26 venues with 1,000+ seats 🏟

Kansas City’s biggest sports and entertainment venues

Which of these venues have you visited? | Photo by @kansascityinphotos

The roar of the crowd. The spectacle of lights. The electricity in the air. The magic on the stage. Kansas City is no stranger to incredible entertainment — like sports, concerts, theater, and touring shows. With a large (and growing) population, a strong fan base, and a pool of world-class talent, it’s no wonder our metro area has top-tier spots to catch the action.

We gathered all these entertainment venues and listed them by capacity, including some of their various features, facts, and figures. Next time you get to wondering, you won’t have to look far.

Arrowhead Stadium | Capacity: 76,416 | As the home of the Chiefs + the fifth-largest stadium in pro football, it’s no wonder KC holds the open-air noise record.

Kansas Speedway | Capacity: 48,000-75,000 | We know, that’s quite the range. Sources claim both the low and high ends, and there’s no clear way to get a hold of racetrack officials.

Kansas City Convention Center | Capacity: 38,000 | When Bartle Hall’s exhibit rooms are all filled up, KCCC can hold more people than the city of Leavenworth.

Kauffman Stadium | Capacity: 37,903 | There could be more seats, but they had to make way for the 322-foot wide fountain (in keeping with our nickname).

KC_Truman sports complex by @jrw_shoots.jpg — These stadiums combined could hold all of Lee’s Summit.

Children’s Mercy Park | Capacity: 20,000 | Soccer matches actually only seat 18,467, but concerts get a few more rows added in.

T-Mobile Center | Capacity: 19,000 | Every source has a slightly different number (because this venue is so customizeable), but we’ll go with the original seat count from 2007.

Azura Amphitheater | Capacity: 18,000 | This venue is plenty big for concerts and the knights of Canterbury.

Municipal Auditorium | Capacity: 10,721 | This is a popular spot for college basketball, like the Big 12 Women’s Tournament.

The American Royal Center | Capacity: 9,045 | This West Bottoms venue includes Hale Arena (4,285) and Central Hall (4,760).

Hy-Vee Arena | Capacity: 9,000 | With half the capacity of the former Kemper Arena, this venue transformed into an amateur sports hub in 2018.

16 MORE VENUES

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Thursday, Dec. 1

Holiday Tree Lighting | Thursday, Dec. 1 | 6-8 p.m. | Corinth Square, Mission Road + W 83rd Street, Prairie Village, KS | Free | Festivities include dancers, a kids choir, a drum line, and KC Wolf. 🎄
Prelude to Christmas | Thursday, Dec. 1 | 6:30 p.m. | The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, 416 W. 12th St., Kansas City, MO | $10-$20 | A holiday concert featuring the sounds of harp, string quartet, harpsichord, organ, and professional choir. 🎻

Friday, Dec. 2

Big Balloon Build KC | Friday, Dec. 2-Sunday, Dec. 4 | 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. | Gregg/Klice Community Center, 1600 John Buck O’Neil Way, Kansas City, MO | $15+ | Balloon artists from across the country and world will create a holiday toy town made of inflatables. 🎈
Tis the Season Art & Craft Show | Friday, Dec. 2-Saturday, Dec. 3 | 10 a.m.-7 p.m. | The Pavilion at John Knox Village, 520 NW Murray Rd., Lee’s Summit, MO | $0+ | Say hello to Santa and Mrs. Claus while shopping this art fair.
It’s Britney! A Britney Spears Tribute Night | Friday, Dec. 2 | 8:30 p.m. | Uptown Theater, 3700 Broadway Blvd., Kansas City, MO | $15 | It’s Britney, Kansas Citians. Dance your heart out like it’s a “Circus” at this Britney Spears themed night. 🎤

Saturday, Dec. 3

Saint Nicholas Day Celebration | Saturday, Dec. 3 | 12 p.m. | Kansas City Bier Company, 310 W. 79th St., Kansas City, MO | Experience this holiday celebration in the Bierhalle and Biergarten, featuring new bier, family-friendly activities, and appearances by holiday characters.

Sunday, Dec. 4

Disney Princess: The Concert | Sunday, Dec. 4 | 2 p.m. | The Midland Theatre, 1228 Main St., Kansas City, MO | $21-$110 | Unleash your inner princess as Broadway performers in lavish gowns sing Disney classics. 👑

We have a calendar filled with events and activities you can plan for in advance. Click the button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends.

