A masterful jazz musician and Bettendorf native headlines a July 16 concert event at the Grape Life Wine Store & Lounge, with the award-winning pianist and trombone player Mike Conrad performing at the Davenport venue alongside his esteemed bandmates Alexander Pershounin on bass and Tim Crumley on drums.

Described by the Washington Post as “sharp and funny” with a “buoyant spirit,” author Lauren Gunderson's two-character dramedy I & You enjoys a July 15 through 24 run at the Black Box Theatre, the show's Moline engagement sure to demonstrate why DC Theatre Scene said it delivered “a validation of the human experience” and “the best thing a play can offer: We might be better people after seeing it.”

At the Quad City Arts International Airport Gallery, the second half of 2021 is being jump-started with vibrant explosions of color and varied artistic mediums that can be found in a trio of new exhibitions on display through August 30: exhibits of ceramic works by Will Van Dyke, paintings by Anne Kauf, and textiles by Kara Fedje.

Winners of two Loudwire Music Awards for Live Act of the Year, and one of the only groups to achieve top-five Billboard success on both the Hard Rock and Comedy charts, Steel Panther brings its unique blend of glam metal and hilarious lyrics to East Moline's The Rust Belt on July 10, the California musicians' outfit lauded by Blabbermouth.net as “a genuinely brilliant '80s-inspired heavy metal band.”

After an unplanned summer off, one of the area's most eagerly anticipated day-long festivals returns on July 10 in the sixth iteration of the Dawn & On Music Festival, with the area musicians of The Dawn hosting bluegrass, funk, roots, reggae, and plenty of rock in nine exhilarating concert sets – from nine much-admired local and regional acts – held in Rock Island's Schwiebert Riverfront Park.

Making its eagerly awaited July 8 through 10 return after an unanticipated summer off, the 41st Walcott Truckers Jamboree at the Iowa 80 Truck Stop will showcase exhibits, displays, games, cookouts, fireworks, local and national country musicians, and even a beauty contest for trucks in celebration of America's big rigs and those who drive them.

After 15 months of darkness, the Quad Cities' amphitheater the TaxSlayer Center is again ready to rock with its special live concert event on July 9: an evening of powerhouse arena rock featuring the legendary lineup of Dokken, FireHouse, and Jack Russell's Great White.

Nominated for five 2001 Tony Awards and currently the ninth-longest-running Broadway musical of all time, the internationally beloved Mamma Mia! – running at Moline's Prospect Park Auditorium July 9 through 18 – becomes the first Quad City Music Guild production to enjoy live performances since 2019, with the show's collection of timeless ABBA tunes inspiring the New York Post to call the experience “one of those nights when you sit back and let a nutty kind of joy just sweep over you.”

Lauded by the New York Times as “a lightning-paced, multi-character solo play in the style of John Leguizamo,” the Mississippi Bend Players, from July 8 through 11, wraps up its 2021 summer season at Augustana College with author Nilaja Sun's No Child... , a recipient of two Outer Critics Circle Award nominations that was praised by the Chicago Tribune as “a wonderful piece of theatre.”

A massively successful book that became a massively successful movie will be the subject of the latest evening of factoids at the Tangled Wood, with the Bettendorf venue, on July 6, inviting Hogwarts-minded Muggles to share their knowledge of All Things Potter during its Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix Trivia Night.

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