(upbeat rock music) - Welcome to "A Shot of Ag".

I'm your host, Rob Sharkey.

I'm a fifth generation farmer from just outside of Bradford, Illinois.

You ever heard of the Barn III Theater?

Barn III Theater.

It's kind of hard to say sometimes quickly, isn't it?

Barn III Theater.

- Barn III, Dinner Theater and Event Center.

- Okay.

But the official name is Barn- - III Dinner Theater and Event Center.

- Okay, I'm not gonna say that.

We have Abby Reel today.

You are the owner and producer and actor and janitor and you do everything there.

- I do everything.

Although I will say I have an amazing team.

The barn now has up to, we're just getting over 70 employees now.

- [Rob] 70 employees?

- 70 employees to do what I do.

Now, mind you they are not all full-time employees.

But I have an amazing management team that keeps me in line and makes sure that I can do the things that I do well.

- Out of those 70 employees, which one do you like the least?

- Oh.

- Is it Tracy?

- No.

Do you know, Speaking of Tracy Simmons.

- Yeah.

- You need to tell the audience why we even are bringing her up.

'Cause they have no idea.

- Because I thought you were her least favorite employee.

- Never, never!

Tracy Simmons.

I met Tracy Simmons in the studio here at channel 47 for the first time and then I stole her away from WTVP.

- What the hell?

- I know, I'm sorry.

- But you know what?

She made the barn doors.

- That's what she tells people.

- The Barn doors behind here.

- So many people say, "Hey, dude.

Tracy made your set."

No, I made it.

- And I got to come to be on Christine's Ag show a couple of years ago with Mary Simon, the original owner of the barn.

- You've already been on a PBS show?

- I have.

- Nobody told me that.

- I'm sorry.

But anyway, I met Tracy that day 'cause I admired her barn doors- - [Rob] And you scalped her.

- And then just like the skies opened and sunlight came down on her and I heard angelic voices in the background and they said, "Hire her!"

and so, I did.

And she on her first day of work made me this birdhouse replica of the barn, complete with our lighted silo.

And I brought it today because it's really important to me.

- Stupid birdhouse.

- And Tracy is awesome.

So anyways.

- It's not that good.

- It's great.

It's the best "Thank you for hiring me" gift I've ever gotten.

- All right.

- Anyways.

- Owner of Barn III- - Dinner Theater and Event Center.

- Okay, but you, you were a farm girl.

- I was, I am.

I still am.

I have two ponies, two bunnies, too many cats to count right now on my farm.

- Okay, like I was saying, you were in Congerville.

- Oh, boo!

- You live in Conger.

- I do.

I live in Congerville and my barn is in Goodfield, just a few minutes away.

- How far are they apart?

- Like five minutes, not even.

- Oh, that's not bad at all.

- Yeah, yeah.

- All right.

What type of farm did you grow up on?

- Oh, an Angus cattle farm.

Yeah.

My dad, we did do a hay crop and every once in a while corn, but mostly hay and Angus cattle.

- We had you on last week.

- Yeah, I know.

- We didn't get through enough.

- I know.

You had too many jokes.

- Yes.

That's what it is.

Too many good jokes last week.

Your dad was a huge personality.

- Yeah.

- So explain what he did.

- So my dad was just an epic community member and leader in Illinois agriculture.

And it was difficult not to leave a conversation with Les Reel and not be laughing or smiling.

He just had a very contagious personality and you just were in a good mood if you were around Les.

- [Rob] Where's a picture of him?

- Yeah, I brought this picture because, you know, you asked me to bring something.

I'll just hold it up, the top of that.

I'll make sure I can get it here.

- You're gonna do it wrong.

- Am I doing it wrong?

- No, it's that's fine.

So explain what's going on there.

- So this is my dad, dressed up in the actual Reggie the Redbird, straight from Illinois State University, mascot.

- Did he steal it?

- No, he made friends with anybody he met and he was a huge fan of ISU Basketball.

And he befriended the coaching staff and he befriended the teams.

He had season tickets.

My entire life, I grew up going to every single ISU basketball game imaginable.

