BTL STAFF PICKS for our 2025-2026 Season

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We are just about FIVE WEEKS AWAY from the Opening Night (Back To The Future: The Musical) of our 2025-2026 Season! So I got to thinking about how many marvelous shows we are bringing to the VBC Concert Hall this season and trying to decide which I was most looking forward to seeing. And then I started wondering what the rest of our fabulous BTL Staff were most looking forward to...

Hence, welcome to the Kip's Korner "BTL STAFF PICKS" edition of the 2025-2026 Season! And without further adieu, here's Andrew (see that - I made a rhyme):


Andrew Willmon (Executive Director)

Season Show: SHUCKED! We all need a great laugh, a whole lot of silliness, and who doesn’t love CORN! Everything is Poppin’ UP Corn!

Season Special: The Choir of Man – A working pub on stage, a pint of brew and a group of lads putting their spin on pop hits! The best rousing good time, AND the show is on Valentine’s weekend.


Enitza Gillespie (Front of House Manager)

Season Show: Back To The Future – because I’m interested to see how they transformed the movie into the musical. And I love the music of that era.

Season Special: Mark Twain Tonight! – I enjoyed seeing Richard Thomas two seasons ago in To Kill A Mockingbird. I’m excited to see how different he is as Mark Twain instead of the Atticus Finch character.


Kaitlyn Vanderwill (Membership Director)

Season Show: Hadestown – The dark jazz and blues are right up my alley. I’m looking forward to hearing the soulful voice of Persephone and Hades gravelly and ominous songs. The Greek mythos is timeless, and the tale of Eurydice and Orpheus is the ultimate tragic love story (sorry Juliet!) and a cautionary tale of hubris. Plus, the costumes and industrialized New Orleans-esque set look TO DIE FOR! I hope my coworkers don’t get tired of me humming "Chant!"

Season Special: Choir of Man looks like an absolute blast of a time for anyone that wants to go out to a pub with 1900 of their closest friends and have a beer and a good time. A high energy sing-along sounds like the recipe for a fun evening, so I’m looking forward to a memorable Valentine’s Day!


Tanja Miller (Group Sales Coordinator)

Season Show: My brain says Hadestown, but my heart says Shucked. It is such a feel-good, silly, sweet, bundle of pun-filled corniness. The music, lyrics, and overall story blend together in a harmonious mixture that will satisfy both classic and contemporary theatre fanatics. I can NOT wait to see this show!!!

Season Special: Mark Twain Tonight! I love Mark Twain – his humor, his brashness, the intelligence behind his words. I have always admired how he builds his characters and their stories. If anyone can capture the essence of the real Twain, it’s Richard Thomas. I’m all in!


Kip Driver (Director of Communications)

Season Show: Water for Elephants – I know I’ve shared this before but if I were to choose a category for my favorite kind of musical it would be “happy/sad.” And W4E is definitely serving that up! It will give you all the feels: nostalgia, excitement, love, feelings of loss, but all wrapped up in hope! And I love the authentic circus acrobatics, dances & puppetry! You'll laugh. You'll cry. You'll cheer on these new friends of yours in the circus.  “I choose the Ride.”

Season Special: The Choir of Man – it’s known as the “ultimate-feel good show”, and I think we all need that right now! There’s singing (all types of music in tight harmonies), impressive tap dancing, poetry monologues and overall camaraderie amongst the nine charismatic men (which is the emotional heart of the show). And there’s a pub onstage! With Beer! And you can have one!


David Herriott (Education Director)

 I, of course, am looking forward to the Outreach shows, Dino Light! for the fantastic lighting special effects & the brilliant choreography and Popovich Comedy Pet Theater for the fun and touching stories of these rescue animals doing amazing tricks on stage.

Season Show:  Back To The Future - I'm looking forward to the special effects.

Season Special:  Choir of Man - Excited for the intimate party atmosphere.


I'm going to let Lisa close us out because she had a lot to say about our new season and I'm here for it! I know that you will be too:


Lisa Bollinger (Director of Operations)

Honestly, I have a reason to be excited about each and every show this season! Luckily, I can make up the rules for this assignment, so I am going to tell you about shows I’ve seen before and shows that are new to me!

I'm excited to see Back to the Future and Water for Elephants for the first time! Who doesn't love a little bit of nostalgia with Back to the Future? I'm excited to see how my favorite parts of the movie unfold on stage... and... of course I want to see the car!  What a great way to start our new season!   I admit I have never read the book or seen the movie Water for Elephants. I haven't even done all the research about the storyline, but I have lots of time to do that before the show gets here in May. So why would I be excited to see this show? I have three friends who saw it on Broadway and raved about it - and they've seen A LOT of Broadway shows. I'm excited to see the puppetry and how everything comes alive. I'm told I may shed a tear or two, so I'll bring some tissues.

I've seen Hadestown, The Sound of Music, Shucked and & Juliet.  It's hard to pick which one I'm most excited about! & Juliet is SO MUCH FUN! What if Juliet didn't die? This show may be about Juliet, but my favorite thing is watching Shakespeare and his wife Anne Hathaway (yes, that was her actual name) explore the various possibilities for Juliet. They don't always agree and it's hilarious! Romeo even makes a brief appearance!  & Juliet is filled with fun music and great laughs - perfect for a night out!

Choir of Man is my must see season special show! My husband and I love live pub music, pub sing alongs and the overall vibe of being in a pub so much that we have an Irish pub IN our house. There is no better feeling than having a pint in a pub full of friends old and new while listening to some great live music. You don't just listen to pub music, you experience it.  Choir of Man is an experience!


Do you have your Season Tickets yet? Or Pick 3+? Some Single Tickets are onsale already. 

Check it all out here --> https://broadwaytheatreleague.org/


AND we will see you at the theatre!!



 

You might have seen me as Enjolras in Les Misérables, Munkustrap in Cats or the Prince in Cinderella. I used to perform in many Broadway Tours all across the country. Now I report on them and give you an insider's view into this unique little world. So, let's talk about all things Broadway!

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