Hubster Anais has sent us this wonderful “Taping ReporT” of her trip to the October 1st taping of “The Colbert Report”.
Hi, everyone. It’s been far too long since I’ve been on CNH (save for some lurking and a couple of comments here and there), and I’m terribly sorry for the great delay. Life has been crazy hectic for me and has left me little time to sit down and write my reporT. But, thankfully, things are somewhat slowing down for me a little bit, and, though it’s not as detailed and in-depth as my past posts (my memory was more impaired than usual, and so much time has passed since then), here’s my reporT for the 10/1/13 show with Daniel Radcliffe, my 4th TCR taping.
I was overdue for another TCR trip, and I was planning on attending the 10/17 show as a pre-birthday present to myself, but when I got word about Daniel coming on TCR (though I’m a fangirl now, I was and still am a Potterhead), and the fact that two of my favourite famous people would be in the same space together, I knew that I had to take the chance (and it turned out to be a good decision on my part, since, as I learned later, TCR was on break the week of their 8th anniversary and my birthday). So I went into Twitter stalker mode and, after a couple of misses, I finally managed to snag a ticket two days before the show.
On the day of the show, I was so excited, I could barely concentrate at work. Once the clock hit 3pm, I rushed out of my office and made the trip to the studio. Thankfully the subway trains were running on schedule that day, but I still wish sometimes that I had a broomstick so that I can just soar over the skyscrapers and not get stuck in any traffic jams or delays (definitely would be better than traveling by Floo powder, in my opinion anyway). As I was walking down the path that is oh-so familiar to me by now, I vowed that I would try and meet Stephen after the taping, whatever may come. This would be my 6th attempt, having been unsuccessful at my last 3 tapings and 2 other separate times when I waited outside the studio with other fangirls. But, just in case, I texted fellow fangirl Arrow and invited her to keep me company after the taping as well as to provide me moral support, since I’ve learned in the past that I cannot wait for Stephen by myself.
My biggest fear was that I would not get into the taping that night since Daniel’s such a big star, and when I arrived, at about 3:45pm, there was already a big handful of people waiting in line, but not too many, thankfully. I took my spot in line and breathed a sigh of relief that I was at least in the first half of the line and admission would more or less be guaranteed. Being a seasoned audience member by now, I was well prepared to while away the waiting game with a packed dinner, water, and a borrowed copy of David Sedaris’ Me Talk Pretty One Day. Shortly after I’d arrived, a woman came out and checked our ticket confirmations (paper-based or electronic), IDs and the number of people in our parties (numéro un for me as always), and then we went back to waiting. A little later, a bodyguard came out and did his speech explaining how nothing of any kind that could be of harm to Stephen would be allowed etc, but I’d heard all of this before so I was only half-listening. By the time it was 4:45pm or so, the line of people filled up the whole waiting area (with more almost going back out onto the sidewalk), so I definitely felt fortunate to be near the front.
Soon, before we knew it, they started letting us into the waiting room at 5pm sharp and handed us our admission tickets at the same time. They sheparded us in pretty quickly, and I noticed that the bodyguard that I’d become friendly with was not there (I don’t know his name, only that he’s follicle-y lacking). But the other BGs whom I didn’t know, though intimidating, were also friendly and had senses of humour. One of them had a friendly banter with me on how my tote and hand bags felt like they had rocks in them as I was going through security. Once I was done, I noticed that a few things were different in the waiting room; a couple of artworks were gone and replaced with new ones, the Rally capsule was gone, and there were now 2 rows of dark blue benches for people to sit on instead of standing the whole time while waiting to be let into the studio. I was able to snag a spot on one of the back benches and sat down to continue reading my book, but not before remembering that I needed to take my customary photo of my admission ticket and what number I was this time.
Quite a jump down from being #7 and #1 the last few times, but I was fine with being #22 since I was more concerned about actually getting into the audience than being #1at that point (I only just realized that I was #22 just like my last visit to TCR last year on my birthday. Weird, huh? Also, see how pretty and brand new the tickets are? Guess they were re-laminated.).
Because we were let in so early, we waited a really long time, so I was grateful for my book. At some point I chatted with a guy who just so happened to have the same book as me(!), but apart from that I was all by my lonesome. Another reason I was also glad to have the book was because, to be very honest, I’m getting a little bored of watching the same DVD that they’re always showing on the TV monitors. I really wish that they would make a new DVD with updated classic Colbert moments. I also noticed that, this time around, people were spending more time talking to each other than watching the DVD, which made me wonder if they were there to see Daniel more than Stephen (I, at least, was there for both of them). Another thing that was different was the girl who pauses the DVD and stands on something to get our attention and build up our enthusiasm: it was not the really annoying one who’s overly perky (she kind of grinds my nerves with her voice). It was nice to listen to someone different for a change who spoke normally and wasn’t perky at all. Much more effective and easier on the ears. I hope she’ll be around the next time I come back.
