Tyler Perry's "Madea's Big Happy Family"

TYLER PERRY’S “MADEA’S BIG HAPPY FAMILY” FILLS CHAIFETZ ARENA WITH LAUGHTER FOR THREE PERFORMANCES APRIL 23-24

TICKETS GO ON-SALE SATURDAY, DECEMBER 12 AT 10 A.M. AT METROTIX.COM

(St. Louis, MO – December 9, 2009) Playwright, producer and actor Tyler Perry is bringing his matriarch character, Madea, and her family to Chaifetz (SHAY-fetz) Arena at Saint Louis University as Tyler Perry presents “Madea’s Big Happy Family” on April 23 and 24 for three live performances.

Tickets are $57 and $67 for the Friday, April 23^rd – 8 p.m. show; $52 and $57 for the Saturday, April 24^th – 3 p.m. matinee; and $62 and $72 for the Saturday, April 24^th – 8 p.m. performance.  All tickets go on sale on Saturday, December 12 at 10 a.m. at MetroTix.com, the Chaifetz Arena Box Office, MetroTix outlets at select Schnucks and Macy’s stores, and charge by phone at 314-534-1111.

“There is nothing like a live performance and if you’ve never seen a Madea play, then you haven’t seen Madea at all,” stated Tyler Perry on his website about the show. “It’s been 5 years since I’ve been on the road and the timing just happened to fall right into place. I needed to get away from Hollywood for a second…clear my head.  There is no better way to do that than to come out and see your faces and be reminded of where this all started.”

Perry is leaving Hollywood this spring to bring Mabel “Madea” Simmons back to the live stage. Madea, a stern but fair grandmother, is taking the live audience into her living room to experience her Big Happy Family. She is not known for kindness or a sweet grandma-heart but will pick a fight with anyone who crosses her path. Madea can be recognized for her starring roles in blockbuster films such as Diary of a Mad Black Woman and Meet the Browns. Madea’s last live stage appearance was when Perry went to the slammer in “Madea goes to Jail”.

Tyler Perry does it all in show business as an actor, writer, producer and author. He started his career writing plays and currently has over ten plays grossing over $75 million worldwide. These grew into many feature films including Why Did I Get Married? which opened at #1 at the box office. He has also made the move to the small screen creating his own TBS sitcom “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne” which was a $200 million deal and produced more than 100 episodes. Perry has even taken his work to literature writing his own book Don't Make a Black Woman Take Off Her Earrings: Madea's Uninhibited Commentaries on Love and Life that landed #1 on the New York Times Best Sellers list.

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