Not Ready for Prime Time Tickets

See this smart new comedy about the making of one of America's most popular Saturday night variety shows. Not Ready for Prime Time plays off Broadway for a limited run this fall, appearing at MCC Theater (though it is not a production of that nonprofit theatre). In this play by Erik J. Rodriguez & Charles A. Sothers, see the unauthorized, unsanitized, and slightly unhinged story of how a small group of lunatics made Saturday night unmissable.

“This is a story about the moment lightning struck,” said Rodriguez in a statement. “These performers didn’t just make comedy — they changed it forever.”

In Not Ready for Prime Time off Broadway, those performers are legends: Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Jane Curtin, Lorne Michaels, Garrett Morris, Bill Murray, Laraine Newman, and Gilda Radner. See how they went from a ragtag band of quirky performers to on-screen legends.

"It's an homage to the pioneers who revolutionized television comedy 50 years ago, and a chance to share the deeply human story behind the headlines: a group of outsiders who fought for their place and ended up reshaping an art form," Rodriguez added in his bio.

Starting in Miami, the play now comes to New York City for its Big Apple premiere. It also arrives as the show that inspired it hits its own landmark milestone: 50 years on the air. Now, rewind to 1976 to see how it all began. From the writers’ room battles to the live-on-air adrenaline, this fast-paced and irreverent play dives into the personalities, clashes, and lightning-in-a-bottle moments that built an American institution.

See a beloved TV show as you never have before in this new play.