The Works of Ken Bradbury
More than two hundred shows, years of columns, books, albums, songs, poems, and speech-contest pieces. Browse the collection by category.
Productions written and directed by Ken Bradbury — from his decades at Triopia High School to the Jacksonville Theatre Guild, the Lincoln Land Community College traveling theatre, and beyond. Filter by decade or company, or search by title.
The Royal Dating Game
A madrigal dinner comedy in which King Henry VIII becomes the bachelor on a medieval dating game show, hosted by Toby the Jester.
Branson Bound
A comedy about a senior citizens' bus trip to Branson, Missouri with the Silver Swarm retirement club, led by an overly enthusiastic tour director.
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Lilacs, Land, and Long-Necked Chickens
A readers' theatre celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Pike County Farm Bureau, woven from a hundred hours of interviews with the county's farmers.
A Tribute to Jon Robb
A musical revue celebrating Jon Robb, founder of the Pittsfield Theatre Guild, told through his friends' memories and songs from his shows.
Pike County Farm Theater Project
A readers-theater chronicle of Pike County farm life, drawn from oral histories gathered for the 100th anniversary of the Pike County Farm Bureau.
Green Pastures Fundraiser 2018
The 2018 edition of Ken Bradbury's annual benefit variety show for the Green Pastures camps, with music, storytelling, dance, and improv from camp alumni.
Cotton Patch Gospel
Ken Bradbury directs and performs in Harry Chapin's bluegrass retelling of the Gospel of Matthew, set in modern-day rural Georgia, at Springfield's Hoogland Center.
The Joke Show (2017 Edition)
Ken Bradbury's 2017 Playhouse Joke Show — a fast-paced New Year's revue of one-liners, knock-knocks, and puns delivered from a row of stools.
A Return to Possum Holler
A 2017 reunion variety show reviving Quincy's beloved Possum Holler Opry, hosted by Toby Dick Ellis with surviving cast and a military benefit.
The Boy from Fishhook
Ken Bradbury's stage history of Robert Earl Hughes, the heaviest man in recorded history and a Pike County, Illinois native.
Green Pastures Fundraiser 2017
The 2017 edition of Ken Bradbury's annual benefit variety show for the Green Pastures camps, featuring camp alumni in music, dance, and improv comedy.
Breakin' Through and Bleedin' Blue: The Story of Triopia
A readers'-theatre history of the Triopia schools, devised from interviews with 70-plus area graduates and reprised in June 2016.
New Year's Eve Joke Show
Ken Bradbury's second annual New Year's Eve Joke Show at the Playhouse on the Square in Jacksonville, an evening of one-liners and vaudeville bits.
The Boys from Nantucket
A two-man musical comedy about an aging Broadway playwright and a young writer wrestling Moby Dick into a show — and rediscovering the joy of creation.
A Hardscrabble Christmas
Ken Bradbury's commissioned play sets Lincoln, Mary Todd, and General Grant in the White House on Christmas Eve 1864, awaiting word from Sherman.
Green Pastures Fundraiser 2016
The 2016 edition of Ken Bradbury's annual benefit variety show for the Green Pastures camps, held under the stars on March 5th with no admission charge.
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Shelebrate!
A musical celebration of the poetry and songs of Shel Silverstein, staged by Ken Bradbury's Lincoln Land Traveling Theatre class to benefit Jacksonville Promise.
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The Tale of Hannah Banana
A cowboy-themed musical comedy written by Ken Bradbury for his LLCC Traveling Theatre class, toured to elementary schools in fall 2016.
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A Road Trip Through Time
A traveling theatre event by Ken Bradbury staging three short plays at three historic Jacksonville, Illinois sites, with audiences bused between them.
Breakin' Through and Bleedin' Blue
A documentary-style readers' theatre celebrating the history of Triopia, built from interviews with more than 70 graduates and community members.
The Joke Show
A New Year's Eve revue of borrowed jokes at the Playhouse on the Square, with Ken Bradbury at the piano and a cast of Jacksonville locals.
Pearl's Place
Ken Bradbury's all-female Texas Swing musical comedy about a struggling small-town diner and the secret recipe that might save it.
The Boys from Nantucket
A whale of a musical by Ken Bradbury and John Love, staged by Salem on Seventh Theatre in Petersburg, Illinois.
