ROSIE SHOW FAQ
What is it like to be an audience member at The Rosie O'Donnell Show? The following
information is provided as an illustration. It is based on several visits to the show by several
different people. If your experience is significantly different, remember: things change.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1: What's the first thing that happens?
2: Some people get special treatment? Who?
3: Then you went to the studio?
4: Isn't the studio on the 8th floor?
5: What if there aren't enough people to fill all the seats?
6: What happens in the studio before the show begins?
7: Do you really get a Drake's cake?
8: What does the studio look like from the audience's perspective?
9: Who selects the show's opening announcer?
10: Who decides who will be interviewed during audience segments?
11: Why are most audience segments done in the stage left aisle?
12: Are there any rules for the audience?
13: Why doesn't Rosie open with a stand-up monologue?
14: Does Rosie interact with the audience during commercials?
15: What else does or doesn't happen during commercials?
16: What is that device Rosie uses to play music and voice clips?
17: What else might we see besides The Rosie O'Donnell Show?
18: When they also have an afternoon taping, can you stay for that?
19: Can you get Rosie's autograph?
20: Any closing remarks or reminders?
Q: What's the first thing that happens?
A: There are lots of lines and long waits. Audience arrival time for ticketholders
is several hours before show time at the NBC Lobby at 30 Rockefeller Plaza.
Our name was on a list that they checked off on the ground floor. Even though they say
to bring ID to prove who you are, I didn't see anyone get asked as long as they had
the postcard and their name was on the clipboard listing. The pages pulled a few people
out of the line and took them right up to the studio.
Q: Some people get special treatment? Who?
A: Rosie, John and other cast and crew members get a few tickets each month for their
family, friends and other guests. Those people are on a guest list and are treated
separately from regular ticket holders. They don't really receive any special
treatment, they are just handled separately.
Maybe someday groups from AOL and the Rosie Internet Mailing List will, too.
Q: Then you went to the studio?
A: We had to go through a metal detector like they have at airports before they would let
us in the elevator. We didn't get on the elevator until less than an hour before show time
and then stood in line on the 9th floor while they seated a few people at a time. By the
time we got into the studio it was about 20 minutes until airtime.
Q: Isn't the studio on the 8th floor?
A: The studio takes up three floors — the 8th floor where the stage is, the 9th floor
where the audience enters at the back of the seating area, and the 10th which is full of
lighting and catwalks.
Q: What if there aren't enough people to fill all the seats?
A: This doesn't happen any longer, but in the rare instance where there are empty seats
after all the stand-by people are seated, or should someone get sick or leave for any other
reason, people are pulled from anywhere to fill the seats — writers, clerks, pages, any
warm body. On camera, there are NEVER any empty seats.
Q: What happens in the studio before the show begins?
A: Joey Kola is in charge of the audience, and he works really hard (physically harder
than anyone else) to be sure the audience is full of high energy. He tells jokes and
"works" the audience. Rosie almost never acknowledges the studio audience before the show.
Q: Do you really get a Drake's cake?
A: You bet! There is a Drake's cake and a half-pint carton of skim milk under each seat,
and they give out these cute revolving lollypops or other novelties as you are leaving.
Q: What does the studio look like from the audience's perspective?
A: It's really surprising how small the studio is. It looks so much more spacious on TV.
John and the band are crammed into one tiny area. Rosie's little 'baby step' entrance
dance is necessary because she only walks a few feet from the curtain to her mark.
Q: Who selects the show's opening announcer?
A: That is another part of what Joey Kola does.
Q: Who decides who will be interviewed during audience segments?
A: Audience segments like "Stump the band" and "Who do you look like?" are handled by
the segment producer responsible for that segment. Those who are selected
are placed in certain aisle seats before the show so they are convenient to Rosie.
Q: Why are most audience segments done in the stage left aisle?
A: The stage right aisle has been used a few times, but the directors prefer to use
the stage left aisle because it is more convenient for the cameras and sound equipment.
Also, the band takes up a big part of the lower right aisle area.
Q: Are there any rules for the audience?
A: Several. They tell you not to take pictures during the show or they'll confiscate
your camera. Large signs and posters are forbidden. They ask you not to yell to Rosie or
the guests during the show. You can take pictures after the show, and sometimes before
if you are seated early enough. We got to take some pictures with John McDaniel and Joey
Kola before one show.
Q: Why doesn't Rosie open like Leno and Letterman with a stand-up monologue?
A: That's not her thing. They tried doing that during the practice shows in early June,
but Rosie just didn't feel comfortable with it. First they came up with the idea of jokes taped
inside a newspaper and magazine and "to the desk," but even that is being done less
and less. Rosie's at her best when she talks about what has been happening to her and her family.
Q: Does Rosie interact with the audience during commercials?
A: Except for shooting Koosh balls, no, Rosie is all business and very focused during
commercial breaks. David Evangelist comes over at EVERY break and adds more spray to her
hair while Mariella Smith Masters comes out and touches up Rosie's makeup as needed. Rosie
may also consult with the director and/or one or more segment producers at this time.
Near the end of each break, on cue from Stage Manager Rose Riggins, Rosie will start
shooting Koosh balls at the crowd again.
Q: What else does or doesn't happen during commercials?
A: The band does not play throughout the commercial breaks. They go to commercial playing
the beginning of a song and then stop once they are off the air Just before the end of the
commercial, Stage Manager Rose Riggins cues John to bring the band in, usually playing the
ending of the same song. The executive producers
make it a point to thank each guest after their segment. If the next segment is a band or
singer, the crew scrambles to get the instruments and microphones set up during the break.
Q: What is that device Rosie uses to play music and voice clips?
A: That's a DigiCard machine, sort of a digital juke-box. Like the McDLT's and the musical
guests, it sounds much richer and fuller than on tv.
Q: What else might we see besides The Rosie O'Donnell Show?
A: Before or after the regular show they sometimes tape segments with certain guests for
later use, such as a complete interview segment or some kid interviews or special segments
like the Twelve Days of Christmas that aired at Christmas the first season.
Q: When they also have an afternoon taping, can you stay for that?
A: This has happened, but only rarely, and then only due to sudden schedule changes. Usually
they bring in a whole new audience. You could join the "stand-by" line for the
second show, just like anyone else can. Or you could get in the "stand-by" line for
Conan O'Brien or walk over to the Ed Sullivan Theater and try to catch Letterman.
Q: Can you get Rosie's autograph?
A: Yes, if you have a Rosie O'Doll. Other than that, Rosie only gives autographs to kids.
After everything else is finished, kids
sixteen and under can line up for a personalized 5x7 photo from Rosie. Rosie usually
takes a little time to talk with each kid while she autographs the photo. And if they want a
picture taken with her, she is happy to oblige. She even took an adorable little redhead
over to the desk for picture taking (at the Mom's request) after all the other kids had
gotten their autographed photos.
Q: Any closing remarks or reminders?
A: Anyone who gets a chance to go to a live show should do it.
It's really lots of fun and very interesting. Just remember to tape it
too because lots of times the cameras are in your way and you can't see
everything as it is happening.
My thanks to members of the Rosie Internet Mailing List at majordomo@nwlink.com
who provided the first-hand information for this FAQ.
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