Broadway sensations, international classical soloists, a Lynn Nottage early masterpiece, a symphonic tribute to America, a dazzling display by Kansas City’s homegrown early-music ensemble—and much more. This might be our city’s most auspicious performing arts summer ever.
MAY
May 28: Harriman-Jewell Series; Evgeny Kissin, Joshua Bell, and Steven Isserlis in Concert; If you were to build a “dream trio” of pianist, violinist, and cellist today it might look like this; three mega-stars of the classical world (a Russian, an American, and a Brit) perform two foundation-stones of the trio repertoire (Tchaikovsky’s A-minor Trio and Shostakovich’s Trio No. 2) and the rarely performed Fantastic Dance on Hebrew Themes by Solomon Rosowsky (1878-1962); Folly Theater. Contact: 816-415-5025 or hjseries.org.
JUNE
June 9-14: AdventHealth Broadway Series/Starlight Theatre: Hadestown; Anaïs Mitchell’s award-winning musical, developed with director Rachel Chavkin from an offbeat “downtown” show to a Broadway hit, is a fusion of two myths: a bright and fanciful retelling of the Orpheus-Eurydice story with Hades and Persephone horning in now and then; The New York Times’ Jesse Green called it “sumptuous, hypnotic, and somewhat hyperactive.” It won eight Tony Awards and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album; Starlight Theatre. Contact: 816-363-7827 or kcstarlight.com.
June 13-14: Choral Spectrum KC; Busting Out: Pride is Power; As it closes out an exciting season (which included performances of Barber’s Agnus Dei, Rutter’s Gloria, and most recently Orff’s Carmina Burana), Kansas City’s most fearless LGBTQIA chorus and its director, Michael Robert Patch, celebrate Pride Month with music of Chappel Roan, Pentatonix, Nat King Cole, Craig Hella Johnson, Brian Tate, and U2, and numbers from the hit movie K-Pop Demon Hunters; Holmeswood Church. Contact: choralspectrumkc.org.
June 16-July 5: Heart of America Shakespeare Festival: The Scottish Play; The Festival takes up one of the bard’s most murderous masterpieces (whose real title we dare not print, let alone speak!), first produced in 1606 and not seen at HASF in 15 years; Jacques Roy appears in the title role and Cinnamon Schultz is his infamously ambitious wife; Southmoreland Park. Contact: 816-531-7728 or kcshakes.org.
June 19-21: Kansas City Symphony: Rhapsody in Blue and Dvořák’s ‘New World’ Symphony; Guest conductor Peter Oundjian leads gems by two great American women (Joan Tower’s Suite from Concerto for Orchestra and Florence Price’s Piano Concerto), and Dvořák’s tribute to America, his great Ninth Symphony; Michelle Cann is soloist in the Price and also in Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue; Contact: 816-471-0400 or kcsymphony.org.
June 19 and 21, July 24 and 26, August 21 and 23: Kansas City Baroque Consortium: Barocco Italiano; Kansas City’s top-drawer early music ensemble performs three ingenious programs of music by Vivaldi, Corelli, Pergolesi, Marcello, A. Scarlatti, and Geminiani, led by Trilla Ray-Carter and featuring terrific soloists such as gambist Tess Roberts, recordist/clarinetist Trevor Stewart, soprano Hannah De Priest, and countertenor Jay Carter; three Friday evenings at: St. Paul’s Episcopal Church (June 19th), Our Lady of Sorrows Church (July 24th), and Village Presbyterian Church (August 21st), and three Sunday afternoons at Gloria Dei Luthern Church in the Northland. Contact: kcbaroque.org.
June 26-28: Spinning Tree Theatre: The World Goes ’Round: The Songs of Kander & Ebb; The determined young players of this group mount a show that is dear to the hearts of Kansas Citians, with songs from the epoch-defining Broadway shows (Cabaret, Chicago, Kiss of the Spider Woman) by KC native John Kander and his longtime creative partner, lyricist Fred Ebb; Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center. Contact: spinningtreetheatre.com.
