Delivering a blend of local history, environmental issues, education, entertainment, and fresh air, Davenport's River Action will again present a series of outdoor presentations in the first month-plus of the annual Channel Cat Talks and Riverine Walks: weekly "Explore the River Series" programs that, from May 26 through June 27, will address such topics as raptors, barges, Modern Woodmen Park, and the historically wicked night spot that was Davenport's Bucktown.
Treating literary fans to readings in celebration of the latest chapbook release by the Midwest Writing Center's MWC Press, a pair of lauded poets will take the stage at Rozz-Tox on May 28, the Rock Island venue delighted to host an evening with Jenna Goldsmith and Brittany N. Jaekel.
Presenting a panel discussion on the new Jane E. Simonsen book about Rock Island's Augustana College, the Davenport Public Library's Eastern Avenue Branch, on June 2, hosts a talk on the fascinating nonfiction Called to Reckon: Replacing History & Reclaiming Mission at a Midwestern College.
Hailed by DC Metro Arts as “an exhilarating ride of pride and precision” and by the Chicago Tribune as “superbly and joyously performed,” the touring spectacle Riverdance 30: The New Generation comes to Davenport's Adler Theatre on June 3, this astoundingly choreographed sensation a show that, according to Broadway World, “will appeal to long-time fans and captivate a new audience.”
A tradition of 40-plus years that has attracted more than 25,000 people each summer to downtown Iowa City, the Iowa Arts Festival, from June 5 through 7, will showcase a wide array of visual artists from local and national levels.
In response to a question last week from my associate Isabel Miller, Governor JB Pritzker said he didn’t think a group of progressive legislators could pass their progressive revenue bills through both chambers by the end of the spring session.
Every year when the Legislature arrives at mid-May, it’s always tempting to look around, see the absence of real bicameral movement on legislation, and conclude that nothing’s gonna happen in time for the scheduled May 31 adjournment. Succumbing to that temptation this year may not be a bad bet, but things can change. Right now, though, evidence of major movement is super-slim.
Before the House passed the megaprojects bill last month, we were told that the drafters didn’t want to just do some symbolic or “token” property-tax relief. After the chamber passed the bill, we were told the property-tax component will provide meaningful statewide relief for home-owners.
Faterium Bike Race Remembers Its Founder Dustin Collison: This Memorial Day Weekend, the 2026 Quad Cities Criterium Will Feature the Fat Bike Race Collison Innovated in the Rain in 2014Mor
The Quad Cities Bicycle Club (QCBC) is excited to announce the return of the Quad Cities Faterium as part of the 2026 Quad Cities Criterium, taking place Monday, May 25, 2026 (Memorial Day) in the Village of East Davenport. This year’s Faterium will celebrate Dustin Collison’s memory. Dustin's spontaneous and inspired rain-soaked ride in 2014 sparked one of this race weekend's most beloved modern traditions.
More than a year ago, the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget was projecting a $3.2 billion deficit for what is now the current fiscal year. Part of the problem was that existing revenues were flat while spending was growing, according to the budget office.
I enjoy experiencing new-to-me talent, but it’s cozy and comforting to see familiar faces at the theatre.
One of the most beloved stage musicals in American history, as well as a Tony Award nominee for Best Original Score, composer Stephen Schwartz's timeless Godspell opens the mainstage season at Mt. Carroll's Timber Lake Playhouse, the show's May 29 through June 7 run treating audiences to what NewCity Stage called "a terrific show – fresh, inventive, timeless, and rich."
Hailed by the New York Daily Mirror as “a hit you must see” and by the Los Angeles Times as “a handsomely staged case for miracles,” playwright N. Richard Nash's 1953 classic The Rainmaker enjoys a June 4 through 14 run at Geneseo's Richmond Hill Barn Theatre, this optimistic charmer famed for its beloved 1956 movie adaptation starring Burt Lancaster and Katharine Hepburn.
One of William Shakespeare's most delightful and infrequently staged romantic comedies opens Genesius Guild's 2026 summer season at Rock Island's Lincoln Park, with Love's Labour's Lost, from June 6 through 14, treating audiences to what the New York Times' Ben Brantley called a work that "may well be the first and best example of a genre that would flourish in less sophisticated forms five centuries later: the college comedy."
One of the greatest and most beloved musicals in the history of American theatre opens the 2026 summer season at the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre, with Guys & Dolls running from June 11 through 21, and treating audiences to a nine-time Tony Award winner that the New York Times called “the show that defines Broadway dazzle.”
With the Grateful Web hailing the artist whose "control is effortless, smooth but still electrifying," Vermont-based singer/songwriter and guitarist Mihali Savoulidis, performing under his single moniker Mihali, plays a May 26 concert at Davenport's Redstone Room, his singular blend of rock, jazz, reggae, bluegrass, and funk crafting immersive, improvisational live performances that have captivated audiences for two decades.
