Community Calendar

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
Oct. 4 at 5 PM Luther S. Allison Trio

Please join us the first Saturday of each month at 9 AM (barring special events or bad weather which will be announced on our Facebook page), for "Beginning Birding Walks," led by experienced birders from the Audubon Society of Kalamazoo. This event is free and open to the public. Meet at the second parking lot at Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery in Mattawan, just off SR 43. All skill levels are welcome.

We will enjoy nature while typically identifying 20-40 species of birds, plus butterflies, frogs, etc. Over 200 bird species have been sighted at Wolf Lake, which offers a variety of habitats and easy walking trails. Annual highlights include colorful songbirds like orioles, warblers, tanagers, hawks and eagles, kingfishers, Great Blue and Green Herons, and over 20 species of waterfowl. Eastern Bluebirds can be found year-round! Children accompanying adults are welcome. The focus is on birding fundamentals, and extra binoculars are always available. The walk typically takes about 2 hours (but feel free to arrive late or leave early).

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

25-year-old Giorgi Gigashvili began learning piano with no intention of pursuing a professional career on the instrument. After a win on his home country of Georgia’s edition of “The Voice” at age 13, Gigashvili entered the Tbilisi State Conservatory to continue his keyboard studies with Revaz Tavadze. Early successes included First Prize at the Vigo International Piano Competition, with Martha Argerich as president of the jury, and 2nd Prize at the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition. In the 2023/24 season, Gigashvili began studying with Gilmore Artist Kirill Gerstein at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in Berlin. He was selected as a BBC New Generation Artist 2023-2025 and has been nominated as an ECHO Rising Star for 2025/26 season. For his Gilmore recital, Gigashvili focuses on lyrical Romantic works by Mendelssohn, Chopin, and Schumann. The program also includes Prokofiev’s Piano Sonata No. 8, a masterwork of 20th-century keyboard literature and one of Prokofiev’s most important contributions to the genre.

Alla Boara seeks to bring recognition and new life to Italy’s diverse history of regional folk music. Their modern arrangements of traditional folk songs are variously surprising, playful, mournful, tender and bewitching.

Their dynamic work aims to inspire audiences of all ethnic heritages to treasure their musical roots and consider historical songs’ contemporary cultural relevance. The group has received critical acclaim for its originality and accessibility.

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