June 27-28: Heartland Men’s Chorus; Anthems of Pride; Cheyenne Jackson is one of those rare singer-dancer-actor gods whose presence is felt not just on Broadway but also in TV (30 Rock, Glee, American Horror Story) and film (United 93); HMC has invited this extraordinary American talent (Glamour once called him “the Greek god of cheekbones … who somehow mastered the art of time travel”) to help close out its 40th season celebration, definitely a must-see; Yardley Hall, Midwest Trust Center. Contact: 816-931-3338 or hmckc.org.
JULY
July 8-26: White Theatre at the J, co-produced with the Coterie Theatre; Disney’s Frozen; Khalia Davis of the Coterie directs this promising production, in which the beloved princesses (Anna and Elsa) from the Oscar-winning animated film take to the stage, with songs by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez; Lewis & Shirley White Theatre, Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City. Contact: 913-327-8054 or thejkc.org.
July 14-25: Theatre for Young America; King Arthur and the Magic Sword; It’s 5th-Century Britain and the Roman Empire is in disarray; young Arthur, determined to battle the world’s injustices, is the only one who can pull Excalibur from the rock; a perfect summer treat for audiences of all ages; H&R Block City Stage at Union Station Kansas City. Contact: 816-460-2083 or tya.org.
July 16-26: KC Fringe; Fringe Festival 2026; In addition to being a forum for fresh ideas and new formats, this festival (which has been called Kansas City’s “largest celebration of arts and culture”) has fostered numerous projects that later became full-fledged productions (or gallery exhibitions) of great critical and public acclaim; The Living Room’s Milking Christmas began here, for example; Various venues. Contact: kcfringe.org.
July 18-August 2: Summerfest; Animated by Jazz; The 34th season of this group of crack orchestral players from the Kansas City Symphony and elsewhere explores the intersections of classical and jazz (and there are more than you might think): I. Ragtime and Ravel, II. Creation of the World, and III. Nocturnes, Promenades, and Roses; Saturday evenings at Grant Recital Hall (new this year, see UMKC campus map) and Sunday afternoons at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church. Contact: 816-895-2920 or summerfestkc.org.
AUGUST
August 5-23: Kansas City Actors Theater: Lynn Nottage’s Intimate Apparel; This inventive classic by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ruined, Sweat, and Clyde’s, directed here by Teresa Leggard, tells of a master seamstress in 1905 New York (played here by KCAT’s Chioma Anyanwu) who creates fabulous under-apparel for everyone from society ladies to, well, ladies of the night; it was one of the first plays to draw attention to Lynn, now recognized as one of the great playwrights of our time; H&R Block City Stage at Union Station Kansas City. Contact: kcactors.org.
August 7-16: The Barn Players; Disaster!; Seth Rudetsky, Jack Plotnick, and Drew Geraci created a hilarious comedic homage to the awful ’70s disaster movies (Airport, The Towering Inferno, Earthquake, The Poseidon Adventure), which they’ve made into a nostalgic jukebox musical; stage direction is by Kipp Simmons, musical direction by Todd Gregory-Gibbs, and choreography by Meghann Deveroux; Johnson County Arts & Heritage Center. Contact: 913-432-9100 or thebarnplayers.org.
August 23: Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception; Fourteenth French Organ Music Festival; This year organists Thomas Vozzella, Jacob Hofeling, Father Paul Turner, and Cathedral Music Director Mario Pearson will join St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church’s choir and the Cathedral’s Schola for Louis Vierne’s Messe solennelle and Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem, featuring the Cathedral’s renowned Ruffati Pipe Orchestra; Mario Pearson is cathedral music director, and Jan Kraybill will close out the festival with her usual keyboard fireworks. Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. Contact: kcgolddome.org/music-ministry/224-french-organ-music-festival.
To reach Paul Horsley, performing arts editor, send an email to paul@kcindependent.com or find him on Facebook or X/Instagram (@phorsleycritic).
