I’ve seen two tapings of Conan O’Brien Show since he moved his show to Los Angeles. Watching a live taping can be a fun thing to do if you are a big fan of the show. Otherwise, it’s a lot of waiting, and takes up the entire day. My niece and brother, who are visiting this week, are huge Conan fans and got tickets (through the TeamCoco Website at: http://teamcoco.com/tickets) ahead of time. I drove them on Tuesday, and hung out in Burbank until the taping was over. Here is a list of what to expect:
For those watching a taping of The Conan O’Brien Show:
- If your show ticket is for 4:30pm, you have to arrive no later than 2:30pm. The area for parking or drop-off is (at the time of writing) at the parking structure at Gate 8 (6510 Forest Lawn Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90068), where there is a waiting area inside the parking garage. You have to present your ticket and I.D., and go through a metal detector. If you want to sit in the first row, you should try to get there around 9:30am or 10:00am. I dropped off my niece and brother at 12:30pm.
- Around 1:00pm, each person (or group of people who arrived together) is assigned a number to hold their place in line.
- Walk around (if you didn’t drive), find a place to eat lunch if you’re hungry, read a book, or find something to occupy your time while you wait
- Return to the holding area by 2:00pm
- Around 2:45pm, you will be called by groups to a line up again, but closer to the studio.
- Before they walk you over to the studio, they ask you to turn off your cellphones.
- Jimmy Pardo warms up the audience once everyone is seated, around 4:00pm.
- At 4:30pm, the show starts and Conan comes out to start the show.
- By 5:30pm, the show is over and the audience walks in a line back to the parking structure where they are then released.
If you dropped someone off at the show and are waiting for them:
- Run errands. Target is at Empire Center, which also houses Best Buy, TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and others.
- Go to Ikea. I easily kill an hour just walking from the entrance to the exit
- Watch a movie at AMC Burbank Town Center. I really wish I could have done this, but I had my baby daughter with me.
- Go to the park. Burbank has plenty of great parks. Click here for a map and listings.
- Plan a playdate at a park. This is exactly what I did. Luckily, several of my friends who have kids live in the valley and I rarely get a chance to see them. We all got together at Pacific Park, which is near Frys.
- Visit the Burbank Animal Shelter and say hi to some adorable dogs and cats who need a home. You may fall in love!
- Pick up your exhausted audience member friends around 5:45pm, and find a place to eat dinner or drive through some heinous traffic.
Hope this helps!
