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Central Standard

Seg. 1: Sprayseemo | Seg. 2: Opera Family | Seg. 3: Space Meatball

Segment 1: Muralists descend on Kansas City to make art.

In its third year, Sprayseemo has become a big international festival for creating outdoor public art in Kansas City. 

  • Amy Harrington and Jason Harrington (AKA Riff Raff Giraffe), artists and festival organizers

Segment 2: A world-renowned opera singer performs in his native Kansas City, alongside his mom.

Ben Bliss grew up with opera. His mom's been a professional opera singer since he was a kid. But he came to opera on his own terms and how the mother-son duo are about to share the stage for the first time.

Segment 3: A local restaurant attempts to send a meatball to space.

A party at Cupini's in Westport will be the site of a meatball space launch, as well as performances by three local bands.

  • Matthew Mullinger, general manager, Cupini's

People don't make cameos in news stories; the human story is the story, with characters affected by news events, not defined by them. As a columnist and podcaster, I want to acknowledge what it feels like to live through this time in Kansas City, one vantage point at a time. Together, these weekly vignettes form a collage of daily life in Kansas City as it changes in some ways, and stubbornly resists change in others. You can follow me on Twitter @GinaKCUR or email me at gina@kcur.org.
Anne Kniggendorf is a staff writer/editor at the Kansas City Public Library and freelance contributor to KCUR. She is the author of "Secret Kansas City."