There will be a rally at the Pentacrest on Sunday as part of the National Weekend of Action for Reproductive Rights. The event starts at 4 p.m. A march in downtown Iowa City is scheduled after. “Iowa City Eastside Democrats will be present at the rally to register people to vote. ACLU of Iowa will […]
Central Iowa
Des Moines filmmakers have 48 hours to make a horror film this weekend and submit it for competition
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Buy books, support reproductive education at the 60th Planned Parenthood Book Sale
Autumn is here and you may be looking forward to cozying up with a few books as the weather gets colder. But if your bookshelves are in need of an update, you’re in luck. The Planned Parenthood Book Sale at the Iowa State Fairgrounds is back again this fall. The event celebrated its 60th anniversary […]
‘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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Des Moines City Council member crowdfunds fine for man ticketed while panhandling
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Councilmember Indira Sheumaker raised more than enough money this month to pay a local man’s $95 ticket based on an ordinance she says “criminalizes poverty,” and may violate his First Amendment rights. Driving home on Sept. 17, Sheumaker, representative for Ward 1 on the Des Moines City Council, witnessed an individual being issued a […]
Weekender Central Iowa! Elegance Launch | Big Grove Vinyl Market | Fabulous Friday
READ THE LATEST | SUPPORT LITTLE VILLAGE | SHOP PERKS THE WEEKENDER Your weekly editor-curated arts compendium Drag, comedy, craft beer and a blast-from-the-past book signing! All this and more can be yours on this crisp fall weekend in Central Iowa. Don’t miss the unveiling of a new Jill Wells mural at xBk on Saturday, or Sunday’s debut of […]
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 […]
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 […]




