The Late Show with Stephen Colbert - New York, New York

Nicola B.

Un sogno realizzato ,il mio mito era Letterman ma devo dire che Stephen è altrettanto bravo ,anche qui per gli italiani avverto che il preshow è curato da un comico che gioca col pubblico e lo coinvolge ...poi c'è pure il momento delle domande e risposte con Stephen nei momenti di pausa delle registrazioni

Doreen G.

Great experience! Attending the taping of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in NYC was a treat! Be prepared to stand and wait. We were lucky to get Priority tickets and arrived to stand in line at about 2:40. First we waited outside, then we were brought into the lobby and waited again. All together we waited about 3 hours, before the show began. They only allow you to get to the restrooms at certain times and in groups, so don’t drink a lot of anything before hand. No cell phones are allowed to be out, but you can keep them with you. The warm up comedian was great and Stephen came out to take some questions from the audience before taping began. It was interesting to see how the whole thing is put together. We were out of the theater at about 7:20 PM.

Siphiwe M.

Great experience but eat a hearty meal before since you’ll wait in line for two hours if you have a priority ticket (even though general tickets are riskier, you’ll wait in line for less time).

With a priority ticket, you’ll be there for five hours. The theater is very cold so dress accordingly.

I think solo tickets have a higher chance at the lottery and I know that you’re more likely to sit upfront to fill in the gaps in seating!

Anjuman G.

Got the priority ticket, and arrived and lined up at 2pm.

If you’re going during the winter, I’d recommend wearing proper winter clothing and gloves to keep you warm, especially when it’s windy. I say this cause we waited outside till about 3:15pm.

After going through security, you’ll have an opportunity to use the bathrooms, and will wait maybe another hour till you’re admitted to the theater, where you’ll wait roughly another 45 mins to an hour. Taping didn’t officially start till about 5:30 or 6pm from what I recall.

Just overall, be prepared to wait and stand for a long period of time. Have a great meal beforehand too. Taping ended roughly at about 7:50pm.

But I also want to acknowledge and thank the staff/ crew. They were all so polite throughout the entire experience.

Andy M.

What a show, what an afternoon/evening. Count yourself extraordinarily lucky if you get yourself a free ticket to a taping of this show. The staff and crew are awesome and of course Stephen himself is a sheer delight. I'll remind this day for a very long time!

Andrew E.

We were lucky enough to get tickets for the recording of the Late Show with Stephen Colbert and headed there at 3.30 for the 4pm priority admission slot. Good job we didn’t wait five minutes longer because we were at the back of a long line and the last people admitted initially. We waited inside for an hour before getting in to our seats and the warm up was good fun and we were looking forward to seeing the guests as mentioned. The show was lively and entertaining with the only disappointment being the non appearance of 2 of the guests mentioned earlier (added to the show on VT later) and who wouldn’t be let down by not seeing Arnold Schwarzenegger if he had been mentioned at the beginning. It was also a shame to feel like the attitude was oh well you get what you’re given but hey it’s TV . All in all a great experience though.

JP A.

What an unforgettable, once-in-a-lifetime experience it was to see *The Late Show with Stephen Colbert*!

Stephen Colbert himself is such an amazing, funny, and humble host — the whole experience was so much fun. I felt incredibly fortunate to be a part of it!

I initially went to the website to check for tickets, but ended up on the waitlist. To my surprise, after only two hours, I got a spot in the general admission line!

I arrived around 2:30 PM and had to wait about two more hours before getting into the theatre. Just a heads-up — they have a pretty strict policy about restrooms (they only let you go at certain times in groups) and no phones allowed in the theatre (security is everywhere, so don’t risk it!). It’s all part of the experience, though, and totally worth it for such an incredible show.

Highly recommend if you ever get the chance to go!

Neil M.

During Q&A with Stephen Colbert the most insightful question came from the upper balcony: “What brings you joy?” Colbert was heartfelt: “Time with family.” This was minutes before the 5:30pm taping began for the Monday, May 6 show with guests Ethan Hawke and Cedric the Entertainer.

A dear family friend had passed away and Stephen, his extended family and friends had gathered in his home state of South Carolina for the funeral over the previous weekend. He said that while the occasion was sad, he was grateful for having had that precious time with family and friends.

I promised my son I’d take him to the show when he turned 16, but the 2023 writers’ strike delayed his attendance to age 17. Paul Mecurio, the comedian charged with warming up the crowd pre-taping, was hilarious. He’d select random people from the audience, bring them on stage, ask questions and spin real life material into comedy gold. Warming up the crowd is clearly the key formula for making live audience television work.

I had been to a Letterman taping in the late 90s in the same theater and sat in the balcony. My son and I were lower level, just five rows from Colbert’s desk. If you do it right, it’s a lot of work being an audience member. Colbert and staff want super high energy. Stephen even said to us “We’re making a great show together.” My voice grew hoarse from cheering and my hands were red from all the clapping.

I definitely was laughing when not many others were, but I couldn’t discern my voice when I watched the show later that night. The audience noise is captured from mini-microphones at half volume dangling overhead while Colbert, Louis Cato (the band leader) and guests are captured at full volume. Being part of the live audience was a truly New York experience and a lot of fun. But you only need to do this once in your life, like climbing to the top of Lady Liberty’s head. It only took a total of about five hours from the time I began standing in the priority ticket line at 2pm until I exited the theater after the show ended at just before 7pm.

One other question during the Q&A was about what’s in Colbert’s coffee mug. It’s just black decaf coffee. That was the only disappointment of the evening. What question would I have asked Colbert if given the chance during Q&A? Do you think our national moral fabric has been tainted by the egregious wantonness of the 1980s?

(See my separate review of a fantastic gem of an Indian restaurant on 53rd St & 9th Ave for a meal idea post show taping.)