Time once again for weekend calendar picks from KC Studio editor Alice Thorson! The 2018 Folk Alliance International, which started yesterday, continues through Sunday, February 18th, with the Kansas City Folk Festival going on all day. Opening tonight and running through March 4th, the Kansas City Black Repertory Theatre presents The Colored Museum, with sketches that explore and satirizes prominent themes and identities of African-American culture. Also opening tonight, and continuing with performances through the weekend, is Kansas City Ballet’s “New Moves” at the Bolender Center. Friday night, the Harriman-Jewell Series presents pianist Mitsuko Uchida at the Folly Theater. Friday and Saturday night at the Kauffman Center, see Störling Dance Theater’s Underground. And on Saturday night, stop by the Kansas City Artists’ Coalition and bid on works of art at their annual fundraising auction, or see French jazz vocalist Cyrille Aimee at the Folly. For more ideas this weekend, visit Kansas City’s most comprehensive arts calendar at kcstudio.org/events.
Folk Alliance International Conference
February 14, 2018 – February 18, 2018
Westin Crown Center
The annual Folk Alliance International Conference is the world’s largest gathering of the folk music industry and community (crossing a diverse array of genres including Appalachian, Americana, Bluegrass, Blues, Cajun, Celtic, Global Roots, Indie-Folk, Indigenous, Latin, Old Time, Traditional, Singer-Songwriter, and Spoken Word).
The conference draws over 2,700 artists and industry (agents, managers, publishers, labels, festival and venue bookers, media, and service providers) dedicated to folk music.
Join us as we celebrate 30 years of community and song, honoring the past three decades of FAI’s growth and activity, as well as the broader story of folk music during that time.
This year features key presentations from Mary Chapin Carpenter and Richard Thompson, global industry summits, hundreds of Official Showcase performances, thousands of Private Showcases, daytime panels, networking and mentorship sessions, and more. The fifth annual Louis Jay Meyers Music Camp and the third annual Kansas City Folk Festival will also be held in conjunction with the conference.
The Colored Museum
February 15, 2018 – March 4, 2018
ArtsTech
The Colored Museum, a play written by George C. Wolfe, premiered in 1986 under the direction of L. Kenneth Richardson. In a series of 11 “exhibits” (sketches), the review explores and satires prominent themes and identities of African-American culture. This comedy looks at stereotypes with razor sharp wit! Think the comedy duet Key and Peel.
The sketches include:
Git on Board: Miss Pat, a flight attendant, welcomes the audience aboard the fictional “celebrity slaveship,” whose Savannah-bound journey from the Ivory Coast demands that passengers (the audience) are to obey the “Fasten Shackles” sign and are not to rebel. The sketch explores and critiques the history of African Americans, from slavery to the regency of the basketball star.
Cookin’ with Aunt Ethel: Mammy Aunt Ethel hosts a cooking show in which she sings the recipe on how to “bake yourself a batch of Negros.”
The Photo Session: A glamorous black couple wearing “the best of everything and perfect smiles,” retreats from their past/history into a superficial world of narcissistic glamour. The Photo Session is Wolfe’s critique on the images and models of Ebony magazine.
Kansas City Ballet Presents “New Moves”
February 15-17, 2018 @ 7:30 pm
February 17 & 18, 2018 @ 2:00 pm
Todd Bolender Center for Dance & Creativity
New Moves is a chance for audiences to see tomorrow’s sought after choreographers today! It is a very up close and visceral experience for audience and dancer alike, with all performances held in the Bolender Center’s intimate Michael and Ginger Frost Studio Theater. Come see our Kansas City Ballet artists and emerging choreographers together discover bold new ways of expression and feel the athleticism, beauty, power and passion of never before seen new creations out on the edge!
