Notable events to keep arts aficionados busy in 2025

While the first week of the year starts off slow, allowing everyone to unwind after the busy holiday season, happenings will begin picking up quickly in the following weeks and may fly past your radar as the list grows. To keep readers from missing out on any notable happenings, City Pulse has put together a list of upcoming arts events for enthusiasts of every discipline. From annual festivals to visits by nationally renowned artists, 2025 looks to be another exciting year for the area’s arts scene.

Literature

Poets Cindy Hunter Morgan, an assistant professor of creative writing at Michigan State University, and Anita Skeen, a professor emerita in MSU’s Residential College in the Arts and Humanities, will kick off an exciting calendar of upcoming literary events on Jan. 12 at the Lansing Poetry Club’s Copper Chimney Poetry Lounge series, which takes place at East Lansing’s University United Methodist Church. The following week, on Jan. 20, the Poetry Room will host writer, educator and nationally touring performance poet Ephraim Nehemiah, with additional readings by Poetry Room founder Masaki Takahashi and local poets Lisa Sarno, Claire Donohoe, Korey Deans, Maddy Smith and Suban Nur Cooley.

The annual A Rally of Writers conference returns April 12 at Lansing Community College’s West Campus, offering an Authors Alley where attendees can meet and network with Michigan writers as well as a slew of workshops on writing-themed topics. The keynote speaker will be Lansing novelist Erin Bartels, a two-time Michigan Notable Book award winner.

Speaking of Michigan Notable Book awards, the Library of Michigan will hold its 2025 Night for Notables on April 26 to honor this year’s winners, which should be announced in the coming weeks.  

Film

The Capital City Film Festival will once again take over venues across Lansing from April 2 through 12 to showcase independent films of varying lengths and countries of origin. Beyond film, the festival typically offers a range of arts-focused events, from concerts, dance performances and poetry readings to visual art displays, workshops and straight-up parties. To sign up to volunteer at the festival or receive updates on details as they’re announced, visit capitalcityfilmfest.com.

For those who can’t wait until April, the Lake Michigan Film Festival returns Feb. 27 through March 2 at the Meridian Mall’s Studio C! theater, showcasing flicks made in Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin and Illinois. Keep an eye on the website, elff.com/festival, for more information.

Theater

Broadway fans may already have tickets for the upcoming productions at the Wharton Center, including “Shucked” Jan. 21 through 26, “MJ” Feb. 11 through 16, “Life of Pi” March 11 through 16, “Chicago” April 8 through 13, “Hamilton” May 21 through June 1 and “The Book of Mormon” June 19 through 22.

Those closer to Owosso can look forward to the musical “Into the Woods” Feb. 28 through March 9 and the comedic play “The Cottage,” which opened on Broadway in 2023, April 25 through May 4 at the Lebowsky Center for Performing Arts.

Other well-known shows to keep on your radar include “9 to 5,” featuring music and lyrics by Dolly Parton, Feb. 15 through 23 at MSU’s Fairchild Theatre; “Crime and Punishment” Feb. 21 through 23, Feb. 28 and March 1 at LCC’s Black Box Theatre; and “The SpongeBob Musical” May 29 through June 1 and June 5 through 8 at Riverwalk Theatre.

There are many more noteworthy shows we don’t have space to mention here — details can be found on local theater companies’ websites and social media pages.

Visual Art

The MSU Broad Art Museum will welcome four new exhibitions in the first half of 2025: “Farmland: Food, Justice, and Sovereignty,” opening Jan. 18; “Echoes of War,” a collection of antiwar paintings by the late Lebanese-born artist Nabil Kanso, opening Feb. 15; the 2025 Master of Fine Arts exhibition, opening March 8; and “unbecoming,” a series of feminist paintings and sculptures by Syrian-born artist Diana Al-Hadid, opening June 7.

Additionally, MSU Federal Credit Union will host its annual Student Art Exhibit Jan. 26 through March 2 at its Headquarters 1 Building in East Lansing. Students from 20 area high schools will exhibit work in an array of media, from drawings and paintings to photography and sculptures. The public is invited to vote for their favorites in a people’s choice contest, running through Feb. 21.

Other local galleries, coffee shops, libraries, churches and general gathering spaces will most certainly host exhibitions that are yet to be announced. Keep up with City Pulse’s weekly Out on the Town calendar for updates.

Music

The Lansing Symphony Orchestra kicks off 2025’s calendar of musical events Jan. 10 at the Wharton Center with its third Masterworks concert of the season, featuring selections by Respighi, Strauss and Haydn. Fans can also catch the symphony performing the music of Queen on Feb. 8; Spanish and Spanish-influenced music on April 4; songs by diva legends such as Alicia Keys, Whitney Houston and Diana Ross April 17; and works by Beethoven, Dvorak and composer-in-residence Jared Miller on May 9, all at Wharton.

Wharton will also host many non-LSO musical events in the coming months, including New York-based singer-songwriter and composer Gabriel Kahane on Jan. 18, Grammy- and Emmy-winning multi-genre string trio Time for Three on Jan. 29, modern jazz ensemble Upendo on Feb. 5, Detroit chamber orchestra Sphinx Virtuosi on Feb. 22, a trio of Jazz at Lincoln Center musicians performing music from New Orleans on March 25 and New York-based jazz manouche vocalist Tatiana Eva-Marie on April 3, just to name a few.

The MSU College of Music has much to offer, from student, staff and alumni performances to visiting musicians and ensembles, some of which will also present workshops for students. The fun begins Jan. 15 with a concert by flutist Richard Sherman and harpist Juan Riveros at Cook Recital Hall.

Finally, for information on what the Ten Pound Fiddle has in store for the rest of its 50th season, including its annual Mid-Winter Singing Festival Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, make sure to check out next week’s (Jan. 8) cover story.