What:
Chicago Public Radio's This American Life returns to movie screens for one night on Thursday, April 23 for a special live exhibition of the popular radio show. This American Life - Live! is produced by Chicago Public Radio and BY Experience in conjunction with Public Radio International (PRI).

This American Life host Ira Glass and several of the show's popular contributors will take the stage in New York City for a two-hour live event that will be captured with multiple high-definition cameras, and sent live via satellite to the Quick Center for the Arts at Fairfield University and more than 400 digital movie theatres and performing arts centers nationwide.

This American Life - Live! event tickets go on sale nationally on Friday, March 6, 2009.

This is the second consecutive year that Glass will present This American Life on the big screen in a live simulcast. Last year's live event drew tens of thousands of fans to movie theatres across the country.

"Our listeners enjoyed getting together in their own communities to experience our show in a new way," said Glass. "The live cinema transmission was surprisingly effective. We were flooded with e-mails asking for us to do it again."

Like the weekly radio show, with more than 1.7 million radio listeners and nearly 500,000 podcast downloads, This American Life - Live! will feature several humorous and profound stories all centered on a theme. Glass will be joined on stage by other show contributors.

When:
Thursday, April 23 at 8 p.m.

Where:
Quick Center for the Arts
Fairfield University
1073 North Benson Road
Fairfield, Conn. 06824

How:
Tickets are $20 and are available online at fairfield.edu/quick or by calling the Box Office at (203) 254-4010. The toll free number is 1-877-ARTS-396. Seating is reserved. Group rates over 30 people are available.

This American Life debuted in 1995 as a weekly, hour-long radio program, produced by Chicago Public Radio and distributed by Public Radio International to more than 500 radio stations nationwide. Primarily journalistic nonfiction, the show also features fiction, essays and field recordings. The show has won many major broadcasting awards including the Peabody, DuPont-Columbia and Edward R. Murrow Awards. In 2001, Time Magazine named Glass the "Best Radio Host in America." In 2008, the television version of This American Life won two Emmy Awards for "Outstanding Nonfiction Series" and "Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming."

Founded in 1983, Public Radio International produces, acquires and distributes innovative content that enables U.S. audiences to "hear a different voice," bringing global journalism and cultural perspectives to the American public. The Minneapolis-based network provides over 400 hours of programming each week, on over 800 PRI affiliates nationwide, reaching over 29 million radio listeners. PRI distributes This American Life to over 500 radio stations across the U.S., including WNPR. For more information, visit http://www.pri.org/ .

Posted On: 03-06-2009 10:03 AM

Volume: 41 Number: 236