When Danielle Colby and other local women strut, create character, and gradually remove items of their costumes in on-stage routines at the Ecdysiast Arts Museum, they not only bare their bodies, but their souls, personalities, dreams, and desires – and have great fun in the process.

A two-evening celebration of the Swedish tradition based on the legend of Saint Lucia, Queen of Light, the 2025 Lucia Nights Festival in Bishop Hill will, on December 12 and 13, deliver a seasonal treat featuring live music, a barn dance, a chili supper, a tree-lighting ceremony, carriage rides, and much more.

An avidly anticipated holiday tradition returns to Augustana College from December 6 through 12 when the John Deere Planetarium hosts the week-long presentation Season of Light, a fascinating and beautiful holiday presentation hosted by the college's planetarium director and professor of physics Dr. Lee Carkner.

On December 13 and 14, one of the Quad Cities' most adored holiday traditions returns to Davenport's Adler Theatre when the professional talents of Ballet Quad Cities perform Tchaikovsky's holiday dance classic The Nutcracker. This eagerly awaited family experience boasts original choreography by Artistic Director Courtney Lyon, live musical accompaniment by Orchestra Iowa, a cast of 60, and the return of popular guest artist Domingo Rubio, the longtime portrayer of the company's dancing Dracula.

An Augustana College graduate, former Moline teacher/coach, and Superintendent of Rock Island-Milan Public Schools takes part in a conversation about his recent memoir From Dubuque to Selma & Beyond, a December 11 "Community Connections" book talk with Dave Markward that finds the author, at the Bettendorf Public Library, sharing his personal journey of understanding racism in America.

Beloved for playing the obsequious standup Kenny Bania, one of Jerry's many nemeses, on the sitcom smash Seinfeld, touring comedian Steve Hytner kicks off the 2025-26 "Laugh QC" Thursday Night Comedy Series in the Davenport RiverCenter's Mississippi Hall, his December 11 show treating fans to a night with the funnyman also seen on such Emmy-winning series as Modern Family, Friends, and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Enabling visitors to explore the remarkable ways in which animals across 500 million years have adapted armor for survival, and how these adaptations continue to inspire human innovation, the traveling exhibition Animal Armor takes residence in Davenport's Putnam Museum & Science Center through February 15, the fascinating exhibit exploring the evolutionary battle between protection and predation.

Through January 4, guests of Davenport's German American Heritage Center are invited to explore themes of nostalgia, community, nature, and perspective in the wonderful collection The Prints of David & Sarojini Johnson.

Amassed over four decades by a pair of noted printmakers and educators, the fascinating works found in German Expressionist Prints from the David & Sarojini Johnson Collection will be on display in Davenport's German American Heritage Center through December 14, this showcase of arresting pieces held in conjunction with the Figge Art Museum's companion exhibit Fever Dreams: German Expressionism.

An engaging and fascinating exhibit developed by the Davenport venue's curatorial staff, the Putnam Museum & Science Center's Indigenous Roots of Mexican Americans will, through March 22, treat guests to artifacts and textiles from areas in Mexico that are housed together alongside some 250,000 objects from the Putnam’s collections.

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