MeatEater, a popular outdoors podcast about hunting and fishing, is coming to the Keswick Theatre
Steve Rinella, founder of MeatEater, said Pennsylvania's 1 million hunters are one of the reason his tour is stopping in the state, twice.
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At first glance, the Keswick Theatre in leafy suburban Glenside might not seem like a natural fit for a live podcast performance about hunting, fishing, and the great outdoors.
While Emmylou Harris, Kenny G, and Tracy Chapman have performed there over the years, MeatEater podcast host Steven Rinella is another kind of entertainer. He’s an avid hunter, author, and outdoorsman who lives in Montana and talks about frying deer hearts, otter and grizzly bear attacks, treacherous elk hunts, and something called “unstabilized lard.”
Rinella, 49, said the Keswick — Pennsylvania to be more precise — was a must for the MeatEater 2023 Live Tour, so-much-so that the crew is stopping here twice on the eight-leg tour. They’ll be in Pittsburgh on Dec. 14 and at the Keswick the following day.
“There’s close to 1 million hunters in Pennsylvania, so that’s one reason,” Rinella told The Inquirer.
The live shows, according to MeatEater.com, will “deliver laughs, trivia, news, and nostalgia from across the worlds of hunting, fishing, wildlife conservation, and wild foods.” Rinella said there will be Pennsylvania-specific content too.
“We’ll probably touch on the Sunday hunting controversy in Pennsylvania,” he said. “That’s an ongoing battle.”
Hunting has been banned on Sundays in Pennsylvania since the 19th century, relics of old “blue laws.” Hunting groups have taken the Pennsylvania Game Commission to court over the issue and today, there are three Sundays when deer hunting is permitted.
Rinella launched MeatEater in 2011 and it has been a show on Netflix, a video series, and popular podcast. With millions of downloads monthly, it ranks among the top sports podcasts.
While most Pennsylvania hunting is done in rural areas, there’s a strong tradition of hunting “camps” and cabins, with city and suburban residents heading into the Keystone State’s mountains and forests after Thanksgiving with their rifles. That’s why the Keswick makes sense, Rinella said.
“If you look at our podcast audience, they tend to come from where the people are,” he said. “Hunting is decidedly rural but there’s a pretty big urban participation.”
Tickets for MeatEater Live on Dec. 15 at the Keswick Theatre are $43 to $93 at axs.com/events/504271/meateater-live-tickets/.