The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame will open a new immersive exhibit celebrating Saturday Night Live‘s (SNL) iconic musical history. Opening May 23rd at the museum in Cleveland, OH, SNL: Ladies & Gentlemen…50 Years of Music will take fans through historic SNL performances and enduring sketches.
In normal Hall of Fame fashion, SNL: Ladies & Gentlemen will include costumes and props from beloved sketches like The Blues Brothers, “D*ck in a Box”, Jan Hooks and Nora Dunn’s The Sweeney Sisters, and more. In addition to the typical museum glass-case fodder, the Rock Hall will bring SNL history to life with its first-ever virtual experience—featuring historic performances from early episodes with Blondie, Run-D.M.C., and Mick Jagger to more recent shows with Billie Elish, Miley Cyrus, and Sabrina Carpenter.
“The exhibit will journey fans through these cultural touchstone moments by mirroring the flow of the show, beginning with the cold open and moving into the home base stage where the hosts announce the musical guests,” a press release states. “Fans will move through a re-creation of the famed Studio 8H facade in Rockefeller Center, unique to this exhibit, and have an opportunity to create their own moment as host of the show.”
SNL: Ladies & Gentlemen will incorporate other iconography from the show, allowing fans to leave with custom photos of themselves with familiar bumper formats from the SNL50 photo booth. Throughout the exhibit’s run, the Foster Theater will run a special 20-minute edit of Questlove‘s new documentary Ladies & Gentlemen… 50 Years of SNL Music. The Rock Hall’s edit features never-before-seen footage not available in the version on Peacock. To guide visitors through the exhibit, former Saturday Night Live cast member Fred Armisen authored a foreword to the official guidebook.
“’Saturday Night Live’ has brought amazing live music into our living rooms for 50 years, including ground-breaking appearances by over 100 of our Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductees,” Greg Harris, President & CEO of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, said. “Along with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, we are thrilled to be joining with our friends at ‘SNL’ to share this exciting story with the millions of fans who walk through our doors in Cleveland or online at RockHall.com every year.”
This announcement follows the Rock Hall’s revelation of the nominees for induction in 2025, including Phish, OutKast, The Black Crowes, The White Stripes, Mariah Carey, Chubby Checker, Oasis, Bad Company, Joe Cocker, Billy Idol, Joy Division/New Order, Cyndi Lauper, Maná, Oasis, and Soundgarden. This marks Phish’s first time on the ballot despite 11 years of eligibility, though not all of the institution’s anonymous voters are impressed by the band.