It's been nearly ten years since fans were introduced to the digital drama Venice the Series. The series is still going strong, with production now underway on the sixth season of the two-time Emmy-winning streaming series -- and Soap Central has an exclusive first photo of the cast.
Production on the new season of Venice, which stars Crystal Chappell (Olivia Spencer, Guiding Light; Carly Manning, Days of our Lives; Maggie Carpenter, One Life to Live), Jessica Leccia (Natalia Rivera, Guiding Light), and Hillary B. Smith (Nora Buchanan, One Life to Live/General Hospital; Margo Hughes, As the World Turns), began Tuesday, May 14, 2019. This upcoming season will see principal characters, Gina and Ani (played by Chappell and Leccia, respectively), temporarily relocate to New York City for Ani's job at fashion magazine, Monde Femme.
The fictional relocation means that the real-life location has also shifted from the West Coast to New York City and New Jersey. That move also means that a number of Chappell and Leccia's former Guiding Light cast members will join the cast for season six, including Kim Zimmer (Reva Shayne), Michael O'Leary (Rick Bauer), Beth Chamberlin (Beth Raines), Ricky Paull Goldin (Gus Aitoro), Orlagh Cassidy (Doris Wolfe), and Michelle Ray Smith (Ava Peralta).
The details of Season 6 are being kept a closely guarded secret, but Soap Central has been told that it will "feature a mix of romantic comedy, a bit of mystery, and a romantic connection from the past."
Seasons 1 and 2 of Venice the Series are available on YouTube. Seasons 3 through 5 are available by subscription on Vimeo.com. Season 6 will be available by subscription on Vimeo after post-production. You can learn more about subscribing on the series' official web site, venicetheseries.com
In 2011, Venice won the first Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Short Format Daytime. It won again in 2014 for Outstanding New Approaches Drama Series. The series was also nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Digital Daytime Drama Series in 2017. Last year, Venice was nominated for Outstanding Digital Daytime Drama Series and Outstanding Directing in a Digital Drama Series.
There is currently a crowdfunding campaign taking place and there are some pretty amazing perks, including opportunities to meet cast members, phone calls with cast members, signed items and memorabilia, and more. You can get all the details on the campaign page on IndieGoGo as well as in the video below from Crystal Chappell.
Are you excited that Venice is returning for a sixth season? What are some of your favorite moments from the series' first five seasons? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
