Colbert Report

I’m so sad that the Colbert Report is over, but very happy that I managed to get tickets and sit in for a show during his final year. Though the ticketing and waiting on line process was a bit of a nuisance, everything else was perfect. Once we finished waiting on line outside, they let everyone into the waiting room, where there were plenty of things to take pictures of and there were TVs that played old episodes of the Colbert Report. When they finally let us in, they sat us randomly (not really based on what ticket number you had, which was a bit annoying since I was first on line lol). However, I managed to still get a great seat in the 2^nd or 3^rd row, direct center.
Once everyone was seated, Paul Mercurio, an insult comic, came out to perform as the warmup. Though it’s very clear that Paul is an experienced comic, I’m not a huge fan of insult comics in general. In terms of stand up comedy, it’s very easy to point out the fat guy in the crowd, or make fun of a minority’s accent. I expected more from the warmup act for such a intelligent, liberal, and well-​written satire like the Colbert Report.
After the warm up act, Stephen came out full of energy, running by the entire front row and high fiving every person there. Then for about ten minutes or so, Stephen did a Q&A. I managed to raise my hand first and was able to ask a question. Before he answered, he made it a point to tease me about my poor hand raising skills, but was incredibly friendly about it. After the Q&A, he started the show right away. I was surprised at how he managed to get through most of the episode all on one take, stopping only once. Our guest was a writer who I have not heard of, but for one of the segments, Patrick Stewart made a cameo as a disgruntled «victim» of Obamacare. Being just 5 feet away from Sir Patrick Stewart and seeing him perform live was absolutely incredible.
Overall, this was an incredible experience, and I can’t wait to see Colbert kill it on the Late Show.

On my recent NYC trip, I only had a single day window to catch a show taping. I managed to score tix for both Daily Show and Colbert, but had to go with the latter since it’s about to be over forever. I ended up being at the 5^th to last taping, which is almost historic right? Had an amazing time being seated in the front row, got to high-​five Mr. Colbert himself, as well as lob questions at him. It’s only the 2^nd time I’ve been to a show taping, which usually isn’t my thing, but for shows I love as much as and watch as religiously as this one, it was a no-​brainer.

With only 3 episodes left, I snatched a ticket by setting an alarm on my phone for his tweets. I had a great time & Stephen would tell us jokes in between the takes. I look forward to his new show at CBS.

So sad it will be closing soon, but if you can get tickets you should go before it does!!!
Wait is a little long, but for all these types of shows, they are long.
The good part is that most of the wait is indoors or at least in this tent-​like thing outside so it’s not as cold.
We got there around 2pm and were able to get seats. If you have a group. someone can stay in line while others go grab food or snacks.
It does suck that there are no pictures allowed in the studio though.
Colbert is a really funny and cool guy. especially cool to ask him questions before the show starts.
afterwards, you can go to ippudo or totto for some good ramen

With only 17 episodes left this season, get tickets if you can! Stephen and his crew did a fantastic job fielding questions from the audience, and I loved when he threw out his «wrist strong» bands before the show. My mom even caught one– so unexpected and cool! Before the show starts, there is a warm-​up comedian to get the audience riled up for Stephen, and he is really really funny too!
After the show, Stephen pulled out a bottle of wine and started drinking it in his chair, joking around with the camera guys about how since he is moving to The Late Show soon they have started splurging on him more, and bought him a $ 50 bottle of wine, so why not drink it now? This made me respect him as a comedian even more. Everyone who works here is extremely nice and clearly loves their job, and we had fun chatting with all of them before the show started.

