a prairie home in indiana

When I was little, cross country roadtrips almost certainly involved several tapes of Garrison Keillor's "A Prairie Home Companion" or "A Lutheran's Guide to the Orchestra." We'd listen to his rolling baritone singing about Buttermilk Biscuits and Ketchup and narrating the stories of his "hometown," Lake Wobegon. When I grew up, I would still occasionally listen to his live performances every Saturday evening.

Last night, "A Prairie Home Companion" broadcast live from the IU Auditorium, and I was in the audience. The difference in being able to see the people attached to the voices as opposed to just imagining them was astounding. Garrison Keillor does a superb job of playing to both the audience and the performers and he wanders around the stage telling his stories. And in between everything is the constant counting of seconds, ushering in and out performers, and providing the scripts that the technicians on the show do.

Overall, the show was good. It involved several talented young performers from the IU Jacobs School of Music. However, while their songs were entertaining and inspiring, it seemed that they took up a surprising portion of the show. In fact, Garrison's signature "News from Lake Wobegon" portion was so short to have been almost not present. Perhaps we caught the tour at a bad time, when Garrison was on his way back from a week in California and many of the show's regulars were on vacation. I don't know the reason, but I would have liked a little more talking and a little less music.

Oh, and the most amusing part of the evening really came from the people sitting in the audience immediately surrounding us. Ten minutes into the show, the guy in front of us pulls out his cell phone which had just been vibrating in his pocket and starts talking to someone on the phone. About halfway through, someone in front of my mom turns around to tell her that it is incredibly rude to comment on the show to your neighbor in whispered tones during the applause. And at the end, when everyone was picking up their coats, the lady to Sam's right complimented him on his wonderful tact and considerateness for trying to cough only during the applause as to not disturb others.