You just knew she was going to shake things up.  Part way through the season, a new character, Claudia, was added to the mix on SyFy’s flagship show, Warehouse 13.  From the start, she became a foil for Artie, and while nearly destroying the Warehouse a time, or two, or three, or four arguably changed the dynamic of the already popular series in a very positive way.  Claudia is played by 19 year old Allison Scagliotti, who recently took the time to visit TV Talk and MediaBlvd Magazine to give hints about the finale, and to take calls from her fans.

Before Warehouse 13, Allison was  most recognizable for her role on Nickelodeon's Drake & Josh as Josh's smart and sassy girlfriend, Mindy.  Scagliotti began her professional acting career at the age of 11 with the NBC pilot America's Most Terrible Things starring Chevy Chase, soon followed by two more pilots and numerous memorable guest spots on ER, CSI, and One Tree Hill.  She has since played daughter to the likes of Heather Locklear, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Walsh, J.K. Simmons, and Doug Jones.

Scagliotti won the award for Best Actress in a short film at Bend:Film Festival for her role as the title character in Redemption Maddie . Her recent work includes the television series Mental for Fox and Starz' Party Down, and she can be seen this summer in National Lampoon's Endless Bummer and My Name is Jerry, starring Doug Jones.

Shaun>  Congratulations on your success with Warehouse 13!

Allison>  Thank you, I’m so excited about season 2.  The finale is this Tuesday, and it will blow your mind.

Shaun>  I had Saul on earlier this week, and I didn’t ask him to say nice things about you, but he did.  He said he feels like he’s been working with you all of his life; that you were a natural.

Allison>  Thank you. We did really hit it off.  It was kind of bizarre.  Saul is just an incredibly versatile actor, and just the coolest, most colorful insightful individual.  We really did just have that kind of instant rapport where we felt comfortable.  I too feel like I’ve been working him for 30 years, and I’m not yet 19. 

Shaun>  You do seem like you have a great time together.  The chemistry is just there.  It’s like magic.  You don’t get that very often in your career; to co-star with somebody you have chemistry with right off the bat. 

Allison>  I had to pinch myself everyday on set.  What a fortunate scenario it was.  If you’ve seen the show, and it looks like we’re having fun, odds are that we were having any more fun than it looks like we were having.  It’s just a joy.  The chemistry with Saul has totally carried over into our lives.  He rented a keyboard so that he could keep up on his piano practice, while in Toronto.  We found ourselves hauling this keyboard in a bag down this narrow hallway of an apartment complex, bumping into the walls bickering with each other.  I went, “Ok, we’re not Artie and Claudia anymore.”  Or maybe we are Artie and Claudia, and are not just Saul and Allison anymore. 

Kenn>  Was the character of Claudia planned from the beginning, or did they get the idea to bring in some new blood after it had started?

Allison>  It’s my understanding that early on they were talking about bringing in someone else to the warehouse to break up the chunks of expository dialogue that he has to basically recite into the Farnsworth.  There had been discussion about whether or not it was appropriate to have a young person on, or what.  They had this idea to have a young, hip female, hacker girl to be a contrast to Artie’s very steam engine sort of ways.  They said at Comic-Con that Artie is punk, and Claudia is steam.  The audition process was completely unusual for me.  I knew the show runner, Jack Kinney from five years ago.  I knew our writers, Derick Hughes and Ben Rob, from a web series we did last year.  They said, “Hey, this part is so you, will you read it?”  There was just no turning back from there. 

Kenn>  Were you a fan of sci-fi at all, and into the genre, or was this totally new for you?

Allison>  I can’t attest to being a hard core follower of any particular franchise, except for Star Wars.  And who isn’t into Star Wars.  So Warehouse 13 was my initial foray into the genre, but it’s gotten me so much more.  I’m just now starting to become immersed into Battlestar Galactica.  I actually wore a Battlestar Galactica, “What the Frak?” shirt to school today, and three geeks came up to me and went “We love your shirt, it’s awesome!”  And I’m reading graphic novels and stuff, so Warehouse 13 is like the beginning of an era for me. 

Shaun>  They’ve got to come up with Warehouse 13 t-shirts now.

Allison>  Yeah, seriously.  I’m gunning for a Claudia action figure.  I want Teslas mass produced.  I want Farnsworths.  Apple should have a Farnsworth app.

Kenn>  You just got back from a TV interview for something is that right?

Allison>  Yeah, I just got back from a TV interview for G4’s Attack of the Show.

Kenn>  When is that airing?

Allison>  I believe it was live this evening.  Then the clip will be available on line a little later.