Stephen has less than 20 episodes left of the Colbert Report this year, so if you have some spare time some time in the next month, you should definitely try and catch one of his shows.
Tickets were easier to get than I had thought. I was only in New York for one taping day, and I was worried that I would have to wait in the stand-​by line outside on the day of. However, the morning of the taping, I kept my eye on the Twitter page and also refreshed the Colbert ticket website when lo and behold, two tickets popped up on the website. I grabbed them before they even made it to the Twitter page.
As other reviews have said, the tickets don’t guarantee you seats, but they still put you at a higher priority than the stand-​bys who show up at the taping without any sort of reservation. I got in line at about 4:15pm and ended up being Nos. 42 and 43. I probably could have showed up closer to 5pm and still gotten into the show, but I wouldn’t risk coming any later than 5pm.
From about 4:15 to 5pm, we checked in with our IDs and waited outside under a covered awning. Many people (including myself) were holding spots for friends, which was no issue as long as they’re included in your original ticket reservation AND you’ve given their name to the other workers after you checked in. Just after 5pm, we were let into a small room after going through security. The room had some benches on the side, a water cooler, bathrooms, and TVs with some entertaining highlights from past episodes of the show. My friend had until 6pm to show up and got in right around 5:50 with no problem.
At about 6:15, we went into the taping room with strict instructions to not take any photos or have our phones out. We didn’t have to wait long until the warm-​up comedian came out to tell a few jokes. Then, Stephen himself came out to say hi and do a Q&A, which itself was an extremely cool experience. We got on with the taping and did our part cheering and laughing throughout the taping. Before we knew it, we were done and out of the studio by 7:50.
The whole experience seemed to run a lot more quickly and smoothly than the Daily Show taping, which I’ve been to before. I’m so glad I got to see one of Colbert’s last tapings, and I hope to be back to see him on the Late Night Show next year!

When I decided to take a trip across the right side of the cable news divide, I knew who I wanted to land in front of: Hannity, Huckabee, and Beck. However, stepping into the studios of those who step up for real America without seeing Stephen Colbert would have been a trip incomplete.
After security screening and a layover in a waiting room, Stephen visited with us, put on a terrific show, and thanked us sincerely for coming. I left wondering if there’s a more genuine and gracious man on TV. However, I’m docking Stephen Colbert 1 star for failing to live up to a proper conservative credo.
Folks, Barack Hussein Obama takes a tougher stance on border security than Stephen does with his audience. My copy of Stephen’s book (with my driver’s license) was rightly taken away during the pre-​boarding check-​in because, «you might try to have him sign it,» and was then kept at the security station with what was apparently a TSA agent wearing black hitman gloves. And then … Nothing. No questions, no additional «random» screening; my innermost cavity was left completely undisturbed and went as undocumented as an illegal Democrat voter on election day. What if I had also concealed a gun, or worse, a voter registration form written in Spanish?
This Amtrak express made another detour off freedom’s path when an elderly woman in a wheelchair rolled straight from the Social Security office into a plush front row seat. HEY, GRANDMA, your oxygen tank must be on reverse because you just sucked all of the liberty out of the room. I was left speechless, and the voice of this white, middle-​aged man was silenced yet again.
Fortunately, I know exactly who to turn to.

Stephen Colbert is hilarious… both on camera and off. I saw a taping last night with Neil Young as the special guest. Stephen and his crew did a fantastic job of scoring keeping the audience energized and laughing. He fielded questions and poked fun at people asking those questions. Fun Fact: there is a picture of Hugh Laurie on his set that he keeps visible because on House there is a picture of Stephen (running joke between the shows).
If you get invited via the lottery do not miss the show. This is his last few months so you may not get another opportunity to see it. Hopefully he wins another Emmy for his final season.

