Hailed by StageLeft.nyc as "taut and lively" and by Theatre Scene as "a compelling play on important and topical themes," playwright Lauren Gunderson's unique and unpredictable dramatic comedy Natural Shocks makes its Quad Cities debut at Moline's Black Box Theatre from February 2 through 12, with DC Metro Theatre Arts adding its praise by deeming it a work that "raises important points about the need to take action in times of crises."

Lauded by the New York Times as a "fresh, winning, and deliriously tuneful" musical that's "as sweet as a show can be without promoting tooth decay," the Tony-winning Broadway sensational Hairspray makes a national-tour stop at Davenport's Adler Theatre on January 31, this stage sensational also praised by Variety magazine as a "sweet, infinitely spirited, bubblegum-flavored confection" that "more than lives up to its promise."

With Philly Cheeze Blues' Phillip Smith raving that the musician's My World Is So Cold album boasts "a bus load of soul," adding "I love the funky guitar riffs and the infectious rhythm," blues guitarist extraordinaire Kent Burnside headlines a January 27 concert at Davenport's Gypsy Highway Bar & Grill, the artist the oldest grandson and one of the closest pupils of the legendary R.L. Burnside.

Performing an exhilarating evening of solo and duet works by composers Wynton Marsalis, Sergei Prokofiev, Chen Yi, Paul Lansky, and the Quad Cities' William Campbell, Quad City Symphony Orchestra concertmaster and violinist Naha Greenholtz and percussionist Aaron Williams will fill Moline's Butterworth Center with classical delights on January 28, the artists combing their talents for the special QCSO presentation Up Close with Naha & Aaron.

A unique and interactive concert experience that allows adult to enjoy the music they love while also providing fun and interactive activities for kids, Common Chord's new series Music Explorers will, on January 29, find its inspiration in the British Invasion, at event inviting Redstone Room patrons to cross the pond and rediscover the music of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Who, and many more legendary artists.

With the final presentation in the Figge Art Museum's current Film at the Figge series - its lineup having boasted award-winning international works that deal with death, loss, and grief in unexpected ways - a modern masterpiece and last year's winner of the Best International Feature Oscar will be screened on January 26 in Drive My Car, writer/director Ryusuke Hamaguchi's superb Japanese drama that The Guardian awarded five stars and called "an engrossing and exalting experience."

Telling the remarkable life story a Gandhian eco-activist who stood up to the corporate Goliaths of industrial agriculture, rose to prominence in the food-justice movement, and inspired an international crusade for change, the first presentation in River Action's annual QC Environmental Film Series will be screened at the Figge Art Museum on January 22, with the Davenport venue hosting the area premiere of 2022's award-winning documentary The Seeds of Vandana Shiva.

Lauded by New Play Exchange as "deep and delicate and darkly heartbreaking," as well as a play that "should be read and produced as much and as often as possible," author Jennifer Fawcett's one-woman showcase Apples in Winter enjoys its area premiere at Davenport's Mockingbird on Main from January 20 through 28, with One-Off Theatrical Productions' alternately humorous and devastating piece a work that, according to Iowa City's Little Village magazine, "everyone needs to see."

A Tony Award nominee for Best Play and finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Lee Blessing's two-man classic A Walk in the Woods opens the 2023 lineup at Iowa City's Riverside Theatre, this witty and fascinating dramatic comedy lauded by LA Smash as "a memorable and thought-provoking evening in the theatre."

Exploring themes of social justice, activism, technology and empowered youth within a riveting and entertaining stage production, TheatreWorks USA's touring presentation of Warriors Don't Cry lands at the University of Dubuque's Heritage Center on January 23, the work described by Broadway World as "a universal story of faith and redemption," as well as "good triumphing over the forces of evil."

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