Melissa DiMarco: A woman for all seasons

Whether it’s bantering with George Clooney on a red carpet, interviewing Elton John at the recent premiere of Billy Elliot, having fun with rock legend Sammy Hagar, or sitting in the editing suite meticulously going through every frame and line of her award-winning celebrity interview and comedy show, Out There with Melissa DiMarco, the multitalented actress/journalist is always on the go.

“Yeah, I’m a bit of a workaholic,” smiles DiMarco. “When you act, interview, write, and produce, as I do on Out There, you kind of have to be. It really is my pet project.”

Now in its sixth season, Out There, which airs Saturdays at 8:30 pm on Citytv stations nationwide, was inspired by DiMarco’s real-life experiences as both a journalist and observer of the entertainment industry. The show combines one-on-one interviews with satirical comedy, chronicling the adventures of a celebrity journalist (played by DiMarco) in her constant struggle to score interviews and red-carpet exclusives.

“I wanted to delve below the surface glamour of celebrity journalism,” DiMarco explains. “To knock it off its stiletto-heeled pedestal and show viewers the ordinary, often silly person beneath all the glitz. That’s who my character is. And since our stories are based on my experiences as an entertainment journalist, they really seem true-to-life, but also have a comic sensibility all their own.”

Behind every hard-working showbiz personality is an equally hard-working team, a fact DiMarco points to with pride.

“We’ve had people who’ve been with Out There since the start. People like Paul Visca (Director of Photography), Adam Pal (Director), Jeff Kostyniuk (Senior Editor), Phillip Dixon (Camera Operator), and Ron Camilleri (Composer), who’ve helped me maintain the show’s integrity and original vision,” she says. “We’ve also recently brought in new blood, writers like Mark Van de Ven, who bring a fresh perspective. Without them and all the rest of the Out There crew, I wouldn’t have been able to last six seasons.”

As for her own future, DiMarco says she’s fully committed to Out There: “There’s always some new experience that can be transformed into something funny for our fans to enjoy. It’s a never-ending journey and that’s what makes it great.”