© 2024 Kansas City Public Radio
NPR in Kansas City
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Where To Fringe - From Traditional To Unexpected Kansas City Venues

For its 10th season, the KC Fringe Festival will take over spaces in Kansas City, Mo., for theater, music, comedy, spoken word, burlesque and more.

KC Fringe is an 11-day festival that provides a platform for often lesser-known performing and visual artists. 

This year's Fringe will have 19 different venues. Most are scattered around the Crossroads Arts District, but some spread out into Westport and the Country Club Plaza.

Some of these venues are traditional performing arts spaces, but several are not. Here is a sampling of the locations where you can catch shows over the next 11 days:

1. The Fishtank 

The Fishtank will have performances every night of the festival. While the majority of the productions are theater, the venue will also host a comedy show and spoken word. TheFishtank is located at 1715 Wyandotte. Check out the line up here

2. Cellar Rat

The Cellar Rat, a wine merchant located at 1701 Baltimore Ave., will host one show during the festival.

The five scenes in the romantic comedy Cellular Cenes will be set and told from various locations around the Crossroads. The show begins at the Cellar Rat and then moves to other places. You can find out where the next scene is with a text on your cell phone.

3. Phosphor Studio

Phosphor Studio is a collective of video, photography, audio and web interactive artists located at 1730 Broadway Blvd.

Nine shows will run at the studio throughout the festival. The performances vary from a one-man play to an ensemble of local artists' poetry, songs and short stories. You can see show times here.

4. The Buffalo Room

Festival attendees can find some of Fringe’s comedy, spoken word and music performances in the Buffalo Room at the Westport Flea Market. You can see the list of performances here. The Westport Flea Market is located at 817 Westport Road.

5. Off Center Theatre

The Off Center Theatre is located on the third level of Crown Center. The shows here will range from burlesque to jazz to a show led by a teen theater troupe. 

You can find out more information about the festival at its website or visit Fringe 411 in Union Station where you can purchase tickets, buttons and merchandise.

KC Fringe Festival, July 17-27. Opening night events including a Fringe walk at 5:30 p.m. and Fringe teasers from 7 - 10 p.m., Spencer Theatre, James C. Olson Performing Arts Center, University of Missouri-Kansas City campus at 4949 Cherry St., Kansas City, Mo., 816-359-9195.

KCUR serves the Kansas City region with breaking news and award-winning podcasts.
Your donation helps keep nonprofit journalism free and available for everyone.