The blues. An evocative word used more than two centuries ago by John James Audubon when he wrote to his wife that he “had the blues.” Before that, the first written reference was in English playwright George Colman’s 1798 Blue Devils, most likely a term filtering down from the 1600s referring to “intense visual hallucinations […]
Central Iowa
Posted inArts & Entertainment
As xBk expands, Tobi Parks is doubling down on her mission to uplift local talent
When Tobi Parks opened a 250-capacity music venue in Des Moines’ Drake neighborhood in 2019, she was enacting her plan B. “I think it always goes back to this idea: I was a musician [and] when I first started it was always like, yeah, you can be a musician but always have a plan B, […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Fully Booked at DMPL: Dystopian tales taking on new meaning in 2025
Recently, I’ve found myself falling back into my middle school routine of reading every dystopian book I can find. Whether it’s prompted by the dystopia-themed escape room I’ve been working on at Des Moines Public Library, or the fact Parable of the Sower was one of the most requested books at DMPL in January — […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Review: A family flails as a 50-year marriage fizzles in ‘Grand Horizons’ from Iowa Stage Theatre Company
The crowd’s perspective of the play shifts to the unfamiliar when the man coyly bends over to reveal his skimpy thong. Don’t get your hopes up; the near-nudity ends there.
The Iowa Stage Theatre Company recently presented Bess Whol’s Grand Horizons at the Stoner Theater in the Des Moines Civic Center from March 14 to March 23, 2025.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
DSM Book Festival returns with four headlining authors, each with an Iowa counterpart
In an increasingly digital world, connecting over a common interest in real life is even more meaningful. “It’s person to person. It’s getting recommendations. It’s finding out from your friends or people you admire what they’re reading,” said C.J. Box, the author behind the Western mystery series Joe Pickett. “You just got to get out […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Gov. Tim Walz says at Iowa town hall he is ‘soul-searching’ after 2024
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz told Iowans on his first stop of a national town hall tour that he wanted to give a voice to people who feel unheard by Republicans in Washington. But he said there was another motive for these events: he is “soul-searching” following the 2024 general election, when he and Vice President […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
80/35 officially canceled after nearly 20 years in Des Moines
In October, the future of 80/35, one of Iowa’s biggest annual musical festivals, was “not currently determined,” but even at that time it seemed unlikely the festival would return. That’s because the statement about 80/35’s future was part of the Greater Des Moines Music Coalition’s (DMMC) announcement that it was shutting down, and the coalition […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa State University rescinds some admission offers for graduate students
Iowa State University graduate school programs have started rescinding offers to prospective students as departments scramble to respond to funding uncertainties. Someone who identified themselves as an international, prospective Ph.D. student posted a letter online they received from ISU on March 5 stating an offer the student had previously received from the university’s department of […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
On the Big, Big Screen: Five movies you’ve gotta go see in local theaters this month
LV film columnist Benjamin McElroy recommends five screenings happening this month at Iowa’s independent movie theaters.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Ballet Des Moines has come into its own
Most days I have no desire to live in New York City or Chicago, but there was one thing that could make me pack up and pay $2,500 per month for a studio apartment: Iowa was seriously lacking in professional dance. Ballet Des Moines may have saved me a fortune in moving expenses. In the […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
A debut album by 14? Singer-songwriter Bridget Bell is a star on the rise with a little help from Girls Rock! Des Moines
How did a junior high student in rural Iowa come to record one of the best releases I’ve heard this decade? For that matter, how does someone from that background acquire the tools to pull off such a thing? If you ask Bridget Bell — who just released her debut EP, forgive and forget — […]
Posted inRecreation
Bumper Crops: Ames is for pinball lovers
Valentine’s Day is here, and when I think of Valentine’s Day, I think of love. When I think of love, I think of pinball. The two aren’t that different, really. Both require good timing and the right amount of physical interaction: play too gently and your chances of scoring go down; play too hard and […]
