The 100 Best Affordable Vacations (51 page)

 
Road Scholar, various locations.
If you’re interested in incorporating CSI science into your weekend, the group Road Scholar—formerly known as Elderhostel and oriented to travelers over 50—offers several five-night CSI-style learning vacations. Among them are a program in Riverside, California, featuring area crime lab directors and medical examiners (about $913); a program in Deland, Florida, that includes a visit to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Crime Lab ($575); and a program for teens and grandparents at Buena Park, California (about $865). Prices are all per person and include all meals, lodging, and instruction.
Road Scholar, 11 Avenue de Lafayette, Boston, MA, 800-454-5768,
www.roadscholar.org
.

Weekends are set up with plenty of leisure time for wandering the town and checking out local restaurants. But for diehards, a local theater company offers a Saturday night performance of—what else?—a murder mystery.

Weekend packages cost $95 per person without accommodations, or $270 per person with the mystery, two-nights lodging, and some meals. If that’s too steep, you could just snag the $15 ticket for the Search of Clues Tour. You probably won’t have enough details to solve the mystery, but unless you’ve got a Holmes twist of mind, having all the other clues might not help, either.

HOW TO GET IN TOUCH

Chamber of Commerce of Greater Cape May,
609-884-5508,
www.capemaychamber.com
.

Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts & Humanities,
609-884-5404,
www.capemaymac.org
.

see television being made

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

The damned thing works!

—
INVENTOR PHILO FARNSWORTH, IN A TELEGRAM ANNOUNCING THE FIRST SUCCESSFUL TELEVISION BROADCAST
(1927)

64 |
Like it or not, TV governs our lives. From infancy to old age, we tune in for entertainment, news, and even company. But how much do you know about what’s involved in putting together the programs and broadcasts that we encounter every day?

Truth is, making television isn’t easy. It takes teamwork, cooperation, and patience. And often it’s an art form that’s created in public, free for interested viewers. In fact, some productions even give you refreshments while you watch them work.

Any visitor to Los Angeles should catch at least one television taping—it’s fun to see celebrities, of course, and it lets you see inside a production studio—however, television enthusiasts can easily build a vacation around the medium. A major clearinghouse for tickets is
Audiences Unlimited
(www.tvtickets.com). Simply go to their website and see what’s available in the next 30 days. If there’s a show you’re particularly interested in seeing, check back at 9 a.m. Pacific time every morning, when the site is updated. And return often, as productions are often added at the last moment. The websites
On Camera Audiences
(www.ocatv.com) and Hollywoodtickets.com also distribute tickets.

In addition, some shows give out their own tickets—for example,
The Tonight Show
(www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/tickets/)—and you can request tickets from their websites.

While it may be hard to get a ticket to see popular shows, such as
Two and a Half Men,
perhaps the best introduction to the world of television comes from watching the taping of television pilots. From February through April, production studios are busy creating new shows they hope will be accepted for the coming fall television season. Not only will you have a chance to see a potential future hit in its infancy, but you also can see how producers, actors, and writers change the show based on the audience’s reaction. Yes, you can shape a work in progress.

“They really count on the audience,” says Lynda Latronico, group coordinating manager for Audiences Unlimited. “If something’s not funny and the audience’s not laughing, and they’re supposed to be laughing, they may rewrite it on the spot.”

Another busy time is August through November, when network studios tape shows for the current TV season. April through July is perhaps the slowest time for tapings.

Although most shows—including situation comedies and game shows—last just 30 minutes with commercials when they air on TV, the time it takes to tape them is another story altogether. Expect to be seated for about three hours. Usually a stand-up comic will entertain you as the crew and actors prepare, but for the most part you’ll be watching professionals at work, sometimes shooting a scene again and again. “Watch the director, and sound booth behind you. They’re the ones doing the actual taping,” Latronico says.

If you haven’t been able to secure a ticket, you’ll often find people giving them away at popular tourist spots, like
Grauman’s Chinese Theatre
(6925 Hollywood Blvd., 323-464-8111) in Hollywood and Universal Studios, north of Hollywood. In addition,
visitor information centers in downtown Los Angeles
(685 S. Figueroa St., 213-689-8822) and
Hollywood
(6801 Hollywood Blvd., 323-467-6412) sometimes have tickets, too.

Other things to know:

 Most shows have minimum ages, and even those seeking young audience members ask that someone over 18 accompany the minor.

 Eat before you go. Tapings may continue for hours. Often the production company will provide pizza or bottled water, but usually it’s just a snack, not a meal.

 Leave backpacks, large bags, and cell phones in the car. Even if cell phones are turned off, some studios don’t want them in the production area for technical and/or security reasons.

 Most studios are in Burbank, Hollywood, and Culver City. Get directions, and allow plenty of time to get there.

 A ticket doesn’t always guarantee admission. Visitors are seated on a first-come, first-served basis, but those who aren’t seated are usually offered tickets for another taping that night.

 Dress nicely and arrive early to up your chances of getting a seat or perhaps sitting up front. You might even get a cameo.

 Wear layers. With all the lighting, the stages can get warm, and studios often compensate by cranking up the air-conditioning.