Störling Dance Theater’s UNDERGROUND
February 16 & 17, 2018 @ 7:30 pm | $25 – $70
Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
Celebrating its 11th Anniversary!! Now more than ever! Come see Störling Dance Theater’s UNDERGROUND! Whether you’re celebrating Black History Month, American history or the story that binds us all together, see the show that has become a Kansas City tradition. “Top 10 Performance of the Decade!” – Paul Horsley, The Independent. The story of the Underground Railroad is performed to original music, beautiful costumes and a pace that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Don’t miss out on this world-class performance! You may have seen Störling’s acclaimed Prodigal Daughter, Butterfly or the arresting Suspended Grace, so don’t miss Underground, their signature production beginning to tour the nation. Artistic Directors Mona Störling-Enna and Tobin James have crafted a production combines, ballet, modern dance, corporeal mime, original music and breathtaking costumes to tell the story like never before. Buy your tickets today! Come join the growing following of Störling Dance Theater’s UNDERGROUND, February 16-17, 2018 at the stunning Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. UNDERGROUND will capture your heart and revive your spirit.
Mitsuko Uchida, pianist in recital
February 16, 2018 @ 7:30 pm | $30 – $85
Folly Theater
Pianist Mitsuko Uchida, praised by the New York Times for possessing an “elegant and profound musicianship,” is indeed a very rare talent. She made her mark performing the music of Mozart, but her sublime touch with all composers has drawn universal praise from audiences and critics. Her recital will feature a program dedicated to Schubert’s poetic music.
Uchida, 69, first appeared on the Harriman-Jewell Series in 1989 and most recently in 1992, so she’s an artist many in Kansas City have been waiting decades to hear again. Born in Japan, Uchida moved to Austria with her diplomat parents when she was 12. It was in Austria that she absorbed the great Austrian musical tradition. In Vienna, she studied with Maria Curcio, who was Arthur Schnabel’s last student. Schnabel, in turn, studied with Theodor Leschetizky, who studied with Carl Czerny, who studied with Ludwig Van Beethoven, putting Uchida directly in the Beethoven lineage.
“Her ability to do particularly poetic literature like (Wolfgang Amadeus) Mozart and (Franz) Schubert is just jaw-dropping,” Harriman-Jewell Series’ Executive and Artistic Director Clark Morris said. “Mitsuko is such a deep and phenomenal musician. Since we had her here the last time, she really hasn’t done much work in the United States. She comes to New York and has been the artistic director of the Marlboro Festival, but it’s been very difficult to see a piano recital by her in the United States because she concentrates mostly on Europe.”
Mitsuko Uchida’s loyal relationship with the finest orchestras and concert halls has resulted in numerous residencies. She has been Artist-in-Residence at the Cleveland Orchestra and at the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Konzerthaus, Salzburg Mozartwoche and Lucerne Festival. Carnegie Hall dedicated to her a Perspectives series entitled “Mitsuko Uchida: Vienna Revisited.”
KCAC Annual Fundraising Art Auction
February 17, 2018 @ 6:00 pm | $30 – $50
Kansas City Artists Coalition
Auction regulars will tell you to come early, dress casually and in layers, as the bidding gets hot, so does the room. Be ready for a great time! Refreshments are served.
Silent Auction – 6 pm. You can start bidding on Silent Auction items beginning February 1st, up to and until, the Silent Auction begins closing at 7:15 p.m. on auction night, February 17. Stake your claim early and be ready to up your bid Saturday evening!
Live Auction – 8:15 pm. This is it! By now you have finished bidding on your Silent Auction selections and are ready to be a part of the fun and thrills of the Live Auction! The Live Auction generally lasts until 10:30 or 11:00 pm. Checkout for both Live and Silent Auction begins at 9:00 pm. Cash, checks, major credit cards are accepted.
After Auction, After Party begins when the Live Auction ends in the gallery. Surprises and fun to end your auction night with a bang!
CYRILLE AIMEE
February 17, 2018 @ 8:00 pm
Folly Theater
Vocalist Cyrille Aimee was primarily raised in Samois-sur-Seine, France, the same place where legendary gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt had lived, which contributed to her great love of gypsy musical influences. In her words, “I was hypnotized by gypsy music, which made me want to tap my feet; music that swings makes me so happy.” Aimee’s hybrid of influences has resulted in a sound that is at once both fresh and enlivening, which is to say nothing of her singular voice, destined to enthrall audiences for decades to come.
