Here are eleven great things to do in Kansas City this weekend, October 5-8, including: KC Oktoberfest, Weston Applefest and The Mars Volta.
Justice at War
Step into history with Justice at War, an interactive drama based on true events. The play invites audiences to become Supreme Court Justices in Mitsuye Endo’s challenge against her internment during WWII. This drama delves into crucial questions of justice, government responsibility and national security, highlighting how one woman defended the rights of millions.
September 19–October 15. Times vary. Coterie Theatre.
The Wonder Years
Pennsylvania-based pop-punk legend The Wonder Years is touring this fall to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their fourth album, The Greatest Generation. Altogether, they have released seven full-length albums, two EPs and several splits/compilations. They will be playing from their large repertoire of music, joined by openers Anxious, Sweet Pill and Action/Adventure.
October 6. 6:45 pm. The Truman.
Drinkaway Camp: A Slasher Themed Pop Up Experience
Drinkaway Camp: A Slasher Pop Up + Experience is a spooky immersive drinking experience, which combines elements from Cabin in the Woods-themed movies, and allows participants to embody their favorite horror archetypes. Drinkaway Camp will also feature a selection of spooky craft cocktails and housemade microbrews for liquid courage as guests navigate the terrifying challenges.
Weekends in October. 6 & 8:30 pm. October 30 & 31. 7 pm. The Big Rip Brewing Company.
FLEECE
Campy, eccentric and contagiously joyful Canadian indie-rock band FLEECE combines a ninety-sixties psych rock sound with contemporary pop for a surprising and fun mix of music. Now in-studio working on a new LP, they released their second single of 2023 during June, “Do You Wanna Party,” which celebrates Pride and demands listeners to let loose. Indie group Sammy Rae & The Friends headlines.
October 6. 8 pm. Madrid Theatre.
The Music is Calling
This concert features the emotional works of Ortiz, Bartók and Brahms to inspire audiences to express how the music makes you feel. Guests will learn how symphonic music brings color to the world through interactive experiences in the Kauffman Center’s Brandmeyer Great Hall. Featuring Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto with Yefim Bronfman, world-class music and exciting new experiences unite for a brilliant beginning to the Kansas City Symphony’s 2023-24 season.
October 6–8. Times vary. Helzberg Hall.
KC Oktoberfest
While KC may be thousands of miles away from Munich, residents can still enjoy the authentic German festival at Crown Center organized by local favorite KC Bier Co. Every year, thousands of visitors come decked out in their best overalls and clogs to enjoy German-style beer and Bavarian cuisine.
October 6 & 7. Times vary. Crown Center.
Weston’s Applefest
Since 1990, this quaint Missouri town has celebrated all things apple with this annual fall festival held the first full weekend of October. Weston’s Applefest began as a way to acknowledge Weston’s rich history of apple growing and orchard farming, but civic leaders later decided to turn their city’s idyllic Main Street into a free family festival. The historic downtown district—which dates back to 1837—serves as a scenic backdrop for more than sixty artisanal booths as well as brick-and-mortar shops full of undiscovered treasures, restaurants, bars and a brewery. A parade complete with marching bands, antique tractors, classic cars and fire trucks kicks off the festivities Saturday morning. Along with live music, there will be plenty of other entertaining activities for adults and kids alike, including a maze, pony rides, face painting and pumpkin painting.
October 7–8. Starting at 10 am & 11 am. Main Street, Weston.
The Merc Co+op New Mural For October Fairtrade Month
Renowned KC-based mural artists, Isaac Tapia and Rico Alvarez, known collectively as IT-RA Icons, are unveiling a new mural at The Merc Co+op, which features a coffee farmer from Honduras, Joselinda Manueles. Manueles is a founding member of COMSA, an association of small-scale organic coffee producers. Her community supplies coffee that is used by Kicking Horse Coffee, which is available at The Merc Co+op. In celebration of October Fairtrade Month, the mural will be unveiled at this community event where members can sample the fairtrade coffee and meet the artists.
October 7. 11 am–1 pm. The Merc Co+op, Lawrence.
Letters Home Premiere
Missouri-filmed Letters Home premieres at Tallgrass Film Festival at the historic Orpheum Theatre in Wichita. This is the first feature from writer/director Scott Roberts, who originally filmed it in the summer of 1998 in Roberts’ hometown of Platte City, but due to budget issues, the negatives of the film went into storage, untouched for two decades. Now completed years later, the film centers on a smart but hopelessly awkward boy who despairs that he will never truly fit into his small Midwestern town.
October 7. 12:30 pm. Orpheum Theatre, Wichita.
Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live Glow Party
Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live Glow Party takes the uber-popular monster truck mash and adds a dazzling dance party, laser light shows and with a special appearance from the car-eating, fire-breathing transforming robot MEGASAURUS. Sometimes you want to go to the opera. Sometimes you just need to watch oversized Hot Wheels cars tumble over each other in the dirt. And that’s okay. Life is about balance.
October 7. 12:30 & 7:30 pm. October 8. 2:30 pm. T-Mobile Center.
The Mars Volta
Known for their progressive rock sound and surprising lyrics, El Paso-based The Mars Volta have made a splash in the music scene during the last twenty years. The band’s only constant members are Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala, with a rotating cast of supporting instrumentalists. Teri Gender Bender is opening for them on their self-titled tour stop in KC.
October 8. 7 pm. Uptown Theater.
