• Virtual Illinois Libraries Present: “Love & Laughs with Michelle Buteau,” January 23

    Fresh off her critically acclaimed role in Pamela Adlon's 2024 indie comedy Babes, an award-winning standup comedian, actress, television host, producer, and podcast host takes part in the latest virtual Illinois Libraries Present program hosted by the Rock Island and Silvis Public Libraries, the January 23 event Love & Laughs with Michelle Buteau finding its subject in honest, hilarious conversation with interviewer Greta Johnsen.

  • “From Dubuque to Selma & Beyond: My Journey to Understand Racism is America,” January 23

    With the in-person event held in commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Week, Augustana College graduate, former Moline teacher/coach, and Superintendent of Rock Island-Milan Public Schools Dr. Dave Markward takes part in a talk-show-style conversation about his memoir From Dubuque to Selma & Beyond: My Journey to Understand Racism in America, the January 23 Moline Public Library program finding Markward engaging with fellow Augustana grad and Moline businessman Brett Carter.

  • “The St. Elizabeth Fire,” January 26

    Presented as part of the Davenport venue's popular Kaffee und Kuchen series, an in-person and online program on one of the most horrific tragedies in Iowa history - one that took place just over 75 years ago - will take place in The St. Elizabeth Fire, with Bret Grimes, the Bettendorf-based author of The St. Elizabeth Hospital Fire in Iowa, leading the January 26 discussion at the Herman American Heritage Center.

  • “Hubble Telescope: New Views of the Universe,” through January 26

    Created in partnership with the Smithsonian Institute’s Traveling Exhibit team, the illuminating and engaging immersive exhibition Hubble Telescope: New Views of the Universe will be on display at Davenport's Putnam Museum & Science Center through January 26, this fascinating, family-themed exhibit designed to be constantly updated with the newest imagery and technology coming from the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes.

  • “With You I Am Myself / Mit Dir bin ich ich,” January 12 through April 6

    On display from January 12 through April 6 at Davenport's German American Heritage Center, the sensitive and touching exhibit With You I Am Myself / Mit Dir bin ich ich finds Israeli artist and photographer Oranit Ben Zimra portraying 12 pairs of friends from Norderstedt, Germany, in words and pictures, the collection forming a beautiful mosaic of German-Israeli friendships.

  • Court Reveals Madigan Vetted His Client List Assiduously, Excluding the Times He Didn’t

    Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s longtime law firm partner Vincent "Bud" Getzendanner testified in Madigan’s defense against numerous federal charges last week. One of the main themes of Getzendanner’s testimony was the property tax firm’s process of weeding out clients and potential clients who could pose a conflict of interest to Madigan.

  • Welcome to 2025: Where Your Freedoms Go to Die

    Wondering what to expect from the government in 2025? So far, it looks like it will be more of the same ill-advised, costly, greedy, taxpayer-funded, dunderheaded power grabs, saber-rattling, graft, corruption, and make-works programming that leaves us no better off than where we started.

  • Uncle Scam's First Amendment Jeopardy J6 Wheel of Misfortune - by Ed Newman Jan 2024
    January 6th's Four-Year Fedsurrection Anniversary

    U.S. Attorney General William Barr testified before the J6 Select Committee (arguably illegitimate because it did not follow the procedural rules for convening a select committee), claiming he had investigated election irregularity and fraud allegations, and determined them to be unfounded. His testimony was one of the video presentations during the J6 Select Committee's nine prime-time investigative hearings.

  • Scott County Sheriff Tim Lane
    Sheriff Tim Lane Vows to Pursue Ethics Complaint Against New Lieutenant Governor Chris Cournoyer

    The Scott County sheriff says although an Iowa Senate committee has rejected his ethics complaint against the state’s new lieutenant governor, he intends to pursue the matter.

  • Sometimes Nothing Is a Cool Hand -- Just What Illinois Dems Played Over Hemp Regulation

    Every now and then, you get a story that helps explain the Statehouse power dynamic. The saga of the “intoxicating hemp” regulation bill is one of those stories.