And so when our small town, Congerville, celebrated their 100 years, or 150 years, or 100 year Centennial, he went to the coach at ISU at the time and said, "Can I borrow Reggie the Redbird?"

And the coach said yes.

- Borrow.

- Borrow.

Because my dad had always wanted to experience what it would be like to be a college mascot.

He was just a fun, crazy guy.

- That was a goal, huh?

- So that's him as Reggie the Redbird.

It's one of my favorite pictures of him, it just makes me smile every time.

- That is pretty cool.

- Yeah, so that's Dad.

- So he did a lot of things with the Angus, which is a breed of cattle.

- Yes.

- He was also a judge at the Kansas City Royal, which in Angus and cattle world, that's a big deal.

- Yeah, the Kansas City Royal is kind of like the top of the top.

If you get asked to judge at the Kansas City Royal you're kind of a big deal.

So he judged a couple shows there.

One of his claims to fame and I think also his brother, John Reel, both bred and raised Someday, which ended up being the Chicago livestock Champion of the- - [Rob] Grand Champion.

- Yes, Grand Champion.

Won the Chicago Stock Show, which was in conjunction with the World's Fair back in, I can't even tell you the date.

- Basically, they said- - it's a big deal.

- This is the perfect steer.

- Animal of all time.

- Yes.

- And he was able to meet, I'm gonna go out on a limb here, I should have gotten my details straight before I came on the show.

But in that picture, he was shaking hands with the President and the President took a picture and I want it.

- [Rob] President of the US?

- Yes, at the time, was at the show.

- [Rob] Who was it?

- This is where my US history, I'm gonna come out looking- - [Rob] Was it Joe Biden?

- No.

- No, Okay.

- It was Eisenhower or Roosevelt.

I can't remember which one.

- One or the other.

Does it really matter?

- What would it be?

'50s?

'40s, '50s?

- I was unaware we had to know history for this episode.

- Me too.

And I'm sorry, I should know this though.

The picture hangs in my living room.

- Can you imagine the emails I'm gonna get for this one?

- I'm so sorry.

I should know this.

I feel embarrassed.

- They're not gonna be direct at you.

- I was a college professor before I opened a barn and I'm forgetting which president my dad shook hands with.

- Let's say, Eisenhower.

- That sounds right.

- I like Ike.

- Right?

- That's what they used to say, right?

- And that's gotta be right.

That's gotta be right.

It is.

I think that's right.

- Send your emails to Barn III.

- No, don't!

I'm so busy doing other things.

I have a 10 year old, a five year old.

I'm learning new kinds of math.

- This is you.

- This is me at Illinois State Fair.

- [Rob] And you're wearing red britches, aren't ya?

- I think the color has stuck with me all my life.

I love red, it's my favorite color.

I would've worn red today, but I didn't wanna clash with your barn doors.

They're red roper's jeans, for all my lady friends out there in 4-H world, they're gonna know exactly what that is.

- So I used to show steers in 4-H, so I know the culture.

- You totally get it, yeah.

- Well, it's a huge deal.

- Yeah, and it's work.

- And as much as like a Friday night football game, it is the same at the steer shows.

It's all in, it's totally serious and it is a competition.

- It is, it is.

And my dad was very passionate about finding that grand champion steer every year.

I was lucky to have him in my corner.

But his slogan.

So my dad, I mentioned in your previous show that my dad always had these sayings, right?

And one of his sayings, classic sayings growing up, was, "Abby, we have to be first to the tie outs."

- [Rob] First to the tie outs.

- First to the tie outs.

And you know what I mean?

Like if you're first to the tie outs, then you're first to the wash rack.

If you're first to the wash rack, then you're first to the stalls.

Your cattle get fed and can relax and rest all day until it's showtime, and then they are fresh and ready to go.

So he believed firmly in waking up and being first to the tie out.

So I tell you what.

- You're that family.

- 4:00 AM, I'm at the state fair grounds.

- We always hated that family.

So what, the Reels are already tying the cattle out?

- Oh, we were tied up and we're drinking our lemonade shakeup and eating our, you know, corn dog at like 7:00 AM.

