KCKidsFun

Alicia Espinosa and Sarah Brame…come on down!  You are the two lucky winners of our latest giveaway!  You will each receive a 4-pack of admission tickets to this weekend’s Kansas City Irish Fest.  Be looking for an email from me with details. It’s looking like the weather is going to be great!

Thanks to all who entered.  If you didn’t win, you can purchase tickets online by clicking here, or you can get them at the gate at Crown Center. Remember, it’s September 2, 3 and 4, 2011!  Have a fun and safe Labor Day holiday, readers.  We’ll let you know about other KC-area Labor Day happenings later in the week.

The ninth annual Kansas City Irish Fest will be September 2-4, 2011!  The premise is simple: celebrate Celtic heritage in the Cowtown! KC Irish Fest occurs at Crown Center Square (2450 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, MO 64108). KC Irish Fest takes over Crown Center Square at the world headquarters of Hallmark Cards every Labor Day weekend, along with Washington Park and Grand Boulevard that connects the two. The grounds are 90 percent concrete, so rainouts are rare.

So, what do you do at Irish Fest?!?  For kids, there is a Children’s Area.  This year, the area will celebrate the High Kings (and Princesses!) of Ireland. There’s lots of music, bingo, a costume contest and parade. KC Pumpkin Patch will be sponsoring the Regal Contest each day of the festival—the theme is High King, Queen, Knight and Princess! There’s an interactive kids’ tent, face painting, and more.

And for the adults:  the new Jameson Irish Whiskey Tasting Tent, lots of music and comedy, TONS of food and drink, Irish dancing, and Kansas City’s largest outdoor Mass. Full Catholic Mass starts at 9:30 a.m. Sunday morning, Sept. 4 at the Terrace Stage.  Area bishops typically concelebrate Mass.

The contest:  we have two 4-packs of tickets to give away to two lucky readers!

Please enter by leaving a comment on this post and let us know what your family’s plans are shaping up to be for Labor Day Weekend.  Entries will be accepted until Monday, August 29, 2011 at noon Central time.  We will choose the two winners on Monday!  Good luck.

Must be 21 years of age to enter and win. Only one entry per household will be considered. No substitutions or transfers. Giveaway prize is not redeemable for cash. By entering, winner consents to allow the use of his/her name for promotional purposes without further compensation. Winner releases all sponsors of liability regarding use and enjoyment of the prize. No purchase necessary to enter or win.

I took my kids to Coterie Theatre earlier this week and we saw The Wiz. What a show!!  All 3 of us loved every minute of it.  The most amazing thing– by far– is the fact that my 4-year-old daughter was completely entertained and totally captivated.  For the entire 90 minutes. She never ONCE moved from her seat.  I’m still having a hard time believing that this was the case!! Kudos to Coterie for pulling off the impossible.  (Full disclosure:  Coterie Theatre is an advertising partner of KC Kids Fun.)

Over the years, I’ve seen a half-dozen or so Coterie productions, and by far, this was the best.  The acting, singing, set design…all were superb.  The show was well-paced, and there were so many musical numbers that the kids never got a chance to daydream or become distracted.  If you aren’t familiar with The Wiz, it’s basically an urban adaptation of The Wizard of Oz.

On our way down to Crown Center, I summarized the story for my kids and we discussed the main characters and what they would likely see on stage. There’s no other way to say it, The Wiz has soul.  The music was loud and pulsating, the costumes and sets were colorful.  There was some serious creativity harnessed for this production– the portrayal of the tornado and the poppy fields were totally memorable.

The Wiz runs through August 7, 2011.  Coterie Theatre is located on Level One of the Crown Center Shops in downtown Kansas City. You’ll want to get your tickets purchased ASAP…many remaining performances are sold out (and rightfully so!) and with this blazing hot summer –an afternoon spent indoors at Coterie is an attractive option for many!