Our Stories

When someone becomes a Broadway Season Ticket Holder at your Fox Cities P.A.C., it generally isn’t a spontaneous decision. It often follows sporadic visits to see well-known titles, a pique in curiosity, and eventually a realization that, according to Jana Schleis, “every show you see will leave an everlasting impression.” Jana and her family were first-time Season Ticket Holders for the 2025-26 Kimberly-Clark Broadway Across America – Fox Cities Series, and her journey followed the steps above as well. We sat down with her to chat about what led to her first full season of Broadway shows, the unexpected moments of connection that stuck with her, and why she didn’t hesitate for a single second to renew for the upcoming 2026-27 Season.

It Starts with a Spark: A Newfound Love for Live Theater

Before taking the leap into a full-season package, Jana’s visits were milestone moments scattered over several years, often centered around sharing her growing love for theater with her inner circle. “My first show at the Center was in 2019, Disney’s The Lion King, with some family and friends,” Jana remembers. “The songs, the puppetry, the effects – we all just loved it.” It was during this initial encounter when Jana realized that a visit to the theater is an experience with multiple threads converging. It’s a chance to see world-class art. It’s an opportunity to share an evening with those closest to you. It leaves you wanting more. These threads began to take a more cohesive shape as her daughters grew.

Water it and Watch it Grow

As her affinity for live Broadway blossomed, so too did the size of her theater group. By the time Mamma Mia! arrived in 2024, Jana was coordinating a lively entourage of loved ones. “We had a crew of fifteen friends and family, and some had never seen a show before,” she says. “It was an absolute blast; my daughters still talk about this often. By the end of the show when the cast was singing the encore, every last one of us was dancing.”

The momentum kept building into early 2025 when Jana and her husband took their daughters, by then 6 and 9 years old, back to the Center to see Disney’s The Lion King. “We were all absolutely amazed,” Jana recalls of seeing a story they knew so well. “Having seen it in 2022, I knew what to expect, but seeing the show through the eyes of my young children was an unforgettable experience. I even loved seeing my husband tapping his foot to the music.”

The ultimate turning point came in October of 2025, during an evening performance of a Disney classic that completely reframed the conversation in her household. “My husband and I were able to take all three of our kids to Beauty and the Beast,” Jana says.

The More the Merrier

While Jana knew she wanted a season of no-hassle theater dates on her home calendar, she also recognized that her youngest children might need a little more time before tackling a full schedule of evening performances. “Though having season tickets with my husband and children would be so amazing, we knew the timing was not right,” Jana explains.

With a package for the entire family on pause, she turned to her closest circle to share the experience. “I sent a message to my mom and two sisters asking if they would be interested,” she says. “The performing arts are something we have always enjoyed, so I just thought, what better way to get together and spend time with each other than by experiencing something we all love?” The response was instant. “My mom and sisters responded immediately with a ‘yes,’ and we were able to still get Season Tickets for the rest of the 2025-26 shows.”

Even with changing schedules and winter travel plans, the flexibility of the package kept things seamless. “Although our parents ‘snow bird’ for a couple months in the winter, it has been very easy to find someone to take our mom’s ticket,” Jana notes. “I thought I’d have to make a waiting list.”

In fact, demand for those empty seats is already growing within her own household. Recently, on the afternoon of the final show of the season, Jana’s 10-year-old daughter asked if anyone was sick and needed her to take their ticket to & Juliet. Given the enthusiasm from both in and outside her theater cohort, Jana knows what’s next. “I predict that I will be needing to add additional tickets for future seasons. And that’s okay by me!”

Joining a Ready-Made Community of Theater Lovers

For many new Season Ticket Package Holders, the predictable schedule and the comfort of familiarity become favorite aspects of the package. As Jana notes, she and her family “all loved having the set night that we chose, and also the same seats each time.”

But being part of the Season Ticket Holder community also means sharing the space with fellow arts lovers who understand just how special family theater nights can be. Jana recalls a heartwarming moment from that pivotal Beauty and the Beast performance where her husband was sitting in one row with their two daughters, and Jana and her son were seated directly in front of them.

“When we arrived in our seats and turned around to start chatting with one another, a fellow Season Ticket Holder noticed right away that we were together as a group,” Jana says. “They immediately asked us if we wanted to switch seats with them so our family could all sit together in the same row.” It’s a memory that has stayed with her just as vividly as the performance on stage. “I just thought, ‘What a thoughtful gesture.’ That small act really showed the sense of community among patrons at the Center. And I think that’s really special.”

Finding New Favorites and Unexpected Perks

One prominent benefit of a season package is the opportunity to see shows you might not be familiar with or might not choose on your own. This allows Season Ticket Holders like Jana to expand their “dance card,” and even uncover a few unexpected favorites along the way.

“My favorite show this past season was The Great Gatsby, but in all honesty, they were all so good. And I know that there is no way I would have been able to see them all if I was not a season ticket holder,” Jana shares.

Another unexpected breakout hit for her was & Juliet. “The music was so fun, I couldn’t wait to listen to the cast recording the next day,” she says. “And all the aerial choreography had us gasping and cheering. It is pure magic seeing all the different special effects during a Broadway musical.” Yet, across every single production in her first year as a Season Ticket Holder, it was the raw talent that consistently left her in astonishment. “More than anything, I’d say the vocal talent across each and every show really exceeded my expectations. These performers are astonishing!”

Beyond the onstage spectacle, Jana discovered a built-in Season Ticket Holder perk that is helping her keep a very big family secret for the upcoming year. “As a Season Ticket Holder, you have access to purchase up to 8 additional tickets per show,” Jana says. “I love this perk and will be using it for The Sound of Music. But please, don’t tell my daughters; the tickets are for them!”

Looking Ahead: An “Automatic Yes” for 2026-27

Now that her first year as a Season Ticket Holder is officially complete, Jana is looking to the future with absolute certainty. “We can’t wait for next season,” she says. “It was a countdown in our family as we waited to see what shows were coming to town.”

When asked if she and her family renewed their package for the 2026-27 Season, her response was instant: “It was an automatic ‘yes’ for each of us, with no hesitations.”

For anyone currently sitting on the fence, flipping through the 2026-27 brochure and wondering if this is the year to finally dive into a Broadway Season Ticket Package of their own, Jana has some simple, direct advice: “Don’t overthink it, just do it, and you will not be disappointed! Every single show is loaded with talent and staging and special effects that will leave an everlasting impression on you!”

Ready to create your own unforgettable theater memories? With a Broadway Season Ticket Package, patrons enjoy optional payment plans, ticket exchanges when scheduling conflicts arise, and much more. Explore the benefits, secure your same seats for every show, and join our community of theater lovers by checking out 2026-27 Season Ticket Packages today.