We are opening the lemonade shakeup stand.

- That's not right.

- Oh, it was great though.

Can you, in your mind, all I have to smell is bark and sawdust, like, simultaneously, and I am instantly in the junior barn.

Just immediately transported back.

- See, you guys- - I sometimes smell it when I walk in the barn.

- You were at the next level.

When I smell like mold and shame, that's what I remember.

- That's what you remember.

I'm sorry for that.

I'm sorry for that.

We're the hell are we?

All right.

- I don't know.

- Barn III.

- I think we're in Peoria.

- You studied some acting or- - I did, I started as a theater major, as crazy as that sounds.

But now I run a theater, so I guess it all went full circle.

- [Rob] Did you always wanna be an actress?

- Honestly, I don't know exactly what I wanted to be.

I don't know if I still know.

I think that farmers do their kids a huge disservice.

Now I know your daughter is working on this show simultaneously, so she's probably gonna agree with me on this, okay?

- She's here.

- Here's the thing.

Farmers, I think, agriculture families who are all in, like my dad, who don't work for the man, right?

They don't have a corporate job.

They work for themselves.

I think they do their kids a disservice because we don't know where we fit when we hit the world of work.

I mean, the only place that really suited me before opening my own business was higher education because at least there was seasonal change, you know?

Things happened in season, so it felt right to me.

But every summer in higher ed, I would beg them to let me go work on grounds crew, so I could mow the yard or be outside or do something.

And it was always very difficult too, trying to figure out, you know, I want a job where if I wanna go to the state fair, I don't have to ask for time off.

'Cause who asked for time off to go to the state fair?

You just go to the state fair.

- [Rob] Yeah, that's it.

- You don't have to request that.

You're expected to be there.

- But when you're tying your cattle out at 7:00 AM.

- Maybe, anyways.

So again, what do I wanna be?

I just wanna be an entrepreneur.

That's what I wanna be.

- I don't think farmers do a disservice to their miserable children.

- No, I just mean they give us such an awesome childhood that it is so hard to find a place in the world of work that can duplicate that, until you own your own business.

So then they just gotta come back to the farm eventually, because that's the only place where it's at.

- Last episode, we talked about the history of the theater.

- Yep.

- It was Conklin.

- Yep.

- And then Barn II.

- Yep.

- And now barn- - Third time's the charm.

- Barn III, is what you own and you run.

- And operate.

Yep.

- When you go to a night in the Barn Theater.

So what's the experience like?

You just watching a play, eating a meal?

Tell me what it's like.

- It's like Broadway and Branson in your own backyard.

- [Rob] Okay.

- Yeah.

Have you been to either?

- [Rob] No.

- Okay.

Well, hopefully somebody out there has.

- In the '80s, they had a TV show called "Fame".

I watched that.

- Okay.

- Remember that?

- Yeah, sure.

♪ Fame!

I'm gonna live forever ♪ ♪ I'm gonna learn how to fly ♪ - Fly!

♪ Fame!

♪ - Fame!

- Yeah.

So I feel like I pretty much know.

- You know what we do.

I think what we do is we create an environment where everybody feels, the minute you walk in the door, everybody will say this, if it's their first time or not and I challenge people, read our reviews online it's crazy.

The words that come out the most are, "I felt like part of a community.

I felt like I was coming home to see old friends."

So my team, my staff, everybody.

And I think some of it is that spirit of who my dad was, right?

No matter if you were a brand new stranger he never met before, he made you feel comfortable.

And that's what we do at the Barn.

So the minute you walk in, you'll check in at the box office.

There's no paper and tickets and whatever.

You check in, you give us your name and then a host, which is usually me, will call your name and take you to your seats.

And you'll order off your menu right there.

The most amazing prime rib and beef brisket you're ever gonna eat.

Certified Angus, of course.

And then you'll enjoy your dinner and then we do a really fun thing every night, and usually it's me on stage doing it.

It's announcements.

And basically if you're celebrating a special event, birthday, anniversaries, anything like that, we're gonna announce it from stage and we're gonna make you laugh.

And we might embarrass you a little bit and say crazy things.

