S A T U R D A Y , D E C E M B E R 1 3 T H - 7 P M S U N D A Y , D E C E M B E R 1 4T H - 2 P M U N L V ’ S A R T E M U S W . H A M C O N C E R T H A L L
Ryan Duff - Artistic Director
Ryan is a 2001 graduate of Ball State University. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Choral Music Education. He also completed a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from Southern Utah University in 2017. Ryan is a proud member of American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). He has served as the Chair of the CCSD (Clark County School District) Honor Choir since 2015, and currently serves as the Nevada ACDA All-State Choir Chair. Duff has also served as the 2020 Western Region ACDA Honor Choir Chairman. He has served as President of the Nevada ACDA chapter, and currently serves as the Nevada ACDA Men’s Choir Repertoire & Resources Chairman. This past April, Ryan was awarded the 2025 Nevada ACDA Teacher of the Year. Additionally, he was awarded a CCSD Heart of Education Award in 2017, recognizing Excellence in Teaching.
Ryan is in his 18th year as a High School Choir Teacher in the Clark County School District; this is his 15th year as the Choir Director at Basic Academy in Henderson, where he directs six choirs, and serves as the Department Chair for the Performing Arts. Before his career as a teacher, Ryan worked as a Professional Singer and Entertainer. Outside of Las Vegas, he worked as a Production Singer for Holland America Cruise Lines, Busch Gardens Theme Park Entertainment, Cedar Point Amusement Park Entertainment, and Harvey’s Lake Tahoe; he has also worked as Musical Director for several Professional Regional Musical Theatre Productions. His Las Vegas performing career as a singer and musician has included “Tony & Tina’s Wedding” at the Rio Hotel & Casino, “The Can-Can Cabaret” at the Paris Hotel & Casino, and as a Singing Gondolier at the Venetian Hotel & Casino.
Ryan is proud to serve as the Artistic Director for the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus. This season is his 13th year at the podium, conducting and artistically leading the organization. He resides in Las Vegas with his husband and Las Vegas Men’s Chorus Choreographer, Justin McClendon.
From Our Artistic Director
Hello and welcome to our 2025 Winter Production entitled “Let Your Heart Be Light.” With this concert, we embark on our 33rd Season of bringing high-quality choral singing, exciting production value, and our unique entertainment to the Las Vegas community. Tonight, we hope that our messages of light and love will catapult you into your best holiday season yet!
The world feels heavy right now. It seems at every turn, there is constant division, strife, and unrest; may today’s show be a respite and break from all of that ugliness. It is my sincere hope that our music can truly make your heart lighter, and your spirits brighter and provide you with a special musical escape. The music in this show is quite an emotional journey filled with high-energy highs and some poignantly emotive lows; we hope that we can heal your hearts, bring a smile to your face, and a perfect kickstart into your holiday season!
Tonight is a celebration of some time-honored holiday classics, as well as some surprises, and our signature twists. You’ll hear your favorites from the likes of Frank Sinatra and Stevie Wonder, as well some exciting new arrangements of the songs we all love to hear at the holidays. As always, you can also expect some beautiful singing from not only our full company, but also from our newly-named Featured Vocal Ensemble Sin City Sound. And let’s not forget the high-energy dance moves that we look forward to, from our amazing Dance Line; we promise to bring tons of joy to the stage and straight to your hearts!
We are once again honored to be in our home, the beautiful Artemus W. Ham Concert Hall on the campus of UNLV, one of the finest concert halls in our state! I sincerely hope that you love this show as much as we have enjoyed putting it together for you. The holidays are special for so many reasons, one of the biggest being all of the wonderful music that invokes so many personal memories for us all. Thank you for being with us today, we hope you enjoy the show!
Jonathan is a pianist, singer, actor, and educator. He began piano lessons at age five, competed in regional competitions in grade school, and started playing for church services in middle school. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Vocal Performance from the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University in Chicago, IL.
