As a parent to a 4-year-old, I’ve come to realize that, when it comes to finding things to do, the Halloween season can be tricky. Scoping out a spooky-themed event for a possible family outing becomes a recon mission. How scary is it going to be? Too scary? Not scary enough? Going too heavy on […]
Five questions with…
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Five questions with Salt Fox’s Andy Fuchtman on the Lost Woods Music Festival, a party turned nonprofit in Cedar Falls
The Lost Woods Music Festival returns to the Cedar Falls area for its third iteration on Saturday. What started as a party in the woods in 2023 has… kept on being a party in the woods, actually. Salt Fox, the band behind the fest, have resisted the scope creep that plagues so many other festival […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Five questions with The War and Treaty, a country music power couple ‘rooted in honesty’
Tanya and Michael Trotter Jr. are the driving force behind the award-winning country band The War and Treaty. They also happen to be husband and wife, having connected after Tanya watched Michael perform in a festival in 2010. Since that fateful encounter, their music has gotten attention and accolades from the Grammy Awards to the […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Five questions with Julia Jessen, the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art’s new lead curator
Since she started as the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art’s lead curator in July, Julia Jessen has been exploring their 8,000-piece permanent collection, scouring shelves, drawers and boxes in preparation for her debut exhibition, “Surprise!” Little Village caught up with Jessen to see what’s catching her eye. Tell me a little bit about your background. […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Five questions with Keith Summerville, Drake Environmental Science and Sustainability professor
Iowans are taking notice of the environmental changes affecting not only the livability of the state, but the globe. Keith Summerville, a professor and the chair of Environmental Science and Sustainability at Drake University, started at Drake in 2002 and has been working in the field for over 26 years. He’s published dozens of peer-reviewed […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Five questions with Kelly Baum, Des Moines Art Center’s new director, who’s looking forward to the future of art history
After longtime Des Moines Art Center director Jeff Fleming announced last year that he would step away after a quarter century, the question of who could replace him quickly arose. Now, as the Art Center begins its 75th anniversary year, the answer has come in the form of Dr. Kelly Baum, who was announced as […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Five questions with Jinnouchi Power songwriter Patrick MacCready ahead of the band’s long-awaited album release party
After working on their newest album, Kaleidocoi, for close to eight years, Des Moines supergroup Jinnouchi Power is hosting an album release event at xBk on Dec. 9 to celebrate its release. The 11-track record will be streamable on all platforms on the same day. Little Village caught up with JP’s lead songwriter, Patrick MacCready, […]
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Five questions with author Adib Khorram, who explores queerness through the lens of a boy band in his latest YA novel
If you thought you left young adult novels in your past, Adib Khorram is going to make you rethink your choices. The Kansas City native is the bestselling author of the YA series Darius the Great and a 2021 picture book, Seven Special Somethings: A Nowruz Story. His 2022 release, Kiss and Tell, is a […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
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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Five questions with Siricasso, visual artist and Rural Regenerator Grant recipient
Siriaco Garcia (who goes by the artist moniker Siricasso) is a muralist, painter and event planner currently living in Huxley, a town in the Ames metro area. The Texas native was named a “Rural Regenerator Fellow” this year by Springboard For The Arts and will receive $10,000 to continue his work in Central Iowa. Little […]
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Five questions with West Des Moines’ Samantha Daily, two-time ‘MasterChef’ competitor
A West Des Moines cooking enthusiast with a penchant for comfort food has found her way onto the summer’s top-rated food show, featuring award-winning chef Gordon Ramsay, chef Aaron Sanchez and renowned restaurant owner Joe Bastianich — for the second time. Samantha Daily was a fourth-place finisher on MasterChef season nine, which aired in summer […]
Posted inCentral Iowa Community/News
Five questions with Megan Casey and Jamie Lamb of Paws & Pints, a ‘doggy Disneyland’ in DSM
Des Moines dog-owners have been anxiously awaiting the opening of Paws & Pints, an indoor-outdoor dog park complete with a bar, grooming center, doggie daycare, and restaurant that serves food for both humans and pups. Little Village sat down with co-owner, Megan Casey, and marketing director, Jamie Lamb, ahead of the soft opening of the […]
