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.

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.

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.

He is Henry the eighth, he is, and on May 22, a pop-rock icon returns with the band that made him famous in the Adler Theatre's hosting of Herman's Hermits Starring Peter Noone – a night of British-Invasion favorites boasting such radio classics as “I'm Into Something Good,” “Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter,” “Silhouettes,” and, of course, “I'm Henry the VIII, I Am.”

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."

A high-energy ensemble boasting some of the sharpest musical talents the area has to offer, 10 of Soul headlines a May 23 engagement as part of the Tangled Wood's summer concert series, their Bettendorf set sure to boast classic tunes from the genres of soul, funk, and blues, as well as a few funky arrangements of their own.

Performing from an iconic repertoire boasting such classics as "Your Cheatin' Heart," "Hey Good Lookin'," and "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," country musician and Obie Award winner Jason Petty brings his touring production 100 Years of Hank Williams to Galesburg's Orpheum Theatre on May 23, Petty being the only actor to portray Williams in New York City's hit off-Broadway musical Lost Highway, as well as the only artist to perform that musical at Nashville's world famous Ryman Auditorium.

Presented by the Quad Cities Bicycle Club and returning to the Village of East Davenport, an eagerly anticipated Memorial Day tradition returns for its 59th year in the Quad Cities Criterium – a May 25 event featuring hundreds of adult and youth cyclists from across the U.S., Canada, and Europe participating in a dozen bicycle races, with thousands of dollars in cash prizes awarded throughout the day.