I had no idea this show was free, but these are the perks of living in NYC chyeaaa!
The tickets are surprisingly easy to get. I refreshed the ticket site randomly and got lucky with a show that had 90 spots left. You can also subscribe to the CC Ticket Notifier to push you notifications when a spot becomes available.
We arrived at the studio around 4:45pm. You cannot stand in line unless the person who holds the tickets is there, but if you are the ticket holder you can grab a spot first in line for your friends. I had another friend that arrived around 5:30pm and still made it in time to line up.
At around 6pm, we start going through security into the waiting room. They check your bags for weapons and then walk through the metal detector. I thought they would take away my bottle of water and snacks, but they didn’t. +1 for Colbert Report for not confiscating food and drink because I heard the Daily Show does. The waiting room is small and cramped, but they have a few TVs showing old re-​runs. You can also take pictures with all the Colbert posters and portraits. If you are female, line up for the bathroom immediately because the line will be long.
Around 6:45 — 7:00pm a staff person will come out to talk about rules and start seating people in the studio. Before the show started, we had a comedian, Paul Mecurio, come in to make jokes and warm up he crowd. His jokes primarily consisted of calling members of the audience and making jokes about them, so if you stand out in the audience, you might be called on. Throughout all this prep, there is a lot, and I mean A LOT, of emphasis on laughing loudly and making a lot of noise in general because Colbert feeds off the energy, and the audience is the soundtrack of the show.
After the comedian, Colbert himself came out and did a Q&A session out of character to, as he said, humanize himself beforehand. He answered the following questions:
1. What will you miss most about the Colbert Report? Getting to say really offensive things on TV.
2. What is the best part of being Catholic? The whole going to heaven thing.
3. What is your fondest childhood memory? Experiencing a fishing frenzy with his dad where he was hooking one fish after another.
Colbert has been doing the show for nine years, but still very impressed at how seamlessly he transition into character going from break to shooting. He only made 2 mistakes and had to restart, but it was great to see him outside of character. I feel like he’s actually funnier. The entire shooting ended around 8:15pm.
If you can get tickets for a show before it ends, definitely try to do so. It was worth the wait and most definitely worth leaving work early.

I’m so sad this is ending but I am so grateful I was able to go here last February. I showed up 4 hours early and we were able to wait in an inside tent like area instead of staying in the frigid air. Since my anal retentive self got there so damn early, I was able to get a seat right in front of Steven. I got to see the understandably somber crew of Pussy Riot and some really handsome politician from Florida that could charm the panties off of a nun. Steven answered a lot of questions sincerely and told us about his impending trip to the White House State Dinner. He was super cute and was just naturally hilarious between takes. I’ll miss you Colbert Report :(

Overall, I am really happy I was able to see the show before Colbert moves on to The Late Show. And now that I have, I don’t have any desire to catch another one of the limited episodes left. They do good work, seem proud about what they do, and are, at The Colbert Report, at work. Seeing behind the curtain once was terrific and it hasn’t heightened or lowered my inclination to watch the show –
As the person I am, I didn’t like all the plugging. «Cheer really loud. Laugh hard at the jokes. Don’t sit down right away when Colbert comes out. You make this show; you’re not here to watch, you’re here to participate.» If you want a laugh track, make and use a laugh track. All the «acting» bestowed on me several times over stifled my viewing experience. Let me enjoy the show — Stephen Colbert is good at what he does, I will laugh.
Also, the studio is freezing — bring a parka.
How to get tickets:
1. Follow @DailyTix on Twitter & activate notifications (tickets become available at odd and varying times)
2. Click on the link in the tweet and fill out the form (on The Colbert Report website)
3. Confirm your reservation via email; you should get a second (success) email verifying that you have reserved a ticket
4. On the day you reserved, show up to the studio; the show does tickets first come, first serve.
Side Thoughts:
Wow, is the Colbert Report white, middle-​aged men. Ninety-​three percent of the crew at the taping I went to was such — the women of The Colbert Report did ticketing, stood around the stage, and/​or were make-​up artists. I believe people should have their jobs based on merit and skill, not overtly on their gender, race, age, etc. But it was interesting the numbers stacked so neatly into a statistic that is a real injustice.
There is also a bit of pandering as far as where audience members are seated. Throughout the fairly long getting-​your-​ticket process, the staff was clearly scoping out front seat candidates and placed people for optimum diversity/​extroverted qualities. It is a television show after all.