Finally, after what felt like forever, the audience coordinator opened the doors, gave us his speech on how to be the best audience ever, and started letting us in. There were a lot of VIPs that night. As I handed my ticket to the AC and walked through the entrance, I could feel my anticipation rising, and the excitement I always feel when I attend a taping. The guy behind me was especially excited because it was his first taping. I wondered where I would be seated this time, since the last 2 times I’d been in the 1st row so it seemed unlikely that I would be seated there again. But no: I WAS seated in the front row again(!!), but on the very far right side (when you face the set), which was fine by me, and, as a bonus, I got a special TCR light up pen just like Stephen’s that was sitting on my chair! The guy who was behind me ended up sitting next to me, so we made small talk while everyone else filed in. At some point a bodyguard came to my section and told us in the front row the part about Stephen high-fiving everyone in the front row when he runs around. I had a feeling that, being so far off to the side, I was not going to be able to reach Stephen’s hand, but I got a high-five last time so I wasn’t going to be disappointed if I didn’t get one this time.
When everyone was finally seated, the stand-up comic who warms us up before Stephen comes out came out and started his spiel. I don’t remember his name, but he was a relatively new guy, definitely not one of the regulars that I’ve seen before. He mostly spent the whole time asking if anybody came from really far away to see the show and getting them to talk a bit about themselves. Some exotic destinations that I remember came as far as Latvia, Australia and New Jersey. The guy next to me put his hand up and said that he was part French by his mother’s side, and that he was born in Paris (I forget which part of America his other side came from, I think somewhere in the Midwest). I got especially excited when he said that, being a fellow Frenchie/Parisienne myself, and I quickly told him so (quietly) when he was done talking to the stand-up guy. We had a happy little bonding moment about French stuff in general before turning our attention back to the SUC (stand-up comic). I felt like I had found a potential new friend, or more…
Anyway, the SUC finally called over Mark the stage manager, who told us how he was going to ‘conduct’ our cheering and clapping duties, and, with SUC calling out for Stephen, we leapt to our feet and went berserk (as was asked for) as Stephen came into view in all his all-American glory, grabbed the comic’s microphone and ran around high-fiving people and staff before coming to a stop in the middle of the room and doing his microphone flipping move with a flourish. Just as expected, my section was a little too far off to the side to reach Stephen, so we didn’t get our high-fives, but, like I said, since I’ve already gotten one before, I wasn’t bummed out. And you can’t see me when the camera’s swooping at the beginning of the show, BUT you can see me when it’s swooping over the audience during the interview clip! I’m in a black shirt with my arms stretched out vertically as I’m clapping (pause the individual clip at about 16 seconds, don’t know when for the full episode).
I just want to add a quick interjection here…I swear, the man is a living, breathing and walking Cheering Charm: whenever he enters a room with his energy, enthusiasm and that 100-watt smile of his, everybody’s face lights up, and you’re filled to the brim with happiness; he seems to remove everyone’s unhappiness, stress and worries just by being himself. If we could make miniature copies of him, I would carry one around in my pocket all day long and take him out any time I needed cheering up…
Anyway, he went right into his speech on if anyone had any questions to ask him before he ‘says terrible things’. Again my memory was not as good as it usually is so I apologize that I don’t remember the questions below in greater detail (I at least remember how many there were and what they were about). So, in no particular order, here are the questions that were asked during the Q&A:
1) A guy asked him if he’d seen the new Hobbit movie trailer (he did), and what he thought of it. He thought it looked really great…and turned immediately away to answer another question (I wonder if he’s hiding something…).
2) Another guy asked how Stephen got the gig to be the Featured Comedian at the 2006 White House Correspondents Dinner. Stephen told us how someone on the White House committee who’d heard of him/saw clips of him on the Daily Show invited him to come to the dinner. Stephen was a little freaked out and uncertain about the whole thing, especially since this was when he was just starting out with TCR, so he called Jon for some advice and Jon convinced him to do it. And the rest is history. Stephen got in touch with the guy who’d invited him in the first place a few days after the dinner to check ‘if he was okay’. I think he said that the guy was fine, he didn’t get fired or anything, but Stephen’s probably not going back to the WH any time soon (though he should, now that people know just how awesome he is).
3) A girl congratulated him on his Emmy wins (cue in celebratory clapping from our end), and said that she heard that when singers win a Grammy, it is customary to drink something from the gramophone part of the trophy, and asked what he would drink from his Emmy. He said that he’d drink the ‘blood of his competitors’, just like stick the pointy part of the Emmy into their chest and ‘suck the sweet nectar of life out of their bodies.’
4) Someone else asked him about his Rome vacation and how he loved Italy. He responded with a (faux) incredulous “How did you know?!” The person told him that ‘his character’ mentioned it on his show a few nights ago, and he (faux) condemned ‘[t]hat a******!’. Then he went back to being serious and said that he loved every moment of it, that he didn’t get to see the Pope, and that St. Peter’s Basilica was insanely crowded.
5) Another person asked him what a typical day at TCR was like. He first quipped that he ‘arrived just 5 minutes ago’ and that he just makes everything up right on the spot, then he laughed and said that he was just kidding and that really everyone just writes all day long.
