There’s something about Christmas in Montana. Snow on the mountains, lights in the windows, familiar songs and the welcome warmth of coming home. For country music artist Stephanie Quayle, those traditions are more than holiday nostalgia. They’re part of her story—and this December, she’s bringing them to the stage.

Raised on a working ranch outside Bozeman, Quayle has taken her Montana roots a far piece down the road, with Billboard success, national television appearances and numerous Grand Ole Opry performances. Her latest album, The Seeker, celebrates traditional country sounds.

But come December, there’s no place like home on the range.

On December 19, Quayle returns for a Christmas dinner show at Music Ranch Montana in Livingston. Expect holiday favorites with a country twang, Montana storytelling, sing-alongs, and songs from her repertoire. No two Stephanie Quayle shows are quite alike, and that’s part of the fun.

Bozeman Magazine: What kind of evening are you planning for the audience at Music Ranch Montana?

Stephanie Quayle: My hope is that it would just be a night filled with joy. I love singing Christmas songs. I love—I wouldn’t say reworking them but essentially putting my own Montana spin on them. Music Ranch Montana is one of my favorite venues in Montana. I’ve seen shows there. I’ve performed there. It’s just a really special space. I love the intimacy of it and the sound of the room. Interactive and joy-filled, I would say, is what December 19th will be.

BM: Will this be primarily a Christmas show, a Stephanie Quayle show, or both?

SQ: A little bit of both. I think what’s fun about country music is getting to really bend the notes with whatever instrumentation we have, being able to play within standard Christmas carols, because sing-alongs are fun. For anyone who likes to sing Christmas songs, this will be your place, for sure. There’s so much nostalgia, right? We all have these memories of moments and songs, and with my latest album being out, I absolutely will want to share songs that commemorate this season as we go into the New Year, so it will be Christmas with Stephanie.

BM: How much of your live show is planned, and how much is spontaneous?

SQ: There is a ton of preparation with any show, from the standpoint of song choices and placement, and also being extremely flexible. I’d say in between the songs, the storytelling is very authentic and organic. I don’t like scripting that because so much happens in the room that’s serendipitous and inexplicable and divine and beautiful. It’s a bit like improv, right? You just never know what might happen and what an audience member might say that then allows for a really special memory that won’t be recreated again because it is absolutely happening in the moment.

BM: Which Christmas song takes you straight back to growing up in Montana?

SQ: Oh, for sure. “White Christmas” and “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.” Those two compete. I missed a lot of Christmases in Montana just making my way in my beginning years, and now I don’t miss a Christmas in Montana, because it’s not only home, but we’ve been, for the most part, very fortunate to have white Christmases. “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” is the song that I think of when I wasn’t able to be home. It’s one of those songs that you can go back to in your memory, and you can immediately feel the warmth of family and tradition.

BM: What makes Christmas in Montana special?

SQ: I can just speak from being born and raised in Montana; there’s nothing to beat Montana for the holidays, right? I’m very partial to Montana, obviously. But I think that when you can be home with the ones you love, there’s nothing that can match that. That’s the feeling of the intimacy with this Music Ranch Montana show. It feels like home, and I want everyone to feel at home.

BM: Your new album, The Seeker, features fiddle, pedal steel and traditional country sounds. What instruments can we expect at the Christmas show?

SQ: We even have a trumpet! I feel very drawn to fiddle and pedal steel just because it’s such a sound throughout the album, and when I’ve performed Christmas shows, there’s just nothing like a pedal steel—talk about bending a note—and [nothing like] the beauty of the fiddle. We’re working on making each song sing, and [making sure] we have whatever the song needs to be supported instrumentally and vocally.

BM: Which of your acoustic guitars will you be playing?

SQ: Ooh. I’ll probably be playing my Gibson 185. It’s one of my favorite guitars. All Gibson acoustics are made in Bozeman, but it also is a sweet-sounding guitar. It has that warmth and the richness of sound that I think lends itself really well, especially to that room. I also have a Ren Ferguson guitar. Ren is an incredible luthier, and he’s brilliant. To be able to have the history of him with his work at Gibson through my Gibson, and then the history of him with his own line of Ferguson guitars, maybe my Ren will also make an appearance.

BM: Let’s go back to where it all began. When did you first perform on stage, and after all your success, do you still get nervous?

SQ: Oh, it makes me nervous every time. Every room makes me nervous from the standpoint of great anticipation and wanting everyone in the room to leave better than they came in. Whatever they come in with, that they walk out a little lighter, a little bit more hopeful, a little bit more joyful. The nervousness is not necessarily about making sure I hit the notes. That’s what rehearsing and practice and preparation is for. It’s more about authentically connecting with hearts and minds and making sure everyone feels my heartfelt appreciation and that the music speaks to them where they are. I don’t want it ever to feel automatic, because then I’ve missed something. If I get into autopilot, then I have lost my way.

The first time I performed on stage I was 16 years old in Fribourg, Switzerland, with a band. I was on an exchange program for that year, and I auditioned for their band, which is a hilarious story. I got the job probably more because I was the American in the room, not because of my abilities. We would perform on the weekends, and we actually wrote an album and put it out in Switzerland between my age of 16 and 17. I identify that as the moment when I stepped on stage and started performing and felt like, “Oh, I make sense here.” I never really felt like I belonged until I got on the stage in Switzerland, and then something just—that switch flipped. By the time I came back to Bozeman for my senior year of high school—I didn’t care what genre—a jazz trio, big band, country, or singer-songwriter, you name it... I just wanted to be a part of it, because I was infused with the love of music. And I think what is humbling is the fact that after all these years, by the time this article comes out I’ll be 47, and to feel like I’m just getting started and in love with the making of music and the songwriting and the process, I’m grateful that I’m in this place.

Christmas With Stephanie Quayle

Saddle up for a little Christmas cheer! Trade the December chill for a warm Montana welcome as Stephanie Quayle brings her Christmas Dinner Show to Music Ranch Montana. Expect holiday favorites, country music, stories, sing-alongs and a festive evening with one of Montana’s own. Bring the family, bring your Christmas spirit—and come hungry!

The evening takes place Saturday, December 19, indoors in heated Section A. Doors open at 4 p.m., dinner is served at 5 p.m. and the music begins at 6:30 p.m. Dinner choices include beef, ham or chicken.

For tickets and more information, visit www.MusicRanchMontana.com.