The first time I saw Top Gun, I hated it. As a wee lad, I remember seeing it in a packed theater in 1986. I remember the whooshing of the jets, the omnipresent soundtrack, and the unnerving intensity of Tom Cruise. I remember the buzz of the audience walking out. People adored it, and I […]
Within stories, the idea of continuity is powerful. It’s like the lure of history, the pull to understand events or character through the study of a chain of events. That’s why we dive into literary series, why we’ll binge-watch a show on Netflix, and why we’ll carry around decades of plot points regarding comic books. […]
Writing a new play is murder. Well, it certainly was for busy Q-C actor, director, and theater owner Tristan Tapscott, whose latest original work – “Murder at Mistwell Manor” – is a breezy blast. Known in part — before he opened The Mockingbird on Main theater last summer — for penning a new musical adaptation […]
The latest production at Moline’s intimate Black Box Theatre isn’t one necessarily to be enjoyed, but is a terrifying thriller – tailor-made for fans of suspense, mystery and horror. The whiplash-inducing, psychological roller-coaster “Veronica’s Room” (1973) truly puts the “black” in Black Box. Director and co-founder Lora Adams warns as much in her brief introduction […]
As a lapsed Catholic and current wine lover, I was fully prepared to be intoxicated by “Drinking Habits,” the latest feel-good farce at Richmond Hill Players in Geneseo. I wasn’t prepared for how drunk with delight I got, I could barely drive home after Sunday’s picture-perfect matinee at the Barn Theater in Richmond Hill Park. […]
Rick Elice’s Broadway hit “Peter and the Starcatcher is A LOT – a lot of characters (allegedly 100), a lot of story (with intermission, 160 minutes), a lot of action, sound and fury, and in its ADD-fueled, childlike soul, a heck of a lot of fun. Though you couldn’t pay me enough to summarize its […]
I just love what Circa ’21 has done this year in regard to its shows. Its last show, “The Play That Goes Wrong,” was wonderfully absurd and hilarious, a terrific bit of humorous escapism. It’s latest show, “Just Desserts,” isn’t quite as unhinged and wacky, it’s far more conventional in terms of plotline and structure, […]
The first citation states “as easy as pie” originated in Australia in the 1920s. It grew from the term “pie on” or “pie at” which means to be very good at something. The root is the Maori word “pai” which means “good”. Hence, if you’re good at something it will be as easy as pie. […]
I don’t review a lot of pizza spots. Pizza is one of those things that you find what you love and stick to it. My top spots in the QC for pizza are as follows. This isn’t a ranking btw, just my favorite spots in the Illinois and Iowa Quad-Cities. A) Quad City Pizza Company […]
The old saying, “All good things come to those who wait,” had deeply resonant meaning Saturday night, with the triumphant, flawless world premiere of the opera “Karkinos” at Moline’s Bartlett Performing Arts Center. In collaboration with Living Proof Exhibit, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra commissioned local composer and Augustana professor Jacob Bancks to create the opera, which aims to provide […]