Hailed by ReGen Magazine as "one of the current industrial/metal scene's sharpest acts," the touring musicians of Derision Cult headline a May 27 engagement at Davenport's Raccoon Motel, Metal Temple Magazine adding that the band's 2025 release The Mercenary Notes, Pt. 2 "flows freely between hardened metal and jolly good fun, and it's a strange combination, but it just works."
Credited as a pioneer of the early '80s, Sunset Strip rock scene, and with his band's multi-platinum-selling smashes including Out of the Cellar and Invasion of Your Privacy, RATT founder and frontman Stephen Pearcy headlines a May 29 concert event at Davenport's Rhythm City Casino Resort Event Center, RATT's hit singles including “Lay It Down,” “Way Cool Jr.,” “Wanted Man,” and top-five Billboard smash “Round and Round.”
Performing at the East Moline venue on his “30 Years of Mayhem” tour, Chad Gray headlines a May 30 engagement at the Rust Belt, this powerhouse vocalist behind Mudvayne and Hellyeah lauded for decades for the intensity and grit that helped define modern heavy metal.
Celebrating both the organization's 50th anniversary and the 250th anniversary of the United States this May, the revered vocal ensemble Choral Dynamics presents its annual pre-summer show at the Orhpeum Theatre May 29 through 31, with Raising Spirits with Song boasting favorite choral tunes, patriotic numbers, and memories of the past 50 years in Galesburg.
Over the course of two-hours-plus, “cute” will only get you so far. But it's astounding how far it gets us in Star Wars: The Mandalorian & Grogu, which might've been an easy franchise low point if not for the diminutive cuddlebug of the title.
Going to the cineplex or staying in and streaming this weekend? Every Thursday morning at 8:15 a.m. you can listen to Mike Schulz dish on recent movie releases & talk smack about Hollywood celebs on Planet 93.9 FM with the fabulous Dave & Darren in the Morning team of Dave Levora and Darren Pitra. The morning crew previews upcoming releases, too. Or you can check the Reader Web site and listen to their latest conversation by the warm glow of your electronic device. Never miss a pithy comment from these three scintillating pundits again
Thursday, May 21: Discussion of Obsession, Is God Is, In the Grey, and Marty, Life Is Short, and previews of Passenger, I Love Boosters, and The Mandalorian & Grogu, a movie for which even Dave - a Star Wars fan like few others - can't work up much advance enthusiasm. Oh, and Dave saw The Sheep Detectives. He gives it a 10 out of 10. And that might be lowballing it.
There are so many smart, promising ideas floating around in the comedic horror of Obsession that it almost doesn't matter that few of them feel properly explored, and that writer/director/editor Curry Barker doesn't seem to have entirely figured out either his principal characters or his film's overall tone.
With her documentary hailed by the Los Angeles Times as "a soulful slice of Americana" that has been covered by national outlets including CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 and the Hallmark Channel's Home & Family, former Quad Citizen Beth Howard brings her film PIEOWA: A Piece of America to the Bettendorf Public Library, the May 30 screening featuring an appearance by the filmmaker and, fittingly, a bit of dessert, to boot.
With the eagerly anticipated weekend event hosted by Rock Island's Quad City Arts and taking place for the 10th time, glorious colors and imaginative designs will be gracing the pavement of Rock Island's Schwiebert Riverfront Park in the Quad Cities Chalk Art Fest, a May 30 and 31 pre-summertime fixture boasting free admission, beautiful artistic creations, live music, children's activities, food and drink vendors, and more than $2,000 in cash prizes.
Two gifted, thought-provoking Midwestern artists will showcase their most recent works in a pair of exhibits at Dubuque's Voices Studios venue on view through May 30, with stunning examples of the power of photography on view in Randall Richmond's Palimpsest in the Voices Gallery and Amy May Laskye's The Edge of Light in the Joan Mulgrew Gallery.
Guests of the Muscatine Art Center are invited, through May 30, to explore powerful local stories of sacrifice in the exhibition Muscatine & the Civil War, with an April 18 event enabling patrons to experience special Civil War programs featuring a portrayal of Abraham Lincoln, a presentation on Iowa’s first soldiers, a book signing with Dr. Randee Fieselmann, and a live-music performance by Bob and Kristie Blake.
Four Chicago-based artists will present concurrent solo exhibitions across the galleries of Dubuque's Voices Studios from June 5 through July 31, with the collective Quiet Intersections exhibit a multi-faceted experience that reveals how individual artistic voices can converge, diverge, and share creative space.
Bringing together contemporary artists responding to the themes and aesthetics explored in the Davenport venue's concurrent exhibition The Golden Age: Featuring Northern European Works from the National Gallery of Art, the Figge Art Museum's A Golden Age for Whom? will be on display June 6 through September 20, the two exhibitions' adjoining galleries allowing visitors to move directly between historic works and contemporary responses.
You'll get both the current official narrative challenge and What's Happenin' in the Quad Cities.
(Did you know we publish a new Real Astrology and RCR Crossword every week?)
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