The Keatings…. A Father and Son Musical Experience

New Show at the Hamner Barber Theater in 2010!

The Hamner Barber Theater is proud to announce that The Keatings… A Father and Son Musical Experience will be joining their line-up of top quality, family entertainment in 2010. They will perform at 3:oo PM on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays beginning April 28, 2010.

Also featured at the theater in 2010 will be the Hamner Barber Variety Show starring illusionists The Hamners and comedian ventriloquist Jim Barber.

Returning for their 4th season in Branson is Ricky Boen & Texas Mud presenting World Championship Western Swing Music mornings at Hamner Barber Theater.

“We feel the Keatings are a perfect fit for our theater and we know that our guests will fall in love with not only their beautiful voices, but with them as well. They are friendly, genuine and extremely gifted performers. When we first heard them sing, they knocked our socks off! Their live band of musicians are top pros in the business, and the back up singers are stand outs themselves. It’s going to be an entertaining show that audiences of any age will enjoy. We are honored to have them appearing at our venue in 2010.”

Dave Hamner and Jim Barber

The Keatings, Ken and Josh, take audiences on a musical journey that spans numerous genres including pop, jazz, rock, country, opera, Broadway, standards, and even gospel. Audiences are captivated by the unique combination of powerful voices from a father and his 18 year old son. Recently, The Keatings performed on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon and in February, 2010 they will be making their debut appearance on a world-class Crystal Cruise Lines ship.

Ken Keating is an accomplished vocalist and pianist. Ken was one of the original winners of the Liberace scholarship for both the piano and voice categories in 1981. Ken has been performing since he was a teenager. By the age of 18, he was playing with his show band in lounges around the Las Vegas strip.

Ken has done extensive vocal work with critically acclaimed groups such as the William Hall Master Chorale, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Boston Pops. He has performed in such places as the Hollywood Bowl and the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, and has worked with celebrities such as Celine Dion, Carol Burnett and Hal Linden.

By the age of 11, Josh Keating was already performing on stage in Las Vegas and developing his craft. In 2005, at the age of 14, Josh auditioned alongside hundreds of other singers ranging in age from 14 to 28 for Andre Agassi’s Grand Slam to Stardom competition. After several rounds of auditions, performances, and eliminations, Josh was selected by a panel of celebrity judges as one of the three chosen singers to be sent to Malibu, CA to meet with Grammy Award winning producer, David Foster.

Josh was invited to perform as a special guest at a charity event in Las Vegas called “An Evening With Tony Bennett And The Stars”. Josh performed along with an array of stars and received a standing ovation started by Mr. Bennett himself.

Related Websites: ExperienceTheKeatings.com, KenKeating.net, HamnerBarber.com

The 3rd Annual Branson Holiday Promenade of Stars was the biggest and best yet and attracted over 25 thousand people along the 1.4 mile route along Hwy 76. A sunny day with temperatures in the mid-70′s made for perfect conditions to produce a television special of the event scheduled to air throughout the holidays both locally in the Branson/Springfield markets, but also nationally via RFD-TV and Retro-TV.

Branson Webcast Hosts and stars of the Hamner Barber Variety Show, Dave Hamner and Jim Barber really enjoyed being part of the parade, and pulled off a great magic illusion of being able to fit into Pam Critchfield’s tiny convertible Porsche while driving and waving to the crowd.

Jim Barber & Seville - Dave Hamner driving | Photo by Jeremy Mason McGraw

More Photos of the Parade & Behind the Scenes by Jeremy Mason McGraw

Jim Barber and Dave Hamner driving in Holiday Promenade of Stars | Photo by Greta Busch

Ventriloquist Jim Barber took his turn at the live performance stage in front of the Titanic Museum, as he sang along with his sidekick Seville to their rendition of the “12 Days of Branson.”

Jim Barber & Seville sing Twelve Days of Branson | Photo by Michael London

Music legend Andy Williams served as Grand Marshall for the Event and also rode the entire Parade route in Grand Style.

Andy Williams - Parade Grand Marshall | Photo by Craig Burnett

The live entertainment portions featured brief performances by many Branson entertainers who sang to the cheering crowd that gathered around the production stage in front of the Titanic – World’s Largest Museum Attraction.

