Radio City Music Hall is one of the most famous theaters in the world, and certainly a suitably glamorous setting for the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. One of the greatest aspects of it is the fact that, like many great New York venues, it seamlessly blends into the midtown neighborhood. That's why it takes a pretty heavy construction job to erect an exterior staging area for red carpet arrivals and preshow interviews. The construction is happening right now, and MTV is streaming the process live online, which you can watch below.
It's a pretty big undertaking, as MTV is essentially shutting down the entire area around the theater (the city of New York even benevolently allowed MTV to close off two lanes of traffic on the always-busy Sixth Avenue). As you can tell from the video, it's a pretty loud event, with plenty of drilling, hammering and forklift operation happening. According to one of the production managers, there are over 100 people on hand taking part in the construction, which includes several stages as well as the giant red carpet. As you can see, it's currently raining in New York City, which is creating a minor flooding issue. But nothing — not even Mother Nature — can stand in the way of the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, so the work will continue until the entire edifice is built. You can track the building right up until the last screw is in place, and then enjoy the completed product beginning Sunday night at 8 p.m. when the VMA preshow will kick off.