Earlier this week, LA’s The Place got the chance to catch up with Laura Patricio, one of the stars of VH1’s hit new show “Secrets of Aspen”.
The show follows the lives of six single women traversing high society in Aspen, Colorado. “Secrets of Aspen” features plenty of fighting, crying, hooking up, and making up, and so far, Laura’s been a part of most of it. As a result, she’s been proclaimed the “Queen Bee” in her social circle.
Before we chatted with Laura, we were expecting more of the no-nonsense, in-your-face, confrontational style that we’ve seen from her on “Secrets of Aspen”. What we found, however, was a family oriented woman whose priorities stem from her faith.
Dan O’Brien: I want to thank you for taking the time to talk with us. I’m sure everybody wants a piece of you now since you’re the hottest new diva out there.
Laura Patricio: Yeah and thank you [laughs] I’m not sure I’m the hottest new diva, but that’s humorous nonetheless, and I’m flattered.
DO: We know that you’re in Aspen now and that you came back to Aspen from Orange County – where are you from originally?
LP: Actually now I’m in Southern California. I was just in Aspen, and I will be back in Aspen this weekend. I’m originally from the Pacific Northwest, Washington state, and Michigan state. I was raised between the two states primarily.
DO: How did you get involved in the production of “Secrets of Aspen”?
LP: I was in a relationship. I first went to Aspen in 2006. Fell in love in Aspen. Fell out of love in Aspen. But never fell out of love with Aspen. So, in the winter of 2008-2009 I decided to go back and experience Aspen as a single person. I had a great time, and I think that’s when I came onto the network’s radar. I guess they must have followed me through Facebook or whatever other avenue – social networking through people in Aspen, and then I was connected to the show through one of the other cast members and I wound up getting cast.
DO: We know from the show that you’re a fashion designer, and we were hoping we could hear a little bit more about your line.
LP: Well I’m not a fashion designer, I’m in apparel manufacturing. Unfortunately, as much as I’d love to be a fashion designer, I have to work through one. Basically they take my concepts and they commit them to a design and create text packs and send them off to the manufacturer, but I coordinate everything and secure financing and they use my vision. The name of my company is called Alanga J, and it’s named after all three of my daughters.
DO: Speaking of your family, how did you manage to balance your time as a mom with your social obligations in Aspen?
LP: That’s a good question, I think that for one, no social obligation ever takes precedence over my children. But a work obligations forces me to have to balance and counter balance my obligations to my children because that’s the only method I have of providing for them. I have 50-50 custody of my girls. I have three – 15, 11, and almost 10 – and the majority of my adult life, I’ve been a stay-at-home corporate housewife, so now, being divorced, I’m with them at least half of the time. And when I’m in Aspen, it’s an off week for me with regards to my custody schedule. So season one was shot primarily during the summer and early fall while they were off of school. So I was able to fly them out. And viewers don’t know, but I flew back and forth pretty much every week to see my children. It’s just VH1 didn’t get that on camera.
DO: Switching gears, pretty much everybody who has seen “Secrets of Aspen” knew you were going to be the “Queen Bee” right away. What we were wondering is if you see yourself that way.
LP: [laughs] No. I don’t see myself that way at all. I think it was a label that was given to me by the network. Admittedly, I’m a strong personality; however, I have a soft side that’s rarely seen on television because it isn’t the meat and potatoes or the premise of the show. So my softest side is when I interact with my children, but I chose to buffer them from [the show]. I feel that it would have been inappropriate to bring them into the public spotlight – it wasn’t something that worked for me and my family because ultimately, I would have no editorial control over that situation if I were to bring them into the spotlight.
DO: The feud between you and Brooke is a huge source of tension in the show, and the arguments always get really heated, but despite all that, it still seems like you have a big soft spot for her in your heart. Is that true?
LP: Yes, I would say that it’s true. I do have a soft spot there, more out of empathy for her. I would love to have peace and harmony in all aspects of my life. And I do wish Brooke the best, however, that doesn’t change the fact that I have no interest in having a relationship with her at this time.
DO: As far as the way the show’s been received, the media is eating it up. At the same time, we’ve heard that some of the residents of Aspen don’t actually approve of the content. Given the chance, what do you think you would say to those people?
LP: Well I think I share their sentiments. I love Aspen, and before signing on to the show I wanted to ensure that the customs and ambience of the town were respectfully upheld. I love Aspen, and I would never want to desecrate that little holy sanctum of Aspen. I think that the network did a good job with showing a cross-section of the residents of Aspen – you saw the girls from the show, but we were just a microcosm of the many diverse personalities and people from different walks of life. There are so many people, like in any other metropolitan area, for a small town, Aspen is, for all intents and purposes, a melting pot – socially and socioeconomically. It’s hard in a half hour show to portray that because they’re just focusing on one cross section. I think different people are going to have different opinions about that coverage because different people are exactly what they are. So some people aren’t going to understand my personality and I’m not going to understand other people’s personalities. It’s open to interpretation. I love Aspen. I’m definitely very respectful of it. Everybody, in their own way, has their own relationship with Aspen, so they’re going to respect it within whatever their set parameters are.
DO: If I could put you on the spot for a one, well… two part question. Is there one fashion trend that you absolutely love and one that needs to go?
LP: [laughing] Let’s see… What’s one trend that I love? I love big men’s watches on women. I love over-the-knee boots. Prada has a great pair of over the knee boots. And the one that I’m totally over is tights. They give you that bunched-up-crotch feeling!
DO: Just a couple more questions left. So you’ve told us you have a soft side that doesn’t necessarily get portrayed on the show, but what is there that you think your fans should know about you that they won’t see on “Secrets of Aspen”?
LP: Well, you know my actions on the show may not always be aligned – you can only see so much in a half hour show that’s spread out amongst so many different people. Really, I’m the first one to stand up and say that I’m not perfect. For every one finger that you’re gonna point at somebody else, you have to point five back at yourself. With that said, my actions on the show aren’t always aligned, and aren’t always going to be aligned with my declared faith of the one thing that I am – I’m a Christian, and I believe in God and I do my best, even though I’m not perfect, each day, to seek, find, and fulfill his purpose for my life. And I’ll probably open myself up to being bashed for that one, given the television show, but remember it’s heightened reality. It’s television. You know?
DO: Yeah, I understand. So, wrapping up, I thought I’d give you a chance to plug the show a little bit. Do you know what kind of fireworks we can expect for the rest of the season? Maybe you can give us a little preview.
LP: Gosh I can’t really give you a preview, but there are a lot of fireworks, so you’ll just have to watch and see for yourself.
To learn more about the “Secrets of Aspen“, visit www.vh1.com/shows/secrets_of_aspen/series.jhtml.
