THE WEEKENDER
Your weekly editor-curated arts compendium
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June celebrations converge in Eastern Iowa this weekend, as Iowa City Pride takes over downtown along with a scattering of other Pride events, and Juneteenth festivities fill both ends of the CRANDIC. Sprinkled in between are some not-to-be-missed theater openings, phenomenal concerts and oh yeah: Benz Beer Fest! Top pick for the weekend: the incomparable Buddy Guy at the Paramount in Cedar Rapids.
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FilmScene—Chauncey
Encanto
Jun 16 – 3:30pm
See the tale of an extraordinary family, the Madrigals, who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia, in a magical house, in a vibrant town, in a wondrous, charmed place called an Encanto.
More info >>
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South District – Iowa City
Oracles Community Conversation: Blackness and Belonging in Iowa City
Jun 16 – 6:00pm
The Center for Afrofuturist Studies’ Oracles team has been working for almost two years to bring public art to Iowa City that celebrates Black joy and welcomes Black residents.
More info >>
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Brucemore
The Pirates of Penzance
Jun 16 – 7:00pm
Avast ye! Get ready for a rowdy, rollicking, musical voyage in CROpera’s modern spin on Gilbert & Sullivan’s masterpiece comic opera.
More info >>
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The James Theater
MEKTOUB Album Release: Elizabeth
Jun 16 – 7:00pm
Iowa City-based ensemble MEKTOUB premiers their debut album Elizabeth, in honor of the late Dr. John Rapson.
More info >>
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FilmScene—Chauncey
Paris is Burning
Jun 16 – 7:00pm
This landmark documentary provides a vibrant snapshot of the 1980s through the eyes of New York City’s African American and Latinx Harlem drag ball scene.
More info >>
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Paramount Theatre Cedar Rapids
Buddy Guy
Jun 16 – 7:30pm
Buddy Guy at the Paramount Theatre. The title of Buddy Guy’s latest album says it all: The Blues Is Alive and Well.
More info >>
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The Englert Theatre
The Cactus Blossoms
Jun 16 – 7:30pm
Blood Harmony. Whether it’s The Beach Boys, Bee Gees or First Aid Kit, that sibling vocal blend is the secret sauce in some of the most spine-tingling moments in popular music.
More info >>
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Trinity Episcopal Church
MusicIC
Jun 17 –
On June 17, MusicIC returns for its twelfth season to Trinity Episcopal Church in Iowa City with the music of George Walker and Johannes Brahms.
More info >>
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Chauncey Swan Park
Downtown at Sundown
Jun 17 – 5:00pm
Celebrating food, culture and resilience “Downtown at Sundown” with live music, a fashion show, food, games, street basketball, a bounce house and more.
More info >>
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Downtown Pedestrian Mall
Friday Night Concert Series: Surf Zombies and Plastic Relations
Jun 17 – 6:30pm
Surf Zombies are an Iowa-based surf instrumental unit that has been playing the Midwest since 2007.
More info >>
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FilmScene—Chauncey
JustUs
Jun 17 – 7:00pm
Film highlighting the grassroots efforts of prisoners, ex-prisoners, and activists in reforming the criminal justice system and ending the racial disparity.
More info >>
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Riverside Festival Stage
Henry V
Jun 17 – 7:30pm
Riverside’s Free Shakespeare in Lower City Park returns with Henry V.
More info >>
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The James Theater
Basic Training
Jun 17 – 8:00pm
The Iowa premier of Kahlil Ashanti’s award winning one man show, Basic Training.
More info >>
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The Englert Theatre
Welcome to Night Vale
Jun 17 – 8:00pm
WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE is a twice-monthly podcast in the style of community updates for the small desert town of Night Vale.
More info >>
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Joystick Comedy Bar & Arcade
Juneteenth Comedy Show
Jun 17 – 9:30pm
Juneteenth comes two days early with Dante Powell headlining, Antoinette Stevens featuring and Bernard Bell hosting!
More info >>
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NewBo City Market
Juneteenth
Jun 18 – 11:00am
Join us at NewBo City Market for a proclamation from Mayor O’Donnell, DJ Commando, MC Jemar Lee, stage performances, community vendors, face painting, and more.
