Actor, director, and producer William H. Macy is celebrated for his roles in films like Boogie Nights and Magnolia as well as the long-running TV series Shameless. He received an Oscar nomination for playing the hilariously incompetent car salesman/criminal Jerry Lundegaard in the Coen brothers’ Fargo. But at the Arts Campus at Willits (TACAW), Basalt’s buzzy entertainment venue, he’s just Bill. As in “Bill’s Room,” the popular musical variety show that Macy (who lives full-time in nearby Woody Creek with his wife, actress Felicity Huffman) occasionally hosts at TACAW.

Because it turns out that Macy, 75, is a musician too. He first picked up the guitar as a kid, inspired by an older brother who played. After Macy sang a ribald song at a high school assembly, he recalls, “I got a laugh I’ve been chasing for the rest of my life.” Then, almost 20 years ago, Macy took up the ukulele—on a lark for a cast and crew talent show at the Boogie Nights wrap party—and quickly fell in love with what he calls “the crack cocaine of string instruments.”

Why the ukulele, with its associations with rum drinks on the beach or the Tiny Tim connotations? Well, it’s exactly that, explains Macy. “It’s a bit exotic, it’s funny, and nobody expects much from you,” he says. “If you can get any music out of it, they’re surprised. But some of the chord sounds you get are so delightful, so unexpected.” And it’s portable. These days, says Macy, “I’m never without a ukulele.... I can play it very quietly, and it’s soothing, for me and the whole set.” (He owns several, including a Kamaka baritone, a Mele, a handmade Flea, and a Martin from the 1960s.)

He also pens his own songs, which range from family birthday tributes to paeans to Roaring Fork Valley landmarks like the Salvation Ditch to musings such as “I Love F’d-Up Women,” which he played on stage before a Jazz Aspen Snowmass Labor Day concert as part of a donation pitch. (“They didn’t ask me back this year,” he quips.)  

Bill’s Room was a collaborative effort with Kendall Smith, TACAW’s director of programming. Macy contacted Smith about the possibility of performing some songs at the venue, and Smith countered with the idea of a series of musical variety shows (think a mountain-town version of A Prairie Home Companion) hosted by Macy. Together, they devised the format: some Macy originals interspersed with performances by a couple of mostly local musical guests, whom he also interviews on stage. At the end, everyone comes together for a jam with the house band, the Roommates. 

“This valley is rich with talented singer-songwriters,” says Macy. “You can hear music at almost every bar and restaurant, and the depth of talent is staggering.”

Thanks to TACAW’s compact size (the theater comfortably seats about 250 ) and strong community vibe, it’s like dropping into Macy’s own living room for an intimate listening session. “It’s really down home right now,” says Macy of the show. “That’s one of its charms.” He even admits to just the briefest frisson of stage fright. “I’m new at this. It’s completely different than acting in general and acting on stage. I’m better with learning lines that someone else wrote than lyrics that I wrote.”

The first show last June featured Jim Beloff, a modern ukulele master from Connecticut (Macy is a huge fan) and David Brown, a local multi-instrumentalist who has since joined the Roommates. The sold-out sophomore effort in early September showcased Roaring Fork Valley singer-songwriters Frank Martin and Natalie Spears. Macy also recited a notably comprehensive timeline of significant musical moments in Aspen and environs, from the late 1800s to the present. The show ended with everyone on stage singing the Youngbloods’ “Get Together” and the audience enthusiastically joining in for the chorus. 

Plans call for a half-dozen shows in the series’ first year, dependent on Macy’s schedule, which is far from idle. This fall, he’s in Los Angeles shooting The Land, a fictional Netflix series about the Cleveland Browns (Macy plays the team’s owner) slated to air in 2026. Plus, he appeared in a series of recent films: The Running Man (based on the Stephen King novel); Train Dreams (“It killed at Sundance,” Macy says); Soul on Fire; and Brian (which Macy’s daughter Sophia also acts in). 

“Bill is very interested in shining a light on the wealth of talent we have in the Roaring Fork Valley,” says TACAW’s Smith. “He goes out and watches people play and gets to know their process. So this is really about showcasing Bill’s musical talent as well as his curiosity. Plus, he’s a charming guy. Who doesn’t want to watch him have a conversation with somebody?”

Nobody. Which means pretty much everybody wants a ticket to Bill’s Room.