LOS ANGELES - The Academy Awards is without question Hollywood's biggest night, a time when the world stops to gawk at its celluloid heroes as they arrive wearing their finest clothes and jewels, many of them hoping they'll leave with a little gold statuette on their arm. With the stars gathered inside the posh Kodak Theatre to celebrate the finest films and performances of the past year, here is an inside look at what is going on off camera.
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While the mood is chaotic outside on the red carpet, it's refreshingly calm inside the Kodak Theatre nearly an hour before the start of the 82nd Academy Awards. Dozens of ushers and other workers chitchat amid the empty blue orchestra seats where nominees and other A-listers will be perched for the ceremony. On stage, the ivory floor below the crystal-blanketed curtain receives a last-minute cleaning.
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There's a swanky makeshift smoking section erected just outside the theatre, complete with couches, cocktail tables and a behemoth black rug. It's so nice that several attendees are out there enjoying glasses of champagne with their smokes before the doors to the theatre even open. Their revelry is interrupted by a soothing female voice that coos, "Please take your seats. The Academy Awards will begin in 15 minutes."
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Inside the theatre, Robert Downey Jr. comes backstage with his wife and they head straight for the green room, where Elizabeth Banks and Jeremy Renner are already relaxing. Meryl Streep breezes through the area, a glass of champagne in hand. Javier Bardem stands in the hallway with a soda as Penelope Cruz stops by the makeup station for a quick touchup.
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Old Hollywood meets New Hollywood as Lauren Bacall sweeps past "Precious" star Gabourey Sidibe in the hallway.
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The first nominee to arrive with a front row seat? Vera Farmiga, who sits alone adjusting her flowing burgundy gown. It's not long before her "Up in the Air" co-star and fellow supporting actress nominee Anna Kendrick shows up and introduces Farmiga to her mother. Kendrick takes her seat in the second row as the music begins: Chubby Checker's "The Twist."