  • In for a Penny, in for a Hound: “Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery,” at the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse through March 8

    Despite this production being an excellent exhibition of both stagecraft and acting skills, Baskerville's comedy devolution did not grab me personally – though some audience members at Thursday's preview performance cheered.

  • “Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch,” January 30

    With its performers the latest guests in Quad City Arts' Visiting Artist Series, the children's-book adaptation Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch enjoys a special January 30 presentation at the Rock Island Public Library's Watts-Midtown Branch, this beautiful, funny, and touching short play with puppets imagined for the stage by Axis Theatre’s artistic director Chris McGregor.

  • “The Cure at Troy,” January 30 through February 9

    A thrilling adaptation of Sophocles’ play Philoctetes by celebrated Nobel Laureate Seamus Heaney, The Cure at Troy serves as the first 2025 production at Iowa City's Riverside Theatre, the show's January 30 through February 9 run treating audiences to what Broad Street Review deemed "a rousing exploration of how our dark impulses threaten to shatter the soul – and how the light of compassion can temper our baser urges."

  • Picks o' Six 2024: Highlights from the Year in Area Theatre

    If the Internet is to be believed – and when isn't it? – the traditional gift for a ninth anniversary is pottery. But while our theatre-reviewing team and yours truly briefly considered getting y'all lovely handcrafted vases or replicas of the ashtray I made in elementary school (ah, more innocent times …), we instead decided to treat you to sincere, exultant, pithy words of praise in announcing recipients of the Ninth-Annual Reader Tony Awards!

  • Local Theatre Auditions/Calls for Entry
    Local Theatre Auditions/Calls for Entry

    Updated: Thursday, january 16

  • Red Not Chili Peppers, January 23

    Hailed by the Virginia Pilot as being "as close as it gets to the real thing," the funk-rock tribute musicians of Red Not Chili Peppers take the stage at Davenport's Redstone Room on January 23, performing from a Grammy-winning repertoire that includes such top-10 Billboard smashes as "Under the Bridge," "Scar Tissue," and "Dani California."

  • Chris Janson, January 24

    A platinum-selling, chart-topping singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and member of the Grand Ole Opry, Nashville star Chris Janson headlines a January 24 concert event at Davenport's Rhythm City Casino Resort Event Center, his talents leading Nashville Gab to call him “explosive on stage and completely unpredictable,” as well as “the future of country music.”

  • Alex Williams, January 24

    Described by PopMatters as “a winning songwriter who manages to mix humor with traditional country sentiment without falling into hokey pastiche,” Nashville's Alex Williams performs a headlining engagement at Davenport's Raccoon Motel on January 24, his 2022 album Waging Peace lauded by Saving Country Music as "a seasoned and sensational specimen of Outlaw-style country music rendered in the modern context."

  • Cody Johnson, January 25

    With the artist's most recent release Leather praised by Entertainment Focus as “a cohesive and emotionally charged album,” country-rock singer/songwriter Cody Johnson brings his national "Leather Deluxe Tour" to Moline's Vibrant Arena at the MARK on January 25, his most recent laurels including a 2023 CMT Music Award for his single “'Til You Can't" and last year's Country Music Association Award for Album of the Year.

  • Smells Like Nirvana, January 25

    Composed of lead vocalist Paul Wandtke on guitar, Mike Petrasek on bass, and Joe Kus on drums, the hard-rocking tribute artists of Smells Like Nirvana play a January 25 headlining engagement at Davenport's Raccoon Motel, celebrating the legendary sounds of Nirvana and Kurt Cobain through smash hits, B-sides, rare songs, and more from albums including Nevermind, In Utero, and Bleach.

