Brett Family, Garon, left, Briahna,Tom, Andrea and Brydon.
“Music bypasses the head and goes straight to the heart,” said Tom Brett while talking with a group of young people recently. Tom along with his wife Andrea, daughter Briahna and sons Brydon and Garon are the stars of the Brett Family Show in Branson, Missouri and are dedicated to providing high quality cutting edge family entertainment that will transform people’s lives. Anyone who has seen the Brett Family show will attest to their talent, how wonderfully entertaining, genuine and inspirational their show is for the whole family and how their music seems to flow from their hearts into your heart.
“Branson – Up Close and Personal,” is a service of the Branson Tourism Center, one of Branson’s largest and most respected vacation planning services, and is intended to provide readers with an up close and personal look at a Branson star or personality. This segment is with Tom Brett (TB), the format will be “Question and Answer” and the interviewing will be done for the Branson Tourism Center (BTC) by Gary J. Groman, a 25 year resident of the Branson area, local columnist and free lance writer.
BTC: How long have you been in show business?
TB: My wife and I have been performing together for over two decades.
BTC: How long have you been performing in Branson?
TB: This will be our 13th season.
BTC: How did you end up in Branson?
TB: Although we had been singing professionally on the side, I was a Chiropractor. I suffered a back injury and was in constant intense pain when we came to Branson to attend a family reunion in 1997. While the family was out on Table Rock Lake I went to see the Hughes’s Brothers show, fell in love with Branson and on the way home told the kids “Someday we are going to come back here and perform in Branson.” They all laughed at me indicating, “Yea, sure Dad right.” On December 5, 1998, we came back to Branson and auditioned for Silver Dollar City and were hired to perform on the Showboat Branson Belle for the 1999 season. In 2000 we started our own morning show with Bob Nichols in the theatre where Legends in Concert were performing at the time,
BTC: What is your first memory of Branson?
TB: The mention of Branson to us by Juanita James, who “adopted” our family when we moved to Dallas, in 1986 and seeing the entrance to Silver Dollar City as we went to stay at Indian Point Village out on Indian Point.
BTC: What do you like best about performing in Branson?
TB: That we can do it as a family and the kind of atmosphere we can do it in.
BTC: What’s your favorite thing to do in Branson when you are not performing?
TB: Eat.
BTC: Where is your favorite place to eat in Branson – Favorite dish?
TB: Billy Bob’s. I love their pork tenderloin and they make the best vanilla shakes in the world.
BTC: If you could perform or meet with any entertainer or person (living or deceased) who would it be and why?
TB: This is going to sound real cliché, but the honest answer is Christ. Just to be in His presence and feel all the essence of good that could be reflected back into my own life. I could learn more from Him in five minutes than I could from anyone else.
BTC: In your career, of all the performances you have have been in, no matter how big or small, which one personally meant the most to you and why?
TB: Singing a full two hour concert with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and orchestra on July 19, 2006 for a packed crowd of 20,000 in our Salt Lake City Conference Center that was broadcast to another 30 million people. It was the most meaningful because of who we performed with and the people we performed for, including the President of our Church
BTC: Do you have a favorite hobby or activity and what is it?
TB: Playing Tennis.
BTC: Do you have a “little known” fact about yourself that you think our readers would enjoy?
TB: I love “Skor” bars. They are an English toffee bar like the “Heath” bar.
BTC: What is the funniest thing that has happened to you in front of an audience?
TB: When we were playing at the Christy Lane theatre I came out with a bright yellow zoot suit. I noticed that my youth group boys, all 16 or 17 years old, who were sitting on the front row, were laughing at me. Thinking they were laughing at the bright yellow pants I grabbed the pockets and, not noticing that my zipper was down, in front of an audience of about 400 or 500 people I pulled them out saying “So you like this huh?”
BTC: What part of your show do you enjoy performing the most and why?
TB: Singing “Bring Him Home,” from “Les Miserable’s” because it just connects so closely to me and my heart, family and life’s experiences.
BTC: If I were planning a trip to Branson why should I plan to see your show?
TB: It will be an entertaining life changing experience. Our mission statement is, “To transform millions of lives through excellent ‘God, family and country’ cutting edge entertainment.”
BTC: If I were coming with children ages 9 through 15 would your answer be the same and why?
TB: Absolutely. Our whole show is geared to entertain the entire family.
“One of the neat things about the Branson Up Close and Personal format” said Tammy Johnson, the Director of Operations for the Branson Tourism Center, “is that although there will be some different questions for each interview in the series, many of the same questions will be asked so that readers can compare the answers of the different Branson personalities.” For information or tickets for the Brett Family Show or any of Branson’s other shows and attractions or for lodging please contact the Branson Tourism Center either by calling their toll free number 1-800-785-1550 or through their website www.BransonTourismCenter.com.
