Finale - Conservatory Orchestra and Choirs - UMKC Conservatory Artist Series

This celebrated annual spectacle comes alive again this December!
A cast of more than 40 puppets, including beautiful seven-foot puppets, live music and a choral accompiment grace the stage for this biblical enactment.

by Jen Silverman
Directed by Kim Martin-Cotton

Two sisters and a dog live out their lives on the bleak English moors, and dream of love and power. The arrival of a hapless governess and a moor-hen set all three on a strange and dangerous path. The Moors is a dark comedy about love, desperation, and visibility.

Bruce Sorrell, conductor 

A glorious celebration of sound featuring J.S. Bach’s – Magnificent with choir and soloists, 
Telemann’s Concerto for Oboe d’amore and other festive Baroque works. Musica Vocale Choral Ensemble, Arnold Epley Artistic Director Margaret Marco, oboe

Chipper chipmunk Randall P. Nutbutter is preparing for the biggest Christmas party ever...the Jingle Jamboree! Yet his holiday decorations, cookies and presents keep going missing. With the help of the audience and a cast of wacky characters, Randall solves the mystery just in time for the Jamboree to begin! Featuring favorite sing along songs and audience participation.

A Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, Marsha Norman’s “’night, Mother” is the story of a woman driven to her breaking point. A harsh reflection on modern life and its purpose, the psychological exploration of this show will leave an indelible impression. “’night, Mother” will be directed by Sidonie Garrett, who previously directed “A Streetcar Named Desire” for KCAT, and has extensively directed for the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival.

2020 Vision - TEDxUMKC
 
More information TBA...

"Girlfriend" single tickets on sale now!

GIRLFRIEND
Music & Lyrics by Matthew Sweet
Book by Todd Almond

A vibrant and tender coming-of-age musical duet from when flannel was the height of fashion and mixtapes were the language of love. It's 1993 in small-town Nebraska during the summer between high school and whatever comes next. College-bound jock Mike and self-assured but aimless Will find themselves drawn to each other. Their rush of first-time love, full of excitement, confusion and passion, is captured by the power-pop precision and frayed guitar emotion of Matthew Sweet's alternative rock album "Girlfriend."

Concert information for February 11th, 2020 - directed by Kevin Noe Concert details coming soon...

Carolyn Watson, guest conductor

Romantic music for strings, voice and soloists in the warm sound of the historic Folly Theater, followed by our signature Champagne Chocolate Celebration event.

The Conservatory Wind Symphony, directed by Steven D. Davis.

---Details coming soon!

The Conservatory Wind Ensemble, directed by Joseph Parisi

---Details coming soon!

The Legacy Lives: Ain’t No stopping Us Now! with Speaker: Mayor Quinton Lucas- Black Archives

More information please visit www.blackarchives.org/events

Contributor Level - One ticket

Friends Level - One ticket

Benefactor Level• 1 prominent table location with seating for 10 guests• Sponsor logo shown during luncheon• Listing in event program (camera-ready artwork provided by you) 1/4 full page

Collector Level• 1 Prominent table location with seating for 10 guests• Sponsor logo shown during luncheon• Listing in event program (camera-ready artwork provided by you) 1/2 full page

Ruby Arnold Champion Level• 1 prominent table location with seating for 10 guests• Group photo opportunity with the speaker• Sponsor logo shown during luncheon• Listing in event program (camera-ready artwork provided by you) 1 full page• Logo on Black Archives of Mid-America website

Horace M. Peterson, III Level• 2 prominent table locations with seating for 20 guests• Group photo opportunity with the speaker• Sponsor logo shown during luncheon• Acknowledgement as presenting sponsor in print & electronic materials• Listing in event program (camera-ready artwork provided by you) 1 full page• Logo on Black Archives of Mid-America website

Based on the book by Lisa Campbell Ernst
Set amongst America's amber waves of grain, this update to the classic story finds Little Red Riding Hood, nicknamed for her beloved red sweatshirt, pedaling her bike to deliver muffins to her Grandma’s prairie home. A hungry wolf wants the muffin recipe for himself and hatches a plan to steal it from Grandma. Tractor-driving Grandma, of course, won’t put up with such nonsense and puts him to work in her kitchen instead! Based on the adaption by Kansas City-based author and illustrator Lisa Campbell Ernst.

By Federico García Lorca
Directed byVanessa Severo

Two families in a semi-mythical rural Spain are intricately bound in an unbreakable cycle of murder and revenge. The death-bound love triangle at the center of the play fuels these passions to a fever pitch and propels the story to its unstoppable tragic conclusion. An arranged country marriage between the children of rich landowners is about to take place. A past lover, himself in a loveless marriage, cannot allow the wedding to take place and spirits the Bride away, who goes with him willingly on her wedding night. An entire town goes after the lovers in the middle of the night where pursuers and pursued plunge into a realm of deep darkness where the moonlight is not friendly and the forest not shelter enough.

directed by Alan Hicks.

This comic chamber opera's libretto is based on Guy de Maupassant's novella Le Rosier de Madame Husson, but is set in the English countryside.

Join the Conservatory jazz bands in a hot collage concert featuring a variety of ensembles that represent the entirety of jazz studies at the Conservatory, directed by Bobby Watson and Mitch Butler. This is ALWAYS a must-see, great night of jazz with our talented students and faculty.

---Details coming soon!

By CactusHead Puppets of Massachusetts
The town of Hamelin has a rat problem, and there's only one person who can help! Guest artists John and Megan Regan of CactusHead Puppets bring the story of The Pied Piper to life. Not only does the town find a musical solution to pest control, but the kids of Hamelin also teach the grownups a lesson about generosity. Told with multiple puppetry styles and plenty of dancing rats!

Co-Created byStephanie Roberts and2nd Year MFA Acting Ensemble

A devised production about what sets Americans apart, and what brings us together.

How do we cope in an increasingly divided nation? Where do we turn when the growing schisms within politics, race, gender, sexuality, religion, and class have become part of our daily lives? Using physical theatre, interviews, music, comedy and personal storytelling, the second-year MFA Acting students take on these questions to discover how looking at America’s divisions can ultimately bring us together.

The dance faculty combine their creative choreography with our talented dance students and collaborate with Conservatory musicians to create innovative performances that you won’t want to miss.

---Details coming soon!

Bruce Sorrell, conductor

A blockbuster season finale featuring award winning soloists from the International Center for Music,
Park University and the full forces of the KC Chamber Orchestra.

Based on the folk song made popular by Fred Penner, this performance tells the tale of Mister Johnson and a mysterious cat who keeps returning to his doorstep. Mister Johnson tries everything he can to get the cat to go away, from giving her to a pilot to sending her into outer space. The cat, however, keeps coming back!