New York City GOF Premiere Report

By Jenna

The night before the Goblet of Fire premiere, the Ziegfeld Theatre looked cold, dark and bare compared to the other gloriously lit buildings in Manhattan. Myself, Alison (allo), Jeff from HPANA, Kevin from ACED Magazine, and Aris from VTM decided to check out the theatre that night after leaving the Jekyll & Hyde club. To our amazement three Harry Potter fans pulled up. They had driven all the way to New York from Kentucky! After chatting with them a while we then took our leave and met up with the fabulous guys from MuggleNet and the wonderful Melissa, Sue and John from TLC. Of course when the clock chimed in around - what was it - 1.30am! ... we all decided it was time to go back to our own rooms before we turned into pumpkins.

Operating on a little more than an hour of sleep that day, I scarcely remember anything once I entered my hotel room that night. Really soft pillows - I do remember those. The next morning was frantic - getting up and getting everything in order for the premiere that afternoon. I can still hear the countdown Alison shouted out as time started running short - "thirty minutes... ok 20 minutes... you've only got 10 minutes... hurry up lets go now!"

Okay, okay... we finally left the hotel (we had plenty of time I don't what the fuss was about), flagged a taxi, and arrived a few minutes later at Ziegfeld Theatre. Let me just say - WOW! What a transformation from the night before. The red carpet was all set up, the fans were all barricaded in their observation area, the press check-in was filling up, the Will Call was almost ready, and some of the press (including HP sites and ourselves) were also walking up and down the "fanzone" to interview the fans and take some video footage and photos. Everyone was excited to be there, some having been there since 4:30 am that morning!

Alison and I went around interviewing fans, taking their photos for the site, and then we took their cameras and took some photos for them as well. All of the fans were so animated, even though many of them were undoubtedly exhausted and hungry since they had been there before the sun came up! I am amazed by their dedication and enthusiasm - and they never tired - not even after the show was over... they were all still outside waiting to give the cast one last farewell. There is one thing you can say with certainty about the Harry Potter fandom - it's really a big family and one of the most devoted I have ever encountered.

Soon after interviewing the fans it was time to assume our position in the press line. Things were actually very organised. Everything went very smoothly and Alison and I had the good fortune to be in the same area as all the other really fantastic online fansites. It was so much fun being able to meet those I had never met, as well as catch up with my good friends I hadn't seen or talked to for what seemed like ages.

We all waited and waited - and the longer we waited the colder it seemed to get. I shot a little behind-the-red-carpet footage of all the webmasters to pass the time. Finally, Jamie arrived and the crowd of fans started to re-ignite once again. It took a while for most people to make it down to our end for interviews. Basically, once the cast lined up for us things just blew by. And some of them did blow by. The scenario was much like this - we would be interviewing one person and the next person would be coming... if they see you are talking to someone else - they skip you. This is why people never get interviews with all the cast.

The worst part about the premiere was the total bottle neck in the end. At first there was no one and then the cast started coming all at one time - we couldn't keep up! It was very rushed as everything was running late. Emma and Rupert were led inside, Dan couldn't go and sign very many autographs or much else as he was taken inside so they could start the show. Luckily Dan was gracious enough to come over and give us a quick interview.

Once the cast ventured inside the theatre, cattle call was made for the rest of us to hurry up and run inside, check our cameras, and take our seats. I handed a ticket to Alison and one to Sharon from Dr.co.uk so she could go in and see the movie as well. We all stepped inside the theatre and from that point everything was a blur. After being outside for so long Alison and I HAD to make a stop before we made our way to our seats. Once seated Dan, Emma, Rupert, director Mike Newell, producer David Heyman, and a couple of people from Warner Bros all walked up in front of the theatre. David had a few things to say and then Mike Newell took the microphone. Of all the things said to the audience in the theatre that night, the one thing said that I remember (the only thing said I remember) had to do with Dan, Rupert, and Emma. Mike Newell made a point of declaring to everyone that the cast are wonderful and that they are "perfectly normal children." So there you have it - no extra appendages, no nightmarish marks or scars, and sorry no out-of-the-ordinary behaviorisms.

Even after the movie started people could hardly contain themselves. I found myself struggling to concentrate. Because everything had been so rushed before we walked into the theatre my mind was still being shot forward, even though my body was firmly planted in its seat. The entire prodigious experience was beyond imagination. Everyone at Warner Bros was extremely nice - wonderful people.

Once the film was over everyone piled out, mass by mass, and then those of us who had cameras went and lined up to collect those. Of course, following the premiere was the Podcast, hosted by both MuggleNet and TLC. There was no way I was going to go to that in the dress I was wearing so we started to make our way back to the hotel. Two fans decided to go with us. After I was changed we made our way to the Podcast. We were just a "little" late. I tried to just disappear into the back of the crowd, but NO - Sue saw me and called attention to me... and of course the crowd turned to look at the short blonde chick in the back of the room after Andrew told me to stand up when I was already standing!!! So, yea, I stood up on the nearest chair. Yes - I did kill him for that later!

After the Podcast was over, all us of from MuggleNet, TLC, HPANA, VTM, and Dr.com went out for a late dinner at Chevy's - some of us, myself included, hadn't eaten all day! We ate at around 11:30 pm. By that time I would have eaten anything. Once done, some of us hung out a little more back at the hotel before passing out from sheer exhaustion. Everyone from all of the websites was incredibly nice and fun to be around.

This entire trip was monumentally fantastic for me. Why? Aside from talking to the cast and watching the movie with them, I had the opportunity to spend some time walking about in the most incredible city with the most incredible people. I absolutely love visiting New York in general, and to spend that time with friends and people you care about just makes it magical... but then, that's what it's all about - the magic.