Mark it down, May 5, 2026

Hi everyone,

For the last several weeks I’ve been working on plans for a show in the new auditorium at The Library Center on May 5. The one I did with SANDY on September 30 overflowed the current auditorium and the 1 1/2 hour program went quickly. Afterward, my host STEPHANIE SMALLWOOD, Director of Youth Services, invited me back after the new theater space is open in January. I’ve been brainstorming with smart people who know the community (think AMOS BRIDGES, editor-in-chief, Springfield News-Leader, KATHLEEN O’DELL, freelance journalist who often writes for Springfield Daily Citizen and with past ties to Springfield-Greene County Library District, News-Leader, and USA Today), and others. This past week I met with Stephanie Smallwood at The Library Center to outline my plans and get an early look at the new auditorium. It’s glorious!

This will seat 536 people. The Tonight Show audience numbers 175-200. The Landers Theatre seats 525-527. My goal is to be entertaining 536 people or more on May 5, 2026, and I think the program we have in mind will do it. It’s going to be a dynamite lineup! I won’t pin down the final title of the show until the last day of this month but the working title is David and Friends, Celebrating Route 66 and the Joys of Creative Expression.

Many of the entertainers have already accepted my invitation and I hope to hear from others within the coming two or three weeks. Please keep the date — May 5, 2026, 6:30-8:30 p.m. — in mind. I promise you a great evening.