From Web Series to Emmy® Gold: A Conversation with the Creators of Dandyland
Multi award winning costume designer Rafaella Rabinovich and queer joy character creator Ryan Leslie Fisher bring home an Emmy® for Dandyland!
Ryan P: Congratulations to you both on three amazing wins so far this year including a Costume Designer Guild Award, a Canadian Alliance of Film and Television Costume Arts and Design award and of course a Kids and Family Emmy® for Outstanding Costume Design! That's incredible and very exciting. Has the full weight of the wins settled with you both yet?
Rafaella: Thank you so much! Not fully, no. I think we’ve both had moments where it’s landed, and moments where it still feels a little surreal. It’s been such a joyful and overwhelming run, and I don’t know that the full weight of it has completely settled in yet.
Ryan LF: Yes! The Emmy’s are shipping Raf’s gorgeous statue out to her but LEGO was sponsoring this year and I got to take the LEGO Emmy from the winner’s gift bag and I look at it every day and it’s certainly not kept me humble in any way possible.
Ryan P: I've got to jump right to this because I think it almost overshadows the wins themselves because your nominations and wins puts you and your career into the upper echelons of some pretty big names. Who were some of the other designers us simple folk might recognize?
Ryan LF: Well Raf and I aren’t just creative partners but gay besties, and I feel so lucky to get enmeshed in her work with the costume community. I geeked out meeting Paul Tazwell, the costume designer for Wicked: Part One and Wicked: For Good. And Raf and I would do a weekly watch party of Agatha All Along and having lived in Hollywood for nearly a decade I rarely feel star struck as I did meeting the shows designer Daniel Selon. The focus on real magic and occult plus all the nods to the greater MCU and comic lore is one of my favourite things I’ve seen created for tv recently.
Ryan P: Rafaella, perusing your website and impressive list of recent awards and achievements, it seems like 2025 was a year priming you with nominations for your back to back to back wins this year, and it's only April! Feeling overwhelmed yet?
Rafaella: Yes and no. It’s definitely been a lot to take in, but it also feels like the kind of overwhelm that comes from caring deeply and having worked very hard for a long time, so it's a deeply affirming type of overwhelm.
Ryan P: Since I already know the answer, I did my homework and saw a red carpet interview with you at the Costume Designers Guild Awards where you told us your some of your biggest tinspirations are fellow award winning designers like Mona May, Salvador Perez, Luis Sequeira and your mom (aww). What sort of lessons have you learned from them that you feel are always in the back of your mind when bringing a character to life?
Rafaella: I’ve always been very inspired by meaningful storytelling. From designers like Mona May, Salvador Perez, and Luis Sequeira, I’ve learned the importance of point of view, character, and trusting bold choices that are story-driven, deeply specific, and still part of a larger vision. From my mom, I learned so much about instinct, strength, and wearing your heart on your sleeve, as they say. All of those lessons stay with me when I’m bringing a character to life, because for me it’s never just about dressing someone "beautifully", it’s about understanding who they are from the inside out.
Ryan P: I think most of us here in metro Vancouver are familiar with your work at live shows across the city, but it wasn't those amazing costumes that got you nominated, it was a web series produced by Telus Storyhive called Dandyland which has cleaned up winning half of the awards it was nominated for (catch up with a quick glimpse here). Is there much of a design adaptation needed when bringing a huge, bold, bright character like 'Dandy' from stage to screen?
Rafaella: Absolutely. Dandy already has such a huge, joyful, theatrical presence, but stage and screen ask different things of a costume. On stage, you design for distance, impact, and silhouette, whereas on camera every texture, trim, proportion, and construction detail is suddenly under a magnifying glass. So for me, it became about preserving all of Dandy’s boldness, heart, and personality while translating it in a way that would read truthfully on screen. It wasn’t about toning the character down, it was about adapting that world for the camera without losing any of its life. What people may not know is that Dandyland was designed and built in very little time. I was also designing the set, so we had about two weeks to create both the costumes and the sets, one day to install the set, and then ten days to shoot the entire series. It was a very fast process, but also an incredibly creative one.
Ryan P: And since we're talking about Dandy, let's talk about how the two of you met. How long ago and what forces of the universe brought the two of you together?
Rafaella: My best friend from high school introduced us before Ryan moved to Vancouver, and then by total chance we really met for the first time at a wedding about four or five years ago. It’s a much funnier story with a few twists and turns, but we keep that part to ourselves. That’s part of the lore.
Ryan LF: I worked with our mutual friend in a cabaret in Hollywood that was a mash up of Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Rocky Horror by MM Productions LA, and when they continued our contracts into a variety show I invented Dandy to stay in the cast. So it seems fitting that she had introduced Rafaella and I when Dandy really started taking off.
Ryan P: What would you both say is Dandy's signature style?
Rafaella: Dandy’s signature style is bold, theatrical, and unapologetically full of queer joy, inspired by the distant memory of a Rococo-Victorian silhouette and a real sense of whimsy. It’s glamorous, camp, and larger than life, but always rooted in character, performance, and heart.
Ryan LF: Gay. Gay Elegance. And Gay excellence.
Ryan P: Here's a predictable question but it's a two-parter: What are each of your favorite single designs, but from both Dandyland and live shows (and do you have pics?)?
