With a lively performing arts scene and artful off-site venues to match, Central Missouri delivers a riveting performance.
Jefferson City
The state capital leverages its rich history and culture to provide unique entertainment options.
Performers tramp the stage all year in Jefferson City. Active theater companies include the Capital City Players Dinner Theatre, Stained Glass Theatre Mid-Missouri, The Little Theatre of Jefferson City and Scene One Theatre. Planners can contact the Jefferson City CVB for group bookings.
Groups can also enjoy live comedy at Avenue HQ. The creative event space opened in early 2016 across the street from the decommissioned Missouri State Penitentiary and near the Missouri State Penitentiary Museum. The venue offers its Evening of Comedy events throughout the year, showcasing local and touring comics. The space, which features limestone and brick walls and exposed utility piping, can welcome private events as large as 300.
“We have a variety of arts and entertainment in Jefferson City,” said Marianne Thies, sales manager at Jefferson City CVB. “Probably something that would fit any person’s taste in music and arts. We’d be happy to set up group bookings for live music and live guided tours of the Capitol, the prison and the new museum.”
There are also a number of performing arts venues that double as memorable off-site venues. Lincoln University’s Mitchell Auditorium of the Richardson Fine Arts Center presents shows by students of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. The auditorium can seat 1,066.
The Etta and Joseph Miller Performing Arts Center, owned and managed by Jefferson City public schools, offers theater performances throughout the year. The center seats 900. Windstone Event Center, a newer development, offers a swing dancing class and party every Tuesday, and Fridays are country and western night with live music and dancing. Windstone can welcome 500.
When not hosting meetings and banquets, Capital Ritz Banquet & Dance offers weekly dance and fitness classes. Planners can combine the two by booking a private teambuilding dance lesson. The facility can accommodate 350 for banquets.
Canterbury Hill Winery and Restaurant, just north of town across the Missouri River, offers comedy shows and murder mystery dinners to go along with its wines and upscale American food. Canterbury Hill offers event space for groups as large as 250 looking out over the Missouri State Capitol and the scenic hills of Callaway County.
Storytelling is often underrated as a performing art. In fact, it is a creative discipline that unites acting, entertainment and history. In Jefferson City, Missouri State Penitentiary (MSP) offers live guides that entertain while educating visitors about its 168-year history.
“They really bring you into it,” Thies said. “We have one tour guide on our history tours who has been referred to as a master storyteller, Bill Green. He has a way of telling the stories that just fascinates people. He was a corrections officer at MSP for over 30 years.”
Planners can request Bill Green as their tour guide for group history tours at MSP. Private history tours require at least 20, and extra guides are necessary for groups larger than 50. The prison also offers ghost tours for 20 to 40.
Groups can add an element of storytelling to any meeting with a novel complimentary service from the Jefferson City CVB. With advance notice, planners can book Thomas Jefferson to appear at meetings. President Jefferson—portrayed by actor Patrick Lee—ties his inspiring tales of leadership and innovation seamlessly into any theme.
No matter when groups visit Jefferson City, seasonal entertainment options can bring a special spark into a meeting.
Summer brings free Thursday night band concerts downtown and at Jefferson Landing State Historic Site. Located behind the Missouri State Museum, Jefferson Landing offers group tours for 10 or more.
In September, Capital Jazz Fest makes the city sizzle. Later that same month, check out Oktoberfest in Old Munichburg (a neighborhood on the south side of Jefferson City) for polka music and blacksmithing demonstrations. Jefferson City Multicultural Fall Festival features performances of dance and music representative of many diverse cultures.
Groups meeting in Jefferson City around the holidays are in for a treat. Each year, Jefferson City Cantorum presents choir performances of favorite carols. On select weekends in December, visitors to the Capitol can enjoy strolling carols, living window displays, traditional dances, and candlelight tours of the governor’s mansion. In January, planners can get groups’ juices flowing via live gospel music at the Capitol and the Annual Bluegrass Music Awards and Midwest Convention.
Columbia
Count on a college town to support a wide range of performing arts companies and venues. From classic to hip, groups won’t spend a boring evening in Columbia.
For groups with refined taste, book a performance of the Columbia Civic Orchestra. If your attendees are more pop-oriented, Columbia Entertainment Company puts on productions of popular musicals and plays. Group discounts for tickets are available.
Bring your blankets or comfy folding chairs. Now in its 44th year, Maplewood Barn Community Theatre claims the distinction of being Missouri’s only live outdoor theater company. From Shakespeare to classic musicals, Maplewood is a local entertainment favorite. There are group discounts for 10 or more. The barn itself, suitable for 80, is available for event rentals through the city’s Parks and Recreation department.
The department also administers Stephens Lake Park Amphitheater, a 500-seat outdoor venue that hosts concerts by the Missouri State Symphony, local bands, magician performances and more during seasonal weather.
Rose Music Hall presents free and ticketed live performance events throughout the year. Kid-friendly events, grownups-only happy hour concerts and screenings of beloved cinema favorites are just a taste of its offerings. The venue can welcome indoor events of 150, and combined outdoor space in adjacent Forrest Rose Park increases its capacity to 1,000. Sister property the Blue Note is a restored historic theater with 500 seats.
The Bridge is another hip spot for live local and national music acts. The intimate, 200-person venue has a full bar.
Columbia is home to Missouri Company Ballet, a nonprofit dance school that offers classes in a wide range of dance disciplines. The company puts on performances throughout the year at the University of Missouri’s Missouri Theatre.
Lake of the Ozarks
During the summer months, the resorts and watering holes around Lake of the Ozarks liven up the days and nights with a wide array of concerts.
Ozarks Amphitheater in Camdenton hosts nationally touring acts such as Willie Nelson, Blues Traveler and Foreigner. The venue boasts 10,000 seats plus expansive lawn seating.
An entertainment destination for more than 20 years, Main Street Music Hall in Osage Beach presents Main Street Opry shows with group ticket rates for 20 or more.
Shawnee Bluff Winery & Vineyard offers live music on weekends. The vineyard can host events of 200, while the winery has nine overnight guest rooms, a 30-person tasting room and tented events with a lake view.
Waterfront nightlife favorite Dog Days Bar & Grill hosts live music nearly every night plus a huge musical event called Aquapalooza each July.
Picklehead’s Roadhouse is one of the newest venues on the scene. The four-level entertainment center offers live concerts and event space.
H. Toad’s in Lake Ozark is another hot spot for music and dancing.