Triopia School History Show (Arenzville)
A spring 2015 LLCC class show on how the Triopia school district was formed and named, built from interviews with community members and intended for Arenzville.
Where I'm From
A spring 2015 original revue devised from Ken Bradbury's LLCC students' own life stories and staged at the Playhouse.
Genesis, the Musical
Ken Bradbury's witty, big-hearted musical romp through the Book of Genesis, staged in 2015 at the Playhouse and Springfield's Hoogland Center for the Arts.
Mary and Abraham: The Last Day
An evening of two one-person Lincoln plays by Ken Bradbury, performed by Pam Brown and Fritz Klein at Illinois College's Sibert Theatre.
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Super Hero Show
Ken Bradbury's 2015 LLCC Traveling Theatre touring children's play, performed for 16 elementary schools with a cast of costumed superheroes.
A Brook Tale
A community oral-history play drawn from Jacksonville's memories of Town Brook, performed by the Lincoln Land Traveling Theatre.
Ho! Ho! Snow!!!
Ken Bradbury's 2014 Christmas show for the LLCC Traveling Theatre Troupe, performed downtown for Santa's arrival in Jacksonville.
A Terrible Mess At OSS
Ken Bradbury's comic mystery for Our Saviors School, in which a mad scientist kidnaps the faculty and a bumbling sheriff is called to the rescue.
The Grandpa Show
A traveling readers'-theatre tribute to grandfathers, devised by Ken Bradbury's LLCC class as a companion to their earlier Grandma show.
We Call Him Grandpa
A warm, funny readers' theatre piece built from the cast's own true stories about their grandfathers, by Ken Bradbury's LLCC Traveling Theatre.
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The Last Full Measure
A one-man play by Ken Bradbury imagining Abraham Lincoln in the liminal hours after the shot at Ford's Theatre, developed with Lincoln presenter Fritz Klein.
Greasepaint, Bats, and Seasoned Hams: A Celebration of the Jacksonville Theatre Guild
Ken Bradbury's memory revue celebrating four decades of the Jacksonville Theatre Guild, woven from the true stories of its actors, directors, and crew.
Our Saviors Show
A comic original revue for Our Saviors School, in which the school's teachers are kidnapped and a bumbling sheriff is called in to crack the case.
The Town Brook Play
"A Brook Tale" — Ken Bradbury's documentary theatre piece about Jacksonville's town brook, the Mauvaisterre, for the LLCC Traveling Theatre (2014).
Yo Ho!
A pirate-themed children's show devised by Ken Bradbury's LLCC Traveling Theatre class, toured to area elementary schools in fall 2014.
Little Town on Big Indian
A dinner-theatre celebration of Arenzville, Illinois on its 175th anniversary, written and directed by Ken Bradbury for the LLCC Traveling Theatre.
Where's Santa?
A 2013 LLCC class Christmas play in which Santa's elves discover their jolly boss has gone missing on the night of their show.
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Potluck
Ken Bradbury's musical comedy about five church ladies racing to save a Methodist potluck and impress a new minister.
Make a Wish!
Ken Bradbury's touring children's musical about a girl who learns that the things most worth wishing for — friends, a smile, the power of love — can't be bought. Performed at area elementary schools by the LLCC Traveling Theatre in fall 2013.
Memories of Mama, Thinking of Dad
Ken Bradbury's two-act readers' theatre quilt of love — five men remember their fathers, five women remember their mothers.
Grandma's Hands
An original LLCC theatre-class revue devised by Ken Bradbury's students about their grandmothers — the smells, foods, songs and memories.
Jacksonville Memories Show
A spring local-history show by Ken Bradbury's LLCC theatre class, built from old Jacksonville newspaper columns and interviews with elders about what they miss.
Scandal in Middle America... Virden After Dark
An interactive murder-mystery dinner theater comedy set in a Virden, Illinois bookstore, written for the Friends of Art and Drama.
The Grandma Show
A class-devised LLCC show celebrating grandmothers, built from the students' own interviews, memories, quotes, and songs.
Workin' it Out…Beardstown!
A documentary musical compiled by Ken Bradbury from interviews with Beardstown residents about a lifetime of work, performed by the LLCC Traveling Theatre.
A Christmas Carol: The Jacksonville Version
Ken Bradbury's old-time-radio retelling of Dickens, set in Jacksonville, Illinois, performed as a benefit for the LLCC Scholarship Fund.
