The Andy Williams Moon River Theater In Branson, Missouri

Andy Williams is a popular American entertainer who has 18 gold and 3 platinum albums. He has performed with such entertainment greats as Elton John, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald and Simon & Garfunkle. President Ronald Regan declare the voice of Andy Williams to be a "national treasure''.

In June of 1991, Don Williams Andy's brother invited him to visit him in Branson, Missouri. While visiting the two brothers attended a show hosted by Ray Stephens, it was here that Andy Williams was greatly encouraged by others to open his own theater and in August of 1991, construction began. On May 1st, 1992, Andy opened the Moon River Theater in Branson, Missouri. The name came from a song he had sang in the movie, "Breakfast At Tiffany's'', and since then the theater was the first theater to be pictured in Architectural Digest and in 1992, won the Conservation Award from the state of Missouri.

The theater is designed to take advantage of the natural surroundings and Williams originally wanted to carve the entrance to the theater out of the massive rock formations in the surrounding environment. Eventually, he decided against that idea and instead used fabricated rock from the Larson Company in Tucson, Arizona. The theater is awash in waterfalls, koi ponds, ferns and native Ozark trees. The inside of the theater brings in elements from the outdoors, there are trees and plants that decorate each of the theaters three lobbies. The walls of the theater are filled with pictures of Andy Williams when he starred in his own TV show by the same name.

The theater has stadium seating for 2,054 people and the seats and carpeting are done in a Navaho style in colors of red, green, blue and magenta. The floors are done in oak and the walls are done in African ribbon stripped mahogany and show case the art collection that Mr. Williams has collected through the years and on display in the auditorium is a collection of nineteen rare Japanese kimonos.

When the theater first opened, Andy had a unique act in that he was the first entertainer to host a non-country act, in a place where country music shows reigned supreme. His theater has been the host of several non-country music acts that soon followed his lead, such as; Wayne Newton, the Osmond Brothers and Tony Orlando. It was said that his peers back in California were highly against his idea because it was so untraditional, however it was his desire and since its inception the theater has continued to entertain the hundreds of thousands of people who flock there every year.

Over the years the theater has hosted shows by Pat Boone, Nancy Kerrigan, Rudy Galindo, David Copperfield, Charo and many other entertainers. In the spring of 2007, a restaurant was added, called the Moon River Grill, it is decorated with photographs entailing the career of Andy Williams and such entertainers as Sammy Davis Jr. and Diana Ross. Every year, the theater hosts a traditional Christmas show and features numerous singers, entertainers and dancers. The theater has brought a renewed interest to Branson, Missouri and continues to draw in legions of fans from around the world every year.