Which KC big events will return in 2021? Starlight, T-Mobile Center have some plans
Rich Baker is definitely a glass-half-full kind of guy. Even in this COVID-19 world, the Starlight Theatre president and CEO harbors half-full hopes — and then some.
“Our anticipation is that by July we will be open to full capacity or nearly full capacity,” Baker said. “It might be with masks, but I think we’ll be able to pull it off.”
Yes, you heard that right.
While the Kansas City Ballet, the Lyric Opera, the Harriman-Jewell Series and many other performing arts companies have announced cancellations of shows at least until the fall, Starlight is moving ahead with plans for summer fun.
Given the uncertainty of the pandemic and vaccine availability, the 2021 outlook is problematic at most other venues. Not only is the rest of the winter and the spring devoid of major happenings — aside from some limited-capacity events — but the summer schedule also is filled with question marks.
The Heart of America Shakespeare Festival, Big Slick Celebrity Weekend and Boulevardia, all of which traditionally take place in June, have yet to announce 2021 dates, and the website for KC Riverfest, the area’s biggest Fourth of July celebration, contains no details for 2021. The Kansas City Fringe Festival will be digital in 2021 (July 18-Aug. 1), as it was in 2020.
Meanwhile, Starlight’s schedule includes seven concerts, starting with the Barenaked Ladies with the Gin Blossoms and Toad the Wet Sprocket on June 29, as well as two plays — with more on the way, according to Baker.
He thanks the great outdoors.
“In the past, being outdoors has been a detriment,” Baker said. “It’s hot, it’s rainy, whatever. Now it’s a good thing.”
That’s because outdoor venues don’t have to worry as much about many of the issues that make indoor theaters ripe for spreading the coronavirus, so local restrictions can be looser.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, recently said that the “overwhelming majority” of superspreader events have occurred indoors and that holding events outdoor is more responsible.
“If you’re out there, with the natural breezes that blow respiratory particles away, it is so much safer,” he said at a conference for the Association of Performing Arts Professionals.
Fauci said indoor venues should be able to reopen when 70% to 85% of the population has been vaccinated.
“If everything goes right, this will occur sometime in the fall of 2021, so that by the time we get to the early to mid-fall, you can have people feeling safe performing onstage as well as people in the audience,” he said.
The Broadway touring shows that usually highlight Starlight’s summer schedule and make up the Broadway Series at the Kauffman Center and Music Hall aren’t expected to resume until the fall. The Broadway Series website lists four shows, beginning with “Jesus Christ Superstar” May 18-23 and extending through the summer, but they almost certainly will be postponed or canceled.
The two stage shows on Starlight’s schedule are “Sister Act” (Aug. 10-15), which Starlight is self-producing, and “Escape to Margaritaville” (Sept. 21-26), which Baker said he expects to be touring by then. Baker said he hopes to add several shows that are self-produced or produced in conjunction with other similar outdoor theaters such as the Muny in St. Louis.
He also expects Starlight to expand its 2021 concert offerings as performers resume touring.
Some acts postponed their 2020 tours until this year, but virtually no new national or international concert tours have been announced in the past 10 months. When new concerts and other events are announced and tickets go on the market, it’s a good sign that the COVID corner is about to be turned and concerts will resume during the late summer or fall.
“I think you’ll see a rash of announcements in late February or early March,” Baker said.
The Providence Medical Center Amphitheater, which like Starlight benefits from being an outdoor venue, could return on the early end of that time frame. Providence is scheduled to open its season July 17 with For King & Country. The Bonner Springs venue now has five concerts slated for 2021, but others could be added.
Meanwhile, major full-capacity indoor shows are unlikely to be held for the next several months, even though some local venues are selling tickets for spring and summer events. Ticket holders should prepare to seek refunds.
In the short term, the public can count on a few shows to take place because they have received the blessings of local officials to proceed with limited-capacity audiences.
The Kansas City Symphony is performing a series of small live concerts through the spring, and Steel Panther will appear March 5 at the Uptown with social-distanced seating.
Disney On Ice is scheduled to bring “Dream Big” to the T-Mobile Center, with 20% capacity (about 3,600), Jan. 28-Feb. 7. It will be the T-Mobile Center’s first event with a live audience since the Big 12 Conference men’s basketball tournament last March, when the building was still called the Sprint Center. However, an OK from the Kansas City Health Department was still pending.
The 2021 Big 12 tournament is scheduled for March 10-13, although tickets have yet to be put on sale. Similarly, the T-Mobile Center website lists a Professional Bull Riders event for March 20-21 but is not selling tickets for it.
The Mavericks (hockey) and the Comets (indoor soccer) are playing winter schedules before limited-capacity crowds at Cable Dahmer Arena in Independence And the Royals expect to allow fans at games at some point during the upcoming baseball season, if not for their April 1 home opener against the Texas Rangers.
What’s coming
Based on the assumption that no major indoor events will take place before June, here then is a still-tentative schedule of 2021’s highlights through the summer:
Kenny Chesney, May 29, Arrowhead. ticketmaster.com
Justin Bieber, June 16, T-Mobile Center. t-mobilecenter.com
Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons, June 19, Kauffman Center. kauffmancenter.org
Impractical Jokers, June 26, T-Mobile Center. t-mobilecenter.com
Maks and Val Live, June 29, Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland. arvestbanktheatre.com
Barenaked Ladies with Gin Blossoms and Toad the Wet Sprocket, June 30, Starlight. kcstarlight.com
Halsey, July 1, T-Mobile Center. t-mobilecenter.com
Lindsey Stirling, July 3, Starlight. kcstarlight.com
Kansas City Air Show, July 3-4, New Century AirCenter. kcairshow.org
Rage Against the Machine, July 7, T-Mobile Center. t-mobilecenter.com
Maren Morris with Ryan Hurd and Caitlyn Smith, July 16, Starlight. kcstarlight.com
Iliza Shlesinger, July 16, Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland. arvestbanktheatre.com
For King & Country, July 17, Providence Medical Center Amphitheater. providenceamp.com
The Beach Boys, July 29, Kauffman Center. kauffmancenter.org
Goo Goo Dolls, Aug. 2, Starlight. kcstarlight.com
Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit, Aug. 3, Providence Medical Center Amphitheater. providenceamp.com
Megadeth and Lamb of God with Trivium and In Flames, Aug. 7, T-Mobile Center. t-mobilecenter.com
David Gray, Aug. 8, Starlight. kcstarlight.com
Wilco and Sleater-Kinney with Nnamdï, Aug. 12, Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland. arvestbanktheatre.com
Maroon 5 with Meghan Trainor, Aug. 13, T-Mobile Center. t-mobilecenter.com
Flyover 2021, Aug. 21, Providence Medical Center Amphitheater. providenceamp.com
Matchbox Twenty, Aug. 22, Starlight. kcstarlight.com
Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe with Poison and Joan Jett and The Blackhearts, Aug. 24, Kauffman Stadium. mlb.com/royals
Alicia Keys, Aug. 25, Starlight. kcstarlight.com
Throwback Throwdown featuring Clint Black and Tracy Byrd, Aug. 28, Providence Medical Center Amphitheater. providenceamp.com
Martina McBride, Aug. 29, Kauffman Center. kauffmancenter.org
Kansas City Irish Fest, Sept. 3-5, Crown Center. kcirishfest.com
Santa-Cali-Gon Days Festival, Sept. 3-6, Independence Square. santacaligon.com
Kansas City Renaissance Festival, Sept. 4-Oct. 17, Bonner Springs. kcrenfest.com
This story was originally published January 19, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
