BUZZ MAGAZINE – Edwardsville is getting ready to celebrate the 100th anniversary of America’s Main Street!
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“On the Road Again: A Route 66 Centennial Celebration” is an original musical production developed, designed, staged and performed by Alumni Players! in partnership with the Friends of the Wildey.
The 2-hour live show marks the centennial of The Mother Road (1926-2026) and will be performed at the historic Wildey Theatre, located at 252 North Main Street in Edwardsville, IL, Thursday, June 11 and Friday, June 12, 7:00PM.
The production features a 6-piece band and a cast of 14 singer/storytellers.
“On the Road Again” is a musical adventure highlighting that famous highway that still runs from Chicago to LA luring travelers and tourists from across the country and around the world.
It’s filled with the stories of the individuals who pioneered the journey in the early 20th century, the images that became iconic with the spirit of Mid-Century America, and the music about cars, dreams, broken hearts and the unabashed American attitude of optimism that blasted out of car radios on literally millions of memorable road trips over the past 100 years.
As always, it is the music that sets the framework and the emotional arc for every Alumni Players! production and this show’s eclectic playlist is a perfect match to the legacy and spirit of RT 66. It features Jazz from the ‘40s, Bebop from the ‘50’s, Rock & Roll from the ‘60s, Heavy-Metal from the ‘70s and Pop songs from the ‘80’s, 90’s and today.
In the early days of the last century, Westward Expansion was still very much a part of the American Dream and Route 66 provided the pathway for countless thousands of adventurers to travel across the country and, perhaps, build a new life during the boom that followed WWII.
But whether crossing the American landscape for escape or pleasure, people witnessed, firsthand, the vast majesty of the continent as well as the whimsical imagination of that new breed of American: the entrepreneur.
And just as they still do today, Motels, Diners, Taverns, and Filling Stations, mingle with Dinosaurs, Jack-a-Lopes, Giant Spacemen, Caves & Caverns, Wigwam Motels and Cadillac Graveyards to lure and amaze the next generation of eager travelers: “On the Road Again” is a scrapbook and a serenade to that America.
Established in 2011, Alumni Players! is an NFP that joins with local civic and volunteer organizations to create community partnership fundraising events that honor the history and celebrate legacies of Edwardsville through story and song.
Initially comprised of Edwardsville High School graduates, the organization now invites community members of all ages and backgrounds to support our mission to “Build Community Through Creativity.”
Over past 5 years, AP! Community Partners have included: the Friends of the Wildey, Woodlawn Cemetery, American Legion Post 199, the City of Edwardsville, Main Street Community Center and The EHS Drama Club.
“On the Road Again” is the 4th Alumni Players! production to celebrate Route 66 and to specifically shine the spotlight on Edwardsville.
Tickets for “On the Road Again” are available at WildeyTheatre.com
For more information about Alumni Players! go to AlumniPlayers.org.
This story originally ran in the June 2026 issue of The Prairie Land Buzz Magazine: http://www.thebuzzmonthly.com