More info >>
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S.T. Morrison Park
Juneteenth in our Neighborhood
Jun 18 – 12:00pm
Join for a Juneteenth celebration in Coralville.
More info >>
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Downtown Iowa City
Iowa City Pride Fest
Jun 18 – 12:00pm
Annual Pride Celebration returns to regular weekend in June – Live music and theater, drag performances, choir, and more on our main stage in downtown Iowa City
More info >>
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Benz Beverage Depot
18th Annual Benz Beerfest
Jun 18 – 1:00pm
18th Annual Benz Beerfest
More info >>
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The ArtiFactory
Romeo and Juliet: Thrice Told Tales
Jun 18 – 5:00pm
Run of the Mill Theatre presents a staged reading of this comedy by Lorenzo L. Sandoval that asks, “What would have happened if Romeo and Juliet had not died young?”
More info >>
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Coralville Center for the Performing Arts
Orphan Train to Iowa: For the Love of Pete
Jun 18 – 7:30pm
The story is based on a novel by local Iowa City author, Ethel Barker, and the music is by the Chicago composer, Kevin Allen. It is in two acts, fully staged with orchestra.
More info >>
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FilmScene—Chauncey
National Theatre Live: Henry V
Jun 19 – 1:00pm
Kit Harington (Game of Thrones) plays the title role in Shakespeare’s thrilling study of nationalism, war and the psychology of power.
More info >>
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NewBo City Market
Juneteenth Community Concert
Jun 19 – 2:00pm
The free, community concert will feature our cast of Young Artists and will uplift and celebrate black voices.
More info >>
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FilmScene—Chauncey
Mississippi Masala
Jun 20 – 7:00pm
The vibrant cultures of India, Uganda, and the American South are blended and simmered into a rich and fragrant fusion feast in Mira Nair’s luminous look at love in the modern melting pot.
More info >>
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Public art meets the front porch swing in Black Hawk Mini Park
by Paul Brennan, June 9
The official description of Mi Casa, Your Casa 2.0 calls it an “international participatory public art installation” that “features a series of three-dimensional red frames that illustrate the warmth, comfort, and safety of our home.” But anyone walking past Black Hawk Mini Park can be forgiven if their first thought is, Oh, look, swings!
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Book Review: ‘Olga Dies Dreaming’ by Xochitl Gonzalez
by Lily DeTaeye, Jun 9
The fact that Aubrey Plaza will play the main character in an upcoming Hulu adaptation of Xochitl Gonzalez’s debut novel Olga Dies Dreaming is the least interesting thing about the book. |
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Watch: With pixels and paint, Stacia Rain Stonerook brings both the familiar and alien to colorful life
“If I had to use three words to describe my work I’d probably say it’s organic, imaginative [and] hopefully weird,” she tells Little Village in the latest Studio Visit. “I love when you can look at a piece and your eyeballs are happy.”
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Bring your own TP, and other tips from Iowa summer music festival regulars
by Lily DeTaeye, Jun 13
Although most festivals took a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many are back this year in full force. Alongside national favorites like Coachella, South-By-Southwest, Bonnaroo and Americana Fest, Iowa boasts its own exciting schedule.
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New opera ‘Orphan Train to Iowa’ brings a dark but hopeful history to the Coralville stage
by Natalie Dunlap, Jun 15
Child and adult singers, including professional opera stars, will perform Orphan Train to Iowa: For the Love of Pete on Saturday, June 18 at 7:30 p.m. in the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts.
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Iowa City Pride’s June celebration returns
by Sid Peterson, Jun 15
Iowa City Pride’s 2022 celebration returns to Pride Month this weekend after two years of cancellations and delays. Festivities officially kicked off yesterday with the organization’s bar crawl and events will continue leading up to the all-day festival on Saturday. This year will mark the 51st Iowa City Pride Festival.
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Lilacs and grieving form the central focus of MusicIC’s 2022 events
by Rob Cline, Jun 15
Ed Folsom first heard Walt Whitman’s “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d” in 1963 on the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Folsom, now the Roy J. Carver Professor of English at the University of Iowa and editor of the Walt Whitman Quarterly Review, was in 11th grade at the time.
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