This year’s rules for the Reader's Short-Fiction Contest stipulated 300 words or fewer and the piece had to include one of 10 sentences pulled from Mark Twain’s 1889 comedic novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. Thank you and congratulations to all who entered!

Independent musicians from across the country, across the Atlantic, and here in the Quad Cities will gather for the Village of East Davenport's autumnal Gas Feed & Seed Festival – a three-day celebration hosted by Moeller Nights and taking place at the Village Theatre, Baked Bread & Beer Co., and additional locales throughout the Village.

Described by Glide magazine as “a rollicking blend of fiddle, mandolin, guitar, banjo, and drum,” and by That Music Mag as “a quintet with gorgeous vocals, instrumentals, some dreads, and a whole bunch of youthful energy,” the alt-folk musicians of The Way Down Wanderers return to Davenport's Redstone Room for one of their final U.S. concerts before embarking on a 16-day tour of the United Kingdom.

Described by the New York Times as a “beautifully structured play with nifty surprise endings (most but not all of them happy),” author John Cariani's romantic comedy Almost, Maine has proven to be one of the millennium's most popular stage works – popular enough to have two separate productions of the show opening locally, on November 10, at Scott Community College and the QC Theatre Workshop.

Now in its eighth year, the Genesis Doctors Holiday Recital will find local physicians, family members, and other featured talents performing a wide variety of classical and holiday-themed music, presented in a fundraiser benefiting music-therapy programs for Genesis Health System hospice patients.

With Time Out Chicago raving, “The most entertaining dances seem to come from Giordano Dance Chicago,” this exhilarating Windy City ensemble brings its high energy, enthusiastic choreography, and half-century of history to the Galvin Fine Arts Center as the latest guests in the Quad City Arts Visiting Artists Series.

“He came back from the dead?!”

“It wouldn't be the first time.”

In two lines of dialogue, that might be all you need to know about Jigsaw, the eighth – and quite possibly least-offensive – entry in the Saw franchise, and the first since 2010's now laughably titled Saw 3D: The Final Chapter.

Called “hilarious and heartwarming” by the Chicago Tribune and praised for its “bright comic zest” and “swinging music” by the New York Times, the musical adaptation of Elf – based on the 2003 screen comedy starring Will Ferrell – will make its area debut and jump-start the holidays as Circa '21's 2017-18 season opener.