Source: Todd Holmberg, 785-532-6425, trholm@k-state.edu
Web site: http://www.k-state.edu/mccain/
News release prepared by: Nellie Ryan, 785-532-6415, media@k-state.edu

Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009

RADIO THEATRE GROUP PRESENTS TWO SCIENCE-FICTION MASTERPIECES AT K-STATE'S MCCAIN AUDITORIUM

MANHATTAN -- L.A. Theatre Works, a premiere radio theatre company, will make a stop at Kansas State University's McCain Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 1, for a special double bill of two of the greatest masterpieces of science fiction and adventure: "War of the Worlds" and "The Lost World."

Recreating the breathless pace and convincing details of Orson Welles' infamous radio broadcast, L.A. Theatre Works will show clear why H.G. Wells' "The War of the Worlds"is one of the best space invasion stories of all time. Originally performed by Welles' Mercury Theatre of the Air, the 1938 live broadcast of an eyewitness report of an invasion from Mars caused a nationwide panic.

"The Lost World" is a classic science fiction work from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The main character, Professor Challenger, leads a harrowing four-person expedition through the remote jungles of South America to prove that prehistoric animals still exist. Cut off from the outside world, the fearless explorers discover a place where dinosaurs have evolved beside ape-men and the fate of the human race hangs in the balance.

L.A. Theatre Works was founded in 1974 with the mission of enriching the cultural life of the national community through producing and preserving significant works of dramatic literature on audio. The group has toured all across the U.S. in more than 200 venues, giving audiences the opportunity to experience the power of radio theatre in a current era that is saturated with visual images.

The performance will be preceded by a McCain Conversation hosted by Ralph Titus called "From Mars to Infinity -- the Golden Age of Radio Drama." The conversation starts at 6:30 p.m. in All Faiths Chapel and is.

Tickets are on sale now. Prices start at $13.50 for K-State students and $27 for the general public. Discounts for K-State faculty and staff, military and children are also available. Tickets can be purchased at the McCain Auditorium box office, 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays, or by calling 785-532-6428. More information is available online at http://www.k-state.edu/mccain/