revid | My AI Dress Rehearsal Experience 7 April 2009

I went to the Dress Rehearsal for American Idol's 7 April 2009 show. Executive Summary: I loved it and would do it again.

To get tickets, you have to sign up on line for a wait list, then they send you a email with links to click when your name comes up.

livingaskate was kind enough to organize a list of a few of us over at

adamlambertai8, so that when anyone of us gets the email, we all pass the links along to each other.

kristie89 got the email this week and passed it along. Huge thanks to both of you! By the time I clicked, the live show was "sold out" but I got a voucher for the rehearsal.

The voucher said line up time was at 1:15pm at the CBS Studios in Hollywood, but that people often arrive up to two hours early. I know the show controls where you sit, but I just wanted to make sure I got in, so I left my home quite early (for me at any rate) to make it to LA by 11am. I didn't feel like hassling finding street parking, so I parked in a structure around the corner. The voucher was very strict about electronics, so I left my purse and cell phone in the car, and just put my ID (they check to make sure people don't sell the vouchers), my voucher and my car key in my pocket.

Oh yeah, and a pen and piece of paper, too. Everyone loves spoilers, and every Tuesday I run over to MJ's Big Blog, one of the more popular AI blogs, to see what the songs (and performance order) were at the DR. To return the favor, I emailed MJ and volunteered to be her spy on the scene this week. After every song, I pulled out my pen and frantically scribbled it down, because I was sure I'd never remember.

I was probably about 20th in line standing on Beverly Blvd. (on the other side was the line forming for Dancing With the Stars), and was mildly relieved to find I wasn't close to being the oldest person there. :-) I read my magazine and listened to the people around me chat until about 12:45 when a PA came down the line checking IDs and taking vouchers. Then they allowed us through the gate into studio grounds where we walked by all the star trailers and parking spaces for AI and DWTS (Oooh look....there's Ryan Seacreast's parking space!) After going through metal detectors (cell phones and iPods were wrapped with a numbered tag and people were given receipts to pick them up after the show), we sat on benches in a covered area just outside the studio door, to hurry up and wait.

Finally, around 1:45, after a zillion people with special wristbands (friends of contestants and staff and the like) were sent it, the rest of us internet ticket schlubs were allowed in. They tell you where to sit or stand basically, although they later asked if any of the grown-ups in the mosh pit wanted to sit and offered them a seat. I lucked out and got a seat in the second row of the side section on the left (Simon's side) which basically gave me an unobstructed view between the mosh pit and the judges table to the center stage.

The studio itself is smaller than your typical HS auditorium, although considerably tackier. The total audience capacity is 550. It's also very cold! Around 2:45, Debbie the stage manager explained we were running late, because Ryan was running late. (Last week the show went late because the stage moving staircase broke.)

Before the show started, Debbie explained that they needed to film a small bit that will be used in the Wednesday results show. So the idols came out (in their performance duds) to much applause and cheering and formed a circle in the center of the stage facing outward, while a camera panned around getting face shots. Guess who had the position in the circle in the front facing the audience? Yep, Adam Lambert --no doubt he is TCO (the chosen one). Not that I'm complaining, mind you.

Ryan arrived in jeans and a plaid shirt and the idols lined up on the stairs for the first opening bit. Ryan reads off a 60" big screen teleprompter at the back of the studio. I have to say, I like him quite a bit now. He was very relaxed and casual, yet I got the sense of a professional who actually knows and likes what he does. As he's walking down the stairs doing that pompous intro that they always do, he gets to the bottom and finishes with "This is..."Dancing With the Stars!!!" It got a big laugh.

During the DR, they use four faux!judges at the table. After each performance, only one would usually speak, but they had their dopplegangers down pat, particularly faux!Randy. "Hey Dawg, you worked it out up there!" After Anoop's performance of True Colors, faux!Paula said "I must say, we saw your true colors tonight!" and the audience laughed because it was so spot on. And of course, that's EXACTLY what Paula said during the live show.

I thought the acoustics were rather poor, particularly on Danny's song. I could barely hear his vocals. I enjoyed everybody during the DR, probably because live music always has one up on watching music on a TV show. Danny was better at the DR, than the live show certainly. I thought the tongue bath the judges gave him was completely unwarrented. Plus, doing a song from 1961? Yeah it was covered in the year he was born, but he didn't even do that version. Kind of a cheat, in my book.

