Interview: Playwright Jahnna Beecham On the World Premiere of THE BEST HALLOWEEN EVER at Orlando Family Stage

Orlando Family Stage presents the world premiere of THE BEST HALLOWEEN EVER, a new stage adaptation of Barbara Robinson's beloved novel by Jahnna Beecham and Skye Hillgartner. The Herdmans are back, and this time they are taking on Halloween, bringing Robinson's humor and heart to the stage for a new generation with plenty of mischief, candy, costumes, and schoolyard chaos. Developed in part at Orlando Family Stage, including a developmental reading during the inaugural Florida Children's Book Festival in February 2026, the fully produced world premiere runs October 5 through November 1, 2026, before becoming available to theatres nationwide through Concord Theatricals.

Beecham's relationship with the Herdmans runs deep. She and her husband and longtime collaborator Malcolm Hillgartner acquired the rights to adapt THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER as a musical in 2014, and their version has since seen nearly 300 productions. This time, Beecham co-wrote with her daughter, Skye Hillgartner. The world premiere arrives during an especially busy fall for Beecham, whose musical PARCEL FROM AMERICA, created with Malcolm Hillgartner, also opens Off-Broadway at Theatre Row this fall.

BroadwayWorld spoke with Beecham about returning to Barbara Robinson's world, developing the play alongside her daughter, and why great children's theatre should never mean writing down to young audiences.

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What first drew you back to the Herdmans, and what was it like returning to Barbara Robinson's world after your work on THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER?

"The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world" is the start of the book, THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER. Years ago, I read that first sentence and fell instantly in love with those kids, that town, and of course, the very funny author Barbara Robinson. In 2014, when my husband and writing/composing partner, Malcolm Hillgartner, and I acquired the rights to turn the book and play into a musical, we were ecstatic. Ever since that moment, those six horrible, hysterically funny, wonderful Herdman kids have played a big role in our lives. Our musical opened at Children's Theatre of Charlotte in 2016 and has had nearly 300 productions. In 2024, we got lucky again and our adaptation of Barbara Robinson's THE BEST SCHOOL YEAR EVER, about the comic exploits of the Herdmans at Woodrow Wilson Elementary, opened at Nashville Children's Theatre. And this fall in Orlando, the Herdmans and Halloween? What's not to like? We couldn't be more happy to welcome the Herdman kids back into our lives because, frankly, they never left!

How did your long history with Orlando Family Stage shape the decision to develop and premiere THE BEST HALLOWEEN EVER there?

Ten years ago, I sent a copy of THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER: THE MUSICAL to Jeff Revels and not only did he read it and like it, but he also made some really good suggestions about the script and songs. We took his suggestions, and even though the show had already been produced and published, we added them. (Hooray for digital publishing!) That was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. In 2018, we pitched the idea of a musical about young musicians in a magic competition to Adam Burke from Children's Theatre of Charlotte and Adam immediately called Jeff. The musical is about a sort of Scooby-Doo group of teen magicians that includes magic, mystery, songs and what ended up being 36 tricks and illusions. Adam and Jeff decided to co-commission ALLIE KAZAN AND THE MAGIC MANSION. That was a miracle. I can't emphasize enough how rare it is to have any TYA theatre take a chance on producing a musical that isn't based on a popular book, play or movie. And one that requires magic tricks! We did two workshops and lots of revisions and once again, Jeff's input was invaluable and both companies did a fabulous job. Shortly after, I asked Jeff what he thought of a play version of THE BEST HALLOWEEN EVER, and his reply was, "You write it and I'll produce it." I told that to VP Amy Rose Marsh at Concord Theatricals and the rest is history.

What did the developmental reading at the inaugural Florida Children's Book Festival teach you about how the play was landing with an audience?

This was the most fun workshop I've ever had for a number of reasons. First, my other writing partner, Skye Hillgartner, joined me on this play. (Malcolm was busy preparing for the opening of our newest show, PARCEL FROM AMERICA: THE IRISH MUSICAL, which opens Off-Broadway October 28 at Theatre Row, two weeks after Best Halloween opens in Orlando.) Skye and I had just finished having a really fun time working together on THE BABY-SITTERS CLUB 40TH ANNIVERSARY FAN EDITION: BABY-SITTERS SUMMER (released July 7, 2026) and it was an easy transition to move to the Herdmans. Skye grew up with them! The challenge for us was taking this terrific book that's filled with a variety of hilarious individual stories and putting them together in an order that made sense as we moved the story to Barbara Robinson's surprise ending. Skye and I used a storyboard with post-its of the different adventures and switched them around, adding linking subplots. The big giant benefit of the workshop was to see if that jigsaw puzzle worked, comically and emotionally. Because as funny as Barbara's books are, they are also very moving. Working with Jeff Revels and director Dimitri Vogt Tosca and a group of extremely talented actors, we not only rearranged scenes, but we cut characters, switched parts, changed the doubling and added scenes. And when the audience joined our workshop, our job was to listen, for laughter of course, but also for the silence of the audience becoming emotionally involved in the story. There were a couple of times Skye and I gave each other the "See, I knew that line would work!" nod. And a few "we'll fix that" looks, but it was such a gift to be able to test run the show before an audience.

What changed in the script after that reading, and how did those changes move the show toward its full production?

Surprisingly, not much changed in the script. After the workshop, we fixed those lines that needed adjusting and moved the placement of a small scene, but the massive work was really done in that three-day workshop. And the audience response confirmed that we'd made the right decisions. Our editors at Concord Theatricals gave a few notes and we were ready to roll. What a gratifying experience.

When adapting Barbara Robinson's voice, what did you and Skye feel absolutely had to be preserved from the book?

We knew we had to keep the wicked sense of humor combined with absolute heart that Barbara Robinson brings to all of her books. She gets kids and their relationship to the challenges of home, school and the friendship world. This understanding is her secret weapon. Her other secret weapon is how she ends her chapters, with a humorous comment that sets the reader up for the comic disaster that is sure to come. Skye and I would flip through the book reading them out loud and try to figure out ways to incorporate those killer lines into scene endings.

Barbara Robinson's humor famously works on multiple levels for kids and adults. How did you make sure grown-ups in the audience have just as much fun as the kids?

We worked hard to stay true to the source material, because what makes Barbara Robinson's books so perpetually popular is the fact that grown-ups love them as much as the kids. As adults, we recognize ourselves in the humorous dilemmas that parents and teachers face. And as former kids, we vividly remember the sometimes humiliating, sometimes silly, but always fun adventures these kids get up to. Especially on Halloween!

Why must audiences come and see the show?

Because not only is Barbara Robinson's story so funny, it is also chock-full of wisdom. Halloween is the perfect setting for imparting the adage, "Don't judge a book by its cover." On the surface, the Herdman kids seem like hooligans bringing chaos to the town and the school, but there is more to that family than meets the eye. And given half a chance they prove just how smart and kind they are. The big takeaway is "if we all look out for each other, the world will be a better place." That's an important message for this moment in time.

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Founded in 1926 as Orlando Little Players, Orlando Family Stage recently celebrated 100 years of empowering young people through the transformative power of theatre. One of the nation's largest theatres for young audiences, the organization is based in Loch Haven Park and serves Central Florida while developing new work performed by theatres across the United States.