Catch up on episode one, two and three. This week’s challenge is Judge Beep Beep’s favorite, Drag Roulette, but it takes a different form than in previous seasons. A week ago, the contestants were given a sheet of songs to memorize completely, one of which would be chosen at random for them to perform. In past […]
Eastern Iowa Arts & Entertainment
‘We are going to make this a FEaST he’d be fucking proud of’: Chris Wiersema’s deep-listening festival carries on in Iowa City
“Bring the Noise” was a musical mantra popularized by the hip-hop group Public Enemy, and Chris Wiersema lived that aesthetic ideal as Iowa City’s premiere programmer of experimental music and other out-there sounds. Over the past quarter century, he brought hundreds of boundary-breaking artists to town in his myriad roles as a house show promoter, […]
Review: Sandy Dyas’ career retrospective at Cornell makes the mundane aspects of Midwest life lovingly strange
To take in Sandy Dyas’ retrospective is to be overwhelmed at the start. To absorb the show in a meaningful way, you need to take your time. The show caps off four decades of work. It is, for the artist, a “memoir”: “Looking back at it all tells me a lot about where I have […]
For 40 years, local kids have been falling in love with Mexican dances thanks to Quad Cities Ballet Folklorico
Ballet Folklorico: 2024 Mexican Fiesta XIII Dance Recital, Friday, Sept. 27, 7 p.m., Galvin Fine Arts Center, Davenport Ballet Folklorico 40th Anniversary Banquet, Saturday, Sept. 28, 5 p.m., Isle of Capri, Bettendorf In 1984, Arnulfo Camarillo and his wife Beatriz gathered their kids, nieces and nephews at the downtown YWCA to teach them some traditional […]
Streets will close for Northside Oktoberfest in Iowa City early Saturday morning
The calendar may say Saturday belongs to September, but that won’t stop the 28th annual Northside Oktoberfest from bringing beer, brats and Bavaria-inspired family fun to Iowa City starting at 11 a.m. As is traditional, a stair truck from Eastern Iowa Airport will be there (Fly CID is a festival sponsor) for photo ops from […]
‘Star Search: All Stars’ Ep. 3: Purple reigned at Studio 13 as contestants snatched celebrity (and fellow drag artists’) personas
Catch up on episode one and episode two. The infamous Snatch Game. Even in the actual RuPaul’s Drag Race, I dread Snatch Game. For those unfamiliar, it’s basically a sketch comedy routine. Each contestant chooses someone to impersonate and then participates in a dating show as that character — totally method. For those of us […]
Void Church and Raccoon Motel conspire to give artsy-goth kids the show of their dreams
It was a balmy Sunday evening as I made my way to the Raccoon Motel in downtown Davenport. The streets were quiet, but I was headed towards enchanting sounds presented by my pals in Void Church. Void Church isn’t a band but rather a promotional company of sorts. More accurately, Void Church is an audio-visual […]
Review: Playcrafters Barn Theatre’s ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ is raw, visceral and deeply moving
Having read A Streetcar Named Desire three times but never seen the play, I was excited to see it being performed at the Playcrafters’ Barn Theatre in the Quad Cities.
‘Star Search: All Stars’ Ep. 2: Hats are thrown into the ring as girl groups perform, alliances form
For those uninitiated, Star Search: All Stars is a live, weekly reality competition show in Iowa City’s Studio 13, that’s basically the region’s own RuPaul’s Drag Race. There’s been five previous seasons, but this one is special: it’s an all winners and almost-winners lineup. Each contestant has competed before and was a crowd favorite. […]
Poets, painters, musicians and more interpret another Prompt for the Planet, focusing on change
Prompt for the Planet returns to the Englert Theatre in Iowa City on Sunday, bringing local artists and performers to the stage to celebrate Iowa’s environment and explore issues around it. Like the 2022 version of the event, the intent is to encourage community members to take action. “This free event draws inspiration from U.S. […]
Illiterati Fest brings Iowa City’s ‘miniature music scenes’ together for a cause
In pretty much all artistic endeavors there is some consideration for the rule of threes. As in, do something just once and it could very well be a one-and-done situation. Do it twice and perhaps the two will exist as a pair. But do something three times? Well, then you got yourself a series. Iowa […]
Meet Lady Em and Supa Josh, two renowned hip-hop dancers teaching their Olympic level moves in Iowa
Little Village spoke with Emily and Joshua Culbreath about their dance journey, what one can expect from a hip hop dance intensive and the complex stance Breakers can hold toward their dance form’s inclusion in the 2024 Olympic Games.

