Time for weekend calendar picks from KC Studio editor Alice Thorson! Stop by the National Museum of Toys and Miniatures to see their exhibition of work by toy designer Donna Moore. Or visit the Epsten Gallery in Village Shalom to see projects and take part in workshops with artists Brandon Briscoe and Greg Azorsky. This weekend is also your last chance to see the Tony award-winning musical An American in Paris at Starlight Theatre through Sunday. Tonight, enjoy entertainment from the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival at Powell Gardens’ Midsummer Night’s Cocktail Party. Saturday, the Kansas City Baroque Consortium performs its second summer concert Between Silence and Light at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Saturday and Sunday, Summerfest continues with performances at White Recital Hall and St. Mary’s Episcopal. Looking for more ideas this weekend? Check out Kansas City’s most comprehensive arts calendar at kcstudio.org/events.
THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL IMAGINATION OF DONNA MOORE
June 10, 2017 – June 3, 2018
The National Museum of Toys and Miniatures
You may not know who Donna Moore is, but if you grew up in the 1980s and 1990s, there is a good chance you played with one of her soft toys. Based in Kansas City, Moore was one of the most prolific toy designers of the late 20th century and her products were sold all over the world. From the “Crazy Crop” characters for Hallmark to the Beatles John, Paul, George, and Ringo for Determined Products, explore Moore’s career and artistic process.
Pop-Up Artist-In-Residence 2017
July 10, 2017 – July 31, 2017
The Epsten Gallery in Village Shalom
An annual summer experience for artists and community members at the Epsten Gallery! This summer, we will feature Brandon Briscoe and Greg Azorsky for week-long, on-site residencies where the artists will create projects in an open-studio environment, host intergenerational community workshops, and lead an Open Studio Experience during Village Shalom University.
An American in Paris
July 11, 2017 – July 16, 2017
Starlight Theatre
Winner of the most Tony Awards® of the 2015 Broadway season!
An American in Paris is the new Tony Award®-winning musical about an American soldier, a mysterious French girl and an indomitable European city, each yearning for a new beginning in the aftermath of war. Acclaimed director/choreographer and 2015 Tony Award®-winner Christopher Wheeldon brings the magic and romance of Paris into perfect harmony with unforgettable songs from George and Ira Gershwin in the show that earned more awards than any other musical in the 2015 season!
The New York Times raves, “An American in Paris is a triumph! Pure joy!” and The Wall Street Journal declares, “Once you’ve seen it, you’ll find it hard to settle for less ever again.”
Play Late Thursdays | Midsummer Night’s Cocktail Party
July 13, 2017 @ 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Powell Gardens
Enjoy an enchanted evening in the Powell Gardens’ Heartland Harvest Garden with special performances and refreshments (cash bar and food available for purchase). Encounter “merry wanderers of the night” from Heart of America Shakespeare Festival, performing select scenes from ‘A Midsummer’s Night Dream’. Discover the myths and legends behind the fantastic creatures included in the current exhibition, ‘Gardens of Myth’. Enjoy additional live-action role play guest Centrawoven Dagorhair providing roving entertainment prior to the main performance. No tickets necessary, imagination required and costumes are encouraged! (garden admission applies, members are free)
Between Silence and Light
July 14, 2017 @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
Friday, July 14th, Kansas City Baroque Consortium’s summer concert series, Between Silence and Light, continues with Concert II: Music, Art & Word. The art and writings of Makoto Fujimura and his journey of artistic expression was inspired by the novel, SILENCE, by Shūsaku Endō. Interweaving the paintings of Fujimura, the historical fiction of Shūsaku Endō, with ancient and contemporary works for baroque string ensemble, we will search for common threads of beauty expressed in art, word and music. The concert will feature baroque works by Vivaldi, Marcello and Bach performed on period instruments, Rokudan for the traditional 13-string Japanese Koto performed by Dianne Daugherty, and the premiere of Ian David Coleman’s Silence and Light, a setting of words of Louis Kahn for baritone and strings featuring Dr. Ron Witzke. Tickets at kcbaroque.org and at the door.
Summerfest Chamber Music Festival
July 15, 2017 @ 7:30 pm
White Recital Hall
July 16, 2017 @ 3:00 pm
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Kansas City, MO
In his first inaugural address, Abraham Lincoln faced a divided nation. Less than a month before his March 4, 1861 speech, seven states formally declared themselves the Confederate States of America, tearing asunder a young nation that was only eighty-five years old. Urging his listeners to come together, Lincoln appealed to the “mystic chords of memory” that would “swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched…by the better angels of our nature.” Today, we again find ourselves needing those better angels, needing to find reconciliation and union. As artists, we believe that nothing is as powerful as music in bringing us together, helping us find and celebrate our shared humanity. So invite a friend and join Summerfest this July as we evoke President Lincoln’s Chords of Memory through a series of concerts designed to remind us of who we were, who we are, and who we still might become.
