Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse, 1828 3rd Ave., Rock Island, is seeking video online submissions to cast an upcoming show, “Beehive: The ‘60s Musical,” to open in May. “Beehive” (which was performed by Quad City Music Guild in spring 2007) is a fun, frothy flashback to the fabulous females who unmistakably left their mark on 1960s pop music, matching big voices with big hairdos — from the early decade bubble-gum classics to the explosive late ‘60s soul sound, according to Circa. From The Supremes and Connie Francis to Aretha Franklin and Janis Joplin, “Beehive” is a wailing musical... Read More

Saturday In The Arts is a comprehensive weekly feature looking at a trend, personality, or major subject involving the Quad-Cities arts and entertainment scene. Many Quad City Music Guild (QCMG) board members haven’t acted on stage in more than a year, but they have been acting in the best interests of the community as they navigate the scary plot twists of a treacherous Covid landscape. Due to ongoing Covid safety protocols and continuing limitations on audience size, the QCMG board announced last month it would cancel the rescheduled April 2021 show. “The Secret Garden” was two weeks away... Read More

Living Proof Exhibit, a Quad-Cities non-profit that provides the therapeutic benefits of the arts to people touched by cancer, has gathered its arts partners together to provide a virtual escape for those affected by the disease. “Due to the pandemic, we aren’t able to get volunteers into the hospitals to support people undergoing cancer treatments,” said Pamela Crouch, executive director of Living Proof Exhibit. “Instead, we’ve created a bookmark with a QR code that will take patients to virtual programming from us and our arts partners.” “The bookmarks are super easy to use,”... Read More

“Hamilton” actress and singer Renée Elise Goldsberry will join the Quad City Symphony Orchestra on Saturday, May 15, 2021 for an outdoor 7:30 p.m. concert at Davenport’s LeClaire Park. The special concert (of Broadway, pop, and soul favorites) was originally scheduled for Davenport’s Adler Theatre and was first announced in early February 2020. QCSO executive director Brian Baxter said Friday they decided in December to move the show outdoors, due to Covid concerns, rather than cancel or postpone. “We’ve considered everything. I would say every option was weighed,” he said,... Read More

It definitely takes a village to raise your spirits. For this unusual Valentine’s season of love, Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse has organized a special musical theater love letter – marrying several Quad-Cities venues to produce the video compilation, “Let’s Fall in Love.” A virtual celebration of love and the arts, the 75-minute program will debut Saturday, Feb. 13 at 5 p.m., featuring performers not only from Circa, but the Black Box Theatre, Center for Living Arts, Countryside Community Theatre, Davenport Junior Theatre, Double Threat Studios, Mississippi Bend Players/Augustana, QC... Read More

When you think of Valentine’s Day, you think of horror stories, Stephen King and Zombie Barbies, right? Right??? Well, the fine folks at the Davenport Public Library and the local King podcast Derry Public Radio sure do. They invite you to add a little blood to your heart holiday, as they’re hosting a free Zoom event Saturday, Feb. 13 at 2 p.m., to make Zombie Barbies and talk about their favorite horror tales. Amber Carlson, DPL youth services and programming librarian, first asked podcast co-host (and Stephen King fanatic) Joshua Kahn to recommend specific horror books for teens around Halloween... Read More

A contemporary jazz pianist, a multi-instrumental string quartet, and a Scottish folk/pop/rock group will all be featured as part of Quad City Arts’ Performing Arts Signature Series spring season, which will continue with a “virtual dinner and show” format through the end of April. In lieu of the in-person events, subscribers can enjoy access exclusive online access to world-class artists from the Quad City Arts Visiting Artist Series safely from the comfort of their own home. This unique experience offers take-out from a premium local restaurant paired with a backstage pass to a visiting... Read More

The R.I.A. Federal Credit Union – which today is celebrating the opening of its new branch at the booming BettPlex – is partnering with a brewery there to help fund the Honor Flight of the Quad Cities (HFQC). The credit union is holding a ribbon-cutting for its BettPlex location at 3 p.m. Feb. 11, at 4880 Forest Grove Dr., Bettendorf. This location originally opened in July 2020 and has been in operation since then. The credit union had wanted to celebrate the opening of this state-of-the-art facility last year with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, but at that time, the Covid-19 pandemic reached... Read More

Just 15 lucky audience members were able to see a new Augustana College theater production, per performance, late last month. That suspenseful, dramatic play – Andrew Bovell’s “Speaking in Tongues” – was filmed and will be shown online one night only, Friday, Feb. 12 at 7:30 p.m. A summary of the four-actor play (in which each plays more than one role) says: “Nine parallel lives, four interlocked infidelities, one missing person, and a mysterious stiletto are all woven together in this electrifying psychological thriller.” Directed by Augie senior James Wheeler (in his directorial... Read More

In its first complete mainstage production in a whole year, the Spotlight Theatre, 1800 7th Ave., Moline, will perform the madcap “Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)” on March 19 to March 28. “This abridged cast of Jeremy Mahr, Amelia Fischer, and Brent Tubbs are sure to give the audiences a much needed laugh,” the Spotlight posted on its Facebook page, noting its first full production was from the Reduced Shakespeare Company “abridged” repertoire in 2018, so “we thought this would be the perfect show to bring us back.” The rapid-fire Shakespeare riffs on all 37 of... Read More