6) The next question asked if Stephen had anything important to share for an improviser (or any other kind of artist) who wants to make it/be successful. Stephen’s answer was basically what he had said in one of his Commencement speeches: just say ‘Yes and…’ to anything and everything, get yourself into trouble, because every time you say ‘yes’ to something, a world of opportunity is opened to you. To drive the point home, he gestured to himself and said that he never thought in a million years that he would actually get his own TV show. For that, we definitely need to be happy that Stephen said ‘yes’ to comedy all those years ago.
7) One girl didn’t really ask a real question; she went on this silly ramble on how she has a ‘condition’ in that whenever she takes a selfie, she has to have someone else in the photo with her, she can’t take a selfie with just her…and she asked if Stephen would take a selfie with her. Maybe he found her ‘story’ slightly amusing, or maybe he’s just that accommodating, Stephen agreed, and bounded up the rafters to take a photo with her. When they were done, he looked at the photo, started laughing and said that she looked ‘terrified’ (he’d done his famous wide-eyed, big open smile face). Then, after being profusely thanked by her, he went back down to the floor.
Soon the Q&A was quickly over, and Stephen, after flipping his microphone to Mark, bounded up to the eagle’s nest for his last-minute pre-show touch ups while everyone else launched into action making sure that everything was in place. I always feel a bit wistful whenever I watch Stephen pat his hair stylist’s hair back as she’s touching up his own. Soon the cameras were in place, Stephen was raring to go (and so were we), the countdown to the taping started (with Mark conducting us), and the magic began.
Stephen did in fact do a title of contents that night, though, as we all saw later (I’m guessing due to time constraints/too much material (better than too little)), it ended up getting cut from the TV broadcast. I don’t remember what the jokes about the 3 main subjects were, but I know that the 4th non-related joke was about the New York City Opera closing due to lack of money, to which Stephen replied, ‘Well, I say, it’s not over until the fat lady stops singing!’
The rest of the taping went very smoothly. I had a feeling that Stephen would talk about both the government shutdown and Obamacare, and they’re both pretty heavy topics, so my mood was a little dampened by the discussion of stupid people bringing the country to a halt and Obamacare enduring a few ‘bugs’ in the system. But, of course, that’s why we have Stephen (and Jon, too): to inject humour into otherwise depressing subjects. Also, it’s always nice to see Jay the Intern, and he looked so cute in that panda costume! After the 1st segment was done, Stephen needed to re-do the end right around the part where he’s showing videos of college students doing stupid things and before cutting to the shot of Jay in the panda suit (I don’t remember why), but yeah, we got to scream in horror and disbelief again at that part.
I was certainly tickled to be treated to two costume gags by Stephen: the first one being that weird He-Man/Conan the Barbarian-type getup for the government shutdown topic, and the Mexican getup for the National Hispanic Heritage Month topic. At some point during the first break he disappeared off to the side to get dressed before coming back. That segment was funny. There was a little part that either got cut out or happened after the cameras stopped rolling, when Stephen was having trouble with his costume. First he was playing with the hat and it fell all over the place, and when he was getting the poncho off, it got stuck at some point, and he was covered with some fuzz that needed to be cleaned off. But one impressive thing: not a hair out of place. His hair stylist did a really good job.
Then finally, the moment we’d been waiting for (or, at least, I was): Harry Potter’s appearance. The second Daniel was led out to the interview table, many of us in the audience went crazy cheering and clapping for him (Stephen joined in, too). I was immediately struck by two things: one, that I was in such a great seat: directly sitting across from Daniel and a barely a few feet away; and two, how unaffected and docile he was. Despite the fact that he had a full room of fans going crazy for him, he shyly smiled and waved at us as he sat down. At some point he looked toward my section, and I think (I hope), I think he looked at me as I waved to him and grinned like a fool; he seemed to smile and nod in my direction (wishful thinking probably, but a girl can dream, right?). Before long, we launched into the interview portion of the show, and basically what is in the individual clip/full episode is what we saw in person, with maybe a couple of comments cut out. I found the whole conversation just so funny and awesome; Stephen and Daniel seemed genuinely charmed with each other, and their banter was just so cute. During the movie clip playing, I watched as Daniel leaned over to Stephen and whispered something to him, which made Stephen laugh and he put his hand on Daniel’s and replied back to him in a reassuring manner, kind of like a father talking to his son. It was just too darling. There were times when Daniel seemed to be trying a little too hard to be witty, but all in all, I loved listening to him. He’s really grown into such a nice young man, and is making a smooth transition into more adult roles. I wish him nothing but all the success and courage in the world to keep doing what he’s doing.
