Just over six weeks into his new job as Western Illinois University president, Guiyou Huang wrote to Gov. JB Pritzker this past Tuesday, Feb. 16, about ongoing discussions regarding a potential transfer of the WIU Quad-Cities campus in Moline to another state institution. To date, Western has not been included in the discussion, he noted, copying Moline Mayor Stephanie Acri and Quad Cities Chamber president/CEO Paul Rumler. Acri responded that she’s had concerns about the impact of WIU in Moline and she’s scheduled to meet again with Huang on March 2. “In our conversation in my office this... 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

The new year at the Spotlight Theatre, 1800 7th Ave., Moline, brings a new bar and a monthly jazz series starting this month to help spotlight it. The Jazz Lounge – which debuted briefly this past fall in the main theater as a Thursday series with pianist Mason Moss and singer Sara Tubbs – will relaunch on Feb. 20 in the new Blueprint Bar and Lounge, in a previously unused (and totally renovated) room off the Spotlight foyer. “They completely transformed it. It’s gorgeous,” Tubbs (Spotlight co-owner with husband Brent Tubbs) said Wednesday of building owners Adam Bain and Blake Humphrey,... Read More

MACOMB/MOLINE, IL — Beginning the week of Feb. 1, Western Illinois University will begin COVID-19 surveillance testing and continue as the semester progresses. Additional open appointment times may be added periodically for those who would like to be tested,but have not been selected as part of the surveillance test population. Each week, approximately 700 students, faculty and staff will receive an email encouraging them to get a free COVID test provided by Beu Health Center. According to Executive Director of Auxiliary Services and Risk Management Joe Roselieb, the University is using the... Read More

MACOMB/MOLINE, IL – A total of 678 students earned academic degrees or post-baccalaureate certificates after the Fall 2020 semester at Western Illinois University. Bachelor’s degrees were awarded to 508 graduates. Academic distinction was awarded to baccalaureate graduates who achieved high grade point averages. This includes: Summa Cum Laude, 3.90 GPA or higher on a 4.0 scale; Magna Cum Laude, 3.75-3.89 GPA; and Cum Laude, 3.6-3.74 GPA. Master’s and doctoral degrees were earned by 171 graduates, including two Ph.D. graduates and seven doctoral graduates. Graduates, grouped by... Read More

Get ready to zoom on in for a concert by Centaur Noir this Thursday! Tune in to a zoom concert at 7 p.m. Thursday with Centaur Noir, our own creative artist Jon Burns. Go to https://www.sangeethaformayor.com/pre-view-concert… to register and receive the zoom link. It’s $10 for 30 min. of joy! When we’re finished we’ll hop on to the Mid-Winter Community Open-Mic Night. See you there!  Read More

Though a story of redemption, new life, and surviving an infectious pandemic would have made an ideal return this spring, Quad City Music Guild for the second time on Tuesday announced it would again cancel a planned production of the beloved musical, “The Secret Garden.” While the board of directors informed the original 2020 cast and crew last month that it decided to scrap live performances at Prospect Park Auditorium, Moline, it waited to publicly announce until after its January board meeting Tuesday night. Due to ongoing Covid safety protocols and continuing limitations on audience size,... Read More

Due to ongoing Covid safety protocols and continuing limitations on audience size, the Quad City Music Guild board announced Tuesday it is again canceling the planned Spring 2021 show, “The Secret Garden,” which was originally postponed from last spring. “While these decisions remain difficult, we know how important it is to keep the safety of our participants, patrons, and community at the forefront of everything we do,” Music Guild said Tuesday night on Facebook. They have elected to replace The Secret Garden with a streamed performance, On With the Show: A QCMG Cabaret.... Read More

In a bitter, divisive time – just two days before inauguration of the 46th U.S. President – the 38th-annual memorial service honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Monday held special resonance. Livestreamed on YouTube from Rock Island’s Martin Luther King,. Jr. Community Center, the nearly hour-long service spoke to the ideals of the late civil-rights leader (who was assassinated in 1968) and how far the nation still has to go to achieve his dream of peace, unity and justice. MLK Center executive director Jerry Jones noted at the outset that theme of the service was King’s quote,... Read More

WQPT, Quad Cities PBS is revisiting their original fundraiser “The Auction is at Your House.”  The new event is an on-air, on-line auction airing on WQPT January 28 and 29 from 8 to 10 pm, while the on-line part of the auction is live now at wqpt.org/auction. “Typically at this time of year we would be holding our gala Champagne on the Rocks, but due to Covid we had to think out of the box for our auction items, and we took a look at our history and decided to bring back The Auction is at Your House,” said interim General Manager, Dawn Schmitt. Items can be viewed before the on-air portion... Read More