Jim Barber & Seville sing on the Parade Stage | Photo by Craig Burnett

Andy Williams sings on Parade Stage | Photo by Craig Burnett

The television broadcast schedule of the Holiday Promenade of Stars is for Thanksgiving and Christmas day to an estimated 102 million plus households across the nation. In the Springfield/Branson area the parade special will be televised on KSFX Ozarks FOX. In Branson on The Vacation Channel it will be aired six times: Thanksgiving Day at 8 a.m., Nov. 27 at 8 p.m., Nov. 28 at 8 p.m., Nov. 29 at 8 a.m., Nov. 30 at 8 p.m., and Christmas Eve at 8 p.m. National broadcasts are on RFD-TV and Retro Television Network. RFD-TV is carried on several satellite and cable providers including over 625 independent cable operators to 42 million households and Retro Television Network is seen in 17 of the top 25 markets to more than 60 million households on nearly 100 stations in cities such as Pittsburg, Atlanta, Seattle, Orlando, St. Louis and Boston, according to Nielsen ratings.

Produced by Midwest Concerts & Events, LLC, the Holiday Promenade of Stars promises to be a highlight of Ozark Mountain Christmas for many years to come.

For more information: HolidayPromenadeOfStars.com, Midwest Concerts & Events

Related article: Hamner Barber Featured in Holiday Promenade of Stars

Related interview: Gary Bartlett | Producer of the Promenade of Stars Event

Meet the newest members of the flock at the Hamner Barber Theater in Branson!

This inquisitive pair of baby Greenwing Macaws were hatched about 7 weeks ago as part of a licensed domestic breeding program arranged by BransonWebcast.com co-host Dave Hamner and his wife Denise under the direction of Linda Hughes of Rainbow Realm Aviaries in Rhome, TX.  “Linda is one of the best parrot breeders we have ever worked with,” said Dave Hamner.  “We can’t say enough nice things about her facility in Texas.”

As these colorful birds fill out their plumage and grow to full size, they will become highly intelligent and perhaps they will even make an appearance on stage at the Hamner Barber Theater and fly high above the heads of the audience as their parents did before retiring to the breeding program.

A Few Feathered Facts

Greenwings are considered the smartest breed of the large macaws, with an ability to learn things quickly. They are the second largest in size next to the Hyacinth Macaw. Interactive socially with both people and parrots, the Greenwing macaw often possesses a sweet nature. With a life expectancy of 60-80 years or more, they can make excellent life-long companions, but raising a parrot as a pet is not for everyone. Parrots don’t provide unconditional love and a caretaker needs extreme patience and skill to earn a bird’s respect. These birds also require a great deal of physical and mental stimulation, as they are famous for their mischevious nature and need to chew and destroy. A healthy and proper diet is essential, and over a lifetime, raising a parrot (let alone an entire flock) can be extremely expensive.

Help Name The New Babies

The Hamners have devoted the greater part of their lives caring for over two-dozen of these wonderful winged creatures. They truly think of them more as children than they do as pets. With the arrival of these new babies, we thought it would be fun to give our online friends an opportunity to come up with the names that these two Macaws will carry for the rest of their lives. It’s an important assignment, and one not to be taken lightly. Here’s how you can participate…

Enter Today for Your Chance To Win

Send us an email and include only one name for each bird. One is a male, and the other is female. Be creative with your selection and you’ll have a chance to not only claim the title of “Bird Namer to the Stars,” but you’ll also win a fabulous prize package from the Hamner Barber Theater valued at over $100.00 that includes Hamner Barber DVD’s, Magic Tricks, Puppets, Show Tickets and more suprises!

Submit your entry no later than 11:00pm on Friday, August 28, 2009.

The entire staff, cast and crew of the Hamner Barber Variety Show will be given a list of each entry and asked to select their favorite. The entry with the most votes is the winner. Should no entry recieve more than one vote, the Hamners themselves will then determine the winner.

The winner will be announced on the Hamner Barber website on Tuesday, September 1, 2009.

Put your thinking caps on, and send us your names today. Be sure to include your name and shipping address so we can mail your prize package should you be the winner. You may also post comments to this article below, but only name submissions sent via email will be considered for the contest.

Thank you for participating in this feathered fun!