Before long, the interview was sadly over (I wish that it could have gone on forever…or at least long enough to divide it into a two-parter), and Daniel Disapparated just as swiftly as he Apparated. After Daniel left, Stephen went back to his desk, sat down and said, ‘Really nice guy…could have shaved, though.’ Then, after he’d recorded his ‘Good Night’ for the show, he told us that Ken Burns had been asking high-profile people to recite the Gettysburg Address in their own way to celebrate its 150th anniversary, so he was going to practice reciting it in front of us, if we didn’t mind (we didn’t). He got himself ready in his chair, recited the first couple of lines to get the feel of how he wanted to deliver them, then went right into it in all seriousness, no crazy costume getup’s or melodramatic nuances, just straight, no-funny-business professionalism, as all of us watched him in dead silence. His deliverance was perfect. His voice has that quality that makes you want to listen to him forever. I read somewhere that scientists have perfected a way to actually ‘clone’ voices so to preserve them for posterity. I hope that, if they come and ask Stephen permission to clone his voice, he will consent. Then, after he was done reciting the speech, he did that funny thing where he repeats phrases and/or words he said in some of the earlier segments over and over again like he wasn’t happy with the way he delivered them and wanted to re-do them until they were done in a way that he liked and could be dubbed over the final footage. *Phew*
When he was all finished with his re-dos, he got up and walked around the desk. I thought he was going to leave at that point, but then he stopped and said that he would take one more question, which was this: When was the last time he did something for the first time? I very unfortunately don’t remember what Stephen’s answer was (which I apologize for), but I do remember that that question kind of flew over our heads (Stephen’s too) at first. I also remember that he started going on at length about a book that he thinks should be on everyone’s to-read list: an old novel called Three Hearts and Three Lions from like the 50s or 60s. Evidently it’s a book that was very influential in his life, so I’ll have to check it out at some point. And with that, it was all over, and he waved at us and left. But just as he was passing by my section, the guy sitting next to me held up his hand, and Stephen high-fived him on his way out. So the guy ended up getting his high-five after all, which he was happy about. Then, after waiting a bit to give Stephen time to disappear out of sight completely, we started being let out.
As everyone left the studio, I looked around for the boy whom I’d been chatting with throughout the taping as we’d gotten separated in the crowd. I soon spotted him, but he was crossing the street, already on his way home. I had wondered if he was going to stay and try to meet Stephen like I was, but I just let it go. I waited a little while for Arrow to arrive, and by the time she did (about 20 minutes or so), any lingerers who were still around had gone, leaving us the only 2 people left. I waited for an hour for Stephen. As we chilled and chatted, my anxiety mounted. I kept pacing and going over any kind of what-if that my brain could latch on and Arrow placated me every time I got especially on edge. You’d think I was preparing to face a Hungarian Horntail instead of a human being, but I was really that wound up about facing Stephen, which I always am.
Then, Arrow made a motion and said, ‘I think Stephen’s coming.’ And, sure enough, when I turned around, there he was at the top of the steps, about to make his descent. And…I flew into panic mode like a Golden Snitch being chased after in a Quidditch game and quickly hid behind Arrow, freaking out and alternating between two choruses of ‘Oh my God!’ and ‘I can’t do this!’ But, in the end, I had nothing to freak out about. Because, without a glance, Stephen came down the stairs, and went straight into the car that was waiting for him. My flight-or-fight mode dissipated, and was replaced with a giant-sized boulder of crushing despair. Arrow, on my unprovoked behalf, valiantly tried to talk to one of the body guards to see if Stephen could be available for just a minute. But to no avail. He was in a hurry. After a few moments, the car slowly pulled out into the street and drove off, leaving the two of us on the sidewalk. Dream deferred for the 6th time.
Because the night was still early, and I was not in the mood to go home just yet, Arrow and I made our way to a cafe where we’d been before, and commiserated over tea and smoothies. Although I always enjoy Arrow’s company and appreciated her efforts to cheer me up, my mood was as down as it could get, like a smaller (but just as vindictive) form of a Dementor was feeding on my emotions, draining me of any happy feeling left in my being. I was so unhappy that, once again, my efforts to meet Stephen have ended in failure, while others have not only been able to meet him, but end up with happy results. I just could not understand why the odds are not in my favour. I don’t know if it’s either through sheer bad luck, my own shyness and cowardice, or some combination of the two. At this point, I’m slowly starting to believe that maybe I’m never meant to meet Stephen, that our paths are never meant to cross. I feel like the only way that it could finally happen for me now would be if I had a small bottle of Felix Felicis (if there are any undercover witches or wizards out there with exceptional Potion-making abilities reading this…hint, hint…). After about an hour or so, we parted for the night and returned to our respective homes, and my sadness lingered for a few days after that.
So that’s my reporT. A little less interesting and more somber than my previous reporTs, but I write from the heart, even if nothing good happens. And I apologize if none of you understood even 1/10 of the Harry Potter references I’ve been peppering throughout my writing, but Daniel Radcliffe WAS the guest, and I’ve been a Potterhead longer than I’ve been a fangirl, so I couldn’t help it. I do hope that you all enjoy reading it though, and I still hope to attend more tapings and write more reporTs in the future. Time to go back to my boring Muggle life, but I’ll try to comment more often when I can. Until another time. Mischief (not) managed. *Disapparates*
October 1st, 2013: The Taping ReporT!
