Shifting Gears Taping: Free Audience Tickets in Burbank

Tim Allen is back on a sitcom stage in Burbank, and 1iota is giving away free seats in the studio audience. Shifting Gears has five tapings on the calendar between late September and early November, all on Tuesday afternoons. If you're hunting for Things Happening In Los Angeles that cost nothing and come with a story to tell afterward, a network sitcom taping is hard to beat.

The show

Allen plays Matt, a stubborn widower who owns a classic car restoration shop. His life gets rearranged when his estranged daughter, played by Kat Dennings, moves into his house with her teenage kids. The show's own pitch puts it neatly: that's when the real restoration begins. The promo art has the whole cast lined up around a deep red vintage pickup, which tells you roughly where most of the jokes are going to land.

Multi-camera sitcoms like this one are shot in front of a live crowd, so your laughs can end up in the episode. You'll watch scenes run more than once, see the crew reset between takes, and usually get a warm-up comic keeping the room awake during breaks.

Taping dates

1iota lists five tapings, each starting at 4:00 PM:

• Tuesday, September 29
• Tuesday, October 13
• Tuesday, October 20
• Tuesday, November 3
• Tuesday, November 10

You request one date at a time. A 4 PM call on a Tuesday means taking the afternoon off for most people, so pick the date that's easiest to clear, and expect to be there for several hours. Sitcom tapings rarely wrap quickly.

How to get tickets

Tickets are free, and the only official way in is through 1iota. Make a free account, open the Shifting Gears page and request the taping you want. The age limit is 18 and up, with no exceptions for the teenagers in your house (ironic, given the plot).

One thing to understand before you go: a confirmed ticket isn't a guaranteed seat. Audience services overbook on purpose because a chunk of ticket holders never show. Your ticket puts you in line with priority; it doesn't reserve a chair. Show up early, since the people at the back of the line are the ones who get turned away once the studio is full.

Getting there

The listing only says Burbank, CA. 1iota hasn't published a studio address, and for tapings the exact check-in location normally arrives with your confirmation. Wait for that email before you plan parking or a rideshare, and budget extra time for Burbank traffic heading toward the studios on a weekday afternoon.

If free TV is your kind of night out, browse more live audience events and other things to do in Los Angeles. We add new tapings as the services post them, so it's a good place to check for upcoming events Los Angeles hasn't sold out of yet, because these never cost a thing.