North Omaha Music and Arts (NOMA) is hosting NEW ISH on July 31 at 7:00 a.m. It’s a brand-new poetry slam series for artists ready to take risks, try something fresh and say what hasn’t been said yet. One round. One mic. A live band behind you. Got a group piece? Bring it. Wrote it yesterday? Even better. Props? Let’s go. Need musical backing? There’s a three-piece band to set the mood and a room full of people rooting for new voices. Only rule: your piece needs to be original, brand-new material. The event costs $10 to enter and will award a $50 cash prize for the top poet.
Humanities Nebraska has announced a new style of programs in its Speakers Bureau: audience participation workshops. Five topics — one particularly designed for children — will be led by seasoned presenters in music, creative writing and history. The five workshops are: “Connecting to Folk Music” with David Seay, “Creative Writing on the Plains” with former state poet Twyla M. Hansen, “Feathers & Verses Writing Workshop” with Bill Clemente, “Tell a Story, Write a Poem” with former state poet Matt Mason, and “Community Oral History Projects: An Interactive Workshop” with Mary Kay Quinlan.
The Omaha Chamber Music Society (OCMS) and KVNO are holding the Good Vibrations Used Instrument Drive on Saturday, August 9th, from 9:00 a.m. to 12 noon at the UNO Bell Tower. Good Vibrations provides quality refurbished instruments—free of charge—to students and immigrants in the Omaha/Council Bluffs area who otherwise wouldn’t have access to them. The program collects gently used instruments from community members, professionally restores them, and distributes them to students through educators and partner organizations.
North Dakota playwright Kathleen Coudle-King has written a play to encourage discussion around mental illness in the family and the stigma that is too often associated with it. There’s Something I Must Tell You will be performed at the Omaha Fringe Festival August 7-9 at the University of Nebraska – Omaha Blackbox theater. Festival passes and individual tickets can be purchased in advance by going to 2025 Fringe | Omaha Fringe Fest or at the door.
Omaha Performing Arts has added four new events to the performance calendar:
Blue Violin Candlelight Christmas Extravaganza comes to Scott Hall at the Holland Center on Friday, Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $36.25 and go on sale Friday, July 25 at 10 a.m.
Mannheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis comes to the Orpheum Theater on Saturday, Dec. 20 at 3 and 8 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 21, at 2 p.m. Tickets start at $61 and go on sale Friday, July 25 at 10 a.m.
The Princess Bride: An Inconceivable Evening with Cary Elwes comes to the Holland Center on Sunday, Dec. 28 at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $54.25 and go on sale Friday, July 25 at 10 a.m.
All Things Equal: The Life and Trials of Ruth Bader Ginsburg comes to the Orpheum Theater on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $35.50 and go on sale Friday, July 25 at 10 a.m.
Tickets for these recently added events are available through ticketomaha.com.