Arts & events
Where to see holiday lights in Lawrence – 2025 edition
Though the owners of a beloved holiday home have retired, there are plenty aglow this year to keep us inspired.
Jeff McPheeters/Contributed photo
KU band’s new album showcases student talent, music that’s ‘fun to play’
Student musicians are set to blow listeners away on the KU Wind Ensemble’s new album, “Midnight Sun,” a triumphant entry in the group’s repertoire.
Lawrence Kansas Juneteenth Organization: Thank you for your support! (Sponsored post)
”This year’s celebration of Juneteenth, we hosted the largest gathering of community members and vendors than ever before. None of that would have been possible without the help and support given to us by these special community partners,” the Lawrence, Kansas Juneteenth Organization writes.
Lawrence library partners with Love Garden Sounds in sale offering music equipment, rare donated CDs
Those who dig through the music selection at the Lawrence Public Library’s Massive Music Sale can expect a different vibe than the typical clearance bins. The finds are “serious,” according to Angela Hyde, program coordinator for the library’s Friends and Foundation.
Community invited to annual Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast, celebration
An annual community breakfast will celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day with food, live music and guest speaker Col. Gary Steele.
Molly Adams/Lawrence Times
Diverse cast members, music and civil rights quilt will honor MLK’s legacy on Lied Center stage
Rita Rials’ goal as a playwright is to inspire audience members without telling them what to think. She’ll have that opportunity Saturday on the Lied Center stage with “April 4, 1968: Dare to Dream,” a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
eXplore Lawrence/Contributed Photo
Lawrence Restaurant Week to bring special menus, drinks and more
Local restaurants are planning exclusive menus and deals for Lawrence Restaurant Week, which is returning soon.
Tricia Masenthin/Lawrence Times
Family matriarch quilts stories, relives civil rights history with needle and thread
Mary Rials, 85, has designed, cut, pieced and quilted about 200 quilts since she retired from KU in 2000. Her latest, Dare to Dream, is her first quilt to tell the story of the civil rights movement.
Lawrence events center on spreading light to celebrate Hanukkah
Rabbi Zalman Tiechtel, co-director of the Chabad Center for Jewish Life, hosted two events this week at the Lawrence Public Library to celebrate Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights.
Contributed images
The Soul Visionaries to bring in the holiday with annual Christmas Eve performance
A group of musicians are joining together to continue a local Christmas Eve tradition, throwing it back to the ‘50s through the ‘80s with a night of funk, soul and R&B jams.
Molly Adams/Lawrence Times
Lawrence author, musician Melvin Litton is driven by passion for creativity
Lawrence author and musician Melvin Litton walks his German shepherd, Jack, through the Barker neighborhood every evening. He might be shaping sentences in his head or exploring literary ideas as he walks, eager to scrawl them onto his sketch pad once he’s home again.
Chloe Anderson/Lawrence Times
Lawrence Farmers’ Market annual holiday event returns
The annual Lawrence Farmers’ Market holiday market was a hit yet again Saturday. Lawrencians gathered at the Douglas County Fairgrounds open pavilion to stock up on a variety of goods from more than 40 vendors.
Tricia Masenthin/Lawrence Times
Averill family to stage Christmas show and ‘big party’ with vaudeville roots
The moment they’ve all been waiting for soon will arrive. Finally, Ric and Jeanne Averill will perform on stage at the same time with their children, Will and Trish. The big event will take place on the mainstage at Lawrence Arts Center à la “Drunken Christmas Carol.”
At Ampersand RadLab, KU students use design as a force for good
KU design professor Ryan Clifford works at the intersection of design and social impact. As the faculty lead for Ampersand RadLab, a new student-run project focused on community engagement, he’s helping young adults harness the power of visual art as a force for good.
KPR’s Big Band Christmas returns after 2-year hiatus
Kansas Public Radio’s Big Band Christmas holiday jazz concert will return to Lawrence this Saturday, following a two-year hiatus.
LFK musicians’ Holiday Party & Musical Game Night promises raucous, festive shenanigans
Lovers of the Lawrence music scene are cordially invited to an inaugural holiday party and game night, featuring a “smorgasbord of local musical talent.”
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