West Des Moines and Des Moines Metro Events When and Where: Ringling Bros. Circus, 'Les Miserables'

There’s plenty to do in West Des Moines in the days ahead, and if you want to travel into Des Moines and around the metro, there’s plenty to do there, too.

Here are some selected events, with a full list of Des Moines metro events available here.

Kansas: The show, with special guests King’s X, starts at 7. Kansas was mildly successful with its self-titled debut LP in 1974, but toured behind it tirelessly and grew their fan base to the point that their third effort, Masque, sold a quarter of a million copies.  In 1976, Leftoverture truly catapulted Kansas to stardom.
Val Air Ballroom, West Des Moines
Thursday, 7 p.m.
Tickets.

Five Women Wearing the Same Dress: In this Tallgrass Theater production, five reluctant bridesmaids hide out in a dressing, each with her own reason to avoid the proceedings. Frances, sweet but sheltered; Mindy, wise-cracking lesbian sister of the groom; Georgeanne, mourning her own failed marriage; Meredith, the bride's rebellious younger sister; and Trisha, jaded about men until she meets bad-boy usher Tripp, discover common bonds in this funny and touching celebration.
Rex Mathes Auditorium, 401 Vine St., West Des Moines
Friday and Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
Tickets.

Cityview Martinifest: Sample the metro's finest martinis at this year's Martini Fest! Try specialty martinis from all of your favorite West Glen retailers. For all beer lovers, for the first time there will also be a Summit Beer Garden at Cabaret.
West Glen Town Center, West Des Moines.
Friday, 5 pm. - 9 p.m.
Tickets.

Colt Ford: Appearing with Sunny Dedfurd and Crawford County.
Val Air Ballroom, West Des Moines
Friday  8  p.m.
Tickets.

Also this weekend:

Les Miserables: Cameron Mackintosh presents a brand new 25th anniversary production of Boublil & Schö's legendary musical, "Les Miserables," with glorious new staging and dazzlingly reimagined scenery inspired by the paintings of Victor Hugo.
The Civic Center, Des Moines.
Thursday, Friday, Saturday, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, 2 p.m.; Sunday, 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.
Tickets.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus: The fun begins as soon as the audience enters Ringling Bros. Presents BARNUM BASH with a rockin’ Pre-show party happening directly on the arena floor. Party goers can learn fresh dance moves from Ringling Bros. clown DJ Dean, style in glitzy costumes, learn balancing and juggling skills, meet and take photos with circus stars, and even step behind the curtain for an exclusive backstage experience which includes an up-close look at the most exotic animal menagerie only at BARNUM BASH.
Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines.
Thursday, Friday, 7 p.m.; Saturday, Sunday 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.
Tickets.

American Quilter’s Society National Show: More than 1,000 quilts, a huge Merchant Mall with new and antique quilts, the newest quilt-making supplies, and jewelry and other gifts that are quilt related.
Iowa Events Center, Des Moines.
Thursday, Friday, 9 am. - 6 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Tickets.

Upcoming

Norah Jones: Multiple Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter Norah Jones just released her fifth studio album, Little Broken Hearts. Since coming on the scene in 2002, Jones has sold over 36 million albums worldwide. Her three studio albums have each topped the Billboard top 200 album charts in the U.S. and gone to No. 1 around the world.
The Civic Center, Des Moines.
Thursday, Oct. 11, 8 p.m.
Tickets.

Bill Maher: For the past 17 years, Bill Maher has set the boundaries of where funny, political talk can go on American television. First on “Politically Incorrect” (Comedy Central, ABC, 1993-2002), and for the last eight years on HBO’s “Real Time,” Maher’s combination of unflinching honesty and big laughs have garnered him twenty-six Emmy nominations.
The Civic Center, Des Moines.
Saturday, Oct. 13, 7:30 p.m.
Tickets.

Celtic Thunder: Surpassing sales of one million units combined, the musical phenomenon that is Celtic Thunder has been hailed as BILLBOARD’s Top World Music Artist, along with Top World Music Imprint and Top World Album of 2011 for their most current disc, Heritage.
The Civic Center, Des Moines
Wednesday, Oct. 24, 7:30 p.m.
Tickets.