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This musical American life

There is no show quite like NPR’s This American Life, and by the time Buffy and Dollhouse creator Joss Whedon is through making a musical out of the radio program, we are sure it will stand out even more.

For the second year, This American Life host Ira Glass decided to bring the very popular (and I must say completely brilliant) show to the stage. The special two-hour production will include show regulars — Dan Savage, Starlee Kine, Mike Birbiglia, David Rakoff and Dave Hill — but the big change could be in the show’s format, as rumors are circulating that the entire thing may be set to music coordinated by Whedon.

The answer is unclear, with sources only confirming a “special musical performance” to Variety, but some fans are getting their hopes up.

This is certainly not Whedon’s musical debut. Aside from the extremely popular Buffy sing-along episode, his web series, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, still has fans wanting more. Some are hoping the TAL stint will be the “follow up you didn’t see coming.”

For those unfamiliar with This American Life, each episode follows a theme and various people tell stories that somehow relate to the theme. Obviously, they are stories from or about American issues.

The This American Life Live! program theme is “”Return to the Scene of the Crime,” and will be broadcast April 23 from New York University’s Skirball Center for the Performing Arts.

At 8 p.m. ET, the show will be sent live via satellite to “more than 400 movie theaters and performing arts centers nationwide.” I’m getting my tickets soon, because it’s likely they will all sell out.

“The live cinema transmission was surprisingly effective,” Ira Glass said. “Last year was mostly a sneak preview of stories from our television show. This year we’re excited to do a full-on stage performance of the radio show.”

Will Dan Savage be singing and dancing? Please say yes, Ira, please say yes!

What do you think a musical TAL would be like?

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