Kenn>  You have a techno-babble, or complicated stuff to say on the show.  Is that hard to learn those lines?

Allison>  Boy howdy!  You know, it’s not, for some reason.  I’m not as techy as Claudia, but for some reason, our writers are so outstanding.  They craft dialogue that flows and fits me, and fits Eddie and Jo and Saul so well.  I haven’t found it as daunting as I originally anticipated memorizing all that techno-babble.  But hey, if you believe it when it comes out of mouth, I guess I’m doing my job.

Kenn>  I got a chance to see the early release of the finale, and I didn’t realize how much is actually green-screened in.  Is that difficult to act in front of something that isn’t actually there?

Allison>  You have to have an open imagination.  This web serious I did last year was 100% green screened, so I had no idea what my environment would be.  And that was bizarre.  But in the warehouse, certain elements are green screened.  So we have to be a bit of “chmacting” as Saul likes to call it, cheesy acting.  But you just have to challenge yourselves.  One of my friends calls it extreme acting.

Shaun>  That’s right, you were in Gemini Division. I loved that, and kept hoping they would turn that into a TV series.

Allison>  Oh my God, I’m so glad!  You were one of the five people who watched it!

Shaun>  I guess it didn’t do that well?

 Allison>  I don’t know, I guess Rosario got a Streamy award for it, which is Greek to me.  I don’t know what that means.  But she was super cool.  I did it and it was so much fun, then I watched them and liked them, but then I didn’t really hear much after that.  So I don’t really know where they wound up in the universe.

Shaun>  We have a couple of calls in the queue, let’s go ahead and bring them on.

Caller>You have added an element to Warehouse 13 that was really needed.  You mentioned before that Artie was by himself, and sent the agents out, and didn’t really have a foil to bump up against.  Artie has expanded his character because of you.

Allison>  Thank you!

Caller> I mean this with all due respect, but in the first couple of episodes, you were bumbling around and responsible for some of the major disasters in the Warehouse, but now you’re working with the agents and on assignment with them, and that’s cool.  You’ve added so much, I’ve just been so impressed.  I think it’s you that’s been responsible for making everything come together.  Artie needed someone to come in and kick his butt!

Allison>  You sir, have made my day.  And I do best to kick his butt whenever I can. 

Caller>  How are you able to do all of that techno-babble with a straight face? 

Allison>  When I lace up the Claudia shoes, and they throw that interchangeable streak in my hair, it’s like Go Time!  That’s the only thing that I really have to spend time on when I study the script is to make sure I say them in the right order.  I do have nerd friends who will call me and say, “Hey, you know that little FTL/ascii/binary algorithm thing you just said, omega levels of Eureka, that doesn’t make any sense.  It’s Linux systems!  Intel that!

Caller>Can you tell us anything, without revealing spoilers, about what happens to the characters or yourself in the season finale?

Allison>  Absolutely.  The finale ends with a cliffhanger to end all cliffhangers.  When I was reading the script, I was in a state of heightened anxiety for all of our jobs.  You learn a lot more about Artie’s sorted past, and about the moment that McPherson defected from his warehouse oath and defected to the dark side.  Everything is at stake really.  I think in McPherson, there is a scene, the first time in the season, where you see all of the characters in a scene together; Pete, Artie, Mrs. Frederic, Myka, Leena, and me.  And it’s go time.  The threat is so heightened, it’s an intense episode.  And it’s directed by the guy who did the Claudia episode.  So I’m partial to it anyway. 

Caller> You are probably going to get a really big head, because you are associated with a show that is the highest rated show ever on SyFy.  How does that make you feel?

Allison>  It blows my mind!  When the numbers come in, I just think, “This is so awesome!”  We do what we can.  We do our best to create a product that we think is of quality.  We do what amuses us and we have fun and care about the integrity of the story.  But then all we can really do is cross our fingers and tell our friends to watch this show that we are on.  My parents friends called and said, “We’ve been watching this show, Warehouse 13, and it’s so great!”  Then they are like, “Oh by the way, my kid is on that show.”  It’s been the most pleasant surprise and so rewarding.  Being a part of a show like that is more than I could have ever asked for creatively.  It’s so fulfilling.  Then to have the country be really into it, it’s just a joy. 

Caller>Have you made close friendships with any of the other actors?  Do you go out together and go to each other’s houses?

A>  Absolutely.  Saul and I made it a habit, after shooting, to have coffee together and reflect on the day.  Saul tells stories about his various experiences on other sets.  Eddie, now that we are back in LA, he has the cast and crew, and some of the folks from SyFy   on Tuesday nights to watch episodes.  I think Joanne is probably condo shopping in Canada or something, but we’re all such great friends.  We’re all going to London next month for MCMX expo, which is the UK’s version of Comic Con.  So I’m looking for Warehouse 13, British style.

