The Kansas City Symphony is on the move—across the street. The orchestra plans to shift its headquarters to the Webster School building in the Crossroads Arts District, allowing it to centralize administrative, musical, and creative operations in the building, which is across the street from its current administrative offices. The orchestra is working with Helix Design and Straub Construction to create a modern space while preserving the character of the building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. “The Webster School building will be the front door to the Kansas City Symphony, where we will provide new ways for the community to interact with us through recitals, educational programs, events, and opportunities to meet our musicians,” says Danny Beckley, Kansas City Symphony executive director. “This will be a perfect complement to our mainstage performances just next door in Helzberg Hall at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. This historic space will help us provide context to the art of symphonic music, which will deepen engagement with our community.”
Two other orchestras have also moved to new offices. In December, the Billings Symphony in Montana moved its offices downtown to a building that will give the orchestra more visibility in the community and space to perform small concerts, along with a recording area, storage, and archives. In mid-2020, California’s Monterey Symphony moved to new offices in Carmel, which inspired it to present “Balcony Sessions” chamber concerts while its performances at the Sunset Center were on hold during the pandemic. Musicians have been playing from the balcony for an in-person audience of up to twelve people in the courtyard; performances are also live-streamed.
