Filmmakers afraid of deadlines can sign up for the ultimate exposure therapy this month. The 48 Hour Film Project takes place in cities across the country — including Des Moines — twice a year for a two-day film production competition held in July and October. The October version in Des Moines, which takes place this […]
Central Iowa Arts & Entertainment
Posted inWeekender
Weekender Central Iowa! Ani DiFranco | Community Table Storytelling | Drunk Book Club
READ THE LATEST | SUPPORT LITTLE VILLAGE | SHOP PERKS THE WEEKENDER Your weekly editor-curated arts compendium It’s a fantastic fall weekend and there’s plenty going on to keep you busy, from theater and comedy to storytelling, the paranormal and so much more! Top pick? Catch the inimical Ani DiFranco at Wooly’s to brighten up your Monday night. Gaslamp […]
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Five questions with: storyteller and speech pathologist Mama Edie Armstrong
On Saturday, Oct. 8, the Des Moines Public Library will hold its first Community Table Storytelling and Local Food Festival at three different locations around Des Moines. Alongside food vendors and activities, the festival will feature a lineup of acclaimed storytellers from across the country. One of these performers is Mama Edie Armstrong. The Chicago […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
‘Nosferatu’ gets the heavy-metal treatment for its 100th anniversary at xBk
For those itching to marathon horror movies during the upcoming Halloween season, xBk Live is offering a stop on your itinerary not to be missed. On Oct. 25, Austin, Texas-based instrumental rock collective Invincible Czars will perform a live score to F.W. Murnau’s landmark vampire film, Nosferatu, A Symphony of Horror (1922) in celebration of […]
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The hip-hop horizon: Iowa rappers’ fall releases explore drug culture, punk and ‘ascension music’
This fall will see a wide range of releases from Iowan artists spanning the diverse rap and hip-hop spectrum. While this is far from a comprehensive list of what’s on tap for the next several months, here’s a cross-section looking at five releases from young, up-and-coming artists who have new projects on the way. Up […]
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Five questions with: Andy Colpitts, touring cast member in Bread and Puppet Theatre
Founded in 1963 as a way to tell neighborhood stories of New York City’s Lower East Side, Bread & Puppet Theatre is considered one of the oldest, non-profit, politically-driven theater companies in the country. In 1974, the company moved its home-base to Glover, Vermont, where it now operates a museum of retired puppets in an […]
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Christ on a bike! ‘Dixie’s Tupperware Party’ comes to Des Moines for all your storage and entertainment needs
Since 2004, Dixie Longate has been taking her Tupperware party to stages across the country, beginning off-Broadway. Until Oct. 2, you can catch Longate and her many plastic bowls at the Temple Theater in Des Moines. But if you haven’t yet been acquainted with Longate’s presentation, allow me to fill you in. The fast-talking, larger-than-life […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Built in 1917, Varsity Cinema is getting a $5 million upgrade thanks to Des Moines film lovers
In the mid-1990s, Ben Godar started making the drive from Ames to Des Moines to go to the Varsity Cinema. “Back then, the Varsity was just one of those places that would get films that nobody else had,” he recalls. Now, as four years of renovations on the Varsity come to a close, Godar, who […]
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Iowa artist B. Well looks to harmonize his music and new apparel line, Elegance
For musician, activist, fashion enthusiast and Des Moines community leader Billy “B. Well” Weathers, the word “elegance” goes beyond describing expensive gowns or opulent parties. “I think figuring out that I don’t need to do anything to impress anybody else outside of myself [is elegance],” he said, “and the more that I can connect with […]
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The Jordan House Museum is home to art, opera, Shakespeare and Iowa history
As we celebrate the arts in this issue, it’s only appropriate to recognize a growing trend in this region. The power of unity can be used in the arts as it is in other facets of positive community growth. As creative community contributors, cultural organizations have a growing responsibility to work smarter to integrate their […]
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Five questions with Sharon Isbin, the ‘high priestess of the guitar,’ ahead of her Des Moines concerts
Sharon Isbin has been called “the pre-eminent guitarist of our time,” “finer even then Segovia,” and “the high priestess of the guitar” by news outlets across the world. The Minnesota native has received four Grammy nominations and two wins and has released 30 albums in her impressive classical guitar career. Working with composers and artists […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Inspired by the infamous witch trials, Ballet Des Moines’ ‘Salem’ stages a raging fire of fear
Ballet Des Moines pulls from a moment in history this fall to show that different doesn’t mean dangerous. Taking a history lesson from the Salem witch trials, choreographer and Ballet Des Moines Artistic Director Tom Mattingly was certain that people need to be reminded to not judge a book by its cover. “I thought it […]
