Ballet Des Moines has announced a six-stop trip across Iowa for Of Gravity and Light, a deeply immersive, science-packed show that received a standing ovation at its one-night only show on April 22. Gravity on Tour will include a mobile planetarium, Iowa State University’s FLEx Virtual Reality lab and more STEM experiences, as well as […]
Courtney Guein
Posted inCommunity/News
Des Moines opens second concession stand at Gray’s Lake Park due to high attendance
Seeing increased park attendance, Des Moines’ Gray’s Lake is reopening its second, beachside concession stand after a decade of vacancy on the northside of the lake. Jennifer Fletcher, spokesperson for the Des Moines Parks and Recreation Department, tells Axios Des Moines that the department has seen a spike in park-goers since the beginning of the […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Ingersoll Live will return for an 18th year of bringing neighbors together this summer
Starting in just a parking lot 18 years ago, Ingersoll Live is now an annual block party bringing Des Moines’ Ingersoll Avenue neighbors together to relish in a district of fine dining, businesses, bars and family fun. The Avenues, a nonprofit on Ingersoll and Grand, will present Ingersoll Live again on Aug. 27, and is […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Take a walk among the dinosaurs in ‘that one Des Moines garden’ this July
After a four-year hiatus, the Polk County Master Gardeners’ Garden Tour is back, highlighting 11 exceptional gardeners and garden enthusiasts across the county, including Urbandale, Clive, Des Moines and Ankeny. The tour is part of Iowa State University Extension and Outreach in Polk County. One stop on the tour — enticingly dubbed “That One Des […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
DMPA announces their 2022-23 season Willis Broadway Series and #Ham4Ham
Des Moines Performing Arts (DMPA) announced their 2022-23 season Willis Broadway Series yesterday. This series will be bringing six productions from Broadway to Des Moines, including returning favorites Fiddler on the Roof and Disney’s The Lion King. DMPA also just announced today the #Ham4Ham digital lottery, for $10 tickets to upcoming performances of Hamilton. Patrons […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Wanting to foster trust between Black women, Des Moines photographer Keesha Ward created a space for melanated love and positivity
Keesha Ward was taught to be suspicious of other Black girls and Black women by her Black mother growing up. It wasn’t until coming to Ames, Iowa, from the south suburbs of Chicago in 2006 that she learned to trust women who looked like her. That may be surprising since there isn’t a large presence […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Central Iowa celebrates Cinco de Mayo!
It’s Cinco de Mayo, a day to celebrate — but not, as you might have heard, Mexico’s independence day. Mexico’s Independence Day is Sept. 16. Cinco de Mayo celebrates the victory of a vastly outnumbered Mexican army over French forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. (France was trying to crush a revolt against […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Mother’s Day ideas in Central Iowa, from tulips to tarot reads
The modern U.S. holiday of Mother’s Day has roots in the pre-Civil War period. West Virginia woman Ann Reeves Jarvis created what she called Mother’s Day Work Clubs to teach mothers how to care for their children. Jarvis also organized a Mother’s Friendship Day in 1868 to initiate a settlement between the Union and Confederate […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Des Moines artist Brittany Brooke Crow rips and rearranges self-portraits to explore form and vulnerability
For her new new exhibition, artist Brittany Brooke Crow turned her camera on herself, tearing photos printed on Hahnemühle Pearl paper and rearranging the pieces. Test Stripping — on display through May 5 at The LiFT bar in Des Moines’ Court Avenue District — depicts Crow’s battles with her fear of intimacy and vulnerability by […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Ballet Des Moines tackles hard science with light movement in one-night-only show ‘Of Gravity and Light’
Ballet Des Moines is giving audiences a science lesson through their one-night-only production Of Gravity and Light, Friday at the Des Moines Civic Center. Of Gravity and Light is a contemporary ballet production using science-inspired movement to depict gravity, push-pull feelings, “the terrible forces of the sun,” planetary orbit and rotation, and other spaced-out phenomena. […]
Posted inCommunity/News
As Iowa skate culture swells, Skate DSM is giving away 500 skateboards and helmets to local kids
Students pre-K through 8th grade can nab a free, brand-new skateboard and helmet through a new initiative from Skate DSM. “One of the biggest goals of Skate DSM is to really get more kids on skateboards,” said organization president Norm Sterzenbach. “The Get on Board Project is literally getting more kids on skateboards.” The Get […]
Posted inCommunity/News
DART offers $1 bus fare to combat rising gas prices
The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) announced Thursday in a news release they are changing their bus fare price to $1 on the MyDART app from April 4 to May 31. The normal price of bus fare is $1.75. DART officials are hoping the 75-cent savings will ease transportation costs on the community. […]
