As the show moves forward with a bit of normalcy amid the ongoing COVID crisis, executive producers Jason Raff and Sam Donnelly, as well as hostTerry Crewsand veteran judgeHowie Mandel, tell PEOPLE about how the rest of season 16 will be different than season 15, which filmed the Judge Cuts on adrive-in theater in Simi Valleyand rest of the competition onlots at Universal Studios Hollywoodlast summer at the height of the pandemic.
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Though Universal Studios was a one-time switch-up after COVID shut down many productions in California, “it certainly was the best and most creative way to turn a very difficult situation into something fantastic, while providing some much-needed escapism to families across America,” they say.
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The attendance and participation of a live audience are in stark contrast to last season, when there were little to no people clapping or responding. Later on, in season 15, virtual fan walls were included on set with viewers streaming in from their own homes.
Though the COVID pandemic is still ongoing,AGTwill be returning to a live audience starting Tuesday.
“We are happy to say that there are many elements to the season that provide a sense that things are getting back to normal,” Raff and Donnelly say. “For one, we had an audience for our early taped shows, and we will have one again for the upcoming live shows. It’s great to see the way these fans respond to our judges, as well as the performers. It really provides an electricity throughout the theatre, and every day we are witnessing extraordinary acts who are being given the opportunity to chase their dreams on the world’s most prominent stage.”
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Crews, 53, credits the return to normalcy to Raff and Donnelly, as well as those working behind the scenes.
“What happened last season was so many mishaps— with Heidi [Klum]going down [due to illness], Simon [Cowell] going down [due to a bike accident andback surgery] and the audience going down,” theBrooklyn Nine-Nineactor says. “But what was so beautiful and wonderful was that the crew and everybody involved, there was no quitting. It was amazing to watch, it was like, the show must go on. In fact, we’re going to do this and figure it out. Raff and the crew do not get enough credit. They just don’t. It’s like pulling offthe Oscarsevery week. What they did [during the pandemic] was a miracle. They did not get enough credit last year.”
And Mandel, 65, calls this current season the “Sweet 16” installment.
“Are you kidding me? Last season was … the fact that we got together to do the show, we were the first people back in production. We were the first people to help create the COVID protocol. We have the most responsible, talented production crew who constantly think outside the box. That was great that we got to do it,” the comedian says. “But this year is the icing on the cake, this year we are back.”
And the EPs couldn’t agree more.
Despite the hoops that the cast and crew went through amid the pandemic, Mandel says it best: “[AGT] is the biggest joy, there’s been nothing as soul-feeding as the show is.”
America’s Got Talentairs Tuesdays (8 p.m. ET) on NBC.
source: people.com