Hubster Anais has sent us this wonderful “Taping ReporT” of her trip to the October 1st taping of “The Colbert Report”.
Hi, everyone. It’s been far too long since I’ve been on CNH (save for some lurking and a couple of comments here and there), and I’m terribly sorry for the great delay. Life has been crazy hectic for me and has left me little time to sit down and write my reporT. But, thankfully, things are somewhat slowing down for me a little bit, and, though it’s not as detailed and in-depth as my past posts (my memory was more impaired than usual, and so much time has passed since then), here’s my reporT for the 10/1/13 show with Daniel Radcliffe, my 4th TCR taping.
I was overdue for another TCR trip, and I was planning on attending the 10/17 show as a pre-birthday present to myself, but when I got word about Daniel coming on TCR (though I’m a fangirl now, I was and still am a Potterhead), and the fact that two of my favourite famous people would be in the same space together, I knew that I had to take the chance (and it turned out to be a good decision on my part, since, as I learned later, TCR was on break the week of their 8th anniversary and my birthday). So I went into Twitter stalker mode and, after a couple of misses, I finally managed to snag a ticket two days before the show.
On the day of the show, I was so excited, I could barely concentrate at work. Once the clock hit 3pm, I rushed out of my office and made the trip to the studio. Thankfully the subway trains were running on schedule that day, but I still wish sometimes that I had a broomstick so that I can just soar over the skyscrapers and not get stuck in any traffic jams or delays (definitely would be better than traveling by Floo powder, in my opinion anyway). As I was walking down the path that is oh-so familiar to me by now, I vowed that I would try and meet Stephen after the taping, whatever may come. This would be my 6th attempt, having been unsuccessful at my last 3 tapings and 2 other separate times when I waited outside the studio with other fangirls. But, just in case, I texted fellow fangirl Arrow and invited her to keep me company after the taping as well as to provide me moral support, since I’ve learned in the past that I cannot wait for Stephen by myself.
My biggest fear was that I would not get into the taping that night since Daniel’s such a big star, and when I arrived, at about 3:45pm, there was already a big handful of people waiting in line, but not too many, thankfully. I took my spot in line and breathed a sigh of relief that I was at least in the first half of the line and admission would more or less be guaranteed. Being a seasoned audience member by now, I was well prepared to while away the waiting game with a packed dinner, water, and a borrowed copy of David Sedaris’ Me Talk Pretty One Day. Shortly after I’d arrived, a woman came out and checked our ticket confirmations (paper-based or electronic), IDs and the number of people in our parties (numéro un for me as always), and then we went back to waiting. A little later, a bodyguard came out and did his speech explaining how nothing of any kind that could be of harm to Stephen would be allowed etc, but I’d heard all of this before so I was only half-listening. By the time it was 4:45pm or so, the line of people filled up the whole waiting area (with more almost going back out onto the sidewalk), so I definitely felt fortunate to be near the front.
Soon, before we knew it, they started letting us into the waiting room at 5pm sharp and handed us our admission tickets at the same time. They sheparded us in pretty quickly, and I noticed that the bodyguard that I’d become friendly with was not there (I don’t know his name, only that he’s follicle-y lacking). But the other BGs whom I didn’t know, though intimidating, were also friendly and had senses of humour. One of them had a friendly banter with me on how my tote and hand bags felt like they had rocks in them as I was going through security. Once I was done, I noticed that a few things were different in the waiting room; a couple of artworks were gone and replaced with new ones, the Rally capsule was gone, and there were now 2 rows of dark blue benches for people to sit on instead of standing the whole time while waiting to be let into the studio. I was able to snag a spot on one of the back benches and sat down to continue reading my book, but not before remembering that I needed to take my customary photo of my admission ticket and what number I was this time.
Quite a jump down from being #7 and #1 the last few times, but I was fine with being #22 since I was more concerned about actually getting into the audience than being #1at that point (I only just realized that I was #22 just like my last visit to TCR last year on my birthday. Weird, huh? Also, see how pretty and brand new the tickets are? Guess they were re-laminated.).
Because we were let in so early, we waited a really long time, so I was grateful for my book. At some point I chatted with a guy who just so happened to have the same book as me(!), but apart from that I was all by my lonesome. Another reason I was also glad to have the book was because, to be very honest, I’m getting a little bored of watching the same DVD that they’re always showing on the TV monitors. I really wish that they would make a new DVD with updated classic Colbert moments. I also noticed that, this time around, people were spending more time talking to each other than watching the DVD, which made me wonder if they were there to see Daniel more than Stephen (I, at least, was there for both of them). Another thing that was different was the girl who pauses the DVD and stands on something to get our attention and build up our enthusiasm: it was not the really annoying one who’s overly perky (she kind of grinds my nerves with her voice). It was nice to listen to someone different for a change who spoke normally and wasn’t perky at all. Much more effective and easier on the ears. I hope she’ll be around the next time I come back.