Kris in the mosh pit was about the same both times. I don't think he deserved being thrown under the bus by the judges, especially after they praised Danny to the heavens.

Lil was another one who was great during the DR, but not so much during the show. I thought her DR performance was the best I had heard from her.

Scott and Anoop? Well neither is my cup of tea. Anoop did a nice job. Scott needs to go home. Now. He's Vote For the Worst's new pick now that Megan has flown the coop.

I loved Allison, even if the song's lyrics are a bit too old for a 16 year old. I don't get why the judges don't like her. I'm rooting for her for F3.

Speaking of not getting something... What is the fuss about Matt, or Timberfake, as he is known on TWoP? Partly, it's just not my type of music, but his performances don't command me to sit up and listen at all. Of course, the judges treat him like he's the Second Coming, right along with Danny Goat-key.

Finally, my beloved Adam gets the pimp spot. (The haterz are bitching that he always gets the pimp spot, but this was the first time in the finals that that's the case. But he has been in the bottom half for every performance but one, and there he was 5/11. It's a TV show. People tune in to see him. It's all about the ratings.) Being in the audience live was slightly different than watching it on TV. The radioactive blue glow was not as obvious live. It just seemed rather dark. But it was as beautiful and haunting at the DR as it was live. He didn't go for the high note at the end in the DR. He sort of biffed the start of it in the live show, but he recovered it instantly, which is another measure of his skill as a vocalist.

They did the final line-up with Ryan going through the voice over to introduce the recap, then that was that. I booked outta there to get to my car and call MJ with the song spoilers, passing the long lines of folks waiting for DWTS and the live AI. (That's also when I got the message that Green Day was playing a secret show in SF that night. And I was in LA! *sniff sniff*)

I got back home just in time to catch the west coast viewing of the live show. I'm not in the least bit sad that I went to the DR not the taping. As a matter of fact, I think I preferred it for the more laid back atmosphere. Man, what a great experience. I definitely want to go again.

A few more ramblings about Adam Lambert: The whole group seemed very friendly and tight, but especially Adam, Kris and Allison. You might think that the others might be resentful of all the attention that he receives, but that doesn't seem to be the case. I guess that's because of two factors: They realize the over-pimping is the producers doing, not his, and they genuinely like him. He appears to be a friendly, polite, outgoing, charismatic guy without a trace of smugness (*coughdannycough*) about his position as front runner. He acknowledges the band every time, and he acknowledged the crowd every time they shouted his name. Here's another small example of his professionalism. During the circle shot for the results show, right as Debbie said "OK everybody, be still and serious," something funny happened (I don't remember what exactly) and the audience and the idols all cracked-up. Except one. Adam kept staring straight ahead with the exact same expression he had before.

A note especially for

oh_johnny_ and

tasyfa: The parking structure I was at belongs to a large outdoor mall called The Grove. As I went down to pay my ticket I saw a sign saying that the Ballas Hough band plays outside there free every Tuesday night at 8! Squee. I couldn't stay, but if I get to another AI taping, I'll make plans to go and take pictures!

If you read all that, give yourself a cookie! And thanks for reading.

Current Mood: accomplished
Current Music: Adam Lambert --"Mad World"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

and-ed.livejournal.com

Exactly the kind of detailed report I was hoping for. Very cool for someone who's always wondered what goes on behind the scenes. Well done. *two thumbs up* I'm very glad you got to go...and nice shout out to the DWTS people. I hope you get to go again before the season's out...just not at the expense of another GD show!

Dude...I know Danny's not everyone's cup of tea and even for me, he's sunk to fifth place in my ranking but...can you say one word about him without an insult? Just one time. I challenge you! ;)

Seriously though...how was he smug yesterday? I can see the smugness in the very early days here but he hasn't been anything resembling a front runner for weeks now and I just don't see it in anything they've shown on TV. So if you saw something at the rehearsal to suggest that, lemme know so I can stop arguing with you. Well, I probably won't...but I could try. =)

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My AI Dress Rehearsal Experience 7 April 2009

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