by Andrea Brett
It’s 98 degrees outside, the sun is blazing, Table Rock Lake is buzzing with boats and jet skis. Silver Dollar City is scooping Dippin’ Dots, outlet shoppers are looking for that parking space in the shade, and show goers are cooling off in air-conditioned theater seats. It’s definitely another hot, sunny summer in Branson, Missouri, and, strangest thing—I’m blogging about Christmas! Crazy, I know, but I’ll tell you why.
The Bretts Show is in its 20th year in Branson. Wow. I was just going to keep on writing, but I have to stop for a moment to consider what I just said. 20 years. Yes, 2018 marks our 20th season performing as a family on the stages of Branson. Whew!
But this year is different. This year it’s Christmas. A Brett Family Christmas. November 1st through December 15th.
Obviously, such a limited engagement is a big change for us, but as soon as we announced we would only be performing in Branson during the Christmas season, that became our focus, and we can’t seem to get Christmas off of our minds! For the Bretts, it’s not just Christmas in July, (or December,) it’s Christmas in January, February and March, April, May, and June, etc… We have always loved the Christmas season in Branson, and have loved performing our Christmas show, but now that it will be our exclusive shared stage time, it means even more to us. And we are looking forward to and working toward our best Christmas show ever.
Because our children, who are no longer children at all, are pursuing their own dreams and careers, which take them here and there, coming together at Christmas time will be all the more special and cherished for us. These feelings are pretty raw for me in this very moment, because just this morning, I said goodbye to Briahna and her three handsome boys and beautiful brand new baby girl in their new home in Anna, Texas. Her husband Merrill was in Florida training for his new job and I was there to help them get settled in. This past weekend, they left their home in Branson, literally just around the corner from us—the dream situation for doting grandparents—so, as you can imagine, this hasn’t been an easy change. But there is a silver lining—Briahna will still be in the Christmas show. She and her family will be returning to Branson and she will perform the entire Christmas season with us. It will truly be a “home for Christmas” experience for us and we believe that feeling will be contagious and our audiences will feel like they are coming home for Christmas, too. That is our goal—for everyone who experiences A Brett Family Christmas to feel like they are part of the family and to enjoy everything that the Christmas season is all about.
We have really missed doing our regular season shows, but we are so grateful to be looking forward to the holidays when we will gather together on stage again. We hope you will join us in November and December for A Brett Family Christmas. In the meantime, Merry Christmas in July! Go grab a popsicle!