I have not missed an episode of this fantabulous show since it first airing… Recommend going to see it live before he moves on to bigger but questionably better things in December! His Q&A was interesting in the beginning but he only answered four questions– so if you really want your question answered shoot your hand up SUPER fast when he first asks because he answered the girl who was most eager first. And he stated «I saw your hand go up first miss.» The actual taping is awesome — he’s genuinely a very nice gentleman and he makes asides to the audience when he has to re-​take a scene. At the end of the show — he also piloted a pre taped bit he had recorded at comicon and it included a large portion of material that didn’t make it on the actual airing several days later!
There’s about 20 – 25 front seats. The section of three seats to stage left were the best seats Bc you don’t get blocked by the camera guys and you’re close to the interview table in addition to his big desk.
Tips for front row:
— Dress up. I wore a bright pink polka dot dress and white wedges. I do think it matters somewhat because some people seated before me had been seated farther back bc they were college dudes in casual clothes.
— Get there early. I arrived at 4:30 PM on a Monday and was 24^th in line which achieved my goal of front row/​high fiving my non-​sexual crush!
— They ask you first before they seat you so don’t worry they won’t force you to take front row.
— Don’t be white. Vast majority of audience members are white kids in their 20s so it helps to be a little different. I realize this isn’t a tip since you have no control over your race/​ethnicity.
— Also, every seat is awesome it’s a 150 person theater so it’s a very intimate setting.
Show is so so amazing! He will be missed.

Fun stuff. Went with my friend Will to a taping and it was a lot of fun after a lot of waiting. The line boredom can be subsidized by talking to the other waiters in line. Many of them are cool, native NYers and visitors.
Once inside, you have to go through a airport-​like security check.
The show is really fun to watch since only about only a third ever makes it to air. Colbert is a comedic genius and his satire is the best on television. I can’t wait to see what he will do on his next gig.

Stephen Colbert touched my left hand, which I’m never washing again.
I’ve waited five years to see him. The case was always either tickets were not available, my work schedule was in the way or something came up once I had the tickets reserved. So imagine my excitement when I finally got to go!
My boyfriend and I showed up at around 3:45pm, and the line was about 10 people deep. An intern uses an iPad to check your party in and gives you a number card. Red means VIP, blue means regular. We got cards #8 and #9. Another Unilocaler mentioned that hot/​decent-​looking people get to sit in the front row, so make sure you look your best! We dressed up a little bit, and I tried to turn on my charm when we were getting checked in and when we were being directed to our seats. Something worked because we got to sit in the front row!!! The only downside to some of the front row seats is that your view may get blocked by the cameras and camera crew, but you get a free pen and get to high-​five Stephen Colbert, so completely worth it! When I extended my hand for his high-​five, you bet I made sure he touched it!
After you get the card numbers, you go through a metal detector and wait in a tiny room while they show previous clips. This is your last chance to use the restrooms here. I would definitely suggest waiting on the side where the doors lead to the studio. When they open up the doors, they start calling in groups of people by one of the group member’s card number. They call in several group numbers at a time, so you’ll want to be ahead of the other groups. The people with the red cards got called in first but they called our group number along with the VIP people!
The studio does get chilly, so you might want to bring a sweater. A comedian comes out before the taping and warms up the audience. They really try to get the audience pumped up with energy before Stephen Colbert comes out. The energy in the audience is amazing, which really helps him do the taping. He does a Q&A session beforehand and a really brief one afterward. In the Q&A after the taping, one girl brought Stephen Colbert’s book and asked for his autograph. He agreed, asked her to come down and wrote a personal message in her book (although she said the autograph was for her boyfriend). Lucky girl/​boyfriend of hers! The taping is over before you know it though.
I would love to see him one more time before it’s all over, but for now, I’m cherishing this memory.

