Lyric Opera Of Kansas City Unveils Community Programming For OF MICE AND MEN

Lyric Opera of Kansas City has announced a slate of community engagement events surrounding its upcoming production of OF MICE AND MEN, which will be presented May 1, 2, and 3 at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

The programming includes installments of the company’s “Community Conversations” and “Opera Dives Deep” series, along with additional events designed to expand audience engagement with the opera’s themes of the American Dream, resilience, and human connection.

A Community Conversation event titled Acres of Sky will take place April 14 from 6:00–8:00 p.m. at Juniper Gardens Training Farm in Kansas City, Kansas. The evening will explore the relationship between agriculture and the American Dream through conversation, live music, and hands-on activities. Performers will include resident artists MiKayla Lynn Hatfield, David Pelino, and Alex Smith.

On April 18 at 3:30 p.m., Lyric Opera will partner with Screenland Armour Theatre for a screening of the 1992 film Of Mice and Men, introduced by film scholar Dr. John Tibbetts.

Two “Opera Dives Deep” events will offer additional context. The first, Of Steinbeck and Floyd, will take place virtually on April 20 and will explore composer Carlisle Floyd’s adaptation of John Steinbeck’s novella. The second, A Novel Legacy, will be held April 27 at the Kirk Family YMCA and will examine the opera within the broader tradition of literary adaptations.

The series will conclude with an “Ugly Happy Hour” on May 3 following the final performance, held at Mineral Lounge. The event will feature themed food and drink created using rescued produce, alongside opportunities for audience members to reflect on the production.

General Director and CEO Deborah Sandler Kemper said the opera “offers a unique lens through which to explore our shared history, the resilience of the human spirit, and the enduring pursuit of the American Dream,” inviting audiences to engage with the work both onstage and in the community.

Directed by Kristine McIntyre, the production of OF MICE AND MEN adapts Steinbeck’s novel into an operatic form by composer Carlisle Floyd, focusing on the relationship between migrant workers George and Lennie during the Great Depression.