Keep up with the latest from Starlight including details about Broadway shows, new programs, history, and more.
The seventh and final show of Starlight Theatre’s 2015 Broadway season promises to delight audiences with a performance that is equal parts art, adventure and awe-inspiring skill. With the creative vibe of a modern circus, Cirque Éloize iD is set to transport Starlight audiences to a vibrant urban streetscape in the heart of a city. Starlight’s Cohen … Continued
The past month has been a very busy one for Starlight Theatre company manager Caroline Gibel. She took on a myriad of management duties for the 34-person cast and multi-member creative team for Starlight’s production ofMary Poppins, which was the only Broadway show rehearsed and produced locally this season. Caroline deftly led tasks ranging from … Continued
Starlight Theatre concludes its 65th anniversary season in September, and the theatre’s biggest annual fundraising event will put a crowning touch on another successful summer of Broadway and concert entertainment. Under the leadership of co-chairs Bonne and Cliff Illig, the Starlight Theatre Annual Benefit Gala will mark its 29th year on Saturday night, Sept. 26. … Continued
Our continuing Q&A series allows Rich Baker, Starlight president and CEO, to share his thoughts and insights about topics related to our Broadway season, venue, industry trends and more. Q. Why does Starlight add fees onto its ticket prices? A. I’d like to try to clear up some common misconceptions about fees or, as you might call … Continued
With 10 concert events completed and more than a dozen yet to come, Starlight Theatre is heating up August with rebels, rock stars, Broadway beauties and comedians as the 2015 Capitol Federal Concert Series continues. Phish Performed Wednesday, August 5 Noted for musical improvisation, Phish is an American rock band best known for blending music … Continued
Starlight Theatre was thrilled to welcome nearly 100 Girl Scouts, troop leaders and parents to a special Mary Poppins educational workshop on July 29. The girls, all members of Girl Scouts of Northeast Kansas and Northwest Missouri, gathered at the theatre to explore the inner workings of musical theatre. With help from Mary Poppins cast members and Starlight staff, … Continued
It was a Jolly Holiday of a Tuesday on July 21 when supercalifragilistic tunes could be heard ringing through the Starlight campus. The talented Mary Poppins orchestra musicians arrived early and began their five-hour practice of the whimsical score for this show-stopping production. The Mary Poppins cast will have the privilege of singing along to the beautiful instrumentals of … Continued
As part of the 2015 Fairy Tale Festival, Starlight Theatre took the opportunity to help a fellow not-for-profit organization that makes a big impact in the greater Kansas City Area. Guests attending Cinderella at Starlight were invited – and encouraged – to bring a pair of children’s shoes to the show to donate to Operation Breakthrough. Committed … Continued
Rehearsals began Monday, July 13, for Starlight Theatre’s upcoming production of Disney and Cameron Macintosh’s Mary Poppins. The cast features 34 actors, including 16 who are either Kansas City natives or who now call Kansas City home. In addition, several out-of-town professionals are returning to the Starlight stage after performing here in the past. The … Continued
At the pre-show Fairy Tale Festival before each performance of Cinderella, Starlight Theatre is partnering with Operation Breakthrough to collect shoes for Kansas City children. Everyone knows the glass slipper is pivotal to the plot of Cinderella, so Starlight picked up on the shoe theme with its “If the Shoe Doesn’t Fit, Bring It!” campaign. Guests attending … Continued
Starlight Theatre and all of Kansas City lost a valued friend and selfless supporter with the passing of Jack Steadman on July 5. While most widely recognized locally for his leadership of the Kansas City Chiefs and Hunt Midwest Enterprises, Jack also made a huge impact on Starlight Theatre for the entirety of the 43 … Continued
Two area high school students, honored by Starlight Theatre’s Blue Star Awards for their theatrical achievements, are in New York City through Tuesday to compete in the National High School Musical Theater Awards (NHSMTA). Maggie Marx and Austin Dalgleish are graduates of Shawnee Mission Northwest and Shawnee Mission East, respectively. They were recognized at the … Continued
When Starlight Theatre welcomes the high-flying, Tony Award®-winning production of PIPPIN to its stage beginning June 30, one cast member is likely to have plenty of hometown fan support in the audience. Lisa Karlin, one of the Players in touring musical, is an Overland Park native with deep family roots in the community. In advance of her … Continued
National list-makers continue to shine the spotlight on Starlight Theatre as one of the best places in the country to spend a summer night. A recent USA Today and 10 Best readers’ poll placed the theatre fourth in the Best Outdoor Music Venue category. The competition included 20 sites across the United States as selected by a … Continued
The dog days of summer are here at Starlight Theatre as the 2015 Broadway season is in full swing! Annie, a brand-new incarnation of one of the best-loved Broadway musicals, will grace the Starlight stage June 19-21. Did you know the cherished K9 companion who plays Sandy was specifically trained to perform theatre? Annie producers … Continued