In the Las Vegas Valley, he has been musical director and keyboardist for various churches, schools, and many local musical theatre productions with companies such as Signature Productions and Super Summer Theatre. Jonathan sang with the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus for three seasons as well as serving as Member-at-Large on the Board of Directors.
Jonathan serves as Assistant Program Manager at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts focusing on providing theatre opportunities for students.
Justin McClendon | Staff Choreographer
As we begin Season 33, Justin is thrilled and honored to serve as our Staff Choreographer and Featured Dancer once again. In 2000, Justin traveled and performed with The Young Americans, promoting music, theater, and dance education in communities all over the United States. He has been in numerous productions including Bye Bye Birdie, Annie, and was a Featured Soloist and Performer on the Queen Mary in Long Beach at Tibbies Dinner Theater.
Since 2006, Justin has been a professional dancer and instructor with Arthur Murray Dance Centers of Las Vegas. He became the owner of two Las Vegas studios in 2011, and is a Certified Examiner, Adjudicator, and highly sought-out coach. Having competed in Professional Smooth and Rhythm, he has been an Open Professional Smooth and Rising Star Finalist, and in 2017 became a United States Same-Sex Rhythm and 9-Dance Champion.
Every season, Justin is continually excited to create new pieces for the LVMC, and is so proud of not only the Dance Line, but the entire chorus as they continue to grow and evolve into such a dynamic group.
The lights are about to dim, the band is about to swell, the curtain is about to open, and you’ll hear that phrase sung by 100 singers sharing that spirit we all need. Welcome! We’re thrilled you’re here to ring in the holiday season with us.
For many folks, LVMC’s holiday concert is a tradition. For you, this might be your first time. For all, I’m hopeful this is a moment where you’ll feel at peace with the family you’ve found with us! After 33 years, our Mission feels more needed than ever: We create safe spaces for our community and allies through musical experiences which inspire all of us to be stronger together.
In Season 33, we’re doubling down on accessible art for all. We’re financially underwriting the Clark County School District’s “Sing Out: A Tenor/Bass Festival” to bolster confidence and love of singing in our community’s young people. We invited all CCSD’s young people and their families to join us at this concert with $5 tickets especially for them, investing $10,000 back into the community this concert alone. We’ll bring the love and joy of our musical experiences to 10,000+ people this year for low-cost or no-cost while we’ll have 670,000+ folks watching us for free online across 98 countries. As Ryan Duff, Artistic Director, says; “When you are part of something special, you are special.” That’s what LVMC wants for all of you, here in this Hall and beyond.
Thanks to you, we’re on track to double our impact this year. We added a second showtime to each Mainstage Concert this season. We’re enabling multiple community events each month to drive 15,000+ community volunteer hours. And we can’t do it without you. Ticket sales account for less than half or our annual budget. If the music moves you today, please consider giving a tax deductible donation.
ThankyouforbeingpartofourLVMCfamily!
Ryan Miller President & Producer
About the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus...
Our Mission: The Las Vegas Men’s Chorus creates safe spaces for our community and allies through musical experiences which inspire all of us to be stronger together.
Community | Harmony | opportunity | respeCt | unity | serviCe
The Las Vegas Men’s Chorus (LVMC) was founded in 1993 by a small group of men who simply wanted to sing. Over the next 30 years, the LVMC found itself providing much more than music: a place to create and foster community and safe spaces through live performances. Social justice, inclusion, diversity, and equity are now at the forefront of LVMC’s programming. From humble beginnings of 10 members and 30 patrons, we now boast 100+ active members and 3,000+ patrons in the audience annually at six fully-produced Mainstage Concerts with our free Community Concert Series benefitting 10,000+ more. Patrons describe attending an LVMC concert as “experiencing joy”.
Although not specifically a “gay” chorus, ~85% of members identify as LGBTQIA2+. ~40%+ of members have or are currently experiencing homelessness, addiction, mental and physical health issues, abuse, or incarceration. ~40% of members identify as BIPOC with age diversity ranging from 18 to 77. Membership has grown +300% since 2021 from 32 to 100+ members with consistent double-digit growth each concert cycle.