Oddballs, Idiots, Nincompoops and Scallywags: The Unofficial History of Jacksonville
Ken Bradbury's documentary musical drawn verbatim from the Jacksonville Journal Courier archives, staged by the Lincoln Land Traveling Theatre.
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Stoops
Ken Bradbury's two-act comedy about two feisty elderly friends who rage against the dying of the light from their front porches.
MisFits: The Musical
Ken Bradbury's original musical about a granddaughter, her grandfather's failing pet shop, and a cage full of misfit puppet animals who refuse to be thrown away.
Hero (Traveling Theatre)
A THE 299 Traveling Theatre piece on the theme of personal heroes, devised by Ken Bradbury's LLCC class and toured to grade schools across west-central Illinois.
Jacksonville...Works
An original documentary-theatre piece built from interviews with 60+ Jacksonville citizens, created and directed by Ken Bradbury for his LLCC theatre class and staged at three churches as a benefit.
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Couplings
Ken Bradbury's comedy following eight very different couples — from junior high sweethearts to the golden years — whose stories unfold all at once.
Oh, That's Different!
A 2011 LLCC traveling children's theatre show about appreciating differences, toured to sixteen elementary schools.
An Evening of Shel Silverstein
A short ensemble poetry revue of Shel Silverstein pieces staged by Ken Bradbury's LLCC theatre seminar students.
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Scoundrels & Saints, Lovers & Lunatics: A Celebration of Virginia at 175
Ken Bradbury's readers-theatre celebration of 175 years of Virginia, Illinois, commissioned for the 2011 Virginia Barbecue.
Routt–Triopia Production (2011)
Notes and correspondence from a 2011 Routt–Triopia stage project, sketched around a troupe moving from vaudeville to the TV sitcom era.
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Bully Beware
Ken Bradbury's 2011 LLCC traveling-theatre class devised a show on bullying and loneliness, touring it to area elementary schools.
Mining for Lost Treasures (Knollwood Oral-History Show)
A spring-2010 LLCC class production built from students' interviews with Knollwood Retirement Village residents and local Jacksonville history.
Detention (The Musikal)
A musical comedy about high school detention kids who weather a tornado in a pre-school library and act out fractured fairy tales.
The Shaffer Show
A comic school spring-concert revue in which a wild-eyed huckster named Hummer barges in to fix the music program with cowboy choirs, girl groups, and patriotic standards.
Tom Beard, Look What You Done!
A historical musical by Ken Bradbury and composer Roger Wainwright tracing Thomas Beard's 1819 journey west and the founding of Beardstown, Illinois.
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From Behind the Curtain
An original ensemble revue built from the real words of Springfield-area actors, telling the funny, terrifying, and tender truth of life in the theatre.
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Passavant Follies 2010
Ken Bradbury's original benefit revue for Passavant Area Hospital, a devilish 'Season of Friendship' set in Jacksonville, Illinois.
2010 Traveling Theatre
Ken Bradbury's original children's play "Oh, That's Different!", toured to 17 area elementary schools in fall 2010 by his Lincoln Land Community College theatre class.
Different
Ken Bradbury's original touring children's play about kids who are all a little bit different — staged by the Lincoln Land Traveling Theatre across west-central Illinois in 2010.
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Precious Memories: Return to Knollwood
A 2010 verbatim-theatre piece built from interviews young actors recorded with residents of the Knollwood retirement community in Jacksonville, Illinois.
A Dr. Seuss Program (Seuss-Tacular)
A 2009 LLCC theatre-class tribute to Dr. Seuss, staged for the Pittsfield and Triopia schools.
Family Skeletons and Other Funny Bones
An original devised theatre piece built from interviews with nearly fifty residents of the Triopia community, with a tribute to coach Don Kemp.
The River
A flood threatens a riverside village in this large-cast musical parable by Ken Bradbury and Roger Wainwright.
Workin' It Out!
A 2009 musical comedy by Ken Bradbury and Roger Wainwright, uniting students from rival schools Routt, Triopia, and Westfair in a stomping, globe-trotting search for the meaning of life.
Pardon My Shorts
An evening of very short plays by Ken Bradbury, with brief music by Roger Wainwright, staged as a 2009 fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Club of Morgan County.
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The Spirit of Lincoln
A bicentennial musical revue tracing Lincoln's living spirit through the people of Central Illinois, drawn from a year of real interviews and historical records.
