Cynical pundits in Kansas City have long insisted that suburbanites are too frightened to visit the Jazz District. The pernicious myth was busted on Wednesday, June 5, when more than 2,000 people from outlying communities were among the throng packing Parade Park to take in a free appearance by Yo-Yo Ma.
The cellist’s participation in the Kansas City Symphony’s Mobile Music Box event was announced the previous day. The short notice and simultaneous sold-out concerts by James Taylor at Starlight Theatre and Noah Kahan at Azura Amphitheater didn’t prevent people from suburbs such as Lee’s Summit, Gladstone and Lenexa from filling the space directly behind the American Jazz Museum.
Longtime observers are well aware of disappointing attendance for jazz events held in the same space and along the adjacent Paseo Boulevard. Conjecture about the reasons for the failures often include the accusation that suburbanites refuse to patronize the neighborhood. Yo-Yo Ma nullified that excuse on June 5.