Arts & Entertainment
Downtown Dazzle Wraps Up Holidays with New Year’s Eve Events
The following article was produced and paid for by Downtown Dazzle: Downtown Dazzle is wrapping up its fifth consecutive year of connecting guests to all of the holiday fun throughout downtown’s vibrant neighborhoods and districts. After handing out nearly 5,000 Dazzling Deals Booklets (all free) with more than 80 special offers from downtown businesses, hosting…
‘Queer Eye’ Cast Boffo Hit at Downtown Library Book Event
By Kim Mueller Molly Vazquez and Erik Crawford huddled four hours in 34-degree weather outside the Downtown Public Library Wednesday night to see “The Fab Five” discuss their new book, “Queer Eye: Love Yourself. Love Your Life.” “We got in line at 2:30 because we wanted good seats,” said Crawford. “We knew how fast the…
Folk Alliance Welcomed to New Crossroads Digs
By Kevin Collison The Folk Alliance dedicated its new home in the Crossroads Arts District Thursday and the international music organization was welcomed by Mayor Sly James for its contribution to Kansas City’s cultural scene. “We appreciate the rich artistic and cultural history of this city,” the mayor said. “One of the great things to…
Dinosaurs a Huge Hit at Union Station, Attendance Breaks 100,000
(Editor’s note: Union Station announced Wednesday (Jan. 2) that “Dinosaurs Revealed: Journey Across America” will extend through the 2019 Spring Break season. It was originally scheduled to close Sunday and will now remain open until March 24.) By Kevin Collison Dinosaurs Revealed!, Union Station’s first foray into creating its own major exhibition, has torn through…
Made in KC Artisan Cooperative Pulling Into the River Market
By Kevin Collison Made in Kansas City is pulling into the River Market, occupying the vintage streetcar permanently parked at the corner of Fifth and Delaware. The new outlet, the cooperative’s third downtown location, is expected to open in January and include the eclectic mix of locally-made products that has made the venture a success…
Spectacular Liberty Memorial Poppy Display to Honor Centennial of World War I Armistice
“In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row…” “In Flanders Fields,” written by Lt. Col. John McCrae in 1915 to honor a fallen comrade. By Kevin Collison More than 5,000 poppies, the symbol of the fallen soldiers of World War I, will illuminate Liberty Memorial beginning next Friday to mark the centennial…
Historic KC Club Reopens as Event Space Following $3M Renovation
By Kevin Collison A former downtown gathering place for Kansas City power brokers back in the day has reopened as spiffed-up venue for a new generation of festive occasions and business gatherings. The historic University Club building at 918 Baltimore, which opened in 1923, has been converted to a four-level event space that can accommodate…
Crossroads Hotel a Striking Addition to Downtown Hospitality Scene
By Kevin Collison The bland exterior of the new Crossroads Hotel at 2101 Central may fool you, but once inside the historic brick shell you’ll discover and enjoy a post-industrial chic vibe that’s right out of New York’s famed SoHo District. The partnership between Chicago-based Simeone Deary Design Group and el dorado architects has created…
New Hotel Indigo Lifts Lasting Toast to Pioneering Crossroads Artist
By Kevin Collison Jim Leedy, the renowned artist who pioneered the Crossroads Arts District in 1985, knows what he wants when someone decides to name a hotel bar after him. “If I have a bar named after me, I should get free drinks,” Leedy quipped at the festive grand opening last week of the Hotel…
Hy-Vee Arena Opens, Bringing New Bounce to Bottoms
By Kevin Collison The Hy-Vee Arena formally opened last week in the West Bottoms at a ceremony where developer Steve Foutch was saluted for his vision and perseverance in reviving what had become a costly white elephant for the city, the former Kemper Arena. “Six years ago, he approached us with the idea of a…