The concepts of time, memory and perspective are elusive and finicky. In Sarah Minor’s Carousel (Yale University Press), our speaker attempts to guide us through all manner of experiences that may lead us closer to an understanding. Carousel, billed as “an essay on seeing,” is an ambitious and artful collection of vignettes that weave together […]
Arts & Entertainment
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Iowa Writers’ Workshop alum and instructor Garth Greenwell critiques workshop model as ‘fraudulent’
“Who ever thought it was a good idea?” Iowa Writers’ Workshop professor and alumnus Garth Greenwell asks in a Substack post published on Wednesday morning. Titled “Why I Don’t Believe in Workshop Anymore,” the essay lays out why Greenwell has decided not to teach “traditional, critique-based” writing workshops going forward. “That’s a slightly scary pronouncement, […]
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Filmmaker Drew Johnson on why his team chose to zoom in on East Palestine, Ohio — and how it reminds him of Cedar Rapids
Drew Johnson grew up in Cedar Rapids making movies with his friends in his backyard. Now an adult, his filmmaking career has flourished without Johnson needing to leave the Midwest. He’s was one of the founding members of Loose Films, an award-winning production house based in Columbus, Ohio. Johnson founded the company with Noah Dixon […]
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Landyn Zane — ‘Coming Attractions’
In 1973, both David Bowie and Elton John debuted iconic looks along with new albums: Bowie the lightning-bolt face paint of the glam rock singer’s Aladdin Sane and John the rhinestoned jackets that would become his live-show signature after Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Cedar Rapids native Landyn Zane references both costuming choices with electric blue […]
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UI alum and icon Ana Mendieta is the focus of a new London art exhibition, joining a Frida Kahlo show with Iowa connections
Right now at London’s Tate Modern, there is a single room in which select works from late University of Iowa alumna Ana Mendieta are displayed on a wall directly opposite the multi-paneled painting, Conservatory (Portrait of Frida Kahlo) (1988), by late University of Iowa alumna Miriam Schapiro. And the Iowa connections don’t end there. Hanging […]
Posted inBook Reviews
Book Review: ‘The Natural Order of Things: Poems’ by Donika Kelly
Donika Kelly has a system: the award-winning poet and University of Iowa associate professor brings poems to her reader that are accessible and welcoming. Then, they build into an overwhelming and holy crescendo of piercing, evocative vignettes. Kelly’s latest, The Natural Order of Things (Graywolf Press), is hearty, nourishing. The crescendo in this collection brings […]
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New Mary Oliver documentary inspires Iowa City orgs to celebrate a poet often disregarded in elite circles
Film director (and former University of Iowa professor) Sasha Waters first recalls being struck by the work of Mary Oliver as a new parent, listening to A Prairie Home Companion in her Iowa City kitchen. Years later, PBS would ask her to make a documentary about the late Pulitzer Prize-winning poet for the American Masters […]
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Phantom Threat — ‘Phantasmagoria’
In the five and a half decades since metal began to find its footing as an established genre, metal bands have gone to increasingly great lengths to answer the question: how does one make the most intense music possible? One such band is the Quad Cities death metal outfit Phantom Threat, who released their latest […]
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Keep an eye out for ‘Selena’ and other acclaimed films in the Quad Cities Latino Cinema Series
For many, Selena, released in 1997, was one of the first films about Latino culture they watched. It was for me. While Mexican television shows such as El Chavo del Ocho and telenovelas like Rubí were frequently playing in the living room, Selena, a biopic about Tejano musical artist Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, is one of the earliest movies about Latinidad I can recall being shown.
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Review: Des Moines Metro Opera stages Steinbeck, corruption in Rome and a 100-year-old ‘mysterium’ for summer season
Opera lovers braved the sweltering summer weather this past holiday weekend for some world-class productions, care of Des Moines Metro Opera. The opera company was the subject of a series of Des Moines Register articles last fall reporting allegations that crew behind the scenes were routinely overworked, underpaid and occasionally put in dangerous positions to […]
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Fully Booked at DMPL: Books best read aloud
Long before we learned to read, we learned to listen. Some of my favorite reading memories are not just about the books themselves, but about the voices that brought those stories to life: A grandparent sharing a favorite tale, a teacher making a character unforgettable, a librarian turning storytime into a magical experience. Reading aloud […]
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Kembrew McLeod’s Prairie Pop column has covered the culture of flyover country since 2001
When I wrote about Awful Purdies’ 20th anniversary for last month’s column, Kate Rowe joked that the band was her longest-running relationship. “It’s actually been part of my entire adult life,” she said. “I was one year out of college when I joined this band.” Rowe’s quip struck a chord because…
