In the News
On Friday, September 1, USA TODAY 10Best announced the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts as one of the winners in their 10 Best Readers’ Choice award category for Missouri’s best attractions.
During the past four weeks, readers voted for their favorite Missouri destinations, including landmarks, museums and historical sites in every corner of the state. An expert panel initially nominated a list of 20 Missouri attractions before the public voted for the top 10 winners.
The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts placed ninth in this category and shares the honor of being voted into the top 10 Missouri attractions with other Kansas City institutions including: the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Arts, fourth place; the Arabia Steamboat Museum, seventh place; and the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum, tenth place. The public awarded first place in this category to the Branson Entertainment District in southwestern Missouri.
To learn more about the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice awards or to see the full list of Missouri Best Attraction winners, visit 10best.com/awards/travel/best-missouri-attraction/.
Kauffman Center Nominated for USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice: Best Missouri Attraction
Online voting closes Monday, August 28
Kansas City, MO – The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts is one of 20 sites nominated for USA Today‘s 10Best Readers’ Choice contest for Best Missouri Attraction.
Voting is open through 11 a.m. CST Monday, Aug. 28. Fans of the Kauffman Center can vote once per day through the end of the contest. Click here to vote through the 10Best website.
As of Tuesday, Aug. 22, the Kauffman Center was ranked No. 10 on a list that includes Missouri attractions such as the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, City Museum in St. Louis, and Katy Trail State Park.
10Best.com is part of the USA Today Travel Media Group. The website features city guides created by local experts.
The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, a major not-for-profit center for music, opera, theater and dance designed by Moshe Safdie, opened in 2011. Serving as a cultural cornerstone for Kansas City and the region, the Kauffman Center delivers extraordinary and diverse performing arts experiences. Honored as one of the World’s 15 Most Beautiful Concert Halls, the Kauffman Center attracts some of the world’s most renowned performers and entertainers.
Photo by Tim Hursley
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Meet Matthew Lees, the current Maître d’hôtel and Sommelier of the Kauffman Center Dining Experience. As Maître d’, Matthew is responsible for coordinating the guest experience. Matthew manages a variety of responsibilities from staffing the restaurant to selecting the custom wine list offered to guests.
As Sommelier, Matthew procures customized wine, beer and spirits specifically with the Kauffman Center’s Dining Experience meal palate in mind. He has a well versed knowledge of wine and spirits and is passionate about curating a varied and inclusive beverage menu that caters to all guests. Matthew takes time to teach his staff about the selection and pairing process and shares “a good Sommelier and Maître d’s primary role is to serve the guest – inquiring about likes, dislikes and preferences. I take pride in creating a welcoming environment and strive to create the best guest experience from start to finish.”
Matthew has been in the restaurant industry for 20 years. His passion for food, wine and a top-notch customer experience is what drives him to go to work each day. Matthew has had the opportunity to work with many amazing chefs, several of whom have been featured on culinary shows such as “Chopped,” “Top Chef Masters” and “The Next Iron Chef,” among others.
Matthew Lees was recently interviewed by Crushed, the creators of a new social wine app for a new generation of wine drinkers. Matthew gives several wine tips and speaks about his role as Sommelier of the Kauffman Center Dining Experience.
Matthew states that “being a part of The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts is truly amazing. I feel like being here as the Maître d’ and Sommelier is a part of history in the making.”
Pipe Organ Documentary Airing on KCPT March 16 at 9 p.m.
On March 1st, nearly 600 donors enjoyed the world premiere of Kingdom Come: The Making of Casavant Opus 3875. This fascinating documentary goes behind the scenes to chronicle the design, manufacture and unveiling of the Julia Irene Kauffman Casavant Organ, Opus 3875. You can watch the film when it is featured on KCPT on Monday, March 16 at 9 p.m.
Produced and directed by the Kauffman Foundation, the project was presented as a gift to Julia Irene Kauffman, the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Foundation, the Kauffman Center staff and the Kansas City artistic community, on behalf of the associates and board of trustees of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
The film traces the complex task to create a powerful custom-built pipe organ, known as “The King of Instruments,” for a modern concert hall. It records the artistry and craftwork of the men and women at the Casavant Frères workshop in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. The story follows truckloads of handmade parts arriving in Kansas City and documents the elaborate process to assemble the massive five-story support structure, delicate instrumentation and precise individual voicing of each of the organ’s 5,548 pipes.
In addition to showing the making of the organ, the film tells the story by featuring interviews with key people in Canada and Kansas City. With the instrument in place, the film records history in the making as world-renowned organist James David Christie takes the stage at Helzberg Hall to play the organ for the first time.
Ultimately, the film tells the story of a city’s commitment to the arts and the imagination, invention and careful human touch that inspires a creative legacy for musical artists and audiences to admire for generations to come.
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to get more details about upcoming performances at the Kauffman Center and behind-the-scenes access.
We are excited to announce that the Kauffman Center was featured on Cool Spaces! a TV show highlighting the best new architecture. Check your local PBS station for listings. Watch the video above for an extended look at the segment about the Kauffman Center!
Cool Spaces! The Best New Architecture is a prime-time series for public television, launched in April 2014, that profiles some of this century’s most exciting architecture in the U.S. Each hour-long episode focuses on presenting cutting-edge, contemporary public buildings and spaces and the daring architects who push the boundaries of design and materials. At the Kauffman Center, we are honored to continue to highlight Kansas City to a national audience by being featured on the show.
More Information
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to get more details about upcoming performances at the Kauffman Center and behind-the-scenes access.
Cool Spaces! official website
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