A Look Ahead … Quartets at the Folly

To February 17 — Shear Madness at New Theatre Restaurant

SHEAR MADNESS is America’s most popular and longest running comedy (now in its 31st year at Washington D.C.’s prestigious Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts). More than 12 million people worldwide have seen the hilarious whodunit and there is no end in sight; its success just keeps going and going.

In this hilarious whodunit, a renowned classical pianist is murdered in her apartment above the SHEAR MADNESS beauty salon and you, the audience, along with Inspector Nick O’Brien, interrogate the suspects, evaluate the clues and solve the mystery. The wacky, spontaneous comedy never has the same ending twice, so you can see it again and again.

Insert personal review: Betsy and I enjoyed this show. The jokes are always fresh to the year and locale of the show — which meant I didn’t catch half of them due to the attempt and “Liberal” reparte. It also meant much greater use of**!=@#* than as necessary to get adequate Standup Comedian Cred. Nick O’Brien’s pictures in the promos are from his Home Improvement days. He looks much better than them, and also much more mature. His acting as very good, and not impeded by the same need for modern Comedy as the other actors.

The dinner menu was as good as always, but we had a maitre ‘d encourage 10 people to cut ahead of us in line “because no one saw that line”. They have four buffet lines but only three obvious lanes to them on each side of the theatre, so the middle lane usually serves as feeder for 2 and splits as it comes up. They need to mark clear lanes on the floor if they want four lanes to speed up traffic.

Thursday, Jan. 24 — Recital of Violinist Keith Stanfield and pianist Lamar Sims 6:30 p.m. Old Mission United Methodist Church.

The recital features works by Handel and Richard Strauss; the latter Sonata as a favorite of Jascha Heifetz.

Friday, Jan. 25 — Prazak and Zemlinsky Quartets 7:30 p.m. Folly Theatre

Sponsored by the Friend of Chamber Music, the concert includes works by Schulhoff, Dvorak, and the Octet by Menhelssohn. A pre-concert lecture starts at 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday, Jan. 29 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, Feb. 5 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, Feb. 12 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, Feb. 19 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

February  20-April 2019– Biloxi Blues at New Theatre Restaurant

The laughter rarely stops in this Tony Award-winning “Best Play” that tells the story of Eugene Jerome and his experiences as a 19-year-old draftee who, with a handful of other recruits must endure ten weeks of boot camp and a tough as nails, hard-drinking platoon leader in the steaming swamps of Biloxi, Mississippi in 1943.

Tuesday, Feb. 26 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, March 5 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, March 12 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, March 19 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, March 26 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, April 2 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday, April 9 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

Tuesday April 23 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

April 25-July 7 — The Buddy Holly Story at New Theatre Restaurant

It’s Back! One of our most popular productions of all time! BUDDY-THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY. This joyous musical tells the story of Buddy Holly’s short yet explosive career and features his classical hits: PEGGY SUE, THAT’LL BE THE DAY, NOT FADE AWAY, OH BOY, MAYBE BABY, RAVEON and many more. This show Rocks!

Tuesday, April 30 — Songflower Chorale Rehearsal 7-9:30 p.m., choral room of St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee Mission, KS 66203.

This is a closed rehearsal in preparation for the May 12 concert Madrigals Meet Jazz but interested musicians are encouraged to contact director Geoff Wilcken.

May 12 at 3 p.m. in Historic St. Mary’s Episcopal Church — Madrigals Meet Jazz concert by the Songflower Chorale (Yes, this mother’s day — bring mom.)

The flowering of music we know as Renaissance Madrigals is notable for several new features. They were the first major musical genre not to be connected by any strings to the Church. Indeed, these compact songs of love, nature, worldly adventures, social commentary, and play were the first important body of music that could be called “popular”— the ancestors of Romantic Lieder, modern commercial music, and the widely-known songs which became the grist for the music we know as jazz. In this program, well-loved English madrigals are brought into contact with some of their counterparts from the world of jazz, from the swinging ballroom tunes of Count Basie and Duke Ellington to the brilliance of Charlie Parker and the trenchant commentary of Charles Mingus. We will hear vocal and choral jazz as well as instrumental, backed by some of Kansas City’s most outstanding musicians.

July -Sept. 15 — Joseph and the Amazing TechniColor Dreamcoat at New Theatre Restaurant

Based on the “Coat of Many Colors” story from The Bible’s Book of Genesis, this upbeat musical is filled with a cornucopia of musical styles. From country-western to calypso to bubblegum pop & rock ‘n’ roll, this Old Testament tale emerges both timely and timeless. With its family-friendly storyline, universal themes and catchy music, JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT is a musical theatre event not to be missed. From the composer of PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, EVITA, CATS AND SCHOOL OF ROCK.@