You never know what's gonna come outta my mouth, much like you.

- You don't do that, with the happy, happy birthday.

- No, we don't sing to you, but you get things.

You get cakes and all sorts of things.

- Oh, so even if it's not your birthday, you should probably- - Yeah, oh, you should just say it's your birthday because then we're gonna talk about you from stage.

And then the show opens.

And right then and there, you'll find the beautiful person who was just waiting on your tables and getting you your coffee and bringing you beer cheese.

That you can't get enough of.

- That was really good, the beer cheese.

- Bringing you beer cheese.

That person is all of a sudden in costume and on stage.

And so there's that sense of intimacy and the set, the barn that I built, is directly modeled off the original barn.

Timber, frame package and everything.

And so when you walk in- - [Rob] Is it wood?

- Yeah.

- [Rob] Like a real barn?

- Oh yeah.

It's Douglas fir.

It's an authentic peg barn.

They hammered in each peg, sawed off the end.

- Where do you get people to build a peg barn?

- Well, I used all local builders.

- [Rob] Really?

- Yeah!

Used all my buddies that I grew up around 4-H and everything.

- [Rob] Okay, that's a skill though.

- Kevin Wiegand RK Custom Builders.

He built the Barn.

We got our timber frame package from a place up in Galesburg called Trillium Dell.

Now I know that they've since changed their name and expanded.

I must have put 'em on the map, you know?

Who knows?

But yeah.

So it's an authentic peg barn.

It's beautiful.

- So you eat and then what you got, like the "Cats", that play?

Do you have "Cats"?

You know, the movie or the play?

"Hamilton"?

I don't know.

- Where's your wife?

You need to get her in here.

- That's literally the only two plays that I know.

- You don't know any plays!

I know, "Hamilton" is amazing.

And "Cats" is amazing.

It's also my favorite.

No, we do, actually at the barn, one of our many talents is that quite a few of our shows are in-house, written by my team.

- [Rob] Really?

- Yes.

- [Rob] Are they any good?

- They're amazing.

Our Christmas show actually, which will be coming up.

It's opening the week before Thanksgiving is called "Christmas: Past, Present and Future".

That's an original barn production.

- Doesn't sound original.

- It is amazing.

- It sounds like the Scrooge.

- Oh no, it's not.

Actually, I don't think Scrooge even makes an appearance at all.

But we all collaborate together and write together and I have a music director, Jimmy LaHood.

Sagan Drake is sort of taking ownership as my new theater director, Mary Simon is still involved.

She's had some health problems and so is not able to be as involved as she would like, but we keep it in house.

And then other shows that we do are comedies and farces, some musicals.

We got a great musical coming up next spring.

"Pump Boys and Dinettes".

It's set in a gas station restaurant combo, and it's a Country Western musical.

It was a Broadway hit for many years.

Finally went off Broadway and we could buy the rights to it.

Can't wait to bring it to the barn stage.

They played spoons and all sorts of crazy stuff.

It's great.

So fun.

- No idea what you're talking about, but it sounds a lot of fun.

You're very enthusiastic about it.

- Yeah, well that alone and the beer cheese should make you come.

And I think your farmers would love it.

It's a great date night.

Get out of the tractor and come and see us.

- We'd like to, yeah.

Do you have alcohol there?

- We do.

- We're in.

- Now that's a change.

The original barn used to be BBYOB because we couldn't get a liquor license in Goodfield.

Prohibition had not yet been overturned in Goodfield.

And guess who did it?

- [Rob] That's you?

- My claim to fame is, yeah, is I overturned prohibition in Goodfield.

I'm still embarrassed about it, but we did it.

- What's it like to work with?

Because in my mind I'm a farmer, right?

- Yeah.

- You think of actors and an actresses as kind of nutty.

- They're great!

- They're not nutty?

I mean, I'm asking.

I don't know.

- No, I mean, it takes a special person to have the confidence to get up on stage.

Don't you think you're kind of like an actor?

Look at the lights, the makeup.

- No, no.

I'm a serious interviewer.

- Okay.

Well, I'm just saying.

