• Courtesy Photo

Mike Birbiglia
There are may different ways for a career in stand-up comedy to proceed. For Mike Birbiglia, that journey involved the realization that maybe he wasn't exactly a stand-up comedian, but a storyteller.

His career path in the early 2000s included appearing on The Late Show with David Letterman and a pair of stand-up album releases, Dog Years and Two Drink Mike. But along the way, Birbiglia also started sharing stories for The Moth, morning radio's The Bob and Tom Show and NPR's This American Life, honing a self-deprecating style for tales have generally involve his own life and relationships. His first one-man show, Sleepwalk With Me, was eventually adapted it into a feature film which Birbiglia directed and debuted at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. Subsequently, he has shared more of his personal journey in the form of award-winning one-man shows, including getting married (My Girlfriend's Boyfriend) and having his first child (The New One), all while adding to his acting credits on film and television, and turning his early experience in improv comedy into the feature film Don't Think Twice.

Now, hard on the heels of a successful New York run of his new one-man show The Old Man and the Pool (which necessitated the rescheduling of his originally planned local stop last fall), Birbiglia visits Salt Lake City to bring his charming mix of jokes and stories to Kingsbury Hall (1395 E. Presidents Circle) on Friday, March 17 at 7 p.m., with tickets $48.75 - $58.75. Visit artstickets.utah.edu to purchase tickets and for additional event information. (Scott Renshaw)

• 20th Century Studios

The Sandlot 30th anniversary
Utah has been a location for many films over the years, from the classic John Ford Westerns of Monument Valley to the indie spirit of SLC Punk! But among the most beloved shot-in-Utah features is The Sandlot, co-writer/director David Mickey Evans' nostalgic 1992 comedy-drama about a group of friends coming of age, bonding and having wild adventures surrounding their shared pick-up baseball games in a neighborhood vacant lot. An empty lot in Glendale served as the film's key location, while spots around Salt Lake City and Ogden were also showcased—and in honor of the film's 30th anniversary, some of the folks who made the movie are returning to town.

This week, enjoy a special screening of The Sandlot followed by a Q&A and discussion about the film featuring several of the now-all-grown-up cast members. Tom Guiry (the film's protagonist, Scotty Smalls), Chauncey Leopardi (the girl-crazy Squints), Marty York (Yeah Yeah) and Shane Obedzinski (Repeat) are currently scheduled to be on hand as they reflect on their memories of making the movie, share behind-the-scenes anecdotes, take audience questions and examine why The Sandlot continues to have such an enduring fanbase. It's a wonderful opportunity to celebrate a unique piece of Utah film history with those who helped make it.

The Sandlot 30th anniversary celebration takes place at Kingsbury Hall (1395 E. Presidents Circle) on Saturday, March 18 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $27.75 - $57.57, and are available at artstickets.utah.edu; visit the website for additional event information. (SR)

• Candlewick Publishing

Mac Barnett & Christian Robinson: Twenty Questions
Children's books can be simple—or they can be deceptively simple. Take, for example, the new collaboration between New York Times bestselling author Mac Barnett and Caldecott Honor recipient Christian Robinson, Twenty Questions. It's a delightful picture book that you could breeze through in a few minutes. It's also a book that could inspire hours of lively discussion.

That's because the twenty questions that make up Twenty Questions aren't ones that come with definitive answers. Instead, they're intended to invite a child to think about what they're seeing—or what they think they're seeing—and why, or to spark imaginations into their own storytelling. When a picture shows a door placed incongruously on the side of a mountain, accompanied by the question "What's on the other side of this door," there's no limit to the ways a child can proceed from that prompt. And when side-by-side images of two people of different races includes the question "Which of these fellows has a better singing voice," it's an opportunity to probe into why people make the assumptions they do.

Mac Barnett and Christian Robinson visit Salt Lake City for an event sponsored by The King's English Bookshop that will be held at The Neighborhood Hive (2065 East 2100 South) on Tuesday, March 21 at 3 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, but places in the signing line are reserved for those who purchase a copy of Twenty Questions. You can also pre-order a signed copy with request for personalized message; visit kingsenglish.com to order books and for additional event information. (SR)