  • The Pair's Rent Trap: “One of Them Days,” “Wolf Man,” “Nickel Boys,” “The Room Next Door,” and “Hard Truths”

    This ticking-clock slapstick is an inarguably slight, inconsequential thing. But it routinely delivers enormous pleasure, as well as continued evidence that Keke Palmer would be a massive big-screen star if Hollywood was still in the business of making funny, fast-paced, inherently meaningless comedies that left you feeling great. Whatever happened to those? Weren't they, like, the only movies we all collectively agreed were awesome?

  • Predicting the 2025 Academy Award Nominations

    With nothing but emotional support and well wishes, from here in the Midwest, to the Hollywood community and the many thousands in their vicinity, the boldface names and titles below are my predicted nominees, with non-boldface denoting runners-up and predictions in order of probability.

  • Monkey in the Muddle: “Better Man,” “The Last Showgirl,” and “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl”

    A largely pro forma musical bio-pic on the British pop sensation Robbie Williams, Better Man is only director Michael Gracey's second non-documentary feature, the first being 2017's word-of-mouth hit The Greatest Showman. And about 40 minutes into his new film, you're finally treated to evidence of what a powerfully great showman Gracey can be.

  • Mike Schulz with Dave & Darren on Planet 93.9 FM

    Going to the cineplex or staying in and streaming this weekend? Every Thursday morning at 8:15 a.m. you can listen to Mike Schulz dish on recent movie releases & talk smack about Hollywood celebs on Planet 93.9 FM with the fabulous Dave & Darren in the Morning team of Dave Levora and Darren Pitra. The morning crew previews upcoming releases, too.

    Or you can check the Reader Web site and listen to their latest conversation by the warm glow of your electronic device. Never miss a pithy comment from these three scintillating pundits again.

    Thursday, January 16: Previews of The Wolf Man, One of Them Days, and a trio of Oscar possibilities at Iowa City's FilmScene, and discussion on Better Man, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, and The Last Showgirl, the latter of which might land Pamela Anderson an Academy Award nomination. Seriously. She'd deserve it, too.

  • Now Playing: Friday, January 17, through Thursday, January 23

    Now playing at area theaters.

Art

  • “Marvin Cone: Painter,” January 18 through June 8

    Featuring paintings both from the museum's collection and on loan, the Figge Art Museum's Marvin Cone: Painter offers a celebration of this exceptional artist and teacher who steadfastly pursued artmaking for more than 50 years, the arresting exhibit, on display from January 18 through June 8, exploring Cone's life as an Iowa artist, the stylistic shifts in his work, and new perspectives on a familiar area talent.

  • “Tim Olson & Lena Olson,” through January 31

    An evocative combination of two art exhibits will be on display in the Joan Mulgrew Gallery of Dubuque's Voices Studio through January 31, with Tim Olson & Lisa Olson inviting guests to experience the unique perspectives of two artists whose journeys are rooted in deep personal reflection, family, and a dedication to their creativity.

  • “Lasansky: UD's Private Collection,” through February 3

    Stunning works by an Argentine-American artist and educator revered for his advanced techniques in intaglio printmaking, as well as members of his family, will be celebrated at the University of Dubuque's Bisignano Art Gallery through February 3, with Lasansky: UD's Private Collection honoring the man who established the school of printmaking at the University of Iowa, which offered the first Master of Fine Arts program in the field in the United States.

  • “Leo Villareal: Interstellar,” through February 23

    With its creator's artistic practice belonging to a tradition that intertwines nature, technology, and human experience, Leo Villareal: Interstellar, on display at Davenport's Figge Art Museum through February 23, will showcase nine works from light sculptor Villareal’s Nebula series, inviting patrons into the realms of space, time, and perception through LEDs and custom software.

  • “College Invitational,” through February 23

    With each piece chosen by the institutions’ art professors to showcase campus talent and creativity, the Figge Art Museum's 13th installment of the College InvitationaL is on display in the Davenport venue through February 23, artwork from students attending eight area colleges and universities now on view in the museum’s second-floor Katz Gallery.