Finally, after what felt like forever, the audience coordinator opened the doors, gave us his speech on how to be the best audience ever, and started letting us in. There were a lot of VIPs that night. As I handed my ticket to the AC and walked through the entrance, I could feel my anticipation rising, and the excitement I always feel when I attend a taping. The guy behind me was especially excited because it was his first taping. I wondered where I would be seated this time, since the last 2 times I’d been in the 1st row so it seemed unlikely that I would be seated there again. But no: I WAS seated in the front row again(!!), but on the very far right side (when you face the set), which was fine by me, and, as a bonus, I got a special TCR light up pen just like Stephen’s that was sitting on my chair! The guy who was behind me ended up sitting next to me, so we made small talk while everyone else filed in. At some point a bodyguard came to my section and told us in the front row the part about Stephen high-fiving everyone in the front row when he runs around. I had a feeling that, being so far off to the side, I was not going to be able to reach Stephen’s hand, but I got a high-five last time so I wasn’t going to be disappointed if I didn’t get one this time.
When everyone was finally seated, the stand-up comic who warms us up before Stephen comes out came out and started his spiel. I don’t remember his name, but he was a relatively new guy, definitely not one of the regulars that I’ve seen before. He mostly spent the whole time asking if anybody came from really far away to see the show and getting them to talk a bit about themselves. Some exotic destinations that I remember came as far as Latvia, Australia and New Jersey. The guy next to me put his hand up and said that he was part French by his mother’s side, and that he was born in Paris (I forget which part of America his other side came from, I think somewhere in the Midwest). I got especially excited when he said that, being a fellow Frenchie/Parisienne myself, and I quickly told him so (quietly) when he was done talking to the stand-up guy. We had a happy little bonding moment about French stuff in general before turning our attention back to the SUC (stand-up comic). I felt like I had found a potential new friend, or more…
Anyway, the SUC finally called over Mark the stage manager, who told us how he was going to ‘conduct’ our cheering and clapping duties, and, with SUC calling out for Stephen, we leapt to our feet and went berserk (as was asked for) as Stephen came into view in all his all-American glory, grabbed the comic’s microphone and ran around high-fiving people and staff before coming to a stop in the middle of the room and doing his microphone flipping move with a flourish. Just as expected, my section was a little too far off to the side to reach Stephen, so we didn’t get our high-fives, but, like I said, since I’ve already gotten one before, I wasn’t bummed out. And you can’t see me when the camera’s swooping at the beginning of the show, BUT you can see me when it’s swooping over the audience during the interview clip! I’m in a black shirt with my arms stretched out vertically as I’m clapping (pause the individual clip at about 16 seconds, don’t know when for the full episode).
I just want to add a quick interjection here…I swear, the man is a living, breathing and walking Cheering Charm: whenever he enters a room with his energy, enthusiasm and that 100-watt smile of his, everybody’s face lights up, and you’re filled to the brim with happiness; he seems to remove everyone’s unhappiness, stress and worries just by being himself. If we could make miniature copies of him, I would carry one around in my pocket all day long and take him out any time I needed cheering up…
Anyway, he went right into his speech on if anyone had any questions to ask him before he ‘says terrible things’. Again my memory was not as good as it usually is so I apologize that I don’t remember the questions below in greater detail (I at least remember how many there were and what they were about). So, in no particular order, here are the questions that were asked during the Q&A:
1) A guy asked him if he’d seen the new Hobbit movie trailer (he did), and what he thought of it. He thought it looked really great…and turned immediately away to answer another question (I wonder if he’s hiding something…).
2) Another guy asked how Stephen got the gig to be the Featured Comedian at the 2006 White House Correspondents Dinner. Stephen told us how someone on the White House committee who’d heard of him/saw clips of him on the Daily Show invited him to come to the dinner. Stephen was a little freaked out and uncertain about the whole thing, especially since this was when he was just starting out with TCR, so he called Jon for some advice and Jon convinced him to do it. And the rest is history. Stephen got in touch with the guy who’d invited him in the first place a few days after the dinner to check ‘if he was okay’. I think he said that the guy was fine, he didn’t get fired or anything, but Stephen’s probably not going back to the WH any time soon (though he should, now that people know just how awesome he is).
3) A girl congratulated him on his Emmy wins (cue in celebratory clapping from our end), and said that she heard that when singers win a Grammy, it is customary to drink something from the gramophone part of the trophy, and asked what he would drink from his Emmy. He said that he’d drink the ‘blood of his competitors’, just like stick the pointy part of the Emmy into their chest and ‘suck the sweet nectar of life out of their bodies.’
4) Someone else asked him about his Rome vacation and how he loved Italy. He responded with a (faux) incredulous “How did you know?!” The person told him that ‘his character’ mentioned it on his show a few nights ago, and he (faux) condemned ‘[t]hat a******!’. Then he went back to being serious and said that he loved every moment of it, that he didn’t get to see the Pope, and that St. Peter’s Basilica was insanely crowded.
5) Another person asked him what a typical day at TCR was like. He first quipped that he ‘arrived just 5 minutes ago’ and that he just makes everything up right on the spot, then he laughed and said that he was just kidding and that really everyone just writes all day long.