I had just finished watching the taping of the Daily Show and was all pumped and hyped up from the excitement of it all and decided that I was ready to spend another half day waiting in line/​waiting around for another taping.
My friend jumped on her iPhone and looked up last minute tickets for the Colbert Report and there was only one available! We were going through the tunnel and lost service, and by the time we got service again, the ticket was taken. :(
But the next morning, I checked again, and there were 2 tickets available! So I instantly snagged them up, and read all the Unilocal reviews to see what time I should get there to get a good seat.
I showed up at 4:00 PM, which really wasn’t an issue, since my friend was working that day and I still have about 300 pages of The Idiot to read. :) The check in process was fast and efficient– they go by with an iPad and ask for your name and ID, and later hand you a ticket with a number on it. They let you into a room to wait and watch the best Colbert Clips around 5:30 PM and my friend rushed to get over by 6:00 PM, which is the cut off point in which they hand leftover tickets to Standby.
We were then smushed in a room for the next 45 minutes or so before they started seating us. It started to feel a bit claustrophobic in there, and it was getting hot and smelly in there! That is something they definitely need to reconsider… I would rather have waited outside (which is covered and has heated lamps so it’s not so bad at all!).
Anyway, when they did start seating us, the security/​bouncer cool person asked me and my friend, «How do you girls feel about sitting in front row?» I just about screamed and hugged him because I was so damn excited! I FREAKING LOVE COLBERT! Front row gets a free pen and the chance to high five Colbert — - I TOUCHED HIS FINGERS ERRMMAGODDD.
And Colbert is hilarious. During the breaks, he would joke around with his staff, and definitely got a lot of laughs from the audience who were viewing his facial expressions and things he was doing.
So glad I was able to catch a taping of the Colbert Report before he transitions to his new gig!

From Comedy Central’s World News Headquarters in New York this…
is not that show.
Two months after seeing a taping of The Daily Show, I managed to score tickets to see Colbert. It’s hard to say which I enjoyed more, but Colbert’s fan-​considerate setup makes me want to lean his way.
Don’t get me wrong, Jon Stewart seemed like a really nice and sincere guy. His Q&A and humor on the fly skills are impressive, but Colbert just seemed to really «need» us if that makes any sense. They kept saying that he feeds off the audience, and I read that repeated on here. I didn’t really get it til I was there.
For starters, Colbert gets my vote just for having a covered (HEATED) weatherproof outdoor waiting queue. Jon Stewart even joked at TDS taping that he wouldn’t have stood out in the February cold like we did to see the show. Colbert gives out free light-​up pens on each chair and runs around to high five everyone in the front row.
It was weird to see him out of character, and to hear him give his thoughts on things. He really seems like a regular guy you could sit and share a beer with or something. It was… different to not hear the change in pitch and tone that you usually associate with his voice.
He also sat behind the desk singing along with the music playing in the studio during commercial breaks. He messed up a few times during the show and would break character to joke with the audience about it. «No one will know about it as long as you don’t f-​cking go home and tweet it! Hashtag CancelColbert.» I could write about it for days, but it was a really cool experience.
Jon Stewart is more «what you see is what you get.» He went through it in one take, no mistakes, and I swear he filmed his perfectly so that from start to finish it took exactly 30 minutes including the accurately timed commercial breaks.
Colbert felt more like a TV show taping as the breaks were a bit longer, he had a few outtakes, and he just joked a bit more. If you like them both equally, then I say see Colbert first just because the process seems to be a bit easier. Either way, you’ll enjoy both of them.

The process for when you get to the studio is pretty chaotic and not well run. I arrived at 5pm and was towards the tail end of the line, but there were some people behind me and I got a blue ticket with a number. So yeah, it’s cold, slushy, windy and I’m miserable. But Colbert — excited!!!
They let people in in tranches, but for some reason, they switch the line around so now I’m no longer 3^rd in line waiting to get in but end up behind a group of 8 who showed up after me. Lo and behold, I’m at the cutoff with the 2 people who were originally in front of me. They say the studio is full but if I give them my name and email they will email me a VIP ticket so I don’t have to wait in the line the next day. I never received anything and there was no follow up. I FROZE BECAUSE OF YOU PEOPLE! Talk about being disappointed. (and angry, let down, fill-​in-​the-​blank)
So word of advice — if you are lucky enough to score tickets, definitely show up early at 4 if you want to make it in. If they tell you you may or not make it in, unless it is a decent day out, just call it a day. Otherwise you are going to be miserable and cranky and hold on to your hate like a bitter poison pill defending against a hostile corporate takeover.

