Has anyone watched in person? I managed to get tickets in their lottery (the only way to get tix outside of standby). It's for Dec 11 with Paul Rudd and Paul McCartney. The tickets are actually for the dress rehearsal which takes place right before the live show. I heard it's better because there's more material and the cast is looser. But it's still not the televised live show everyone else will see. Just curious what people thought of it and their experiences. I know the seating is awkward (most of it is in the rafters), and was wondering if I get there earlier if I would get seats on the floor. I'd like to get tickets to the actual broadcast too, but I figure the standby line and odds are a b****.
That looks like a good bill. As awful as SNL has been this season, that might be a highlight episode for the season. If they blow it with a Paul Rudd and a Paul McCartney, then they might as well just take the show off the air cause it has been truly horrible this season.
I can confirm this. I'm not a fan of the Beatles, and I'm one of the few people in the entire world that feels that they are highly overrated... but I saw McCartney perform live at Coachella and it was awesome. Although he's kind of awkward on stage trying to relate to a crowd, but I guess you won't have to see that.
I got to see the actual live taping (not the rehearsal) back in 2007 - saw Annette Bening host and Gwen Stefani/Akon as musical performances. Definitely a cool experience and worth going to. We sat up in the rafters (I have no idea how people get floor seats, I'm assuming those are friends/VIP tickets). While waiting in line to get into the studio, Warren Beatty walked right past us. After the show, saw Keenan Thompson outside heading out to the after-party (assuming). You should have fun - I think you'll see more skits in the rehearsal than in the actual live show, so they can decide what to cut based on laughs. Let us know how it goes!
Nice! I'm really looking forward to it. Is seating is based on when you get there? I wasn't crazy about booking an NYC trip this time of year, but the bill definitely helped push me over the edge. I'm not a Beatles fan either, but McCartney is as big as it gets for 'legendary musician' status. I know everyone piles on the show, particularly in the past few years, but it's still one of the few shows I revere...when I was 10 I would rent videos of the original cast which aired before I was even born. Half the jokes probably flew over my head, but I've had some odd fascination for SNL since I first watched it. I burned through the Live From New York book in a day. So yeah, I'm psyched for it.
I've been watching SNL as long as I can remember. I think this season has been one of the worst ever imo. I think the drop-off from even last season has been huge. I'm usually the guy that is not that hard on this show when others are terribly hard on this show. But, this season has just been horrible imo. I think it is a combination of factors...everything from cast turnover to poor writing to a boring political scene (of which they still try to make fun of but it just isn't funny). I wish you the best time on your trip and I hope the show is a good one. I love Paul Rudd more than I love Paul McCartney. But, I like this pairing and I'm sure Paul M. will be in a skit or two.
I'm back from the weekend and saw the replay on Hulu for comparison. It was a great experience. It's pretty amazing to see how they put on a show in such a small, small space. The floor audience takes up most of the floor, and they have to maneuver set pieces and the huge camera cranes around them. Add on the precise timing and there's little room for error. As I said, I saw the dress rehearsal and it probably ran 2 hours long. Jason Sudeikis warmed up the crowd and was hilarious. Keenan Thompson also did a legit rendition of Saturday Night's Alright by Elton John which helped get the crowd going. After watching the aired show, I was surprised to see what was left out. Three sketches that didn't make the airing could have easily replaced some others on what was an otherwise mediocre episode. Paul McCartney was great to see in person even though I'm not much of a fan. Some hardcore fans were in the crowd who waited a very long time for standby tickets. Nice touch to see him reference Lennon too. The show clearly revered him enough to let him play 3 times and take part in so many sketches. I'm definitely looking forward to attending many more shows if possible. And in an unrelated note, Susan Sarandon sat by me at Spin on Friday. She's probably there on a regular basis.
Wow...I disagree completely. This season has been far better than the past two or three, IMO. I concur...wonder if we'll ever find the long lost third person out there.