6) The next question asked if Stephen had anything important to share for an improviser (or any other kind of artist) who wants to make it/be successful. Stephen’s answer was basically what he had said in one of his Commencement speeches: just say ‘Yes and…’ to anything and everything, get yourself into trouble, because every time you say ‘yes’ to something, a world of opportunity is opened to you. To drive the point home, he gestured to himself and said that he never thought in a million years that he would actually get his own TV show. For that, we definitely need to be happy that Stephen said ‘yes’ to comedy all those years ago.
7) One girl didn’t really ask a real question; she went on this silly ramble on how she has a ‘condition’ in that whenever she takes a selfie, she has to have someone else in the photo with her, she can’t take a selfie with just her…and she asked if Stephen would take a selfie with her. Maybe he found her ‘story’ slightly amusing, or maybe he’s just that accommodating, Stephen agreed, and bounded up the rafters to take a photo with her. When they were done, he looked at the photo, started laughing and said that she looked ‘terrified’ (he’d done his famous wide-eyed, big open smile face). Then, after being profusely thanked by her, he went back down to the floor.
Soon the Q&A was quickly over, and Stephen, after flipping his microphone to Mark, bounded up to the eagle’s nest for his last-minute pre-show touch ups while everyone else launched into action making sure that everything was in place. I always feel a bit wistful whenever I watch Stephen pat his hair stylist’s hair back as she’s touching up his own. Soon the cameras were in place, Stephen was raring to go (and so were we), the countdown to the taping started (with Mark conducting us), and the magic began.
Stephen did in fact do a title of contents that night, though, as we all saw later (I’m guessing due to time constraints/too much material (better than too little)), it ended up getting cut from the TV broadcast. I don’t remember what the jokes about the 3 main subjects were, but I know that the 4th non-related joke was about the New York City Opera closing due to lack of money, to which Stephen replied, ‘Well, I say, it’s not over until the fat lady stops singing!’
The rest of the taping went very smoothly. I had a feeling that Stephen would talk about both the government shutdown and Obamacare, and they’re both pretty heavy topics, so my mood was a little dampened by the discussion of stupid people bringing the country to a halt and Obamacare enduring a few ‘bugs’ in the system. But, of course, that’s why we have Stephen (and Jon, too): to inject humour into otherwise depressing subjects. Also, it’s always nice to see Jay the Intern, and he looked so cute in that panda costume! After the 1st segment was done, Stephen needed to re-do the end right around the part where he’s showing videos of college students doing stupid things and before cutting to the shot of Jay in the panda suit (I don’t remember why), but yeah, we got to scream in horror and disbelief again at that part.
I was certainly tickled to be treated to two costume gags by Stephen: the first one being that weird He-Man/Conan the Barbarian-type getup for the government shutdown topic, and the Mexican getup for the National Hispanic Heritage Month topic. At some point during the first break he disappeared off to the side to get dressed before coming back. That segment was funny. There was a little part that either got cut out or happened after the cameras stopped rolling, when Stephen was having trouble with his costume. First he was playing with the hat and it fell all over the place, and when he was getting the poncho off, it got stuck at some point, and he was covered with some fuzz that needed to be cleaned off. But one impressive thing: not a hair out of place. His hair stylist did a really good job.
Then finally, the moment we’d been waiting for (or, at least, I was): Harry Potter’s appearance. The second Daniel was led out to the interview table, many of us in the audience went crazy cheering and clapping for him (Stephen joined in, too). I was immediately struck by two things: one, that I was in such a great seat: directly sitting across from Daniel and a barely a few feet away; and two, how unaffected and docile he was. Despite the fact that he had a full room of fans going crazy for him, he shyly smiled and waved at us as he sat down. At some point he looked toward my section, and I think (I hope), I think he looked at me as I waved to him and grinned like a fool; he seemed to smile and nod in my direction (wishful thinking probably, but a girl can dream, right?). Before long, we launched into the interview portion of the show, and basically what is in the individual clip/full episode is what we saw in person, with maybe a couple of comments cut out. I found the whole conversation just so funny and awesome; Stephen and Daniel seemed genuinely charmed with each other, and their banter was just so cute. During the movie clip playing, I watched as Daniel leaned over to Stephen and whispered something to him, which made Stephen laugh and he put his hand on Daniel’s and replied back to him in a reassuring manner, kind of like a father talking to his son. It was just too darling. There were times when Daniel seemed to be trying a little too hard to be witty, but all in all, I loved listening to him. He’s really grown into such a nice young man, and is making a smooth transition into more adult roles. I wish him nothing but all the success and courage in the world to keep doing what he’s doing.
