The results are in! Browse the winners of Little Village’s 2021 Best of the CRANDIC competition in the Arts & Entertainment category, representing voters’ favorite artists, venues and events in the Cedar Rapids-Iowa City area.
Best 2021 Song by a Local Artist
“Something in The Water” by The Awful Purdies

““The genius of the Purdies, expressed throughout their career, is their unflinching commitment to beauty through collaboration. They achieve greatness by inviting others to share in it. … The album is resolutely uplifting. There are songs of empowered celebration, and the joy of being alive erupts and sparkles consistently throughout the whole. To hear this album and to really listen gives a lesson in how to be a better human in each facet of life.”
(From “Album Review: Awful Purdies —‘The Great Unraveling’” by Daniel Boscaljon, published Jan. 22)
Best Arts Presenter
The Englert Theatre
221 E Washington St, Iowa City, 319-688-2653
englert.org

““As a longtime volunteer usher, I regularly witness the thrill of anticipation on the face of ticket holders as they enter the theater.”
— John B.
““Have you seen that marquee?”
— Mac C.
Best Community Music or Theater Group
Family Folk Machine
familyfolkmachine.org
Best Concert of 2021
William Elliot Whitmore with Dave Zollo & The Body Electric
June 27 at Big Grove Brewery in Iowa City
““He is always an amazing performer, but to see his first performance since the pandemic (and the first of a monster country-wide tour) was truly inspirational.”
— Paula M.
Best Cultural Event
Iowa City Juneteenth Celebration
Best Drag Performer
Frisbee Jenkins (a.k.a. Sasha Belle)
Best Festival of 2021
Iowa City Jazz Festival
Best Free Fun
FilmScene in the Park
““Minari sets the stage for the first arc of FilmScene’s summer programming: critical darlings with cultural weight, somewhat headier than the usual late-night outdoor summer fare. … It’s the FilmScene “art house” experience, with only the location shifted — a testament to the way the pandemic has caused us to rethink our cultural institutions and how we engage with both art and entertainment.”
(From the article “FilmScene kicks off new outdoor movie series on April 24 with ‘Minari’” by Genevieve Trainor, published April 7)
Best Local Author
Chuy Renteria
““I heard a book reading of We Heard it When We Were Young and I was struck by the authenticity of Chuy’s voice. An Iowan giving a voice to so many other ‘invisible’ Iowans.”
—Sonatina F.
““For a Latina woman who grew up in a town being a minority, his stories are relatable.”
—Elsa D.
““Have you read his stuff? It’s great! He tells a tale like a true storyteller, but it’s based on real experiences. Chuy’s sentences are filled with the most beguiling adjectives and adverbs to create a setting that just opens a door to an entirely different perspective of small-town Iowa!”
—Deborah W.
““No one is more homegrown than Chuy. Not only is he a fantastic up-and-coming author, he is deeply invested in our community and the community he grew up in, West Liberty.”
—Steph C.
Best Local Record Label
Flat Black Studios (Long Play Records)
5012 540th St SE, Lone Tree
flatblackstudios.com
Best Local Recording Studio
Flat Black Studios (Long Play Records)
Best Local Stand-Up Comedian
Carson Tuttle
Best Local Theater Company
Riverside Theatre
121 E College St, Iowa City
riversidetheatre.org
““Wonderful array of programs including the classic and the new. Free Shakespeare is wonderful.”
—Weijing W.
Best Movie Theater
FilmScene at the Chauncey
404 E College St #100, Iowa City 319-358-2555
icfilmscene.org
FilmScene on the Ped Mall
118 E College St, Iowa City
““Their new location is really nice, but their commitment to safety during the pandemic by moving certain showings to Zoom was really important to making things feel a little more normal.”
—Noah S.
Best Overall Musician
Randall Davis
Best Place for a Cheap Date
FilmScene in the Park
Best Place to Dance
Studio 13
Best Place to See Local Music
Gabe’s Iowa City
330 E Washington St, Iowa City 319-351-9175
icgabes.com
Best Poet/Spoken Word Artist
Caleb “The Negro Artist” Rainey
thenegroartist.com
““Not only is his work amazing, he is always helping young artists find their way into the world of poetry.”
—Travis J.
Best Public Art
Downtown Iowa City murals
Best Radio Station
KRUI 89.7 FM
Based in Iowa City, krui.fm
““Default station on the car radio. A perfect soundtrack to whatever Iowa City has to offer on those mean streets.”
—Paula M.
Best Songwriter
Jordan Sellergren
jordansellergren.com
Best Theatrical Production of 2021
Sonnets for an Old Century, Riverside Theatre
Written by José Rivera, directed by Adam Knight, April 16-May 2
““Production designer S. Benjamin Farrar created an astounding virtual waste for the characters to inhabit. It is not an attempt at verisimilitude; it is instead a masterful use of video to recreate the tension and imperfection of stage design. … [Director Adam] Knight has pulled off a coup in reframing the way we all will conceive of theater in our community going forward. There is hope for the future in Sonnets for an Old Century, and there is hope for our future in Riverside’s production of it. This is the work of a company on the cusp of something new.”
(From the article “Riverside dives deep and resurfaces with ‘Sonnets for an Old Century’” by Genevieve Trainor, published April 20)
Best Trivia Night
Andrew’s Bar Exam
@AndrewsBarExam on Facebook and Twitter
Little Village’s Best of the CRANDIC is presented by City of Iowa City.