I was in the audience for the episode that aired tonight, Dec. 30, 2019. Now that it's been broadcast I can share with you my experience for the first game show taping I attended.
Last summer when it was announced that CBC would be airing a Canadian version of Family Feud I e-mailed CBC and asked about audience tickets. They told me to wait until mid-October. The first day that tickets went up for grabs I got 3 of them (for me and my mom and dad). I think it was for the second day of taping (Nov. 17, 2019). I chose Family Feud Canada because they produce the show in Toronto, which is about a 4-hour drive from me. I don't like to travel too terribly far so I figured this would be the perfect opportunity.
A few days before the taping date, Nov. 17, I got an e-mail stating that we were to arrive at CBC at 11:30 AM and the show would begin around 1 PM. That's just what we did. We drove to suburban Toronto the day before and stayed the night, knowing the next day we'd have plenty of time to get ready, drive into downtown Toronto and then have an early breakfast/lunch at the Sunset Grill just around the corner from the door to CBC we were told to enter. Sure enough there were other Feud fans filing in ahead of and behind us. Next we had to check in and sign non-disclosure agreements stating that we wouldn't spoil anything about the episode until after it airs. After that they kept us waiting a long time in the lobby, long enough one last bathroom break. Almost a half-hour later they started checking coats and groups of audience members, little by little, were taken up the elevator to the 10th floor. How I handled this beats me since I'm afraid of any floor higher than the 5th. They took us through a backstage warehouse and then a narrow hallway with pictures of Canadian celebrities, then settling down in another hallway for seemed like eternity. At the time we were told that the host and contestants were rehearsing and warming up. Then, aaaaahhhh, the moment of truth. We slowly filed into the studio. The three of us sat on the far left end of the second row. An audience warm-up guy briefed us on when to stand, when to clap, when to say "Awww" for strikes, and to not blurt out any answers. They put on some music to get us pumped and said they would play games with the audience during the breaks.
At this point I couldn't believe it. A stagehand counted down and then the actual show began. Each time Gerry Dee said "Show me..." there were a few seconds of hesitation until the judges ruled if the answer was right or wrong. They played two rounds and then took a break. Little did I know the in-studio breaks would last longer than the ones on TV. We played an audience game and for the rest of the break they got us up and dancing to some 2000s music. Then it was time to count down for the next show segment. Another round in the books, another break. Then they had a few audience members come on stage and play a quick Family Feud-like survey game for some cheap prizes (Alas, I didn't get picked). Time for another countdown, another round. This was the deciding round of the game. The next break was interesting because we got to see the stagehands remove the face-off podium from the stage, which took a while. Then the exciting Fast Money began. There was some confusion as to which spot Gerry Dee and the first Fast Money player were to stand. We knew this would be cut from the broadcast. She gave her answers and the were revealed without a hitch. Then came the funny, yet frustrating part. The second Fast Money player walked out. Gerry had to tell him he needed 78 points to reach 200 points and win $10,000. (At least that's what the prompter said). He kept on flubbing his lines, therefore having to make the 2nd contestant redo his walk-on and try again, again and again 'til kingdom come. Finally after the 5th take he nailed it and the game ended with a bang. We were told to stand and clap during the credit roll until further notice. It was weird that no one was leaving after the credits finished, the theme music stopped, and the face-off podium was re-installed. This was because we were told to stay. Due to the camera having shot the intro at a bad angle they had to redo the intro up to the point just before the families introduced themselves. Thank goodness they only needed one take for this after all the Fast Money screwups. After that it really was the end of the taping. I wished they would let us know the air date of that episode but they didn't. Altogether it took a hour and a half to make a half-hour show. We were taken back to the lobby to get our coats and finally leave and enjoy what was left of the day. We had planned in advance to stay another night and drive home the next day. In the end it was a wonderful experience and definitely worth the wait. I later found out on Facebook from a contestant that the episode I saw in person would air on Dec. 30. I recorded it live tonight and now have it immortalized on a DVD.