I love the Colbert Report, and it was even more awesome in person!
Just like with the Daily Show, I would recommend following or obsessively checking @DailyTix on Twitter to first land a ticket. The day of the show, I got there around 4:45 and got numbers #48−51. The line quickly started piling up around 5, but we were lucky in that the first half of the line gets to sit/​lean against a wall under heat lamps, while the outside half of the line (it loops around) gets a draught from the wind hitting the tent. Then you go in, where Colbert’s staff seats you, and a warm-​up comedian comes out. I found the comedian to be a lot more chill than Jon Stewart’s, which was nice.
Colbert was amazing to see in person, high fives and running and all! He just had so much energy, and the audience definitely responded well to that. Unfortunately, our audience asked some rather strange and boring questions, so we didn’t get to learn much about him – besides his first kiss. While I find Colbert to be more fun on TV, I thought Jon Stewart did a much better job messing around with the audience during the Q&A. It is important to note that my sample size is 1 for each show, though!
Then it was all «serious» business, taping, laughing at the top of our lungs, and watching him get prepped for each segment. General McChrystal was our guest, which was pretty cool, but Bode Miller also was a surprise guest, and he had just won bronze in alpine skiing (the oldest to medal in the event) I was actually following the Winter Olympics this time, so it was awesome to see him! I also thought it was cool to see all the pieces on his shelves. (A friend I went with said that the last time he came, his friend was called on for Q&A and asked to play with the robot-​boxing game on his shelf, and Stephen let him!).
I came on a Thursday, so he also taped the introduction and recap for the global edition. Stephen actually messed up a few times, which we realized was pretty rare! So I thought it was pretty interesting to watch him retape, even though the audience obviously laughed less and less as each joke got more stale. He seemed to be having an off day, but I thought the experience was great! I may be a tad biased since I prefer him to the Daily Show though…

It’s hard not to echo the sentiments of many others but it’s true: The Colbert Report isn’t just a great show on TV, but a joy to witness in person. I could go on and on about the brilliance of Stephen Colbert and his writers, but instead I will just insist that everyone come see the show live.
Where some folks are uppity about seeing Saturday Night Live, Late Night Talk Shows, many who aren’t aware one of Comedy Central’s finest is available right in Hell’s Kitchen. Breathing life into the slowly up and coming 10^th Ave, the Colbert Report has a small crowd of eager folks looking to get in almost every week day.
Tickets are free. If you aren’t picked from the initial signups via the website, definitely opt in for the stand by list. Chances are as good as any considering how many flakers there are in these parts. Once in the studio audience, don’t be shocked at how few people there are. TV magic (angles and noise) is definitely in effect; do feel privileged you could be among the few to watch the taping in person.
Visitors will always have an agenda of things to do and see in NYC, but if you’re not a fortunate local who can come by anytime, then make it your duty to see it while the show is still doing well.
Also, Stephen might just actually be funnier in person.

The show was fantastic and Stephen was amazing. Definitely the highlight of our trip!
Getting in was kind of a pain though. They overbook, so it’s a good idea to get there several hours early. You’ll wait in line on the sidewalk, then you wait in line along the side of the building, then you finally go inside, where you end up standing elbow-​to-​elbow with maybe 150 people. There’s a few benches, but they go fast, and really there’s no room to sit. That lasts about an hour, with no one really explaining what’s going on or how long it will be. Should you get closer to the door for better seats? Will they call people by number? No one explains.
But once you finally get seated (they do go in order by where you were in the original line), it’s all pretty awesome. Stephen comes out and chats with the audience, and is clearly grateful for the energy and enthusiasm. They shot way more than was used in the show, and once it was over everyone was shuffled right out. No chance for a meet-​and-​greet with him or the guest (Vince Gilligan for us).
The building’s really small and easy to miss, not like any of the network shows. They probably can’t do much about getting a bigger studio, but they could definitely figure out a better way to give out tickets. Being crammed in that room for an hour really sucked the life out of everyone, which is the opposite of what they are aiming for.
No gift shop or lobby or anything… just an awning out front, so if you don’t have tickets, it’s probably not worth stopping by. We got our tickets on
, and just happened to hit the window when they became available. Stand-​by tickets are available, where you check in and come back later, so that might be worth a try, but I didn’t see any of the stand-​by people get in on our night.
But overall this was our favorite activity in our NYC trip! If you have the chance, it’s worth the waiting to get in!