Behind the Scenes as a Dr. Oz Show Guest

Last year I had the opportunity to appear on The Dr. Oz Show where I discussed healthy eating and a new 3-day cleanse plan created by Dr. Oz. A few weeks ago the show’s producer invited me to be a guest once again. It was such a great experience last year that I was thrilled to go back.

It’s always interesting to see and experience what goes on behind the scenes of a show, so I’ll provide some insight from my experience. The studios for Dr. Oz resides in the Upper East Side in Manhattan. The show tapes many segments within a day’s worth of taping. The staff then schedules these segments into episodes for the next weeks or months (the show does not tape during the summer).

Guests spend about 4.5 hours at the studio. When I arrived, a staff member whisked me and the other guests into our dressing rooms. The wardrobe lady inspected my outfit to ensure it was camera-friendly. The camera loves bold, solid colors. Graphics on clothes like stripes or dots can appear distorted or distracting on TV so avoid any designs. Per instructions, I came prepared with three outfits, just in case. Fortunately, the wardrobe lady approved the outfit I arrived in.

My producer, Lauren, reviewed the script with me. Though I’m unable to reveal the topic of my taping until closer to the air date (which is TBD), I can tell say it’s related to the summer time, and the show wanted a mom for this segment.

Another staff member brought me to the Hair and Makeup room. The producers ask guests to come hair-and-makeup-ready, but upon arriving we still require touch ups to ensure we look camera-ready. For me, this meant the makeup artist applied heavier makeup onto my face. The hair stylist re-curled some of my locks and then pinned one side back. She explained she needed to ensure my hair wouldn’t fall in front of my face during the taping. It was fun to get pampered for a bit!

I then returned to my dressing room and chatted with the other ladies who were taping segments that day. One woman had been on the show more than a dozen times. Another lady had arrived from Virginia. A third lady was a friend of the first one who was a veteran guest. We all got along well which made the waiting period fly by.

After a couple of hours, my producer walked me to waiting area in the studio where I could hear the live audience through the curtained wall. The room was equipped with televisions displaying the live taping so that we could follow along. It was fascinating to see the tapings and how things worked.. The show required a ton of coordination between the staff. There were multiple cameras, producers, assistants, lighting crew, etc. who displayed stellar professionalism.

It was finally my turn to go into the studio. The studio manager directed me where to stand and which camera to look into. Hundreds of people filled the audience. Dr. Oz came over to introduce himself. He reviewed the script, and then we taped. The whole taping took less than 8 minutes, of which the edited segment would probably be about half of that. Though the actually taping was quite short, it was nevertheless an exciting experience.

Once I find out when my episode will be airing, I’ll let everyone know. Stay tuned!