To celebrate 50 years, “ Saturday Night Live ” hosted a star-studded concert on Friday featuring musical guests who have appeared on the program throughout the decades.
Cher was among the performers who took the stage at Radio City Hall for the “SNL50: Homecoming Concert”, transporting the crowd back to 1989 with a rendition of her hit “If I Could Turn Back Time.”
The 78-year-old icon wore the same sexy outfit — a see-through black bodysuit — that she did in the famed music video filmed 36 years ago.
Teamed with a leather jacket, Cher wowed the crowd with her age-defying physique and stamina.
Other celebs who performed at the event included Miley Cyrus, Bad Bunny, The Roots, Arcade Fire, Backstreet Boys, Bonnie Raitt, Brandi Carlile, Chris Martin, David Byrne and Lady Gaga.
“SNL” aired its first-ever episode in 1975 with musical guests Billy Preston and Janis Ian.
To celebrate half a century on air, a star-studded special is set to air this Sunday.
And with the program rapidly approaching, Keith Raywood, who has been a production designer on the series for forty years, took a moment to reflect on “SNL.”
“I’ve been a part of this pretty much my entire adult life,” the Emmy-winning production designer told The Post.
“I’ve always looked at it as something I love doing, but it’s also my job,” Raywood continued. “We’re not designing things aware of what it might mean – like ‘this cowbell is going to become iconic’” he said, referring to Will Ferrell and Christopher Walken’s iconic “More Cowbell!” sketch
“You don’t know about [the audience reaction]. You’re just part of the entire process.”
After decades working on set, Raywood is just now realizing what a phenomenon the show truly is.
As he put it: “It’s only recently that I’ve become aware of how much the show has meant to people, how much it’s meant to the culture, how much it’s meant to New York.”
“I wasn’t aware of that until fairly recently. It’s very satisfying to know that I’ve been a part of all that.”
Raywood also spoke about how the show’s creator, Lorne Michaels, still has a hand in “Saturday Night Live” 50 years later.
“Lorne is very involved, but not in the sort ofnitty-grittyy of a particular sketch. We would be dealing with the director Liz Patrick. Or, a writer will come in and say they need something or they want to change a prop or something like that,” he explained.
As for celebrating the show’s half-centennial on the air?
“We [will] have about 450 people in the studio, which is essentially about 200 people more than we would normally have,” Raywood revealed.
The audience will be jam-packed with the special guests’ friends and family.
“Imagine all the people who have been on the show – those cast members and hosts. It’s a lot of people [there to see them]. And, those seats don’t normally exist,” he said.
Iconic cast members from past and present are set to make an appearance, including Jane Curtin, Amy Poehler, Chevy Chase , Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell, and others.
Although Raywood couldn’t reveal what viewers will see, he did tease that it will involve “lots of new and older cast members doing lots of sketches.”
