KCMETROPOLIS.org
Kansas City's Online Journal of the Performing Arts

Guadalupe Center presents
Grupo Folklorico, Posadas
Friday, December 5 at 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 6 at 7 p.m.
Guadalupe Center,  1015 Avenida Cesar E. Chavez, Kansas City, MO

Guadalupe Center will present the 2nd annual performance of Posadas for the local community, with two performances, one on Friday and Saturday.  The event will feature local children acting in the Nativity Play, and will include audience participation in reciting verses.  The Nativity will be followed by a performance of Mexican Folkloric Dance by the resident dance group, El Grupo Folklorico Atotonilco. 

The event is a fundraiser for the Center and is an excellent way for the public to partake of a traditional Mexican Christmas celebration.  

For tickets call 816-421-1015 or visit www.GuadalupeCenters.org

Photo by Mike Strong
 

Carlsen Center presents
Magic Tree House:  The Musical
Friday, December 5 at 7 p.m.
Carlsen Center, JCCC, OPKS

Based on Mary Pope Osborne's beloved series of children's books, Magic Tree house: The Musical transports one of Jack and Annie's Merlin Missions onto the stage to create a theatrical event for the entire family. To restore joy and magic to King Arthur's kingdom, the brother and sister team must travel to Camelot's dreaded Otherworld and return with water from the mythical Cauldron of Memory and Imagination. If they fail, Camelot will be lost and forgotten forever -- and the Magic Tree House will be destroyed! Rising to each new challenge with courage, humor, and resourcefulness, Jack and Annie eventually discover that memory and imagination are gifts we can all use to fill our lives with magic. An enchanting blend of song, story, and stagecraft, Magic Tree house: The Musical is a breathtaking spectacle that will keep kids and grownups on the edge of their seats!
Rated for children ages 5 to 9 years of age, this musical promises to be a young audience's holiday delight.  

For tickets call (913) 469-4445
or online at http://www.jccc.net/home/depts.php/001440/site/Chronological_Listing
 

Kacico School of Contemporary Dance
End of Session Showing
Friday, December 5 at 7 p.m.
Kacico Studios West, KCMO

Kacico Dance is a barefoot contemporary dance company that specializes in original works and dance compositions that often interact or engage the audience. One of the most prolific dance companies in the Kansas City Area, performances are always innovative, interesting and experimental. 

For tickets or more information call 816-578-4721 or online at  www.kacicodance.org

Photo by Mike Strong
 

Kansas City Youth Ballet and Philharmonia of Kansas City presents
Christmas on the River: Nutcracker in a Nutshell
Saturday, December 6 at 3 p.m.
Graham Tyler Chapel, Park University, Parkville, MO

The Kansas City Youth Ballet and Philharmonia of Kansas City team together to present their 2nd annual Christmas on the River in picturesque Parkville. The first half of the program features Pachelbel's Canon in D and Nutcracker in a Nutshell with the Kansas City Youth Ballet.  The second half has music to singalong to - Irving Berlin's White Christmas, Joy to the World and other holiday standards. 

Purchase tickets at the door.  Phone 816-588-8033 for more information.

Kansas City Ballet presents
The Nutcracker
by Tchaikovsky
Choreography: Todd Bolender

Runs December 6 - December 28
Call or visit the website for performance times.
Music Hall, 301 W 13th St., Downtown Kansas City, MO

The magical journey of Clara and her Nutcracker to a candy-land world makes this annual tradition a joy to behold.  Always a favorite for young audiences, The Nutcracker is the largest production in an eight state region. Over 200 area children who are students in the Kansas City Ballet School perform alongside 25 Kansas City Ballet company dancers.  The live performance is accompanied by the Kansas City Symphony playing the familiar, famous music of Tchaikovsky. 

Nutcracker Facts:
The Nutcracker Ballet is based on the book called "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" written by E.T.A. Hoffman. 
In 1891, the legendary choreographer Marius Petipa commissioned Tchaikovsky to write the music for The Nutcracker Ballet.
In 1892, the first showing of The Nutcracker took place at the Mariinsky Theatre of Russia, home of the Kirov Ballet.
The Nutcracker made its way to Western Europe in the 1930's and to America by 1940, performed by Ballet Russe. The first American full length Nutcracker was performed by the San Francisco Ballet, choreographed by W. Christensen. It has since become an annual Holiday tradition.

For tickets call 816-931-2232 or online at www.kcballet.org

Carlsen Center presents
Ain't Misbehavin'
Friday, December 12 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, December 13 at 8 p.m.
Carlsen Center at Johnson County Community College
College and Quivera, Overland Park, KS

For fans of the Fats Waller era of music, this musical will be just what the doctor ordered.  Considered one of the best Broadway revues of all time, it stars Ruben Studdard and Frenchie Davis in the 1930s Harlem-based, comic musical, performing the music of the day.   

For tickets call (913) 469-4445
or online at http://www.jccc.net/home/depts.php/001440/site/Chronological_Listing
 

Owen/Cox Dance Group premieres
The Christmas Story  - A Medieval Mystery Play
Friday, December 12 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, December 13 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, December 14 at 2 p.m.
H&R Block City Stage, Union Station
30 W. Pershing Rd., Kansas City, MO

The Owen/Cox Dance Group is a young company in the area that features very accomplished dancers, doing original works of choreography, and often performing to original music.  As a holiday tribute, Owen/Cox Dance Group will premiere this new addition to their repertoire, The Christmas Story - A Medieval Mystery Play, at the H&R Block City Stage, at Union Station. 

This production is an adaptation of the Shearmen and Taylors' Pageant, a medieval mystery play from the Coventry Cycle considered to be one of the greatest medieval drama cycles in England.  The adaptation reinterprets the play through music and dance, and will feature both sacred and secular music from the 16th century to present times.  

For tickets call 816-460-2020 or online at www.unionstation.org

By Nicole English

Dance Contributor (Past writer)