Randy and I first visited Branson, Missouri about 25 years ago after we moved to Missouri. It’s a place we enjoy a lot, full of like-minded and age-related peeps.
There’s an Ozarkland store there so I can say I actually worked in Branson for a tiny bit. Over the years, we’ve seen some great entertainment in Branson–country, comedy, and contemporary. We’ve camped there, rented condos there, ate great food there, boated on Table Rock Lake, and spent days and days enjoying Silver Dollar City. One trip we sat for hours in the visitor’s center at College of the Ozarks talking about life and some decisions we needed to make. We came away with a renewed sense of the goodness of life. The college is nicknamed Hard Work U(niversity), and includes a Character Education facility. We’ve included them in our will.
Branson’s changed a lot over the last 25 years. Improvements in the highway between Springfield and Branson during that time made it easier to get to. In 2006 Branson Landing, a modern retail and dining complex on the shores of Lake Taneycomo, away from Highway 76 where most of the theaters are located, was developed. A tornado ripped through the town in 2012 and left a trail of destruction, some of which was never rebuilt. The bus tours and senior crowds that were the bread and butter of Branson thinned out considerably.
Branson worked hard to reinvent itself as a more diverse, family friendly destination to attract replacements for the declining older clientele. Then, along came COVID to devastate tourism in general. Today, driving through Branson is a mixed bag experience of sorry old businesses that failed and will never recover, businesses that are clearly hanging on by a thread, and new, exciting attractions full of life and energy. Some of the theaters with big names on them sit lonely and unused. Others are vibrant with management that clearly understands that a facility can be used for more than one purpose or show.
The Clay Cooper Theater is one of those thriving theaters in Branson. Clay Cooper has a show there, but there are also 5 other regular shows in the theater and well as 9 special events occurring throughout the year. Clay’s theater is used a lot. It’s well kept and modern and proves how good management can make or break a venue in Branson.
During our visit to Missouri last week, we attended a performance of Matt Gumm & Company, one of those special event shows in the Clay Cooper Theater. Full disclosure—we know this family. We’ve been going to church with them in Missouri for more than 20 years. Sandy & Thom, Matt’s mom and dad, had been performers in the now closed Main Street (Opry) Music Hall show at the Lake of the Ozarks the whole time we lived there. In fact, Thom celebrated his 50th year of performing before the musical hall closed. Their kids, Jamie and Matt have performed nearly all their lives. We’ve seen their shows countless times while we lived at the Lake. As the years rolled by the kids went separate ways and it’s been a long time since we’ve seen them all perform together.
When I was in Missouri a month or so ago, without Randy, I ran into Sandy and Thom at the Little Big Town concert I attended. When I told them we were coming back at the end of August, Sandy mentioned that the whole family (and family friend Travis Spratt) are doing a special show in Branson on September 1 where Matt is now the comedian in the Clay Cooper Country Express show. We were excited to plan to see Matt Gumm & Company as a must-do part of our vacation to Missouri.
Let me tell you, that whole family is talented. But Matt is really extraordinary. He’s an extremely funny guy who gets people laughing out loud with good, clean physical comedy schticks.
But he also plays several instruments, including hammer dulcimer, which is amazing to watch and hear. He’s a great vocalist and an outstanding impressionist. The show included a set of musical impressions (from everyone in the family) but Matt’s Joe Cocker and Michael Jackson were exceptional. And we laughed like crazy at his spot-on political impressions. The man has talent oozing out of his pores.
We and his mom aren’t the only ones who recognize that talent. Matt is currently nominated for 6 Branson Show Awards: Comedy Show of the Year (in Clay Cooper’s show), Comedian of the Year, Drummer of the Year (he’s the drummer in the Dean-Z show which was also highly recommended), Impressionist of the Year, Instrumentalist of the Year, and Male Entertainer of the Year. Quite an impressive list.
Visit Branson someday if you have the chance. And when you do, catch a performance by Matt Gumm (and his family if your timing is great). I guarantee you’ll be blown away by how one guy can be so versatilely gifted. You’ll leave the theater grinning from ear to ear, full of pure joy. I’m still happy, remembering the show and writing about this! Not a bad place to be.
P.S. If you’re like me, you want to dig deeper to find the story behind the people and things that impress you. Here is an interview with Matt Gumm where you’ll get of sense of who he is and how he got to his current gig(s) in Branson. In addition to all that entertaining, he’s the worship leader at Woodland Hills Church in Branson, and an accomplished graphic artist as well. Much of the visual computer stuff in the show and in church is also Matt’s own work. Enjoy!
P.P.S. Speaking of joy, Matt’s mom, Sandy, is the most joyful person I know. Sandy’s life was changed one day when Matt, at age 11, asked her to take him to church so he could invite Jesus into his heart. Sandy invited Jesus into her heart too and in the 25 years I’ve known her, Jesus oozes out of her pores in an extraordinarily joyful way.
P.P.P.S. There are several video links in the post above. Whenever the text changes color, you can click on something I linked there. Enjoy them!
Leave a Reply