Astronaut Scott Kelly Comes to The Music Hall on Nov. 4 with INFINITE WONDER

Record-breaking astronaut, national hero, and bestselling author of Endurance Scott Kelly comes to The Music Hall as part of its Innovation + Leadership series on Sunday, November 4. On the big screen in the Historic Theater, Scott will share awe-inspiring photos from his book INFINITE WONDER documenting his year in space. He will also discuss his remarkable experience as shared in his memoir, Endurance.

The 7pm event in The Music Hall's Historic Theater in downtown Portsmouth, NH features an audiovisual presentation by the author and moderated Q&A with the audience. The ticket package includes a signed copy of INFINITE WONDER. Audience members who additionally purchase Endurance can meet the astronaut at a post-show reception to have their books personalized.

"This will be an unforgettable evening," said Patricia Lynch, The Music Hall's Executive Director and the evening's moderator. "We are so honored to welcome Scott Kelly, an astronaut like no other, with his dazzling photographs and stories of our beautiful earth and endless space. His images and words should be truly inspirational-for all ages."

One's perspective shifts after living for an entire year-as Commander Scott Kelly, and no other American astronaut in history, has-in the isolating, grueling, and utterly unforgiving vacuum of space. Kelly's photos prove that this perspective-from 250 miles above earth-while hard-won, is also almost unspeakably beautiful. To achieve his gorgeous images, Kelly mastered the rare art of microgravity photography. Using a Nikon D4 with a long 800mm lens and a 1.4x magnifying zoom lens, he panned the camera as the shutter released in order to compensate for the space station's velocity: 17,500 mph relative to the earth.

Kelly's artist's eye helped make him a social media sensation, and in INFINITE WONDER, his photos are collected alongside his own commentary, setting the images in their proper contexts, human and cosmic. Kelly captures sunsets, moonrises, the aurora borealis, and the luminous, hazy tapestry of the Milky Way. He presents snapshots of life and work on the International Space Station, from spacewalks to selfies. But above all-or floating amid all-he takes the earth itself as his celestial muse. Here are hurricanes, wrinkled mountains, New York City shining like a galaxy-glorious photographs that are, in themselves, a passionate argument for the preservation of our planet in the face of climate change and environmental destruction.

Scott Kelly is a former U.S. Navy fighter pilot, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. Kelly retired from the Navy at the rank of captain after twenty-five years of service. A veteran of four space flights, Kelly commanded the space shuttle Endeavour in 2007 and twice commanded the International Space Station. He has logged more than 520 days in space on four space flights and currently holds the records for total time in space and for single-mission endurance by a U.S. astronaut. Kelly spent 340 consecutive days in space, launching in March 2015 and returning home in March 2016. He currently resides in Houston, Texas.

Tickets for Innovation + Leadership: Scott Kelly: A Year in Space, a Lifetime of Discovery on Sunday, November 4, at 7:00pm are $13.75 and go on sale Saturday, September 1. For each 1-2 tickets sold, the purchase of a book voucher ($40 hardcover) is required. Vouchers can be redeemed on the event night for signed copies of INFINITE WONDER: An Astronaut's Photographs from a Year in Space. Purchase an additional voucher for Kelly's memoir, Endurance ($16.95 paperback), and meet the author post-show backstage, where he will be personalizing books. All seats are General Admission. Packages can be purchased online at TheMusicHall.org, over the phone at 603.436.2400 or in person at the B2W Box Office at the Historic Theater, 28 Chestnut Street.

In this Age of Participation, The Music Hall has expanded its programming to focus on issues critical to our time. The Innovation + Leadership series was first launched nearly five years ago to serve our local business community, bringing together the best and the brightest in technology. The series has since broadened to showcase opinion leaders, authors, and all variety of educators, and to serve audiences from a tri-state region and beyond - all who are interested in bettering the worlds they live in, at work and at home, locally and around the world. These lively and informative conversations feature experts in their field, sharing experiences and providing participants with practical tools for making meaningful advances in their lives. From demonstrations in the art of all things digital to special forums featuring regional and global leaders in sustainability, from book discussion-demonstrations on the positive effect of meditation to awareness-raising events led by today's champions in philanthropy, feminism, and family matters, each Innovation + Leadership event is memorable and impactful. The Music Hall is committed to community building and personal flourishing. Our Innovation + Leadership series delivers on that commitment.