This week in Kansas City: Russian National Ballet Theatre’s ‘Cinderella,’ Mid-America RV Show, Jay McShann’s Centennial Birthday Bash, ‘Pontypool’ at the Living Room

Jim Florentine shares his predilection for hard rock and heavy metal on “That Metal Show,” a program aired by the VH1 Classic network that gives Florentine and a pair of like-minded enthusiasts a forum to chat with musicians from bands like Black Sabbath and Motörhead. Florentine paid tribute to the latter band’s late Lemmy Kilmister in a recent episode of “Comedy Metal Midgets,” a podcast that acts as another outlet for the caustic comedian. Florentine’s popular series of “Terrorizing Telemarketers” albums demonstrates his quick wit and amusingly hostile form of humor. The comedian loves football almost as much as he loves loud music. The New York native will almost certainly banter about the Chiefs during his six appearances at Stanford’s Comedy Club.

8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 13, and Thursday, Jan. 14; 7:45 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. Friday, Jan. 15, and Saturday, Jan. 16. Stanford and Sons Comedy Club. 913-400-7500. stanfordscomedyclub.com. $10-$35.

The horrors conjured by the imagination are often far more terrifying than the graphic images created by filmmakers specializing in scenes of mayhem. That’s partly why “Pontypool,” a low-budget 2009 film based on a 1995 novel, has become a cult classic. The most compelling portions of the movie about distressed people holed up at a radio station during a possible zombie outbreak are free of blood. It’s a horror flick that emphasizes ideas rather than gore. The profound power of language, for instance, is one of its primary themes. The production of “Pontypool” at the Living Room features prominent local actors including Katie Gilchrist and John Rensenhouse.

Thursday, Jan. 14-Sunday, Jan. 31. The Living Room. 816-533-5857. thelivingroomkc.com. $25.

Members of Thursday’s audience might view their tickets as the paper equivalent of glass slippers. The Russian National Ballet Theatre’s production of “Cinderella” promises to transport viewers to a magical realm inhabited by cruel stepsisters and a gallant prince. The renowned 50-member company will dramatize the familiar story through exquisite motion and handsome scenery under the artistic direction of company founder Elena Radchenko. Although “Cinderella” premiered at the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow in 1945, the music composed by Sergei Prokofiev remains exceptionally vital more than 70 years later.

7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14. Muriel Kauffman Theatre at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. 816-415-5025. hjseries.org. $25-$70.

Thousands of the people who flock to Bartle Hall for the Mid-America RV Show hope that the best remedy for cabin fever is inspecting wheel-laden homes. Dozens of exhibitors will present tantalizing goods and services targeted at people tempted by the unencumbered road and the lifestyle associated with recreational vehicles. Representatives of resorts and other vacation properties will make the prospect even more enticing. People who aren’t quite ready to pull the trigger on a motor home or travel trailer might investigate the options provided by Unlimited Fun Rentals. Further diversions include two “balloon stunt shows” each day.

1-8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14; noon-8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 15; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 17. Bartle Hall. 800-848-6247. midamericarvshow.com. $12, children 12 and under are free.

The mania surrounding “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has overshadowed the rest of the entertainment industry for weeks. People who have had their fill of Jedis and lightsabers, however, will be enraptured by the compelling creations of a different franchise most closely associated with Spider-Man during four days of shows at the Sprint Center. Starring 25 Marvel characters on “one epic quest,” the Marvel Universe Live presentation is “framed around the battle over the Cosmic Cube, the source of ultimate power and one of the most feared and coveted treasures in the Marvel Universe.” An alliance that includes Wolverine, Captain America, Thor and Hulk is opposed to the malevolent partnership of Madame Hydra, Red Skull and Green Goblin.

7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14, and Friday, Jan. 15; 11 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16; 1 and 5 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 17. Sprint Center. 1-888-929-7849. sprintcenter.com. $25-$120.

Kansas City Restaurant Week appeals to people who refer to themselves as foodies and to curious eaters for whom eating out represents a rare luxury. Chefs put their best feet forward during the annual charitable event where fixed-cost meals — $15 for lunch and $33 for dinner — are served over multiple courses. Trendy eateries, longstanding favorites and informal taverns are among the participating establishments. Options include bocadillo sandwiches at República on the Plaza, fried chicken and pie at Rye in Leawood, smoked turkey pot pie at Webster House in the Crossroads Arts District and beer-battered fish and chips at the Well Bar & Grill in Waldo.

Friday, Jan. 15-Sunday, Jan. 24. Dozens of participating restaurants. 800-767-7700. kcrestaurantweek.com. Fixed-price menus are $15 for lunch and $33 for dinner.

Pop music has Madonna and Prince. Members of the jazz community recognize Wynton Marsalis and Miles Davis by their first names. And classical music has Midori. Born Midori Gotō in Japan in 1971, Midori has reached the pinnacle of the classical realm without the use of a surname. The acclaimed violinist will perform Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto with the Kansas City Symphony this weekend. Midori’s recording of the work with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in 1998 has been hailed as one of the most dazzling renditions of the exceptionally challenging composition. Works by Leonard Bernstein and Igor Stravinsky are also on the program.

8 p.m. Friday, Jan 15, and Saturday, Jan. 16; 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 17. Helzberg Hall at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. 816-471-0400. kcsymphony.org. $28-$86.

