ABOUT US
More than 1,000 performances have come to Kansas City by way of the Harriman-Jewell Series, including 26 American recital debuts by prominent artists. With the addition of our free Educational Events that allow interaction with musicians and dancers, and our free Discovery Concerts that eliminate the barrier of cost, the Harriman-Jewell Series offers even more life-enriching opportunities for our community's youth and lifelong learners.
Since the inception of the Harriman-Jewell Series, we have sought to bring the best of the performing arts to Kansas City, and to bring them to local audiences first. We continue to seek new voices and emerging artists alongside artists and ensembles who are leaders in their craft. Artistic programming follows our core tenets.
QUALITY: The world’s finest artists
VARIETY: Widely varied artistic programming
DIVERSITY: Artists and Ensembles of all backgrounds and genres
DISCOVERY: Rising-star performers
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater was the Series’ 11th presentation. The Company appeared in 1968 as part of their first American tour and has returned to the Series more than 10 times.
EXPLORE OUR HISTORY
As we look back at our 1,000 performances, it’s astonishing to remember these world-renowned artists and ensembles on our stages and us as the audience! We have compiled a list, along with photos of printed programs and performance details, into a searchable list of each of the 1,000th events. You may remember attending Pavarotti’s debut in 1973, but do you remember which performances you attended soon after that? Or do you remember which Series events you were able to attend as a student at William Jewell College?
Join with us as we revisit our performance history by looking through this list of Harriman-Jewell Series events from 1965 to now.
HISTORICAL TIMELINE
A HISTORY OF THE HARRIMAN-JEWELL SERIES IN 1,000 CONCERTS
Click on each photo above to get a closer look!
Richard Harriman with tenor Luciano Pavarotti.
Violinist Itzhak Perlman
SERIES HISTORY
In the 1960s, college English professors Richard Harriman and Dean Dunham sat in their shared office and wondered how to offer rich, cultural opportunities to the Kansas City community. The midwest had ceased to be a stop on national tours for international artists, and this sparked an idea - create a way to showcase extraordinary artists and ensembles for our local community to brighten Kansas City's stages once again.
Many know that the Series presented tenor Luciano Pavarotti in his professional recital debut in 1973, but the story of discovery neither begins nor ends here. Few Kansas Citians had seen New York City Ballet's Patricia McBride and Edward Villella before they danced in the Series' first performance in 1965. Nor had the community heard violinist Itzhak Perlman play, unless one counts Ed Sullivan Show appearances that preceded his first local recital in 1971.
From these early days, the Harriman-Jewell Series has served as the leading performing arts presenter in the Kansas City area, bringing artists of legendary skill to thousands of audience members across the region.
The Harriman-Jewell Series continues to carve out an enviable legacy as a performing arts presenter of international importance.
RICHARD HARRIMAN
Richard Harriman (1932–2010), co-founder and Artistic Director of the Harriman-Jewell Series, believed in bringing the best of the performing arts to the Kansas City community. He was passionate about the artistic and cultural landscape of our region, and sought to enrich the lives of arts lovers, musicians, students, and audience members through engaging artistic experiences.
The Richard Harriman Award
foR Excellence in the Arts
Named in Richard Harriman’s honor and memory in 2010, The Richard Harriman Award for Excellence in the Arts is presented to champions of the arts in our Kansas City community and beyond. These individuals share a wholehearted dedication to enriching the lives of others through the performing arts as arts leaders, donors, volunteers, and artists. They have inspired our local community–and communities around the world– with their talent, generosity of spirit, and commitment to the life-changing power of the performing arts.
For our 1,000th performance on January 7, 2023, we honored the prestigious artists and ensembles who have appeared on the Series ten times or more with The Richard Harriman Award for Excellence in the Arts.
Harriman Award winners’ messages, January 2023
These artists are:
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Emanuel Ax, piano
Canadian Brass
Joyce DiDonato, mezzo-soprano
Marilyn Horne, mezzo-soprano
Warren Jones, collaborative pianist
Martin Katz, collaborative pianist
The King's Singers
Yo-Yo Ma, cello
Wynton Marsalis, trumpet
David Parsons and Parsons Dance
Itzhak Perlman, violin
Past HARRIMAN Award Recipients
2015 Dorothy and Bill Curry
2016 Jackie and John Middelkamp
2017 Burnell and Linda Landers
2018 Jonathan and Nancy Lee Kemper
2019 Jane Chu, former chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts
2010 Beth Ingram
2011 Julie Gerson and Paget Higgins
2012 Roswitha and Ken Schaffer
2013 Esther Loeb
2015 Dorothy and Bill Curry
An enduring aspect of the Series, drafted by founders Richard Harriman and Dean Dunham, Jr., is the availability of the performing arts as an integral part of a superior liberal arts college curriculum for William Jewell College students.