Make A Change
Ken Bradbury's original audience-participation children's musical for the Lincoln Land Community College Traveling Theatre (2009).
Triopia 50th Anniversary
Ken Bradbury's gathered correspondence and research on the 1959 founding and naming of Triopia High School, prepared for its 50th anniversary.
We Can Change the World
A touring children's theatre show devised by Ken Bradbury's LLCC students, performed at area elementary schools in fall 2009.
The Beardstown Show
Tom Beard, Look What You Done! — Ken Bradbury's original musical history of the founding of Beardstown, Illinois, staged in 2010 by his Lincoln Land / WREC theatre class.
A Big Hand for the Little Man
An original 2008 puppet show about a boy who learns that encouraging others is a talent of its own — devised by Ken Bradbury's Traveling Children's Theatre class.
Doo-Wop
A 1958-set musical comedy about ethnic tolerance, told through the rock and roll, soda jerks, and TV culture of Millard Fillmore High School.
Camp Sunshine
A Christian-themed musical comedy set at a backwoods Arkansas bible camp, where misfit campers find faith, friendship, and themselves.
Bystanders
A 2008 musical preserved through its demo recordings, with character songs for Erich, Serena, Denise, Jaymee, Bob, Bill, and Sylvia.
Mary Todd Lincoln: Shadows
A one-woman play in which Mary Todd Lincoln, packing to leave the White House in 1867, sorts through the keepsakes and grief of her life with Abraham.
Routt Triopia Show — Workin' It Out!
Workin' It Out!, an original hip-hop "stomp" musical by Ken Bradbury and Roger Wainwright, staged in April 2009 as a joint production of rival schools Routt Catholic and Triopia.
The Skinner Story
A readers' theatre tribute to Meredosia's musical Skinner family, performed at the 2007 dedication of the Skinner mural.
Just Imagine!
A thirty-minute mini-musical by Ken Bradbury urging kids to switch off their gadgets and rediscover the power of imagination, devised with his LLCC Traveling Theatre class and toured to area grade schools in fall 2007.
Coonridge Folk Festival
A 2007 Jacksonville Theatre Guild folk-music festival set in Ken Bradbury's fictional town of Coonridge — bluegrass, gospel, square dancing, and storytelling, directed by Ken Bradbury, who also performed with the Coonridge Players.
David, You & I
Faith on Wry
Ken Bradbury's gently wry play in two acts, weaving seven interlocking vignettes about faith into one ensemble of believers.
The Magic Key
A 2006 traveling mini-musical from Ken Bradbury's Lincoln Land Community College theatre class, taking the message of education to area elementary schools.
Traveling Theatre 2006
Ken Bradbury's 2006 LLCC Traveling Theatre touring children's musical, The Magic Key, taken on the road to elementary and pre-schools across central Illinois.
More than Words
An unrealized Ken Bradbury play, sketched in 2005, about a baggy-pants mime who tells a story through movement, music, and light rather than dialogue.
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Booley
An original Ken Bradbury musical at Triopia High School (2006) — the last play KB directed at Triopia.
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Shaboom!
Ken Bradbury's original 1950s-Jacksonville rock-and-roll parody revue, written and directed as the September 2006 Passavant Follies benefit.
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Abraham!
The 2006 staging of Ken Bradbury and Robert L. Crowe's musical about Lincoln's New Salem years, remembered in a photo montage from the production.
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Bully For You!
Ken Bradbury's 2005 anti-bullying touring musical, carried by the Lincoln Land Traveling Theatre to eighteen area elementary schools.
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Wonderful World
Ken Bradbury's original 2005 Triopia musical — a creator dreams up a world, then sends his son to change one heart and save it.
Knollwood
A summer 2005 LLCC theatre class traveling play devised from oral-history stories gathered at Knollwood Estates retirement community.
The Miracle Kid
A Depression-era musical that drops the boys of Bethlehem, Illinois into the locker room of the 1932 Chicago Cubs, with speakeasies, gangsters, and a pennant on the line.
Charlie's Magic Box
Ken Bradbury's 2004 Triopia traveling-theatre road tour, a Peanuts-inspired original musical performed across schools in west-central Illinois.
Mr. Lincoln Comes to Pittsfield
Ken Bradbury's historical play dramatizing Abraham Lincoln's 1858 visit to Pittsfield, Illinois, as the town awaits his courthouse speech.
