Review: Garrison Keillor’s marathon show in St. Paul suggests he can perform for another decade

Garrison Keillor is 81, the same age as President Joe Biden. But anyone who watched him steering the “50th Anniversary of Prairie Home Companion” on Friday at St. Paul’s Fitzgerald Theater would be hard-pressed to question his vitality.

In the first of three shows at the former home of his radio program, Minnesota’s most-famous storyteller gave his signature red sneakers a young man’s workout, delivering a nearly three-hour performance in which he rarely resigned himself to a stool.

During the intermission, he encouraged the sold-out crowd to mingle while he remained onstage to warble “The Owl and the Pussycat” and patriotic numbers. When harmonizing with guest vocalists Heather Masse and Christine DiGiallonardo, he looked as upbeat as a teenager who finally gets to hang with the cool kids. Even his suit looked less wrinkled than it usually does.

Yes, there were reminders that a half century has passed since he launched “Prairie Home” at Macalester College. Keillor used teleprompters, even though he was nimble enough go off script at a moment’s notice, especially if he thought he could trip up special-effects wizard Fred Newman.

Friday’s show — his first at the Fitz since retiring from radio eight years ago — opened with Keillor entering from the back of the theater, serenading fans with a reworked version of Van Morrison’s “These Are the Days” in which he thanked surgeries and blood thinners for keeping him around.

Later, he shared an age-appropriate update on Graham Nash’s “Teach Your Children” that kicked off with lyrics, ““You/who are on the road/are driving slow” and weaved its way toward a conclusion in which the main character is sent to an assisted-living center.

There were plenty of familiar faces on hand, including longtime band leader Rich Dworsky and Grammy-winner Pat Donohue who led a number he wrote about St. Paul’s Willies American Guitars. When Newman and voice actors Sue Scott and Tim Russell made their first appearance, the crowd responded with one of the loudest ovations of the evening.

“Did someone famous come onstage?” Keillor asked after the applause finally died down.

He paid tribute to the late Tom Keith, his original sound-effects artist. He shared anecdotes from his early days at the venue, back when it was called the World Theater. The song selection leaned heavily on classics from some of “Prairie Home’s” best-known visitors, including Randy Newman, Mark Knopfler, Iris DeMent and Greg Brown.

The mere mention of the Ketchup Advisory Board drew the kind of reaction James Taylor gets whenever he starts playing “Fire and Rain.”

It was a night of celebration triumphing over sentimentality. No pining for the days when he was one of the country’s most-beloved entertainers, no acknowledgment of the accusations of inappropriate workplace behavior that let to his bitter breakup with Minnesota Public Radio.

During his half-hour monologue from Lake Wobegon, more meandering than usual, he pooh-poohed the suggestion that his fictional town erect a statue in his honor, insisting that he’d rather be remembered for his limericks. And then — for better or worse — he shared a few of them.

The shows on Saturday and Sunday also were sold out (although you can live stream Saturday’s program at garrisonkeillor.com). The high demand from fans to see Keillor may stem from the theory that this is the last time “Prairie Home” will ever be presented in the Twin Cities.

Based on the energy level on Friday night from Keillor and company, I wouldn’t bet on it.