Kauffman Center Exterior - Photo by Eric Bowers
Grand Opening of the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, plus Experience Downtown! are set for Sunday, Sept. 18
The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts will welcome the public for a free open house from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 18. It will be a milestone event in the history of Kansas City.
An estimated 20,000 visitors are expected to flow in and out of the Kauffman Center to allow everyone an opportunity to tour and experience the Center. Click here to register for the free public open house. The Kauffman Center website will be your guide to the public grand opening. Check www.kauffmancenter.org for insights on performances and the Kauffman Center’s two spectacular performance halls, the Muriel Kauffman Theatre and Helzberg Hall. To view the official press release about grand opening weekend, click here (PDF).
And, as if the public grand opening wasn’t enough, Downtown merchants, restaurants, venues and artists are also rolling out the red carpet to the throngs of visitors expected that day.
Experience Downtown! will coincide with and complement the Kauffman Center public grand opening, giving visitors unique opportunities to experience Downtown arts, culture, shopping dining and Downtown living at its many new and established destinations throughout Sunday afternoon. From a: First Friday arts experience on Sunday afternoon in the Crossroads, to a festival atmosphere in nearby Westside, to the 14th Street Jazz Festival in the Power & Light District, to a Downtown Living open house, visitors will experience all the richness of Downtown KC.
Nearly 200 Downtown area restaurants, shops, galleries, attractions AND condos, lofts and apartments will be open on Sunday to welcome Kauffman Center guests before or after their visits to the Performing Arts Center. The robust list includes these Experience Downtown Participants
“Whether it’s your first visit Downtown or your 100th, Experience Downtown! will be an event that shouldn’t be missed,” said Bill Dietrich, president of the Downtown Council. “The opening of the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts marks a unique milestone in revitalization of our Downtown and this event is a chance for everyone to share in the celebration.”
To prepare for this special day, start by downloading the insider’s guide to parking at the public grand opening of the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, a map with helpful tips to ease your journey to the Kauffman Center.
Here are some of the hightlights:
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Shuttles: Free shuttle service to the Kauffman Center from convenient parking around the Convention Center, Crossroads and the Power & Light District from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Click here for shuttle/walking map.
- Buses: The MAX buses will run every 15 minutes, thus linking Brookside, the Plaza, Westport, Crown Center and the River Market to the Kauffman Center (10 a.m.-6:30 p.m.)
- Crossroads: First Friday arts experience with galleries, performers, shopping, dining and sidewalk chalk exhibits (11 a.m.-6 p.m.)
- Dining and Shopping: Opportunities throughout Downtown, including the Crossroads, Crown Center, Power & Light District, River Market, Union Station and the Westside. Click here for participating businesses.
- Downtown Living open house of residential properties. Click here for participating condos, lofts and homes.
- Power & Light District: 14th Street Jazz Festival in and around the district (2-9 p.m.)
- Westside: Live music and dining discoveries at 17th & Summit
- PLUS…
- Black Expo: Final day of the three –day event at Bartle Hall (12-9 p.m.)
- City Market: Region’s largest farmers market (8 a.m.-3 p.m.)
- Union Station: Art of the Chopper exhibit (11 a.m.-6 p.m.)
- Urban Food Trucks: Dining experience adjacent to the Kauffman Center (11 a.m.-5 p.m.)
“Visitors will get a renewed sense of what a vibrant, active and cultural community Downtown KC is,” Dietrich said. “Truly, Kansas City is ‘America’s Creative Crossroads,’ a thriving national hub for arts and culture.”