Before the Ying Quartet became an internationally renowned ensemble, the classical string quartet spent two years in Jesup, Iowa. After graduating from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., the four siblings accepted a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to relocate to the tiny town in central Iowa. The Ying Quartet has since toured the world and recorded several albums, one of which won a Grammy Award. Timothy Ying left the group in 2009. Violinist Robin Scott, a recent addition to the ensemble, will perform an eclectic program with his new colleagues on Saturday. Erwin Schulhoff’s Five Pieces for String Quartet and Leoš Janáček’s “Kreutzer Sonata” were composed in 1923. A reading of Ludwig van Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 7 will follow an intermission.

8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16. Folly Theater. 816-561-9999. chambermusic.org. $20-$30.

A public wake was held for Jay “Hootie” McShann at the Gem Theater following the Kansas City icon’s death in 2006. The historic site will host a much happier gathering on Saturday. The centennial celebration of McShann’s birth date promises to be filled with joyous foot-tapping. Benny Green, a swinging pianist with a musical affinity for McShann’s legacy, is flying in from New York to perform. Kansas City-based musicians including Bobby Watson, Lisa Henry and David Basse are also on the bill. Noted music historian and scholar Chuck Haddix will be on hand to discuss McShann’s jubilant art and warm personality.

7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16. Gem Theater. 816-474-8463. americanjazzmuseum.org. $20.

Noon is an unconventional showtime for a comedy performance, but Twaimz is an atypical comedian. An excitable young man who has harnessed the viral power of the Internet to become a minor celebrity, Twaimz has legions of young admirers for whom an early afternoon show is preferable to a late night outing. Almost 2 million people subscribe to his YouTube channel to watch his ridiculous antics. Twaimz’s cavorting to his absurd ditty “The Llama Song” has racked up almost 15 million views. Compared to Twaimz’s riffs about his inability to control his bladder and the pride he takes in his thick eyebrows, the juvenile humor of Adam Sandler seems like the musings of a cultivated intellectual.

Noon Sunday, Jan. 17. Kansas City Improv. 816-759-5233. improvkc.com. $35.

MoonDrop Circus provides an inviting forum for anyone who has ever harbored a romantic hankering to run off to join the circus. In addition to four productions of the “Behind the Curtain” show, the troupe’s Community Circus Week presents the talents of hobbyists fulfilling their dream of performing under the proverbial big top during two Community Showcase Nights. A series of workshops will help fledgling performers hone skills ranging from magic tricks to “sky acrobatics.” “Behind the Curtain,” the focal point of the week’s activities, is an original theatrical work that depicts the adventures of an aspiring entertainer learning the ropes at a traveling carnival.

Monday, Jan. 18-Sunday, Jan. 24. Arts Asylum. 816-520-8870. moondropcircus.com/circus-week. Multiple show times. Admission ranges from free to $20.

Most people in the United States associate pipe organs with houses of worship and the somber sounds of funeral homes. Rather than accompanying an enthusiastic version of “Holy, Holy, Holy,” a pipe organ will be the focus of a happy hour at the Kauffman Theater for the Performing Arts on Tuesday. The latest installment of the Kansas City Symphony’s free series features a performance by Jan Kraybill on the Julia Irene Kauffman Casavant Organ in Helzberg Hall. Kraybill, one of the most decorated organists in the Midwest, will demonstrate that the range of organ repertoire extends far beyond its more mundane applications.

6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19. Helzberg Hall. 816-471-0400. kcsymphony.org. Free, reservations strongly encouraged.

Cloned versions of dogs can now be purchased for $100,000. Grieving pet owners and trainers of service animals are among the clients of a controversial laboratory in South Korea that began offering the entirely legal but ethically problematic service in 2015. British playwright Caryl Churchill explores the difficult topic in her 2002 work “A Number.” A man initiates a cloning program in a misguided attempt to correct mistakes he made while raising his first child. In a review of the show’s initial run in London, a critic for the Telegraph hailed the piece as “moving, thought-provoking and dramatically thrilling.” The Kansas City Actors Theatre production of “A Number” is directed by Mark Robbins.

Wednesday, Jan. 20-Sunday, Feb. 7. Mabee Theater at Rockhurst University. 816-235-6222. kcactors.org. $30-$40 and $15 for students.

Even after witnessing the Chiefs’ entirely convincing rout of the Houston Texans in the first round of the playoffs on Saturday, many naysayers are loudly proclaiming that the Chiefs don’t stand a ghost of a chance against NFL royalty in Massachusetts this weekend. Most sports fans in Kansas City, however, have secured comfortable spots on the team’s bandwagon. These boosters know that the Chiefs have won a staggering 11 games in a row and that New England looked soft in a loss in the final game of the regular season. And as every fan of the Royals knows, underdogs from Kansas City have a propensity for shocking the sports world. Kansas City will be all eyes on Saturday afternoon as fans tune in to televised coverage of the second-round playoff game. And the team plans to again host a watch party at the Power & Light District.

3:35 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16, on CBS. Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. kcchiefs.com.

This story was originally published January 13, 2016 at 2:00 AM with the headline "This week in Kansas City: Russian National Ballet Theatre’s ‘Cinderella,’ Mid-America RV Show, Jay McShann’s Centennial Birthday Bash, ‘Pontypool’ at the Living Room."