Community Calendar

Bird Banding Up Close

Wednesdays, August 27 – September 24, 8-10 am (weather permitting)

Wednesdays, October 1 – October 29, 9-11 am (weather permitting)

Fee: Included in regular KNC admission
Audience: All ages
Meet: Banding Barn near KNC Camp

For half a century, the Kalamazoo Valley Bird Observatory’s team of researchers has been banding birds. This long-running program has contributed data on over 650,000 birds to the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Laboratory that is actively being used for scientific research, management and conservation of birds across the country. As we embark on our 52nd year of this critical work, we invite you to come witness the intricate process of bird banding and observe these beautiful birds up close at the KNC Banding Barn.

All banding, marking, and sampling is being conducted under a federally authorized Bird Banding Permit issued by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Lab

Join us for a colorful autumn adventure through the galleries! We’ll explore artworks that capture the magic of fall. Along the way, we’ll look for warm colors, interesting textures, and hidden surprises that celebrate the beauty of the season. Bring your imagination and get ready to see autumn through the eyes of artists!

Please note that this event will not be livestreamed or posted on YouTube.
Take a Wonder Walk through the galleries! The walk will include close looking at a few artworks as well as gallery games and activities. This is a great way to introduce your little one to art and the museum. Wonder Walks is for children 2-4 years old (but all are welcome) and is free with the cost of admission. Caregivers must stay with their children at all times. Preregistration is encouraged. Adults, remember to register your children!

From the coal mines to the picket lines, protest songs have served to highlight injustice, point the way out of the darkness and provide the courage to keep marching forward. As Pete Seeger says, “a good song reminds us what we are fighting for.”
Many area and regional musicians are generously giving their time to share a selection of songs from the deep traditions of protest music. It will be an evening of catchy and cathartic music with opportunities for community sing-along! Sing Out! The Power of the Protest Song, is a benefit for MI Book Club supporting local organizations include Indivisible Greater Kalamazoo and groups that provide systemic advocacy to advance the rights of low-income immigrants and their families.

In the quiet glow of a moonlit junkyard, a community of cats gathers for one extraordinary night. They dance, they sing, they tell their stories — each one hoping to be chosen for a new life.

Western Michigan University’s production of CATS brings this beloved musical into the intimate Williams Theatre, placing the audience right in the heart of the Jellicle Ball. With characters that range from rebellious to wise, mysterious to magical, this is a show about identity, memory, and connection — told through music that leaps off the stage and choreography that fills every corner of the space.

What if, just for an evening, you could step into a café where people simply lived together — enjoying coffee, ice cream, love, and laughter — without the barriers that so often divide us? That’s the gentle power of Utopia, a play by Charles L. Mee. As a mother and daughter watch lives unfolding around them, we hear tender confessions, playful debates, and dreams shared across tables. Different perspectives collide and comfort, inviting us to imagine a world where everyone belongs and small joys are truly enough. Warm, thoughtful, and quietly profound, Utopia reminds us how good life might feel — and how it still could be.

Bird Banding Up Close

Wednesdays, August 27 – September 24, 8-10 am (weather permitting)

Wednesdays, October 1 – October 29, 9-11 am (weather permitting)

Fee: Included in regular KNC admission
Audience: All ages
Meet: Banding Barn near KNC Camp

For half a century, the Kalamazoo Valley Bird Observatory’s team of researchers has been banding birds. This long-running program has contributed data on over 650,000 birds to the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Laboratory that is actively being used for scientific research, management and conservation of birds across the country. As we embark on our 52nd year of this critical work, we invite you to come witness the intricate process of bird banding and observe these beautiful birds up close at the KNC Banding Barn.

All banding, marking, and sampling is being conducted under a federally authorized Bird Banding Permit issued by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Lab

Foraging the Edible Wilderness
Thursday, October 2, 5-6:30 pm
Saturday, October 4, 10-11:30 am

Join KNC staff to learn some foraging basics and search for some tasty treats along the trails. Grab your basket, explore the wilderness, and let these wild ingredients inspire your culinary creations!

Fee: $12/Member, $15/Non-Member. Registration required.
Audience: Adults | Meet: DeLano Farm lot, 555 W E Ave.

Nutty for Nature: Foraging Local Abundance
Saturday, October 4, 1-3 pm

Join us for a hands-on foraging adventure where you’ll learn to identify and harvest, process, and enjoy fresh, wild, edible nuts! This interactive outdoor experience combines the joy of nature with the happiness of a nutritious food, perfect for foodies, nature enthusiasts, and anyone curious about wild edibles. This event will focus on walnuts and chestnuts and how to safely enjoy their yummy goodness. Grab your basket and dress for the weather as this program will be entirely outdoors.

Fee: $12/Member, $15/Non-Member. Register in advance or drop in.
Audience: All Ages | Meet: Arboretum

Luther S. Allison, piano
Zwelakhe-Duma F. Bell le Pere, bass
Anwar Marshall, drums

Winner of a 2024 GRAMMY Award for his work with vocalist Samara Joy, Luther S. Allison is one of today’s most in-demand jazz artists. Allison is a double threat and then some; he has worked with some of the brightest stars in jazz — such as Jazzmeia Horn, Helen Sung, Rodney Whitaker, Etienne Charles, and Ulysses Owens Jr — and been called on by them to perform on piano, drums, or both. He is also carving out his own path as a leader, thanks in part to his critically acclaimed 2024 debut recording I Owe it All To You. Having grown up in the south, Allison’s unique style is rooted in blues and gospel, with strong influences from bebop and soul music. At The Gilmore, he leads his trio, featuring fellow multi-instrumentalist Anwar Marshall on drums and Zwelakhe-Duma F. Bell le Pere on bass. Later this season, Allison will arrange and music direct the sacred compositions of Duke Ellington for Jazz at Lincoln Center.

More with Luther S. Allison:
Oct. 4 at 11 AM Luther S. Allison Baby Grands Family Concert | LEARN MORE
Oct. 4 at 8 PM Luther S. Allison Trio | LEARN MORE

POSTPONED Due to a change in the touring route, the show has been postponed to Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025. No need to take any action; your tickets have already been transferred to the new date.

This touching and hilarious 'tell-it-like-it-is' musical takes audiences on a journey into the lives of a group of female friends.

Audience members can’t help but laugh, cry, and even find themselves singing and dancing in the aisles as some of the most popular hit songs of the 80s and 90s make this musical a fan favorite! Follow five friends as they visit their past, celebrate their present, and look to the future on a wild and hilarious night out... and you'll recognize a bit of yourselves in every one of them!

It is described as “Desperate Housewives meets Mamma Mia” (Applause Magazine), “A boisterous, bust-out, bawdy musical revue” (Wisconsin State Journal), “An infectious, exhilarating sense of intoxication (Hollywood Reporter), and “As funny and outrageous as Sex and the City!” (The Advocate).

GIRLS NIGHT is bursting with energy and is packed with hits “Lady Marmalade,” “It’s Raining Men,” “Man I Feel Like A Woman,” “I Will Survive,” “We Are Family,” and many more.