Coonridge Live! — A Kuster Fundraiser
Ken Bradbury's Coonridge comedy revue, staged October 1, 2004 as a benefit for judicial candidate Larry Kuster at the AmVets in Jacksonville, Illinois.
Man of La Mancha
The Jacksonville Theatre Guild's intimate 2004 production of the Wasserman-Leigh-Darion musical, directed by Ken Bradbury, who also played Sancho.
Abraham!
A musical play by Ken Bradbury and Robert L. Crowe about Lincoln's New Salem years, staged outdoors at Theatre in the Park in New Salem.
Hootenanny (New Salem)
An evening of old-time folk singing and sing-alongs under the New Salem stars, with Ken Bradbury and a rotating cast of musician friends.
Samson
Ken Bradbury's original cowboy musical retelling of the biblical strongman Samson, staged at Triopia High School in 2003.
Yo Ho!
Ken Bradbury's 2003 Triopia Traveling Theatre show — a band of bumbling pirates learns why we should tell the truth, performed for elementary schools across central Illinois.
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Singing at Seven
Ken Bradbury's favorite play: an aging couple in a retirement home fights the American way of dying with the only tool they have left — humor.
Jonah (The Runaway)
Ken Bradbury's original 1950s rock-and-roll retelling of the Jonah story, staged as the Triopia High School all-school musical in 2002.
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Kaleidoscope
A traveling musical comedy about tolerance and non-violence, toured to area elementary schools by the Triopia Traveling Theatre in 2002.
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Pazzamatazz
Ken Bradbury's original gangster musical comedy, written and directed as a 2002 benefit for Passavant Area Hospital in Jacksonville, Illinois.
The Runaway
Triopia High School's 2002 production of "The Runaway," Ken Bradbury's original musical retelling of the Jonah story set in 1950s America
Distant Thunder
An original musical of New Salem, Illinois, told through the voices of the frontier townsfolk who shaped young Abraham Lincoln's formative years.
A Perfect Mess
Ken Bradbury's 2001 Triopia Traveling Theatre show — a 45-minute fairy-tale romp toured through area grade schools, with a message that nobody is perfect.
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Joshua
Ken Bradbury's original country-western musical comedy retelling Joshua and the fall of Jericho, transplanted to modern-day West Texas, staged at Triopia High School in April 2001.
Esther
Ken Bradbury's 2000 Triopia musical retells the Book of Esther as a gang story set in a juvenile detention facility.
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Jacksonville 2000! A Celebration of Jacksonville's 175th Birthday
A slightly irreverent, vaudeville-style musical celebrating the 175th anniversary of Jacksonville, Illinois, written by Ken Bradbury and Dr. Robert Crowe.
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Viva Ester
Ken Bradbury's original urban-gang retelling of the Book of Esther, written, composed, and directed for the Triopia all-school musical (2000).
Cotton Patch Gospel
A bluegrass retelling of the Gospel set in modern-day Georgia, directed by Ken Bradbury for the New Salem Lincoln League in the summer of 1999.
The Ballad of Dead-Eye Doc
Ken Bradbury's original 1999 Passavant Auxiliary Follies, a Wild West musical comedy set in a frontier Jacksonville saved by lawman-turned-doctor Dead-Eye Doc.
Bradbury by Bradbury: Cries of Faith
A world-premiere evening of Ken Bradbury's original short plays on faith, staged by Illinois College TheatreWorks in the fall of 1999.
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Children of the Rainbow
Children of the Rainbow — an original 1999 Ken Bradbury musical at Triopia High School, telling the stories of Creation and the Flood through God's eyes.
Abraham!
A musical play in two acts by Ken Bradbury and Robert L. Crowe, following young Abraham Lincoln's frontier years at New Salem, Illinois.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Ken Bradbury directed the Jacksonville Theatre Guild's 1998 production of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's beloved musical.
New Salem Summer Season 1998
Ken Bradbury's summer 1998 performance schedule at New Salem, featuring runs of Abraham! and Joseph.
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The Time of My Life
Triopia High School's 1998 production of Ken Bradbury's original musical "The Time of My Life"
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Toad in the Hole
The 10th Anniversary Production of Toad in the Hole. Produced by the Jacksonville Theatre Guild. Written by Ken Bradbury and Robert Crowe.
Princess Puffer's Perfect Present
Ken Bradbury's original touring Christmas play about a spoiled princess who learns the true meaning of the season, performed by Triopia's 8th-grade Creative Arts class in 1997.
