they became actors that they decided to combine their loves of dancing, acting and filmmaking to create DUMPWATER DIVAS. “Jennifer Lieberman and I had met several years ago when we were both members of the same theater company and worked together in a scene study class. We always wanted to do a project together and we’re both huge proponents of creating your own work,” Morgan remembers.
Incredibly, those worlds suddenly converged after the pair attended a session of the popular Latin American dance/exercise class Zumba. “We decided to meet up at a Zumba class and then go out for lunch and brainstorm some ideas. As we were walking to the car after class Jen said, ‘It’s kind of perfect that we just did a dance class because I’ve had this idea…’ and DUMPWATER was born. We wrote the whole outline and came up with all the characters that same day. We wrote the six episodes over the next month. We would each write our version of the episode and then meet up and marry them. We were shocked at how easy it was to combine our two voices. After we had the full season we did two readings for feedback and finessed the script.”
Unlike many web series creators who rely on donations through popular crowd funding sites like Kickstarter and IndieGoGo, Lieberman and Morgan decided to take a more traditional approach when it came to raising the money to launch DUMPWATER DIVAS. As Morgan explains, though, the series would never have gotten off the ground had it not been for the talented and dedicated people who contributed to its success.
“We chose to not crowd fund and instead challenged ourselves to see what we could accomplish on a very small budget which we split 50/50. We both have a background in producing and we felt confident that we could accomplish big things by working with a strong story and utilizing some of the relationships we had developed through other projects. It was truly all the talented people who were willing to come and play and share their tremendous abilities with us that made the project possible, from the actors, to the makeup, to editing. We were so lucky to have people willing to lend us their time and services for a fraction of what they deserved financially,” she says.
Among those people: the talented performers who would comprise the series’ ensemble cast. As Morgan recalls, the task of finding those actors was also made easier thanks to their hard work and the many friendships they accumulated along the way. “We put out casting notices and had auditions. The role of Juan Carlos Miguel Jesus was written for an actor who’d got booked on a TV show and had to drop out. We were so lucky that Jen had a friendship with the amazing Francisco Solorzano. She sent him the script and he bought his plane ticket and flew in from New York the next week. We were so blessed to have found all of our actors, (and) each of them is so tremendously talented. Everyone committed fully to the quirky process and took huge chances. They really brought our vision to life and made Dumpwater a living, breathing place.”
For Lieberman and Morgan, bringing the unpredictable yet exciting world of competitive dance depicted in DUMPWATER DIVAS to the screen was just as demanding as any dance routine – and equally as rewarding when it was all over. “Jen and I did all the pre-production. The weekend before we shot Jen basically moved into my apartment (where we shot). She brought all her neon dance clothes and we put the costumes together, bought all the props, turned my second bedroom into a dance studio, made the craft services menu, bought all the food, did the costume fittings, had a reading! Then we shot all six episodes in two days. It was like a weird dance party both days. When we wrapped the actors they didn’t want to leave, everyone was having such a fun time. Then the real work of post-production began.”
Along with great dancing and toe tapping original music, DUMPWATER DIVAS adds an important touch throughout its six episodes – characters with depth and heart. “What really sets us apart is that yes, we wanted the show to be quirky and odd, but we really wanted the relationship between Lindsay and Christi to be very grounded in truth. At the heart of it they need each other to realize their dreams and remind themselves of what they’re capable of. They failed together and now they have a chance at redemption. Female friendships, particularly the ones we make when we’re still very young, are so potent and almost primal. We wanted to tap into the power of that complex relationship,” Morgan says.
With DUMPWATER DIVAS, both Lieberman and Morgan accomplished their primary goals as web series creators and as actresses – to create a show that is both a showcase for their talents as well as one that mixes side splitting comedy with dazzling choreography and music. Says Morgan: “We kept telling ourselves that the whole point of this exercise is to write something and shoot it. And we did! Of course we would like for it to open doors artistically, which it has, but ultimately the point was to own our creativity and birth a project fully from start to finish. We would love for someone to fund us for season two, now that they’ve seen all we were able to pull off for close to $0. Imagine if we had a budget to work with!”
No matter how successful DUMPWATER DIVAS is, Lieberman and Morgan feel that their series delivers an important message; one that viewers of all ages can identify with. “The overall message is never stop believing in yourself and always go after your dreams. And when all else fails, wear something neon and dance.”
(Note: The series is not currently closed-captioned.)
ON THE WEB: www.dumpwaterdivas.com
YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbW_qSwfuye8kY4agwpjjpg
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/DumpwaterDivas
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/DumpwaterDivas
INSTAGRAM: @DumpwaterDivas
For the series’ official blog, visit:
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