Kansas City can’t get enough of TEDxKC

Kansas Citians have rushed the stage to buy tickets for TEDxKC.

When tickets for TEDxKC went on sale in early June, they sold out in less than 30 minutes. For those who weren’t able to snag tickets to the live event and simulcast at the Kauffman Performing Arts Center, other area organizations offered watch parties.

Those parties now have also sold out, as nearly 4,000 people around the Kansas City area have purchased tickets to watch TEDxKC, an event featuring national speakers challenging participants to see the world as it isn’t. The enthusiastic response from the community begs the question of whether a larger venue — such as the Sprint Center — is needed for future events.

With the theme set as RE:IMAGINE, TEDxKC Live will take place at Kauffman Center, with simulcast in the Muriel Kauffman Theatre. Watch parties are set at Sprint Accelerator and KU Edwards Campus. Between the three hosting venues, nearly 4,000 people will hear the TEDxKC talks. This is the 7th annual TEDx event hosted in Kansas City.

TED talks will begin at 5:30 p.m., with 10 speakers lined up to share their stories of re-imagination and three performers to entertain the masses.

Meet some of the TEDxKC speakers:

• Ashley Dara Dotz is a humanitarian utilizing 3D printers to disrupt supply chains and black markets in disaster zones.
• Scott Hamilton is one of the most recognized male figure skating star in the world, has won 70 titles and awards, and inspires others as a speaker, philanthropist and cancer and pituitary brain tumor survivor.
• Martin Pistorius is the author of the New York Times best-selling book “Ghost Boy: The Miraculous Escape of a Misdiagnosed Boy Trapped Inside His Own Body.”
• Nikole Hannah-Jones is a reporter for The New York Times Magazine covering civil rights. Her 2014 investigation into school re-segregation won two Online News Association awards, first prize in the National Awards for Education Reporting and was a National Magazine Award finalist.
• Dr. Barmak Heshmatmit is a media Lab researcher exploring the link between science fiction, art and invention.  His research dives into a technology that will allow us to change the way we look at the world.