- Like, if Johnny Carson had a dad- - Well, I think that's awesome.

Do you know?

We did a ski last year.

We did a show called "The '70s Show" and we did the full bit with Johnny Carson where he did the- - Oh, the Great whatever.

- And then would rip the envelope off and go (blows).

Remember that?

- [Rob] I do.

- And then- - [Rob] Kazaam.

- And then be like, you know, I wish I could pull one out.

- You might as well talk about that, now that you took it off my desk.

- Well, I brought you a gift.

- Well, thank you.

I appreciate that.

- His own gift certificate to take his wife out to the barn for date night.

Yeah, this is our brochure.

We have a brand new brochure coming out.

This was just the tail end of our 2022 season.

Our brand new brochure will be out any minute.

- What about the lights though?

- Oh, the light show.

- Yeah, that's what I was asking about, 'cause you could see that.

- So I'm kind of at the point where I'm so tired of talking about COVID, but I know we all lived through it and are still living through it.

- Never heard of it.

- Anyway, but during COVID, during mandatory shutdown periods, you know, it was a very difficult time for us, because even if we wanted to operate, we couldn't.

We bring bus groups from all over the state of Illinois.

There were a lot of restrictions placed on theaters.

It was very difficult.

So we were shut down for a year, almost a year and a half.

We were dark, theater-wise.

And you know, we all remember March.

For me, the date that sticks in my head is March 15th when the phones just stopped ringing and we all knew that something really serious was happening.

And I had put a little money aside as that closure process kept.

And I had tucked away a little bit of money, just in case if things get really bad, I've got this to fall back on.

And I think by August, it was getting to be pretty clear that this was gonna keep going a lot longer than we thought it was going to go.

And so what did I do with that?

Classic farmer move, right?

I did the most irresponsible thing that I could do.

- [Rob] Vegas?

- With that money.

- I installed over 3,000 twinkling lights on the front of my barn.

- I mean, that's the most common sense thing I've ever heard.

- Doesn't that seem like it makes so much sense?

So, 3,000 twinkling lights.

- Are they LEDs?

- They are.

- Okay, well that's good for the environment.

- Yes, most people think that I'm wasting.

My electric bill is very tiny, but the twinkling lights, they are synchronized.

I think we all have seen, there's always one house in everybody's community.

- [Rob] Can you play it to music?

- It is all synchronized through a computer.

We have our own radio station 103.1 FM, - [Rob] You have your own radio station?

- Just when you pull into our parking lot.

- Oh, I gotcha.

- For the barn and lights show.

And they're all sequenced to music.

And that winter, normally when you come to the barn for the holiday show, I am decked out in very fancy clothes, seating you.

Now you don't have to dress fancy to come to the barn, but we all put on a pretty big show for Christmas time.

That Christmas- - Whoa, whoa, whoa.

I mean, if I go there, can I wear anything?

- Yeah.

Jeans and a shirt.

You'll be fine.

Wear whatever you want.

- So you're dressed up.

- But we dress up for you.

We take the holidays pretty seriously at the Barn and that Christmas of 2020, I wore Carharts Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday night, and I parked cars in our parking lot.

And we had literally 70 cars an hour coming in all holiday long 'cause there was nothing to do.

- [Rob] Like a drive-in?

- Yeah, and then we created an outdoor bar.

We had hot chocolate and cider and all sorts of things that you could get.

And folks just came and sat in their cars and watched the light show.

It was beautiful.

And now it's become a huge part of our identity.

That's my shirt.

- You're my kind of gal.

- It was great.

So I love the light show.

It's my new favorite thing.

- And you're gonna keep doing that?

- Oh yeah.

I mean, I permanently installed the lights.

I was in the bucket truck myself, installing them.

- Oh, so you're one of those people that leaves it up year-round?

- Oh yeah.

We're like what Jeff Foxworthy calls rednecks.

- [Rob] Okay.

- You know.

- I mean, it makes sense, though.

- If you leave the Christmas lights up year-round- - You might be my neighbor.

- That's right.

- Or you might be the Barn III.

So we do a Halloween light show, we do a Christmas light show.

