For the first performances in its 2017-18 Masterworks season, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra will take concertgoers on an aural trip to France under the direction of conductor Mark Russell Smith, complete with solos by a pair of international touring stars: soprano Elena Perroni and tenor Daniel Montenegro.

A first-prize winner in 1980's American College Theatre Festival New Playwriting Contest, Richmond Hill's latest presentation is a dramatic tale of friendship and redemption by author Jim Leonard Jr., whose television credits include writing for the Emmy-winning TV series Dexter and The Closer.

Appearing as the headliner in her first Moeller Nights concert, singer/songwriter/guitarist Moen performs in support of her LP debut That's All I Wanted, released this past May.

Described by Variety magazine as a work that boasts “plenty of laughs, a little romance, a little nostalgia – and it makes the audience feel smart,” St. Ambrose's theatre department opens its mainstage season with a popular verbal farce by comedian, actor, and author Steve Martin.

Director Matthew Vaughn's action thriller Kingsman: The Golden Circle opens with a high-speed taxicab melee underscored by Prince's “Let's Go Crazy,” and I initially presumed it to be par for the Kingsman course – more hyper-edited, ultra-violent nonsense involving cartoonish CGI and an iconic pop tune. But it turns out that this particular scene, with this particular song, is actually serving as the film's mission statement, because for 140 minutes, Vaughn's follow-up to 2015's Kingsman: The Secret Service is undeniably crazy. Not good, not even half-good, but certifiable nonetheless.

With his excitability, thinned-out physique, heavy regional dialect, and seemingly lid-less popping eyes – plus a makeup job (or computer touch-up in post-production) making him look a good decade younger than his actual 36 years – Jake Gyllenhaal starts this inspirational drama acting up a storm. To Green's and the actor's immense credit, though, it winds up downgraded to a persistent yet subtle rainfall, with the occasional gusts, when they hit, feeling intensely earned. It's an Oscar Bait role, but Gyllenhaal doesn't give an Oscar Bait performance – merely an exceptional, Oscar-deserving one.

At the opening night for the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse's Ring of Fire, the show began with its eight-person cast, one by one, declaring, “I am Johnny Cash.” Throughout the performance, they all at some point embodied the spirit of “The Man in Black.” And while the production boasts a 34-song set list covering much of Cash’s long songwriting career, I use the phrase “set list” intentionally, because the production does feel more like a concert than a traditional musical.

Brady has an idea in mind. But one person who was briefed last week said it wasn’t so much a plan as “A magical mystery tour looking for someone to love it.”

Buzz Osbourne of Melvins @ RIBCO 2013 photo by Matt Erickson

After thirty years in the game, one might imagine Melvins would slow down, burn out, or fade away. Having pioneered the grunge rock and sludge metal styles of the early nineties, and inspiring a wide-eyed young Kurt Cobain and his contemporaries to follow in their footsteps, the Washington-based trio (sometimes quartet) led by guitarist/singer Buzz Osbourne and drummer Dale Crover still show no signs of fatigue in 2017.

Presented as part of the Bettendorf Public Library's “Global Gathering: Korea” series, gifted members of the Minnesota dance ensemble will entertain and educate family audiences with examples of Korean folk, court, and ritual dance and music traditions.

A two-time winner of the Nashville Scene's citation for “Best Local Album,” the latest visiting artist in the Moeller Nights series will perform highlights from the pop singer/songwriter's 10-year professional repertoire.

Hosted by Mandala Integrative Medicine, this one-day event is designed to inspire the improvement of work-life balance, growth and success, productivity, and well-being, and includes presentations by nationally recognized speakers Dr. Sayed A. Shah and Andy Core.

Playing their distinct blend of funk rock, reggae, surf rock, disco, and traditional Russian stylings, Igor & the Red Elvises makes a return appearance at RIBCO – the latest tour stop in the Los Angeles-based band's twenty-third year of performance.

Called “an intuitive, remarkably personal love letter” by ArtForum magazine, the latest presentation in Ford Photography's Cinema at the Figge series celebrates the life and career of one of American music's most experimental and creative artists.

A trio of professional standup comedians, all of them Iowa natives, bring their fall tour to Davenport in a Triple Crown Whiskey Bar & Raccoon Motel event showcasing the stylings of Davenport's Gideon Hambright, Glenwood's Patrick Hastie, and Marshalltown's James Doyle.

The Miami-based Magic City Hippies will bring their indie-funk stylings to the Redstone Room on September 30 – the latest engagement in a busy year that has already seen the musicians opening for Hippo Campus's two-month national tour and enjoying summer-festival sets at SunFest and Bonnaroo.

Described by the Minneapolis Star-Tribune as “a powerful, animated blues-rock singer” and “a writer of praiseworthy originals,” singer/songwriter/guitarist Parker performs locally in a special concert event presented by the Mississippi Valley Blues Society.

Boasting more than 40 paintings produced over the course of 70 years, the Figge's latest exhibition will showcase the artistic journey of Rock Island native Koen – one of the most distinguished artists of the 20th Century.

As the advance publicity and trailers for mother! were deliberately vague, it was impossible to know quite what to expect from Aronofsky's follow-up to his Ark-etypal epic Noah, and I presume that a lot of people, like myself, imagined it was going to be some kind of updated Rosemary's Baby with Jennifer Lawrence doing a Mia Farrow and Michelle Pfeiffer in the Ruth Gordon role. And I'd still pay big bucks to see that movie.

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