Resident Companies

Resident companies bring symphonic music, opera and dance to the Kauffman Center

Kansas City Symphony to perform in the Concert Hall

The Kansas City Symphony is the region’s only full-time professional symphony orchestra, setting the standard for artistic excellence. The orchestra's 80 full-time musicians are area residents and perform during a 42-week season that includes 13 programs on its Classical Series, a Pops Series, Family Series, and a variety of subscription, educational, touring and outreach concerts. In recent years the Kansas City Symphony has presented such luminary guest soloists as Yo Yo Ma, Itzak Perlman, Emmanuel Ax, Joshua Bell, and Yefim Bronfman.

Led by Music Director Michael Stern and Executive Director Frank Byrne, the Symphony has experienced steady growth and acclaim. Prior to joining the Kansas City Symphony, Stern served as guest conductor for the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Philadelphia Orchestra among many others. He also appears regularly at the Aspen Music Festival, and has served on the faculty of the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen.

Each year the Symphony reaches over 16,000 area children through its education programs, which include specially programmed youth concerts for area elementary students and open rehearsals for middle school and high school students.

The Lyric Opera to perform in the Proscenium Theater

Founded in 1957, the Lyric Opera of Kansas City is one of the nation's premier regional opera companies, with 95 different productions (29 of which are American operas) among its credit. The Lyric is the oldest performing arts organization in Kansas City, and it presents five performances of four works each year in September, November, March and May, sung in the original languages with super titles. The company presents a broad range of operatic repertoire, including many early performances of works by major American composers, as well as world premieres, achieving national and international recognition.

Under the guidance of General Director Evan Luskin and Artistic Director Ward Holmquist, the company has built a reputation for offering performance opportunities to young singers, directors, scenic and lighting designers and other production staff. The partnership with the University of Missouri Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance and the University of Kansas Opera Program has been highly successful in creating the Lyric Opera Apprentice Program. The Lyric has created a nationally recognized opera education program with 12 different initiatives serving the metropolitan area.

Kansas City Ballet to perform in the Proscenium Theater

Founded in 1957, the Kansas City Ballet is a 25-member professional ballet company, now under the direction of Artistic Director William Whitener and Executive Director Jeffrey J. Bentley. The company has a special repertory focus on the rich history of American ballet with choreographers including George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Twyla Tharp, and Agnes DeMille, as well as introducing new choreographers in the ballet field to Kansas City audiences.

The Ballet performs three mixed repertory seasons (October, February and May) per year as well as the ever-popular Nutcracker in December, attended by 30,000 people. The organization’s artistic focus originated with Todd Bolender (former dancer with New York City Ballet and protégé of George Balanchine) and is being further developed by the current artistic director William Whitener who was a former principal dancer with the Joffrey Ballet.  “The Kauffman Center will provide us the means to complete a full arc of artistic experience for Kansas City audiences,” Jeffrey Bentley explains in an Opus Online article that describes the Ballet's excitement about the new center.

The Kansas City Ballet provides excellence in dance training to 600 students through the Kansas City Ballet School, and reaches over 20,000 Kansas City area students and adults each year through its outreach programs.