New York
Rudolph revived her uncanny impersonation of Beyonce, resplendent in her lace bodysuit, her tresses billowing from a wind machine that threatened to blow Short offstage. Their duet was one of the highlights of the broadcast.
Now these multitalented stars of TV and film have partnered for a six-week NBC run that promises to whip up the same level of hilarity.
Debuting tonight at 10, right after the two-hour season premiere of America’s Got Talent, Maya & Marty is a variety show whose first outing will welcome guests Miley Cyrus, Larry David, Jimmy Fallon and Tom Hanks as well as series regular Kenan Thompson.
A day before that first show would be taped one floor down in Studio 6A, the two hosts greeted a reporter in the conference room of their 30 Rockefeller Plaza offices as Rudolph, casual in jeans and an oxford-cloth shirt, pulled on a sweater against the air conditioning.
AP: You both seem very composed for this to be the day before you do your first show.
Rudolph: “I can tell, you want us to be nervous. But I think this is it.”
Short: “Long ago, I realized that to be nervous or scared did no good when I perform. So I zen myself into a state of great relaxation.”
It turns out this easygoing twosome have known each other for a dozen years, but had never worked together until the SNL anniversary show in February 2015. They clicked.
Short: “Sometimes you find an immediate chemistry with somebody, like you’ve known each other for many decades. Mama!”
Rudolph: “Dadda!”
Soon after, they began talks with the network and Lorne Michaels (executive producer of SNL and well as the new series) about teaming up for a weekly TV show. Then, last summer, Short invited Rudolph and her husband, director Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will Be Blood), and their four children up to his cottage in Canada, along with some writers, to brainstorm.
Short: “We just sat on the dock and drank Rum-and-Ting and talked about what the show might be.”
Rudolph: “Nothing’s better than Rum-and-Ting.”
Short: “Part of the creative process!”
Rudolph: “And what we came away with was, we want work be a joy, with the best possible people.”
Short: “On our show, there will be singing and dancing and sketches and characters.”
Rudolph: “We’re entertainers! Or, as some like to call it: ham-bones!”
Two years ago, Rudolph headlined a variety special on NBC, which allowed her to get her feet wet with what was a dream project.
Rudolph: “I did it to show myself I could do it. I knew it was the next direction I wanted to go in.”
Since then, she’s been waiting for the moment she could jump in all the way.