In 1993, when I was 18 and pretending to be an adult, I figured it was about time I consumed some culture with a capital C — and that meant going to the opera. The Barber of Seville by Rossini was playing at the Paramount Theatre in downtown Cedar Rapids, and I scored two tickets […]
Articles by Erin E. McCuskey
Where's the line?
Iowa City is in the midst of a cultural identity crisis. With the passing of a 21-only ordinance by the city council on April 6, it seems the like the lights of enforcement have turned on way too bright after last call. I encourage everyone to read the transcript of this meeting–it is a brilliant prism of conflict concerning the culture of drinking. However, don’t mistake this ordinance for anything other than a serious shift for Iowa City culturally and economically. […]
Les Dames du Burlesque with Cirque Stupendo
Even the word coming off of someone’s lips in a casual conversation–burlesque–drips like satin off the shoulder. Its an old fashioned word, one that my Nana would have used only in one of her raciest jokes to her closest girlfriends. Somehow through its mythology I only had a vague notion of this kind of performance. […]