National Public Radio broadcaster
to visit Purdue
By Megan Finnerty
Features
Editor
For one night in early April, West Lafayette will
transform into a new town. Gone will be the Purdue Memorial Union, the
Math Building and all three McDonald's.
In their place, Lake Wobegone, Minn., and all of
its tidy farms, rural schools and Midwestern faces will spread out across
this patch of central Indiana.
Garrison Keillor will bring his live radio show,
"A Prairie Home Companion," to Purdue at 4:45 p.m. on April
7 in the Elliott Hall of Music.
Tickets to watch the live broadcast by one of National
Public Radio’s most listened-to performers will go on sale Feb.
5 at Purdue box offices for $21 and $28. The performance is also a fund-raising
event for Purdue Convocations and WBAA AM/FM, so a limited number of
premium seats will sell for $50 and $100.
"This is very cool, we’re already getting
overrun with wonderful response," said convocations director Todd
Wetzel. "The show is expensive, and we had to think carefully about
how we’re going to do this, but we knew the demand would be high
and it has been. Other National Public Radio affiliates in the region
— Indy, Chicago, Champaign/Urbana — will be bringing busloads."
Convocations and WBAA AM/FM began courting "Prairie
Home Companion," the show with the highest listenership on WBAA
FM/AM, more than six years ago. Wetzel said that his office continuously
checked in with National Public Radio every few months, reiterating
its interest.
But after all that time and effort, the show almost
didn’t make it.
Finally, National Public Radio gave Convocations
a date, but the Honors Awards Convocation was scheduled for April 7.
"We had to move the Honors Awards Convocation
to make this happen," Wetzel said. "The University was really
open-minded and really responsive. We changed the orbits of the planets
to make this happen."
Keillor creates oddball, touching characters weaving
comedic stories through the voices and sounds of a traditional Protestant
farming community in Minnesota. And although Lake Wobegone cannot be
found on any map, a place like it can be found in rural areas across
America and in the hearts of its fans.
"It’s compelling; it will transport you
to a new place," Wetzel said. "You can laugh at it and you
realize you’re laughing at yourself and it's so warmhearted that
it’s not off-putting. He gives you the release to laugh at your
family and your friends."
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