Rafaella: That is such a difficult question, because every look carries its own memory and its own little piece of the journey. They really are all my children. From Dandyland, one of my favorites would have to be the ringmaster look, because it really captured the spirit of the world we were building: bold, theatrical, joyful, and a little bit wild. It felt like such a strong visual expression of who Dandy is on screen. I also absolutely love the three-piece suit with the winged belt. It was made in the most beautiful, elegant fabric, but cut as a modern take on a Victorian silhouette, which gave it this wonderful sense of transformation and fantasy. From the live shows, I have a real soft spot for the tape costume, because it was one of those looks where character, costume, and performance all came together in such a full and satisfying way. All of those designs feel very close to my heart, and yes, we do have photos.
Ryan LF: I could never choose, but I am partial to the pickle costume. HA! But more seriously I think the Faeries in the Garden look I wore performing at the CAFTCAD Awards last year with the giant bustle is one of the most incredible designs realized by Rafaella. Mind-blowing even after all of her work I’ve seen for years.
Ryan P: Rafaella, is there a moment that stands out to you from dressing Ryan over the years?
Rafaella: What always stands out to me is that moment when everything clicks. The energy shifts, and suddenly Dandy is right there in front of you. It’s one of my favorite parts of the process, because it a reminder that costume design is never just about the garment itself, it’s about transformation, collaboration, and helping bring a character fully to life. Over the years, there have been many beautiful, chaotic, hilarious backstage and on screen moments, but that feeling, when the look and the performer meet perfectly, is always the one that stays with me.
Ryan P: But at the heart and truth of it all there was and is something that made you look at Ryan and his queer-joy spreading, alter ego, Dandy, that made you want to keep building and elevating that character over the years. What first drew you to Dandy, and what continues to inspire you about the character?
Rafaella: What first drew me to Dandy was that beneath all the sparkle, scale, and spectacle, there is a real person that wants to bring change and joy to people in a way that feels sincere, generous, and deeply human, and I think that is very special. What has kept me inspired over the years is that he continues to hold so much possibility. Dandy is glamorous and theatrical, of course, but he is also tender, playful, and full of life. That combination keeps opening new creative doors for me, and it makes the work feel meaningful every time.
Ryan P: I'm curious to know Ryan, how has having Rafaella as your costume designer influenced Dandy's character growth?
Ryan LF: I always attribute the success of Dandy to the fact that his outside appearance matches what I feel and look like on the inside. Raf started with a pitch to make me one custom jabot, the fancy little scarf worn in this period. That turned into a project we called “50 Jabots” today there are probably closer to one hundred. We’ve run the gamut of her helping create a custom lavender tear away suit for a burlesque act, very detailed and specific to the performance needs, and sometimes putting my total trust in her to show up at the fitting for whatever brilliant idea she’s come up with. One takes my idea and actualizes it in a creative way I didn’t know was possible, and two takes the work load off me and lets me focus completely on rehearsal and performance. I think it's a show to show basis but it completely elevates my process in every aspect.
Ryan P: Ryan, your booking calendar for Dandy fills up quickly and months in advance, I personally always look forward to gay Christmas and seeing your Halloween collection, when and where else this year can fans get their thirst quenched for more Dandy?
Ryan LF: You absolutely must check out Vancouver Mysteries, the other production company I work with through the whole year produced by Tanya Bennett. In her “Murder is a Drag” series I play the world famous detective, Sherlock Homo. Raf actually made the detective look for a show years ago but it translates to these immersive mysteries so well. I adore working in and thrive in this theatrical environment with drag performances, audience interaction, and what I akin to a kind of escape room.
Ryan P: One final question I'd like to ask; As proud members and public representatives of the queer community, how do you hope to use the recognition and rewards of such major achievements to improve and propel the voice and stories of 2SLGBTQI+ individuals and Dandy?
Rafaella: I hope it helps create more room for queer stories to be told fully, beautifully, and without compromise. Recognition like this can give people a little more visibility and a little more leverage, and I think that matters, especially when it comes to making sure 2SLGBTQI+ voices are not just included, but genuinely valued. With Dandy, there has always been so much joy, heart, and celebration at the center, and I hope this kind of recognition helps amplify that while also opening doors for more queer creators and more expansive queer storytelling. These stories deserve care, scale, and real investment.
Ryan LF: The Dandy project was always about creating a space for queer people to relax, feel seen, feel accepted, and have a laugh. I think it remains very much a “for us, by us” project in terms of objective. To me this is an opportunity to take that to a greater audience of allies and folks who may not have been able to find it thru the social media algorithms. And it’s in a way my life mission and I couldn’t be prouder of that opportunity.
Ryan P: Those are both beautiful and inspiring answers and I’m very moved to see the tremendous amount of care, love and respect you both have for one another as artists and friends. It’s extremely evident how your relationship has translated to the success of Dandy and all the nominations and awards you’ve already received and the many, many more to come. Thank you both for taking the time to share your’s and Dandy’s stories with me. I wish you both much fame and success for the future.
You can catch Rafaella’s winning designs live and in person this Friday, April 3 at Dandy’s 4th Annual Faberge Ball at the Rio Theatre. And if you missed out on whatsonqueerbc.com’s ticket giveaway, readers can still save $10 off tickets through the exclusive promo code DANDYEMMY which can be redeemed HERE. Come dressed in your best Springtime Couture!
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