Thirty-first annual Hot Winter Fun Big Show was the hot ticket

This year, the Hughes Brothers Theatre at 3425 West 76 Country Blvd. hosted the 31st annual Hot Winter Fun Big Show on Saturday afternoon, February 22. I decided to go check out the festivities, and believe me, the Big Show did not disappoint. It was indeed the hottest show in town!

Organized by the Branson League of Theatre Owners & Show Producers as a benefit to assist with marketing of Branson Shows, this two-hour event featured quite the variety of music, and the audience loved it.

Hosted by local radio personalities Josh Clark and Kevin Russell (Josh and Them at Legends 106.3), the performance kicked off with the Hughes Brothers and family, followed by Todd Bradshaw as Kenny Chesney from Legends In Concert. Todd performed "Living In Fast Forward" and " There Goes My Life." Both of these songs went to number one when Chesney featured them nearly twenty years ago. Bradshaw is a great performer who has worked in the Branson scene for many years.

The Hot Winter Fun Big Show took a trip to the American West with the Old Trail Wranglers from the Great American Chuckwagon Dinner Show from the Shepherd of the Hills Homestead and Adventure Park. The Wranglers’ vocal trio of Randy Plummer, John Fullerton and Shannon Thomason brought their saddle bag of harmony favorites including "Ghost Riders In the Sky" and the cattle drive classic "Whoopie Ti Yi Yo." Several in the audience were clearly heard singing along.

Wranglers’ lead singer Shannon Thomason commented, "It was great to get moving on the 2025 season with Branson's kick-off at the Hot Winter Fun Big Show. It was an honor to represent the Shepherd of the Hills and the Great American Chuckwagon Dinner Show. It's always fun to see our guests, friends and performers from the other shows. We love our Branson family."

The remainder of the first half featured another performance by the Hughes Brothers, and their children did a moving arrangement of "The Children of Our World," a number that truly touched the audience.

The second half featured Re-Vibe, the second generation of the Hughes Brothers family. With a strong song and dance influence, the youngsters showcased an excellent performance of "Mr. Sandman." This was definitely one of the highlights of the day.

The afternoon action continued as the world famous Platters were featured along with Motown Downtown. Both acts perform at the Hot Hits Theatre located at 206 South Commercial (downtown Branson). "Only You" performed by the Platters was another wonderful vocal treat.

It was great to see Sade Shine, who will be bringing the Queens of Soul to the Nashville Roadhouse Theatre on Shepherd of the Hills Expressway in March. She performed "I Will Always Love You" followed by the Aretha Franklin hit "Respect." This is going to be an excellent show, and I am looking forward to telling you all about it soon. Sade was featured on American Idol ten years ago and is a graduate of Springfield's Central High School. 

She was named 2024 female vocalist of the year at the Branson Show Awards last fall.

Rich and Anna Watson were onstage (Garth Brooks Tribute) with their number, which brought them Duet of the Year last year, and for the finale, Grammy award winner Stevie Lee Woods, headliner of Nashville Roadhouse Live, brought performances of "Something Like That" and Tim McGraw's hit "Real Good Man."  

For more information on all these awesome shows, the Branson Theatre League has a wonderful website; go to: showsinbranson.com

Check out their Springtastic Show Spree Pass, happening in April, details at their website. 

And that, friends, was the 2025 Hot Winter Fun Big Show!