Will Maya Rudolph bring back the TV variety show?

[FindingNamo]

I kind of think she is exactly the right person to bring it off at this time.

Tucked at the end of a NYTimes blog post about SNL auditioning black women this week:

And then there is the pilot [Lorne Michaels] is working on for NBC’s prime-time schedule, a new take on the traditional television comedy-variety show. The star of that one: the S.N.L. alum Maya Rudolph.

[MrMidwest]

I really need Amanda Seyfried to guest and sing "Heat Wave" in the style of Marilyn/Ann-Margret.

[PalJoey]

Yes, please.

[CarlosAlberto]

I really need Amanda Seyfried to guest and sing "Heat Wave" in the style of Marilyn/Ann-Margret.

I can totally see that Mr Midwest!!

Ingenius!!

[MrMidwest]

Rose McGowan giving a bit of Peggy Lee action?
I think so

[beautywickedlover]

The show will air May 19.


NBC’s Maya Rudolph Variety Special to Air May 19

[FindingNamo]

I would like to see Cynthia Nixon do a salute to Bonnie Franklin in a number from "Applause".

[SNAFU]

Did some costume work for this pilot. It is scheduled to be in The Voice's time slot when it ends it's season. I wish Maya well! She is PERFECT to bring this format back! It will be a refreshing change from the now tired reality shows. I know Rosie tried it a few years back, burt she was NOT the right person.

[FindingNamo]

I STILL have the Rosie special on my DVR but haven't watched since the night it aired ("LIZA MINNELLI! What are YOU doing here???").

[FishermanBob]

Wish Maya well. She's very talented but don't give it much chance. TV Variety shows are a relic of a society 40 years ago when there wasn't YouTube, 800 TV channels and people didn't define how entertaining a show was by how many people got bitch slapped.

[SNAFU]

It is being produced by Loren Michaels. I believe it is going to be like a Prime Time SNL. Eugene Lee was called out there to help get the Sets, production design in order.

[HorseTears]

I'm so happy about this. I could watch Maya Rudolph SNL sketches all day long. I love this woman. She has all the right screws loose, if you know what I mean.

In fact, I could imagine her doing really well in a big, splashy musical comedy. Any roles you think Maya could tackle?

[ljay889]

Ok, that GPS sketch was fantastic.

[taboo123]

35 minutes in and there's more laughs and solid material than the last 5 episodes of SNL combined.

[FindingNamo]

That's hyperbole but it's a good show.

[SNAFU]

Hey Namo, designed and built the dessert costumes for that show. Rosie was not the warm hearted and talented host that is needed for this type of genre. I think Maya is a PERFECT choice!

[FindingNamo]

She was kind of great. I love how previous attempts at revivals of the variety show have promised an update of the format but just did throwbacks. But this one had bits like the clams and nuts.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

"Pam's Clams" will be stuck on my head for days. I thought this was pretty great. I hope NBC orders more.

[SNAFU]

We will see. Lorne sent Eugene Lee and others out to the West Coat. I was hired to help them through one segment. Maya is an awesome person and very talented! If anyone were revive this format, I believe she is the one!

[EricMontreal22]

I found it a mixed bag--some parts fell flat for me (like Frozen 2--if the songs were not improvised--and I don't think they were--they should have been funnier) and a little of Sean Hayes goes a long way for me. But Maya certainly comes off as charming and talented and I do agree with others that the ratio of good to bad was better than an average recent SNL episode.

I didn't realize this was just a test episode--I was kinda hoping they were giving it a Summer run.

[lovepuppy]

Will she bring back the variety show? Lord, I hope so. Kids today need to see that there is much more substance and artistry available when they watch TV, than all those dreadful reality shows.

Haha, I loved the GPS sketch, too, esp. since I am a voiceover talent and do a lot of IVR (speech-rec/on-hold) jobs. Hilarious.


Moral of the story: get in with Lorne Michaels, or fail on TV...? Seriously, after mentoring Conan, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Maya, and others I can't recall, what on earth will happen to the state of television when he retires or dies... Lordy.

[CarlosAlberto]

Darn it! I missed it!

[CarlosAlberto]

Found it on NBC.com

Oy! I had to turn it off after that lame, "A Day At The Beach" skit.

This ain't going anywhere.

[Brian07663NJ]

I was looking forward to Maya's show. I did enjoy some segments. I caught myself smiling but just as quickly felt the smile fading away. Some of the funny skits suddenly fell flat. Not sure it was enough to make this a regular show.

[SNAFU]

Just watched it and liked it better then I thought I would have. Yes, some sketches fell flat, yes there was just too much of Sean Hayes and Andy Sandberg for my liking. A little goes a loooooooooong way with both of them for me. However I thought Maya was wonderful. She was funny charming and genuine.
They would need to retool the format a bit to make it work, tighten up the writing, the sketch to musical number ratio and maybe include a funny monologue or two.
It was nice to see Chris PArnell again. Thought the "I Love you " number was phenominal. Actually brought a tear to my eye. Hope NBC gives it a chance over the summer to develope. I do believe the Variety Show is due a comeback.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Ratings were good-ish, at least from what I read.

Funny you say that about Sean Hayes, SNAFU, because he annoyed me a lot less than he usually does!