Live Studio Audiences vs. Laughtracks - how authentic are they?

This was my experience being in the audience for a taping of The Nanny many years ago. We were pretty excited. Plus it was good script and was well acted. They did about 4 takes of everything. It helped that the actors came up to the seats and talked with audience between takes. It kept us interested.

Besides doing it for free, this is why they prefer to have tourists/ticket holders (tickets are free, btw). They actually want to be there and the novelty hasn’t worn off yet. After a year or two, it is tough to summon up the energy to laugh at what is mostly dreck, even for money.