The Black Box Theatre of Moline, Illinois, as the name implies, is a simple theater space. That didn’t hold back its recent production of The Lion in Winter, which closed the company’s 2025 season with a slow-burning play that uses the intimacy of its space to ratchet up the intensity of its production of James […]
Quad Cities
Posted inFood & Drink
Peak Iowa: Taco pizza, Davenport’s endlessly imitated invention
Crust, beans, taco sauce, cheese, ground beef, lettuce, onions, tomatoes, perhaps some peppers, sour cream and black olives, all topped with crushed taco chips. Taco pizza, a culinary innovation that bemuses taco traditionalists and infuriates pizza purists, is much loved in Iowa. That’s fitting, since Iowa is where taco pizza was born. Probably. It can […]
Posted inLetters
Letter to the editor: Those concerned about the development near Milan Bottoms should let the process play out
By Dylan Parker, Rock Island, Fifth Ward Alderperson On July 21st, you published a letter to the editor regarding a proposed development at the Casino West site in Rock Island, Illinois. I appreciate the opportunity to provide additional perspective. The subject matter is nuanced and complicated and deserves close attention due to the important needs […]
Posted inLetters
Letter to the editor: The Milan Bottoms development is a senseless risk to wildlife and water safety
By Elizabeth VanCamp, Davenport A Quad Cities developer named Matt Stern (of A Hana Illowa LLC) is working with the city of Rock Island, IL (a city that faces Davenport, IA across the Mississippi River) to add a truck stop and dispensary to a 10-acre parcel of land on the edge of a 528-acre wetland […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Review: A mile of lights turn the Figge into Iowa’s biggest public artwork — a sight to see from both sides of the Mississippi
On May 18, 2025, the city of Davenport, Iowa began to glow. Nestled amongst the downtown’s old buildings, the Figge Art Museum celebrated its 20th anniversary by unveiling Evanescent Field, an architectural art project by internationally acclaimed light artist Leo Villareal. Hundreds of onlookers gathered in the promenade to the already stunning museum designed by […]
Posted inCommunity/News
International students at private colleges in the Quad Cities have had their visas canceled by the Trump administration
Five international students at two private colleges in the Quad Cities have had their student visas revoked by the Trump administration, the Quad-City Times reported on Wednesday. Two of the students are enrolled at St. Ambrose University in Davenport and the other three attend Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. “Given the fast-moving situation, and […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Indigenous art meets comic books, children’s toys and mythology in Cara and Diego Romero’s “Tales of Futures Past” at the Figge
Artists Cara (Chemehuevi) and Diego (Cochiti) Romero’s traveling exhibition Tales of Futures Past premiered this month at the Figge Art Museum in Davenport. Cara and Diego Romero are indigenous artists who work in different mediums exploring the diversity and impact of indigenous identity.
Posted inCommunity/News
Physical media is (still) king at The Source, Davenport’s storied two-story used bookstore
Started by George Pekios and passed down through several generations to longtime owner Dan Pekios, The Source has recently been moving out of the family’s ownership. Briefly owned by a loyal employee, it has now been sold to Stephen Zbornik and Anne Brown, a couple who’s passion for doing things has carried them through many walks of life.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Interview: Lady Igraine’s interpretation of what the fuck just happened
Working at our arts & culture desk, there are lots of unsolicited emails from new music artists about their latest project. Within the messages there is a best-case, white-whale scenario: hit play, immediately realize this is something different. Which is exactly what happened…
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Running Man — ‘Running Man’
Quad Cities’ Running Man are the local antithesis to aging out. These guys have been steady putting work into the QC DIY scene, playing in bands like Meth & Goats, Lord Green, Tambourine, The Multiple Cat, Mondo Drag and more.
Posted inEastern Iowa Arts & Entertainment
Q.C. punk supergroup Running Man are launching their self-titled album in style at Raccoon Motel
Punk rock and the DIY scene are a labor of love, but when that labor and dedication converge in their most radiant ways, great things can happen. For the Quad Cities, the moment of this convergence is now with Running Man.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
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 […]
