I dropped by the Kodak Theater Wednesday and talked to Oscar producers Bill Mechanic and Adam Shankman about the show – that story is here. But here are a few additional tidbits about the show:
The Kodak Theater is laid out the same way it was for last year’s Oscar show, with orchestra seats wrapping around a stage that projects slightly into the audience. (AMPAS photo from 2009 below.) About 200 prime seats are located in the front section, with other small sections arrayed behind it. Lamps sit on the railings between sections, giving the front area a supper-club vibe.
Seat cards show where all the stars will be sitting on Oscar night, but the Academy has strict rules for anyone allowed in the building: no revealing where anybody’s seat is in relation to anybody else’s seat.
So I’ll just say this: if he wins, Jeff Bridges will have a very short walk to the stage. And Elizabeth Banks had better not need to go to the bathroom during the show, because she’ll have to step over a lot of people to get out from where she’s sitting.
The seating and stage arrangement completely covers the orchestra pit beneath the stage.
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The stage itself is on multiple levels, and is enclosed by a curving, wraparound back wall that will make entrances and exits a little more complicated than usual. But the curved screens I saw looked great: crisp and clear and vivid.
And everything sits behind a Swarovski crystal curtain that, said AMPAS president Tom Sherak when he dropped by rehearsal, is worth about $5 million. (That’s enough to pay for a good many of the nominated films at Friday night’s Spirit Awards.)
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Although Mechanic and Shankman are trying hard to keep the length of the show down, one aspect is already particularly long: the list of presenters. So far, the Academy has announced the names of 31, one of whom, Sacha Baron Cohen, has since dropped out. (For the reasons why, ignore all the other reports and look here.)
Most years, that would constitute most of the lineup – but this year, a staffer says that the roster of presenters has been expanded from the usual 40-50 to about 70.
With 24 categories, along with the 10 Best Picture clips, a mid-show dance number and other assorted film packages, that means we’ll undoubtedly see very few solo presenters, lots of couples, and some larger groups.
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The sheer number of presenters has entailed a rearrangement of the usual Oscar rehearsal schedule. Typically, the Saturday before the show is devoted to rehearsing nearly all of the presenters – but this year, with too many to accommodate in a single day, those rehearsals are being spread out over Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
The final day, though, will still be the most concentrated with stars. And that’s one part of the process that doesn’t worry Shankman, who says, “I’ve spent my entire career telling actors where to go.