Before long, the interview was sadly over (I wish that it could have gone on forever…or at least long enough to divide it into a two-parter), and Daniel Disapparated just as swiftly as he Apparated. After Daniel left, Stephen went back to his desk, sat down and said, ‘Really nice guy…could have shaved, though.’ Then, after he’d recorded his ‘Good Night’ for the show, he told us that Ken Burns had been asking high-profile people to recite the Gettysburg Address in their own way to celebrate its 150th anniversary, so he was going to practice reciting it in front of us, if we didn’t mind (we didn’t). He got himself ready in his chair, recited the first couple of lines to get the feel of how he wanted to deliver them, then went right into it in all seriousness, no crazy costume getup’s or melodramatic nuances, just straight, no-funny-business professionalism, as all of us watched him in dead silence. His deliverance was perfect. His voice has that quality that makes you want to listen to him forever. I read somewhere that scientists have perfected a way to actually ‘clone’ voices so to preserve them for posterity. I hope that, if they come and ask Stephen permission to clone his voice, he will consent. Then, after he was done reciting the speech, he did that funny thing where he repeats phrases and/or words he said in some of the earlier segments over and over again like he wasn’t happy with the way he delivered them and wanted to re-do them until they were done in a way that he liked and could be dubbed over the final footage. *Phew*
When he was all finished with his re-dos, he got up and walked around the desk. I thought he was going to leave at that point, but then he stopped and said that he would take one more question, which was this: When was the last time he did something for the first time? I very unfortunately don’t remember what Stephen’s answer was (which I apologize for), but I do remember that that question kind of flew over our heads (Stephen’s too) at first. I also remember that he started going on at length about a book that he thinks should be on everyone’s to-read list: an old novel called Three Hearts and Three Lions from like the 50s or 60s. Evidently it’s a book that was very influential in his life, so I’ll have to check it out at some point. And with that, it was all over, and he waved at us and left. But just as he was passing by my section, the guy sitting next to me held up his hand, and Stephen high-fived him on his way out. So the guy ended up getting his high-five after all, which he was happy about. Then, after waiting a bit to give Stephen time to disappear out of sight completely, we started being let out.
As everyone left the studio, I looked around for the boy whom I’d been chatting with throughout the taping as we’d gotten separated in the crowd. I soon spotted him, but he was crossing the street, already on his way home. I had wondered if he was going to stay and try to meet Stephen like I was, but I just let it go. I waited a little while for Arrow to arrive, and by the time she did (about 20 minutes or so), any lingerers who were still around had gone, leaving us the only 2 people left. I waited for an hour for Stephen. As we chilled and chatted, my anxiety mounted. I kept pacing and going over any kind of what-if that my brain could latch on and Arrow placated me every time I got especially on edge. You’d think I was preparing to face a Hungarian Horntail instead of a human being, but I was really that wound up about facing Stephen, which I always am.
Then, Arrow made a motion and said, ‘I think Stephen’s coming.’ And, sure enough, when I turned around, there he was at the top of the steps, about to make his descent. And…I flew into panic mode like a Golden Snitch being chased after in a Quidditch game and quickly hid behind Arrow, freaking out and alternating between two choruses of ‘Oh my God!’ and ‘I can’t do this!’ But, in the end, I had nothing to freak out about. Because, without a glance, Stephen came down the stairs, and went straight into the car that was waiting for him. My flight-or-fight mode dissipated, and was replaced with a giant-sized boulder of crushing despair. Arrow, on my unprovoked behalf, valiantly tried to talk to one of the body guards to see if Stephen could be available for just a minute. But to no avail. He was in a hurry. After a few moments, the car slowly pulled out into the street and drove off, leaving the two of us on the sidewalk. Dream deferred for the 6th time.
Because the night was still early, and I was not in the mood to go home just yet, Arrow and I made our way to a cafe where we’d been before, and commiserated over tea and smoothies. Although I always enjoy Arrow’s company and appreciated her efforts to cheer me up, my mood was as down as it could get, like a smaller (but just as vindictive) form of a Dementor was feeding on my emotions, draining me of any happy feeling left in my being. I was so unhappy that, once again, my efforts to meet Stephen have ended in failure, while others have not only been able to meet him, but end up with happy results. I just could not understand why the odds are not in my favour. I don’t know if it’s either through sheer bad luck, my own shyness and cowardice, or some combination of the two. At this point, I’m slowly starting to believe that maybe I’m never meant to meet Stephen, that our paths are never meant to cross. I feel like the only way that it could finally happen for me now would be if I had a small bottle of Felix Felicis (if there are any undercover witches or wizards out there with exceptional Potion-making abilities reading this…hint, hint…). After about an hour or so, we parted for the night and returned to our respective homes, and my sadness lingered for a few days after that.
So that’s my reporT. A little less interesting and more somber than my previous reporTs, but I write from the heart, even if nothing good happens. And I apologize if none of you understood even 1/10 of the Harry Potter references I’ve been peppering throughout my writing, but Daniel Radcliffe WAS the guest, and I’ve been a Potterhead longer than I’ve been a fangirl, so I couldn’t help it. I do hope that you all enjoy reading it though, and I still hope to attend more tapings and write more reporTs in the future. Time to go back to my boring Muggle life, but I’ll try to comment more often when I can. Until another time. Mischief (not) managed. *Disapparates*