Danny Glicker On Costuming for the Tension of ‘Saturday Night’

When the first night of your live television show is about to premiere, there needs to be some confident constants in the mix. As the stoned actors argue about stage time and the teamsters give the newbies a rough go, how does the show, as they say, go on? When you have costume designer Danny Glicker reaching back to that storied first performance, you know you are in good hands. With his trademark enthusiasm for the 1970s, Glicker’s work in Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night reflects a lively energy that only comes from that unshakeable feeling that you’re on the edge of glory.

Saturday Night is a ticking time bomb, and Glicker loves that. Reitman keeps bringing us back to a clock that ticks by another minute every time we are reminded that we are on a tight schedule. Those minutes are precious, and Glicker found a glee in “making the audience uncomfortable.” The costume designer has been on record saying that he wants to dress the actors aren’t going to make it. Or, as Glicker puts it, the show “doesn’t look like it’s going to go on in a week.” We expand on that quote, and I totally relate to that make it or break it attitude. It falls in line with the middle finger the show itself is giving to the establishment.

Glicker took time to read memoirs by Gilda Radner and Alan Zweibel, and that gives him an idea of the energy that can be found on set of Studio 8H. Glicker is a costume designer who likes to research and consume as much as possible in order to give the clothing an arc of its own. With Saturday Night, it’s scrappy, because of what’s on the line for these actors. He could’ve just done a superficial recreation of everything or leaned into trends of the time, but Glicker has never done that. He knows it’s helpful to know the reasons behind the pinks of Angelyne’s closet or the consistency of the color blue in The Sympathizer. When we talk about what item of clothing he would steal for himself, we agreed upon a piece that didn’t even make the final cut of the film.

The timeline of Reitman’s film may be taut, but Glicker’s designs are loose, fun, fresh, and textured. His work alone makes you want to tune into episode two of this brand new, risky television show.

Saturday Night is available to rent and own.