In advance of Passions moving from NBC to DirecTV next month, the satellite provider is giving the soap opera’s fans a chance to call in live to cast members, officials said Thursday.
The nation’s biggest satellite provider will be airing Passions LIVE!, four weekly, 30-minute live call-in shows featuring the show’s cast. The specials will air on DirecTV’s original-entertainment channel, The 101, starting Aug. 23 at 8 p.m., with new shows every Thursday leading up to Passions debut on DirecTV Sept. 17. Fans can participate in each show by calling 1-800-860-8537 during the live broadcast.
Passions LIVE! will not only provide fans an opportunity to call-in and talk live with their favorite cast members, they will also learn about the history of the show and get to know the real people behind the characters. Each show will provide an inside look into what the future holds for the town of Harmony and all its inhabitants, as they make the transition from NBC to DirecTV’s The 101 Sept. 17.
Passions LIVE! will be hosted by Eric Martsolf (Ethan Winthrop) and two different cast members each week that will discuss their roles and answer questions from a live call-in audience. Fans can also submit questions for the show via email viewermail@passionsondirectv.com to be answered on-air. Shows will include a “Passions 101” tutorial recapping the highs and lows from each of the previous nine seasons, character and plot highlights, bloopers and a behind-the-scenes trivia on the cast and crew of Passions.
Juliet Mills (Tabitha) and Heidi Mueller (Kay) will kick off Passions LIVE! with Martsolf Aug. 23 with a special focusing on the witches of Harmony and the mystical undertones of the New England town. The following week, Emily Harper (Fancy) and Erin Cardillo (Esme) will lead the Aug. 30 show along with Martsolf, as the ladies discuss their on-screen friendship and the various cat fights that take place within the daytime drama.
Sept. 6 will feature the sexy men of Harmony as James Hyde (Sam) and Dylan Fergus (Noah) join Martsolf to discuss the rigorous task of being a daytime hunk and having to go shirtless on set. Eva Tamargo (Pilar) and Galen Gering (Luis) will lead the final call-in show Sept. 13 as they tease the new season and the fate of Theresa and Ethan.
Each episode of Passions LIVE! will be broadcast on DirecTV’s The 101, as well as streamed live on Passions’ Web site.
DirecTV is trying to make it easy for Passions viewers to keep track of the happenings in “Harmony” by providing fans free installation, a DVR or HD receiver upgrade, and a portable DVD player by calling a special phone number (888-999-0433) or visiting the Web. Passions fans can also visit NBC's site for more information about the show.
