theatre

When Lyric Opera of Kansas City needed a dog to play a character in their new production of “Of Mice and Men," eight canines and their owners showed up to audition. The lucky dog makes his big debut this weekend.

When a Kansas City opera held auditions of older dogs for a new production, canine owners around the metro answered the call. Meet the working dogs trying out for a critical role in “Of Mice and Men." Plus: We'll take a tour of the Kansas Statehouse and a new mural depicting 13 women’s civil rights advocates.

Captain Ahab’s preoccupation with a white whale is set to music in a new Kansas City world premiere. It’s Herman Melville’s “Moby Dick,” told in authentic, 19th-century sea shanties.

Gary Neal Johnson is retiring from his nearly 25-year run as Ebenezer Scrooge in the Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s production of “A Christmas Carol.” He Joined KCUR’s Up To Date for an installment of our series “5 Questions,” and to discuss hanging up his hat after acting in the play for 40 years.

Arts organization in Kansas City are under financial pressure after the Trump administration rescinded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. Spinning Tree Theatre is one of hundreds of organizations who were notified by email last week that their grant had been withdrawn.

Nathan Louis Jackson’s untimely death at the age of 44 left a void in Kansas City theater. A new Kansas City Repertory Theatre production of his play “Broke-ology” could prove the writer's power to inspire audiences hasn’t gone away.

Spinning Tree Theatre's annual festival stages three short plays, written by local teenagers, with professional-level resources. This year's performances will take place Friday through Sunday at Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center.

This year, Kansas City theatergoers have several ways to enjoy "A Christmas Carol," Charles Dickens' holiday story of redemption. Three different actors talk about their interpretations of Ebenezer Scrooge on stages around Kansas City.

This year, Kansas Citians have several ways to enjoy "A Christmas Carol," Charles Dickens' holiday story of redemption, including a musical and modern take. Three Scrooges in Kansas City's live-theater adaptations spoke with KCUR's Up To Date about getting into character and the lessons they take away from the tale.

Theater-goers will be in for some "surprises," says Ernie Nolan, the new artistic director of the Unicorn Theatre in Kansas City. Nolan assumed the role on July 1, after the retirement of longtime director Cynthia Levin.

Tanner Rose plays the eccentric chocolate maker Willy Wonka in The Coterie Theater production of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," which runs through Aug. 4. When he's not playing the world's most famous chocolatier, Rose himself works at a Kansas City chocolate shop.

For young Kansas City actors with autism, a new play creates space to "connect with others." Vanessa Severo’s “Rubik" tells the story of neurodivergent teens on the cusp of a new phase of life.