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Into the Light
Triopia's production of "Into the Light"
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Ah, Vaudeville!
Ken Bradbury's 1996 Triopia musical about Burt and Helen's Traveling Vaudeville Show, a worn-out tent troupe of has-beens chasing one last booking.
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Rock Around the Doc
Ken Bradbury's 1996 Passavant Hospital benefit musical sent two teens spinning back to a rock-and-roll fifties Jacksonville, Illinois.
Booneville
A collection of monologues and vignettes about life in the small farm town of Booneville, written by Ken Bradbury in 1996.
Honey to My Mouth
Ken Bradbury's play for MacMurray College's 150th anniversary, dramatizing the founding of the school through circuit rider Peter Cartwright and Peter Akers.
Quilters
Ken Bradbury directed the Jacksonville Theatre Guild's all-woman musical drawn from the diaries and quilts of the women who settled the American Midwest.
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The Dogwood Boy
An original Appalachian musical written, composed, and directed by Ken Bradbury at Triopia High School (1995).
Cotton Patch Gospel
Jesus Christ Superstar
Vachel With a V
Ken Bradbury co-wrote and directed Vachel With a V, a non-musical play on the life and poetry of Springfield poet Vachel Lindsay, for the Jacksonville Theatre Guild.
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Holy Moses
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The Prodigal
Ken Bradbury's original Western musical at Triopia High School (1993).
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Morningstar
Ken Bradbury's original science-fiction musical at Triopia High School (1992).
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Merry Christmas For Pete's Sake
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Ta-Dah!
Ken Bradbury's vaudeville-style stage revue, staged August 13, 1991.
Christopher
Ken Bradbury's original 1991 musical at Triopia High School.
Pump Boys and Dinettes
1776
Ken Bradbury directed the Jacksonville Theatre Guild's production of the Tony Award-winning musical 1776, dramatizing the Continental Congress's fight to declare American independence.
Ohio
An original Ken Bradbury riverboat musical, "Roll On, Ohio," written and directed for Triopia High School (1990).
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The Shadow of Giants
Ken Bradbury and Robert L. Crowe's 1990 courtroom drama set in the Morgan County Courthouse, where a young Abraham Lincoln tries a case in 1854 Jacksonville.
Shang A Lang
A Ken Bradbury production at Triopia High School (1989).
Toad in the Hole
An original woodland musical (full title 'Toad in the Hole — Amphibious Musicalis') written by Ken Bradbury & Robert Crowe; premiered at the Jacksonville Theatre Guild in 1989 and revived for the Guild's tenth anniversary in 1998.
The Good Doctor
Roar
A comedic Ken Bradbury sketch retelling Daniel in the lions' den (1988).
Shenandoah
Pasquale
An original full-length musical written and directed by Ken Bradbury for Triopia High School's 1987 all-school show.
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Flight of the Jackal
An original full-length musical written by Ken Bradbury, first produced at Triopia High School in 1986.
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Giant Killer
An original Ken Bradbury comic sketch retelling David and Goliath as a baseball story.
Summer Tree
Ken Bradbury directed this Triopia High School production of Ron Cowen's "Summertree" (1984).
Lark and the Locust
An original full-length musical Ken Bradbury wrote and directed at Triopia High School.
Captain Jack Bailey's All-Star Country-Western Circus
Ken Bradbury's original country-western circus show at Triopia High School (1982).
1958
An original full-length musical written and directed by Ken Bradbury, presented at Triopia High School (1981).
Speak of the Devil
Ken Bradbury's Faustian comedy at Triopia High School (1980).
Burgoo
An original Ken Bradbury musical about soup and dance at Triopia High School (1979).
Hello, Dolly!
Triopia High School's 1978 production of the Jerry Herman musical.
Fiddler on the Roof
Triopia High School's 1977 production of the landmark musical.
The Music Man
Triopia High School's 1976 production of Meredith Willson's beloved American musical.
Li'l Abner
Triopia High School's 1975 production of the musical based on Al Capp's comic strip.
Bye Bye Birdie
Triopia High School's 1974 production of the classic rock-and-roll musical comedy — the first show at the new high school.
Merry Christmas Ebenezer
A Ken Bradbury production at Triopia High School (1973).
Vaudeville's My Home
A Ken Bradbury production at Triopia High School (1973).