We extend safe spaces to the Las Vegas Valley with members giving 15,000+ volunteer hours annually. We ensure we “use our voices for good” through Community Outreach events including World AIDS Day, Latin Grammy Awards “Los Producers” benefitting the Michael J. Fox Foundation, Las Vegas Pride, Las Vegas Aviators Pride Night, Ribbon of Life benefitting Golden Rainbow HIV/AIDS fund, Aid for AIDS of Nevada, Sin Sity Sisters, Big Horn Rodeo, Las Vegas Prime Timers, Las Vegas Clark County Library District benefits, Christ Church Episcopal Community Concerts, Arthur Murray Las Vegas Showcases, Harry Reid International Airport Showcases, MGM Resorts Lions Pride, UNLV/CSN/NSU Lavender Graduations, Lambda Business Association, and Gateway Arts Foundation. Each year in partnership with the Clark County School District, we financially underwrite “Sing Out: A Tenor/Bass Choral Festival” intended to bolster confidence and lifelong love of singing in our community’s young people. As a GALA (Gay and Lesbian Choruses of America) Chorus, we represent Las Vegas and Nevada at GALA Festival alongside 15,000+ singers in five days of singing, education, connecting, and creating at the largest LGBTQ choral event in the world.
Our in-person impact is typically conducted in Southern Nevada, specifically the Las Vegas Valley, although performance and community event requests are regularly submitted from the broader Southwestern U.S.. Our patrons are increasingly diverse ranging across income, age, sexual orientation, race, religion, and education. Our impact is amplified across the globe through digital channels including YouTube where viewers watched our inspiring content ~670,000 times across 98 countries this past year alone. The LVMC is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
On behalf of our Artistic Staff, Board of Directors, and our entire ensemble, we want to thank you for spending your Sunday evening with us and we sincerely hope that you enjoy tonight’s concert. We are so excited to have you with us today in our beautiful home, UNLV’s Artemus W. Ham Concert Hall, as we continue our musical excellence in this, the premier of our 33rd Season! Your support here today means everything to us all. Haveawonderfulandrestfulholiday,wewillseeyoubackherefor“TheBestoftheBoys!Featuring Chase Brown” in March 2026!
SAVE THE DATES:
VOCAL AUDITIONS FOR SPRING 2026
Saturday, January 3, 2026 @ 1pm
Arthur Murray Las Vegas West
4440 S. Durango Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89147
FIRST REHEARSAL FOR SPRING 2026
Sunday, January 4, 2026 @ 1pm
Arthur Murray Las Vegas West
4440 S. Durango Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89147
“THE BEST OF THE BOYS” SPRING CONCERT
Saturday, Saturday, March 21, 2026 @ 7pm &
Sunday, March 22, 2026 @ 2pm
UNLV’s Artemus W. Ham Concert Hall
Saturday January 3rd Open Auditions
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND OUR HEARTFELT THANKS
UNLV Performing Arts Center Staff
Arthur Murray Las Vegas - Rehearsal Space
Ryan Miller - Producer
Jonathan Tuala - Collaborative Pianist
Justin McClendon - Choreographer, Arthur Murray Las Vegas
Tim Thomas - Bass
Jeremy Meronuck - Percussion
Eric Fleischer - Auxiliary Keyboards
Santa’s Elves Bell Ringers - Stephen Flesher, Christian Garcia, James Koperski (Arranger),
David Lopez-Wade, Isaac Roachford-Gould, Randee Stewart, Timothy Wells
Marcus Randolph - Lighting Design
Erick Canfield - Head of Wardrobe & Props Master
Bud Weismiller - Floral Arrangements
Lamar Advertising - Billboards
JD Images - Photographer
David Williamson - Videographer
PDQ Printing of Las Vegas - Program Book Design
QVegas & Gipsy - Special Events Venue
LVMC Volunteers
Bravo to Our Sponsors!