Fun Home was the big winner at the 2015 Tony Awards, receiving the trophy for Best Musical and four others, including Best Score and Best Leading Actor for Michael Cerveris. The new musical, based on Alison Bechdel’s memoir of the same name, was nominated for a total of 12 awards (including three featured actresses in the … Continued
The 2015 Tony Awards are just hours away and we have everything you need to put on the perfect last minute party. Download our Printable Party Decorations and bring Broadway to your living room. Broadway Decorations: Broadway is all about presentation. Decorate your party with bright flowers, fun tablecloths, themed goodies and make sure to … Continued
This year’s Tony Award nominees for best musical include, Something Rotten!, The Visit, Fun Home and An American in Paris. Who do you think will take home the Tony? Something Rotten! Opened at the St. James Theatre on April 22. The musical is set in London in the 1590’s and tells the story of two brothers who set … Continued
The 2015 Tony Awards are just around the corner, and if you’re like us, you’ve been rocking out to Broadway cast recordings nonstop for the last few weeks. As the countdown to Sunday’s show continues, Starlight Theatre is bringing you a Tony Award playlists, available to stream and share for free on Spotify. We’ve created … Continued
In each issue of “On The Spot” from now through September, we are sharing selected highlights from each decade of Starlight Theatre. Following several troublesome seasons of financial struggles, the 1980s brought continued challenges, operational changes and, by the middle of the decade, a hopeful outlook to Starlight Theatre. The 1980 Broadway season struggled through … Continued
As Starlight Theatre works to encourage creativity and appreciation for the performing arts, talented local visual artists have come forward to share their work with Starlight guests. If you attend a Friday night Broadway performance or concert at Starlight this season, you might be the lucky one taking home a piece of original artwork! Free … Continued
Congratulations to all of the 2015 Blue Star Award recipients, nominees and participating high schools! …and the winners are… Outstanding Overall Production ———————————-Winner———————————– Raymore-Peculiar – Man of La Mancha Lee’s Summit North – Disney’s Tarzan Liberty – Shrek the Musical Olathe East – Catch Me If You Can Shawnee Mission Northwest – Little Shop of Horrors Shawnee Mission West – A … Continued
In each issue of “On the Spot” from now through September, we are sharing selected highlights from each decade of Starlight Theatre. The following is excerpted from Making Memories for 50 Years, a Starlight commemorative magazine published in 2000. Richard Hill Berger, Starlight’s first theatre manager and producing director, took the reins in 1951 and continued as producing … Continued
There’ll be a whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on this Memorial Day weekend as Starlight Theatre opens its 65th Broadway season with the Tony Award®-winning musical Million Dollar Quartet. One of two weekend special engagements scheduled during Starlight’s 2015 season, Million Dollar Quartet is now in its fourth year of touring nationally. Kansas City is among more than 60 … Continued
In each issue of “On The Spot” from now through September, we are sharing selected highlights from each decade of Starlight Theatre. The following is excerpted from Making Memories for 50 Years, a Starlight commemorative magazine published in 2000 and from The Story of Starlight Theatre published in 1993. By the end of the 1960s, Starlight Theatre … Continued
Once the house lights go down on show nights, the action on Starlight Theatre’s stage commands the audience’s attention. But in the minutes and hours before the curtain rises, our flowering gardens and extensive landscaping often steal the show. Just as a musical requires hard work behind the scenes to succeed, so, too, do the … Continued
Our continuing Q&A series allows Rich Baker, Starlight president and CEO, to share his thoughts and insights about topics related to our Broadway season, venue, industry trends and more. Q. How do recent changes in Broadway touring productions impact Starlight audiences? A. It’s important to discuss how changes in the offerings coming out of Broadway affect … Continued
Look for the Girl Scouts of Northeast Kansas and Northwest Missouri to be out in force at several Broadway shows this summer. Starlight Theatre is again partnering on a fundraising effort that, in 2014, returned more than $4,500 from ticket sales to the regional Girl Scouts organization. With the volume of attendees it attracts, the … Continued
Today, high school theatre students and instructors across metropolitan Kansas City and in neighboring communities received the good news that they had received nominations for the 13th annual Blue Star Awards from Starlight Theatre. Starlight leaders and staff personally delivered 129 nominations to 35 area high schools. On Thursday, May 21, the Blue Star Award … Continued
An American in Paris and Fun Home topped the nominations for the 69th annual Tony Awards on April 28, earning 12 nods each, including Best Musical. Other standouts included a nomination for Sting for Best Score for The Last Ship, which closed on the Great White Way in January, and On the Twentieth Century’s Kristin Chenoweth, who will also co-host … Continued