Kaboom Collective schedules world premiere for Styx documentary Twenty Years On
Cleveland-based non-profit arts organization Kaboom Collective will host the world premiere of its new feature-length documentary, Twenty Years On, early next month.
The screening is scheduled for Saturday, June 6, 2026, at 7:30 p.m. at Heights Theater Studios, the organization’s professional soundstage facility located in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. The film chronicles a two-decade creative partnership between the non-profit’s youth program and the veteran rock band Styx, exploring how their collaborative model influenced subsequent rock-and-orchestra formats across the music industry.
The project began in 2006 when Kaboom founder and conductor Liza Grossman paired a youth orchestra with Styx for a large-scale arena rock performance. The format, which featured fully orchestrated rock arrangements, was subsequently adopted by various artists and orchestras nationally.
Directed by Evan Haiman, the documentary integrates archival footage from a landmark 2006 concert at the Blossom Music Center and the 2016 concert special Sing for the Day. The production team interweaves these historical performances with contemporary interviews and new tracking sessions recorded directly inside Heights Theater Studios.
“Every person in this film made a choice to show up, to trust the process, and to give everything they had to something bigger than themselves,” Grossman said in a statement. She noted that the original student musicians have since transitioned into diverse professional fields, working as doctors, educators, studio artists, and Broadway musicians.
The documentary tracks the career paths of the original 2006 ensemble members, including one former student who now heads the neurological stroke department at a major hospital. The film also features an on-stage reunion with members of Styx, alongside footage of the current generation of Kaboom Studio Orchestra musicians tracking new orchestral arrangements of the songs “Blue Collar Man” and “Build and Destroy.”
“It is amazing to celebrate our relationship and performance with the Cleveland Youth Orchestra twenty years later and see the kids grown up,” Styx guitarist and vocalist Tommy Shaw stated.
The film is produced by Charlie Brusco, Liza Grossman, Evan Haiman, and Joe Weagraff. Executive production support was provided by Jean Harry, the Brenda Fuchs Family Foundation, and the Arthur E., Elsie G., and Betty M. Kranz Family Foundation.
The release follows the non-profit’s previous award-winning 2025 short documentary, Kaboom Collective: Beyond the Stage. The June 6 premiere event will conclude with an interactive Q&A session featuring the filmmakers and selected special guests. Ticket registration is currently open through the Givebutter platform.
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