Billsville is a place you cannot comprehend until you’ve been there. It is, in every way, a destination venue. Doug and Caroline have cultivated a space that welcomes audiences and musicians alike, their house and yard an easy embrace.
— Matt Rupert in his review of Hiss Golden Messenger at Billsville in These Subtle Sounds
“Billsville” is our nickname for Williamstown – the place we started. We’re in our tenth year of this house concert series. We’re no longer in Williamstown, having moved to Manchester Center, Vermont but our ties to the name and the area are still strong and we still do shows all over.
We book artists who we want to see and make them a deal that’s hard to turn down. A great spot to play in a great part of the county, a fine helping of our vegetarian cooking, a place to stay for the night – and 100% of the proceeds. It’s a deal that makes sense to everyone involved. As a fan, you’ll get to see talented and passionate musicians without the distraction of bar noises or disinterested patrons. Plus, you’ll know that all of your money is going right back to the musicians.
As a musician – you’ll know that people are here to see you play and revel in the community spirit that a house concert offers. You should know that we rarely book bands based on an unsolicited pitch. We have a long list of bands we hope to attract and limited spots available.
Please note, we cannot respond to all booking inquiries. Given our personal schedule and the limited number of dates we have, it’s unlikely that we will book an artist that we aren’t already aware of. We tend to book from our own “most wanted” list of folks we’d like to host. It’s a quirky house show thing but there you go.
As an audience member - you’ll get to see a performance in an intimate space and really connect with the artists. After you make your reservations we’ll send you the exact time and location information a few days before the shows. In the meantime, if you have questions, send us an email
Booking Agents - Please don’t dismiss us with a “my artist doesn’t do house shows” email. Our audience, payout and hospitality are on par or above that of many venues twice the size. We have better sound and gear than 90% of the venues out there. We treat music and musicians seriously.
S T A F F
Doug Hacker, Founder
Caroline Schneider, Founder
Ethan Hacker, Production/Sound Engineer
Kai Hacker, Door/Security
Indy, Support (Emotional Rescue)
Press
" . . . they'd played exclusively small clubs, such as Burlington's Light Club Lamp Shop. Every one of those shows sold out.
But it's unlikely any of them matched the warmth and, well, intimacy of this one, held on a frigid January night in the Hacker family's 800-square-foot open living room as part of their long-running Billsville House Concerts series."