Several upcoming performances offer a broad variety of entertainment for local residents to enjoy.

The acoustic guitar duo Ryanhood will perform at Cottey College at 8 p.m., Saturday, March 29, on the stage in Raney Dining Room.

(Advertisement)

Ryanhood convened in 2003 and began honing their craft in the subways and streets of Boston, where the two forged their unique style out of rock, folk, and bluegrass, and quickly connected with listeners of all ages. The acoustic guitar duo has rapidly begun to make their mark on a nationwide audience, selling more than 5,000 CDs and playing more than 100 shows in the last year alone. Visit their Web site at www.ryanhoodmusic.com.

Tickets for Ryanhood are $4 for adults and $3 for those under age 18 or over age 62. Tickets will be available at the door the evening of the show.

Raney Dining Room is located on the lower level of Robertson Hall on the southeast corner of Austin and Tower streets in Nevada, Missouri. Parking is available in the lot immediately south of Robertson and is accessible from Tower Street. Please enter through the front doors on the east side of Robertson Hall.

On April 2, the St. Louis Ballet will take the stage at Cottey College, at 8 p.m. in the Auditorium of the Haidee and Allen Wild Center for the Arts.

In a slight change of program, the ballet will not perform George Balanchine's "Who Cares?" as was originally announced. The program now includes Divertimento # 15, Blue Bird Pas de Deux, and Romantique. Also featured on this exciting program is former New York City Ballet principal dancer, Christopher D'Ambroise's "Circle of Fifths." Culminating this beautiful evening of dance will be a new work commissioned exclusively for Saint Louis Ballet and choreographed by its artistic director, Gen Horiuchi. Don't miss this exciting, high-energy, and versatile program. Visit the ballet's Web site at: www.stlouisballet.org.

Tickets for the St. Louis Ballet are $10 for adults and $8 for those over age 62 or under age 18. This show is expected to sell out, so it is recommended that tickets be reserved in advance by calling the Cottey Ticket Office at (417) 667-8181, ext. 2186.

More musical entertainment is slated for April 6, when the Cottey College Department of Music will present the first of two special concerts. At 3 p.m. a "Winds and Pipes" concert in the Cottey Chapel. Another concert, "An Evening of Jazz." will be presented on Tuesday, April 8, at 7 p.m., in the auditorium.

The "Winds and Pipes" concert will feature Peggy Graves on the pipe organ. She is organist at First Methodist Church in Nevada. The Cottey Wind Ensemble is under the direction of Gary Johnson.

"An Evening of Jazz" will include the Nevada Middle School and the high school jazz bands under the direction of Tom Meyer, and the Cottey Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of Gary Johnson.

Both concerts are free and open to the public.

The Chapel is on the south side of Austin Boulevard between Reeves and Robertson Halls. Parking is available in the lot immediately south of Robertson Hall. The lot is accessible off of Tower Street. The circle drive in front of the Chapel is for loading and unloading only. The auditorium is in the Haidee and Allen Wild Center for the Arts on the northeast corner of Austin and Tower streets in Nevada.