Dueling Fun Pianos in Colby!

Get ready for a duel, Sunday afternoon, Feb. 11. No, not the shoot ‘em up kind but the jazz ‘em up kind. The Western Arts Association presents Dueling Fun Pianos, a 176 Keys Fun Pianos show based in Loup City, Neb. The show roster will pit any two of a five-member professional piano entertainment staff to a keyboard duel. The show starts at 3 p.m. central at the Cultural Arts Center, on the campus of Colby Community College. Admission is by WPAA season ticket or adults $20 and students $10 at the door. Major funding for the program comes from The Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation-Dane Hansen Community Grant for Thomas County and the Dane G. Hansen Foundation. The duelers have rocked out at rowdy fraternities and bachelor parties, kept the kids involved and parents, and delivered at over a thousand memorable office parties all across the country. They involve the audience, making

*Rescheduled!* Rex Havens Coming to Hoxie!

Rex Havens “Women and Children First” has been rescheduled for 3 p.m., Sunday, March 17 at the Hoxie High School Auditorium. His show was postponed due to the mid-January polar weather.  

For more than 20 years, Rex Havens, comedian and motivational speaker, has entertained audiences around the world with his insightful observations about the hilarious miscommunications that populate our personal lives. He will present “Women & Children First: after that it’s every man for himself” for the Western Plains Arts Association. Hoxie High School Auditorium is the venue for this first 2024 program slated from 3 p.m. central, Sunday, Jan. 14. Admission is by WPAA season ticket or $20 adults, $10 students at the door. The Dane G. Hansen Foundation is a ma
jor benefactor for this 54th WPAA season. 

Havens has been delighting comedy audiences in world-famous comedy clubs like The Improv, Catch-A-Rising Star, Funny Bones and Zanies, on television for Showtime, Comedy Central and Comic Relief, on radio with Bob & Tom and NPR, cruise ships worldwide, as well as, leading corporate clients and numerous non-profit and charitable organizations.

Marla Matkin in St. Francis and Surrounding Areas

Marla Matkin, Hill City, Kan., an independent humanities scholar and performer, will present “Women on the Trail,” Sunday, Jan. 28 at 3 p.m. at the St. Francis High School Auditorium.

Admission to the Western Plains Arts Association program is by season ticket or adults $10 and students $5 at the door. In addition to numerous business, individual and foundation funding, The Dane G. Hansen Foundation is a major financial contributor.

She will provide two elementary programs on the state’s 163rd (1861) statehood anniversary, Monday, Jan. 29, to St. Francis students in the morning and to Rawlins County (Atwood) students in the afternoon.

Matkin comes by her love of history having been born in Dodge City and raised nearby.  She is on a continuing search to expand her knowledge and understanding of the legend and lore surrounding the region and its people. This deep connection can be traced back to her great-grandparents who homesteaded in southwest Kansas in 1877. Add to this her love of drama and she makes a compelling case for the ladies she portrays and the history she imparts as teacher, historian, living historian and now children’s author.