Kenn>  Did you say you went to Comic Con this year?

Allison>  Yeah, I did it was so much fun. 

Kenn>  Claudia wasn’t on the show yet, at that point, was she?

Allison>  Comic Con was the weekend before Claudia aired, so that was the episode that we got to screen. 

Kenn>  So every convention from now on will probably be insane for you, now that everybody knows who you are.  What do you think about being a part of a show that has a cult following?  SyFy people get into their shows!

Allison>  I feel like it’s really cool, like I’m part of a community.  There seems to be nothing but love for the Warehouse.  I think it’s really cool, and that’s all I have control over.  I’m looking forward to seeing people run around in short red Claudia wigs next year.  I think it will be adorable.

Shaun>  Allison, I talked to Saul the other day about what he’d like to see in Season 2.  What are your thoughts about that?  He mentioned a cross over between Warehouse 13 and Eureka.

Allison>  I definitely want a Eureka crossover.  We got to meet all of those guys down at Comic Con, and I made friends with Neil Grayston who plays Fargo.  He’s the coolest guy.  We hung out a couple of times when I was up in Vancouver, recently, for Smallville.  I’m playing Jayna, one of the wonder twins, along with David Gallagher, a really cool guy.

Shaun>  Now is the monkey going to be there? 

Allison>  We will not have a live monkey, but there is a special hero allusion to Gleek, that will not go unappreciated by fans of the wonder twins.

Shaun>  You’ve also been on One Tree Hill, and Drake & Josh among other things.  What do you feel about those experiences compared to Warehouse 13?

Allison>  They were all great and I learn something from every project I get to work on.  But Warehouse 13 has been a completely different experience for me.  It’s been the most episodes I’ve gotten to work on back to back on one show.  I was a presence on Drake & Josh, but the eight episodes I did were spread out over two years.  I feel like I grew up over there.  I have nothing but love for that whole team.  One Tree Hill has such a cult following and a bit of a formula that they follow.  I learned a lot about conserving my energy on set when it came down to doing very emotional scenes.  And Gemini Division was like an experiment.  It was a really cool, really interesting experiment, and we all felt like amateurs on that set, but it was really fun.  And M&M on Gemini Division, had even more techno-babble than Claudia which was intense.  But Warehouse, I’ve never felt more like a family or part of a community.  When we were talking about this cult following fan-base surround the show, it’s like a cult following surrounding a family unit for me.  I love what the show is about, I love the character I get to play, I love the people I get to work with, and so it’s been really a dream job.

Shaun>  We do have another caller.

Caller>I love your character on the show! Can you tell me though, how did you get your start performing?

Allison>  I think my mother would tell you I came out of the womb performing.  I don’t know if there is a performance gene existing, but from an early age I was doing ballet.  I got into piano early on.  When I was five, I joined my schools talent and drama department, and I was really lucky to have that resource.  I didn’t move to Los Angeles until I was 11, which was still very young.  But it had already been decided I my mind that I’d go to a performing arts high school, that I’d probably move to New York and pursue musical theatre.  I love performing, I love telling a story.  It’s been something I’ve known my whole life. 

Caller>You’ve been so great on the show, and we just can’t wait for the season finale.

Allison>  It’s intense.  It’s going to blow your mind, let me tell you.  I went through some serious complications reading the script.

Caller>Are you going to have any interaction with McPherson in the finale?

Allison>  Well, that questions leads to a fork in the road.  There is a bit of a spoiler attached to that, that I can’t disclose.  But if you are wondering if you are going to see me on screen with Roger, the answer is yes.  We love working with him, he’s a fantastic guy.

Shaun>  We need to start wrapping up with Allison.

Allison>  Thank you guys so much, I’m always down to talk to people who love the show as much as I do.  I’m always down to talk to people who love the show as much as I do.

Shaun>  Some people are suggesting maybe a web series for Claudia.  How about it, would you be donw to do that to bridge the two seasons?

Allison>  I’d absolutely be down to do that.  There was some talk of that in season 1, but we just didn’t have the time or resources to make it happen. But I think that is definitely a possibility in the future.

Shaun>  Who wrote the finale, do you know?

Allison>  Our show runner, Jack Kenny wrote the finale.  And it’s directed by Steve Surjik who directed Claudia. 

Kenn>  One last question about the wonder twins, are we going to get to see a fist bump?

Allison>  You definitely are seeing the fist bump!