Dialogue '72
A Ken Bradbury production at Triopia High School (1972).
Who Is Henrietta Hoover and Why Is She Saying Those Terrible Things About Me?
An old-fashioned melodrama set in Buzzard's Leg, Tennessee, written and directed by Ken Bradbury for the Triopia Class of 1972.
A Dialogue of Peace
A published one-act / chorale reading written by Ken Bradbury.
The Littlest Elf
An original Ken Bradbury Christmas play, staged at Triopia.
A Message at Midnight
Ken Bradbury's Christmas Eve drama set in the 1864 White House, where Lincoln, Mary, and General Grant share a few quiet hours in the midst of war.
An Evening with Ken Bradbury and Friends
A touring musical-comedy revue Ken Bradbury built for small Illinois towns, blending Broadway tunes, sketch comedy, and homegrown local history.
From Broadway to Bedpans!
A vaudeville-style dinner theatre revue for the 20th Annual Mason District Hospital Auxiliary, set in small-town Havana, Illinois.
Getting on the Bus, Waiting for the Hearse
Ken Bradbury's two-act comedy spanning birth to the grave, pairing teenage actors with senior community performers at the Playhouse on the Square.
Hootenanny (Food Center Benefit)
An evening of music and sing-alongs led by Ken Bradbury and nationally-known singer Barry Cloyd to benefit the Jacksonville Area Community Food Center.
Hotrods, Ghosts & Hatchet Heads
An original musical celebration of the history of Jacksonville High School, told through ghosts in a dusty attic and a century of songs.
New Berlin Tales
A reader's-theater portrait of New Berlin, Illinois, weaving the town's German-immigrant origins with the funny, tender memories of its longtime residents.
New Salem Coonridge Devotions
Ken Bradbury's Readers' Theatre revue of small-town church humor and faith, performed outdoors at New Salem's Theatre in the Park.
One Grand Old Lady
Ken Bradbury's documentary readers-theater play about the Marbold family of Greenview, Illinois, and their grand home, Elmwood.
Spirit of Peoria Riverboat
Ken Bradbury's seasons aboard the Spirit of Peoria paddle wheeler, performing river music, history, and storytelling on multi-day excursions along the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers.
To This Place I Owe Everything: Mr. Lincoln's Last Evening in Springfield
A one-man play by Ken Bradbury imagining Abraham Lincoln alone in a Springfield hotel the night before he left for Washington and the presidency.
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I Wanna Be...
Ken Bradbury's original musical revue built from the dream careers of fourteen young Jacksonville-area actors.
The Burrus Sales Meeting Shows
Ken Bradbury's long-running comedy and variety shows written for the annual Burrus Seed sales meetings, from the mid-1990s through 2014.
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The Coonridge Digest
Ken Bradbury's long-running readers-theatre tradition of devotional and comic monologues set in the fictional Illinois town of Coonridge.
Dear Santa
A Christmas musical built around a letter to Santa Claus, carried across a holiday song cycle including 'Sending A Letter To Santa Claus,' 'Gonna Catch That Santa,' and 'Can Santa Make It Through Tonight?'
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Dr. Emphatico's Marvelous & Magical Purely Fantastical Medicine Show
Ken Bradbury's medicine-show musical for the Jacksonville Theatre Guild and the Dutch Sometimes Theatre, set in a town not totally unlike Jacksonville, Illinois.
Grant
Two Ken Bradbury plays about Ulysses S. Grant — a one-man piece, One Last Ride, and a three-person Civil War Christmas play staged with Fritz Klein as Lincoln.
Green Pastures Fundraiser
Ken Bradbury's annual benefit variety show raising money for the Green Pastures Christian Retreat Center and its Performing Arts Camp near Meredosia, Illinois.
Hospice Show
A benefit show Ken Bradbury developed in support of a local hospice, drawing on the stories of its volunteers.
Lincoln and Horace Mann: A Readers-Theatre Presentation
A readers-theatre presentation on Abraham Lincoln, education, and the little-known Lincoln–Horace Mann connection, proposed for a leadership gathering in Springfield.
Roger Wainwright Music Directory
Roger Wainwright's music archive for Ken Bradbury productions — orchestrations and recordings for shows including David; You and I, Just Imagine, and Camp Sunshine.
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Suture Fancy
A Passavant Area Hospital follies-style benefit show written by Ken Bradbury.
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