We do a Valentine love light show in which we say, if the cars are rockin', don't come-a knockin', during that Valentine show.

- [Rob] What's that mean?

- I don't know.

You can figure it out later.

Ask your wife.

And then we do different themes light shows, Like, 4th of July theme light shows.

So it's become a permanent part of our identity.

- Where do people find out information about going to Barn III?

- They can visit our website, www.thebarniii.com with a roman numeral three.

And they can call their box office at any time.

309 965 2545.

- Well, if you Google it, does it pop up?

If you Google Barn III?

- Yeah.

We're on Google maps.

We even have our own sign on the interstate.

- Oh really?

- Yeah.

- Like a billboard?

- Yeah.

We have a billboard, right?

This is a crazy story you're gonna love.

Do we have time for another crazy story?

- [Rob] They don't tell me.

Well, yeah, go ahead.

- Okay.

We're gonna go for it.

So if you drive by my dad's, the Reel Livestock Center, Which is located in Congerville.

There's no exit to get off on Congerville.

Don't blink, you'll miss it.

But the only thing you really see on i-74, when you cross over Congerville is my dad's livestock center that's up there on the hill.

It's a big, gray and green machine shed.

And the Wettstein family now owns and operates it.

He sold it to them after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

But anyway, my dad, when he first opened the livestock center, somebody approached him about putting up billboards, right there on i-74.

So he rented them the land for the billboards and that's what helped paid for my college.

- Oh really?

- So those billboards have always been really meaningful to me because my dad was always a hustler.

He was always figuring out a new way.

So he just took a strip of his farm ground right there and put up the billboards.

So after I opened the barn, one of those billboards became open.

so I texted good old Nick Jockameme and said, "Nick, Abby Reel here, Les Reel's daughter.

It would like bring my whole life full circle if I could have a billboard right in front of my dad's barn, advertising our barn."

And we do.

- You're right by the interstate, so it worked, yeah.

We tried some on our farm, but we live out in the middle of nowhere.

- Well, if you need a contact.

- The only people replied was the Lions Den.

I don't know.

I think it's really cool.

So if someone calls- - I'm not in that kind of an entertainment.

- I wanna go to a show, how long of a wait?

I mean, can you call and go?

- You can't call usually same week.

So you do need to make reservations.

And I would encourage everybody to call a good two weeks before they wanna come.

If you're interested in our Christmas show, you definitely need to call now if you're interested in our Christmas show.

That is a very popular show.

We do Christmas really well at the barn.

And it's a great place to bring your company, your farm hands.

Again, my dad used to bring all of his employees from the Reel Livestock Center.

- Oh, it's romantic if you take your wife.

I mean, I gotta imagine that that's gonna be like, you know, that's gonna hit it outta the park.

- We have specialty drinks.

Our most popular specialty drink is called Sweater Weather.

It's a spiked apple cider.

And then you pair that with that beer cheese and a slab of prime rib and- - Last week you had the beer cheese.

That is extremely good.

Now was that set at the table when you go?

- Yep.

It's unlimited.

- Oh.

That's worth the price of admission there.

- I tell you what, right there.

- I really like what you're doing, Abby.

For number one, the entrepreneurialship of starting something like this, and who starts a theater in Central Illinois?

- In the middle of a cornfield.

- It brings something different because everybody, you know, you wanna go out to restaurants, you wanna go to a movie or whatever.

Going to something like this is something special.

And you bring a lot of joy to people.

So I think you oughta be very, very proud of that.

- Thank you.

Thank you.

- And I would go out on a limb and say that your dad would be very, very proud of you too.

- Thank you.

- Okay.

Abby Reel, go check it out.

Barn- - Three, I-I-I.

- Capital or lowercase?

- Well, lowercase in your browser, but capital in writing.

- Okay.

- And Emily and I are gonna come.

- You are.

- Magically, it's gonna be her birthday and our anniversary.

- Two cakes.

- Oh, my birthday too.

That's how we met.

- And you're bringing your daughter, so.

- It's for her birthday too.

Abby Reel, thank you very much.

Everybody else, we'll catch you next week.