KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Almost one year after the pandemic shuttered theaters and live performance venues, a local theater has created a streaming option for audiences to safely return to the arts.
In December, Musical Theater Heritage took over an empty art gallery at a crossroads hotel. Inside, they filmed their new show, "The Music of Motown."
"I was looking at the lyrics and I was blown away," director Ron Lackey said. "Here we are, that's the music of the '60s and '70s and the music, the lyrics are still so relevant to some of the atmosphere and the things that are happening in our country right now. So we just wanted to bring some people some joy coming out of 2020 where they would have an opportunity to just sit, and receive something and fill their soul and have a little joy as we start this year off."
Lackey had been discussing the idea for the show over the last two years. Now, their vision would need some adjusting.
The small cast was never even in the same room. Each vocalist instead filmed their songs with a small band, individually.
"The music has such an impact on Black culture specifically, but in general, music culture and American culture and so we really felt like we wanted to present this music in a way where people could enjoy it and have some nostalgia regarding the music because it has had such staying power," Lackey said. "Even younger people still know the music of Motown. Culturally speaking, from the Black perspective, that music has such an impact with getting our music out there to cross over into mainstream music. And that's still the case today. So we wanted to present this music to people of all races and creeds that would have an opportunity to receive it."
The end result is available to stream from Jan. 16 to Feb. 16. A $35 ticket gets you access to stream the video for 24-hours. Visit the theater's website for more information or to buy tickets.