Gold Sponsor
Silver Sponsors
Singalong Lyrics!
SILENT NIGHT
Silent night, holy night!
All is calm, all is bright. Round yon Virgin, Mother and Child. Holy infant so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace
SANTA CLAUS IS COMIN’ TO TOWN
You better watch out You better not cry You better not pout, I’m telling you why Santa Claus is coming to town
He’s making a list He’s checking it twice
He’s gonna find out who’s naughty or nice Santa Claus is coming to town
He sees you when you’re sleeping
And he knows when you’re awake He knows if you’ve been bad or good So be good for goodness sake.
You better watch out You better not cry You better not pout
I’m telling you why Santa Claus is coming, Santa Claus is coming, Santa Claus is coming to town!
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President: Ryan Miller
Vice-President: Gerry Allen
Treasurer: Randee Stewart
Secretary: Shane Weckerly
Member-At-Large: Lee New
Board Member: Erick Casallas
Board Member: Todd Gerber
Board Member: Frank Gregory
Board Member: Edwin Martinez
Board Member: Jamie Richards
Board Member: Garrett Pattiani
Board Member: Cody Sims
Board Member: Jim Villela
tenor 1
Erick Canfield
Francisco Castillo Jr.
Eduardo Celiz
Ari Christensen
Christopher Conard
Christopher Doucette
*James Koperski
Ryan Miller
Eddie Or
Newell Pangulayan
Marty Posner
Jamie Richards
Brandon Romarate
Marco Roxas
Joric Salvador
Rei Sta Ana
Sherwood Wong
*Section Representative
tenor 2
Gregory Acosta
Jared Baker
Gilbert Baltazar
Billy Chamberlin
MK Cordova
Joey Doherty
Eric Endy
Stephen Flesher
Frederick Foster
Christian Garcia
Rowen Garcia
Landon Goodin
Aaron Johnson
*Mike Nagy
David Pohl
Mike Schuenemeyer
Rob Scolari
Christopher Smith
Randee Stewart
Stephen Trumble
Jonathan Vargas-Ramirez
BASS 1
Marc Austin
Gary Binford
Erick Casallas
Anselmo Cornelius
Luis Coro
Alex Espiritu
Chad Gifford
Bill Gould
Jeff Ip
Patrick Johnson-Hedges
Martin Marsh
Edwin Martinez
Paul Teng Mejia
Brandon Mowles
Rick Mula
Jun Allan Oliva
John Payne
Andy Phairas
Ben Quick
Reza Rezvani
* Isaac Roachford-Gould
Cody Sims
Michael Trahan
Qari Walls
Timothy Wells
Jason Yocum
BASS 2
Graham Bates
Michael Bond
Timothy Brown
Fred Crescente
Dominic Gaon
Frank Gregory
David Lopez-Wade
Nelson Lucero
Mark McCreery
Cesar Meza
Jeffrey Miller
Rebecca Moore
Aaron Schave
*Matthew Vance
Kelly Williams
Richard Zenter
dance line
Michael Bond
Francisco Castillo Jr.