100+ MORE EVENTS

The Barstow School scores top independent school ranking 🍎

Three kids play on tablets at the IDEA Space

Students in lower, middle, and upper school enjoy STEAM learning incorporated into daily learning at the Dan & Cassidy Towriss IDEA Space, powered by The Barstow School. | Photo provided by The Barstow School

It’s report card time — and once again, Niche.com ranked The Barstow School among the top three private K-12 schools in MO for 2023.

Additionally, Barstow ranked:

In the top 8% of best K-12 schools, college prep schools, private schools, and high school STEM schools in the US
In the top 5% in the same categories in MO
As the most diverse private high school in Jackson County, MO

Congrats, Knights. Attend an open house to learn more about Barstow’s innovative, inclusive, and in-demand program.*

APPLY FOR THE 2023-24 SCHOOL YEAR

Weather

50º | Partly cloudy | 1% chance of rain

Opening

Korean restaurant Chingu announced its official brick-and-mortar opening on Friday, Dec. 2 at 4 p.m. The restaurant — at 4117 Pennsylvania Ave., KCMO — will serve street foods, Korean barbecue, and specialty cocktails. Fun fact: Chingu means “friend” in Korean. 🍽

Civic

KCMO achieved a perfect score on the 2022 Municipality Equality Index. The score ranks cities on their LGBTQ+ policies, laws, and services across 49 metrics. It’s the Human Rights Campaign’s 10th year running the evaluation, and Kansas City attained 100% last year, too.

Development

Shawnee City Council unanimously approved a permit to create a new mental health center. Discovery Behavioral Health plans to convert an existing building — at 6850 Hilltop Dr. — for teen mental health + eating disorder treatments. The center will include in-patient and out-patient services. (FOX4)

Biz

We’ve got mail. UPS is the newest tenant at Hunt Midwest Business Center, a growing industrial park just north of Worlds of Fun. The multinational delivery service will occupy 210,600 sqft of the park’s newest building — at 9555 NE 48th St., KCMO. 📦 (Kansas City Business Journal)

Arts

Crossroads Hotel is unveiling a new art exhibit called “Land Taste” by artist Sean Nash. The work is an expansion of Nash’s incoming installation at KCI, where he depicts farmers using vegetables. The hotel reception — at 2101 Central St., KCMO — takes place on Friday, Dec. 2 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Cause

Shine up that apple on your desk. KC Scholars is looking for volunteers to review college scholarships. Every year, community members help local students obtain vital funds for secondary education. Volunteers will dedicate ~20 hours this coming spring. You can apply here. 🍎
Designing buttons for $500? Calling all high school artists. Nonprofit SevenDays is seeking local 9-12 graders to submit drawings for this year’s campaign. Eight designs (a general design + one for each day) are due by Friday, Dec. 16. 🎨

Outdoors

Nice kitty. Authorities in Liberty reported a bobcat was found near Highway 69 + Route 33. Apparently, a woman picked it up before it bit her on the thumb. Learn more about these native felines via the Missouri Department of Conservation. (FOX4)

Shop

The perfect gift doesn’t exi — meet our local makers gift guide. Browse unique, handmade gifts crafted right here in Kansas City by sellers on Etsy. We’re talking high-quality jewelry, candles that smell like local beer, and personalized pet art. Get shopping.
If you work from home like us, you’ve likely become accustomed to having stiff muscles at the end of a workday due to prolonged sitting. Combat this with a little office upgrade — an electric standing desk paired with a sleek under desk treadmill. Oh, and don’t forget to stay hydrated.*

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This billion-dollar startup wants to help you retire

SmartAsset’s no-cost tool makes it easy to find vetted financial advisors who serve your area. | Photo provided by SmartAsset

This Princeton grad’s startup raised $161 million to help people plan for retirement. 👀

If you’re one of the whopping 110 million Americans over age 50 — or a wise Millennial looking to get ahead — SmartAsset’s no-cost tool makes it easy to find vetted financial advisors serving our local area.

In just a few minutes, you can get matched with up to three financial advisors, each legally bound to work in your best interest. Now that’s service.*

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THE WRAP

	Today’s issue was written by Travis. Editor’s pick: Today’s lead story and the princess concert event got me thinking about Broadway, which got me thinking about musical theater, which got me thinking about ... the Macy’s Parade. Stay with me. There’s this really cool video from this year’s parade, where Lea Michelle (famous from Glee and various Broadway shows) sings “Don’t Rain on My Parade.” Oh, who’s that playing along with her? None other than the band from my alma mater, Marching Mizzou. Missed yesterday’s newsletter? Get in the know with these major winter events.

Connect with us.

Editorial: Bella Rainey, Travis Meier, Dayten Rose, Josh Kranzberg, Ashlea Hearn, Emily Shea, Victoria Bardega | Send us a scoop, question, or feedback.

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