Eduardo Celiz
Ari Christensen
Joey Doherty
Dominic Gaon
Justin McClendon (Choreographer)
Rei Sta Ana
*Stephen Trumble (Dance Captain)
SIN CITY SOUND
Gregory Acosta
Marc Austin
Jared Baker
Gilbert Baltazar
Graham Bates
Erick Canfield
Erick Casallas
MK Cordova
Fred Crescente
Chris Doucette
Alex Espiritu
Stephen Flesher
Frederick Foster
Frank Gregory
Aaron Johnson
James Koperski
Martin Marsh
Ryan Miller
Brandon Mowles
Rick Mula
Newell Pangulayan
John Payne
Jamie Richards
Isaac Roachford-Gould
Brandon Romarate
Marco Roxas
Rob Scolari
Cody Sims
Randee Stewart
Michael Trahan
Matthew Vance
LET YOUR HEART BE LIGHT - ACT I
CELEBRATE THE SPIRIT OF THE SEASON
Spirit of the Season
Sparklejollytwinklejingley
Words & Music by Alan Silvestri & Glen Ballard
Arranged by David Maddux
Words & Music by Matthew Sklar & Chad Beguelin
Arranged by Andy Beck
Featuring: LVMC Dance Line
CELEBRATE A FESTIVE HANUKKAH NIGHT
The Chanukah Song
Words & Music by Stephen Schwartz & Steve Young (We Are Lights)
Hanukkah Night
Arranged by Mac Huff
Words & Music by Dave & Jean Perry
RING THOSE CHRISTMAS BELLS
Ring Those Christmas Bells
Words & Music by Gus Levene & Marvin Fisher
Arranged by Ryan Murphy
Featuring Ryan Miller & Jonathan Tuala, Four-Hand Piano
Silver Bells
Jingle Bells Hallelujah
Bells, Bows, Gifts, Trees
Words & Music by Jay Livingston & Ray Evans
Arranged by Kevin Robison
Words & Music by George Frederic Handel & James Pierpont
Arranged by Jonathan Miller & Paul Langford
Featuring: Sin City Sound
Words & Music by Todrick Hall
Featuring: LVMC Dance Line
CARRY LIGHT AND JOY TO ALL
Silent Night (Singalong)
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Carry The Light
Joy to the World
Words & Music by Franz Gruber & Joseph Mohr
Words & Music by Noel Regney & Gloria Shayne
Arranged by Robert Sterling Featuring: Sin City Sound
Words & Music by Andy Beck
Soloist: Gregory Acosta
Words & Music by Lowell Mason, Isaac Watts, Alan Pasqua,
George Frederic Handel, Three Dog Night (Hoyt Axton)
Arranged by Ryan Duff
Featuring: LVMC Dance Line
LET YOUR HEART BE LIGHT - ACT II
LET YOUR HEART BE LIGHT THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
Christmas Dance
Have Yourself a Merry
Little Christmas
Mele Kalikimaka
Words & Music by Darren Criss
Arranged by Charles Beale
Soloists: Cody Sims & Erick Casallas
Featuring LVMC Dance Line
Words & Music by Hugh Martin & Ralph Blane
Arranged by Mark Hayes
Featured Soloist: Christopher Conard
Words & Music by R. Alex Anderson
Arranged by David Maddux
NORTH POLE SHENANIGANS
Little Saint Nick
Santa Will Find You
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Carol of the Bells
Santa Claus is Comin’ To Town
Words & Music Brian Wilson & Mike Love
Arranged by Christopher Peterson
Words & Music by Mindy Smith & Chely Wright
Arranged by Mark Hayes
Soloist: Alex Espiritu
Featuring: Sin City Sound
Words & Music by Johnny Marks
Performed by Barry Manilow
Featuring: LVMC Dance Line
Words & Music by Mykola Leontovych
Featuring: Santa’s Elves
Word & Music by J. Fred Coots & Haven Gillespie (Singalong)
Twelve Days After Christmas
Words & Music by Frederick Silver Featuring: Sin City Sound
WE WISH YOU THE MERRIEST HOLIDAY SEASON!
We Wish You the Merriest
Love is Christmas
What Christmas Means to Me
Words & Music by Les Brown
Arranged by Rob Bradley
Words & Music by Sara Bareilles
Arranged by Ryan Duff
Soloist: MK Cordova
Cellist: Christian Garcia
Words & Music by George Gordy, Anna Gord Gaye, Allen Story
Arranged by Tim Sarsany
Soloists: Timothy Wells & Marco Roxas
Three friends from college come together almost every week to eat, laugh, and talk about movies. Five years and 170+ episodes later, we're a little fatter and still having fun. Join Blake, Jose, and Brandon at the table and in front of the screen where there's always more than enough room to be asatiatedcinephile. Subscribe now on Spotify,ApplePodcasts, Google Podcasts,Anchor, or wherever you get your favoritepodcasts. It’s free!
