© 2024 Iowa Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

June & July IAS Features Texas Tenors, Authors Festival and More

Pack up the car, turn up your favorite public radio station, and set your GPS for these Iowa arts destinations on this summer’s road trip. The June and July Iowa Arts Showcase features:

·         Barbara Lounsberry and Mary Taylor, Steering Committee Members, reveling in this year’s Cedar Falls Authors Festival

·         Composer Michael Ching and Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre’s Artistic Director Daniel Kleinknecht filling us in on the CROT’s upcoming production of Speed Dating Tonight!

·         Dr. Mark Baumann, chair of the 2017 North Central Convention of the American Guild of Organists, revealing details about this summer’s convention in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City

·         Des Moines Metro Opera General and Artistic Director, Michael Egel, speaking on the company’s 2nd Stages production of Maria de Buenos Aires and their Words & Music Capital Campaign

·         Tim Schiffer, Executive Director of the Figge Art Museum, exploring artist Jean Shin’s exhibit entitled “MAiZE”

·         John Hagen, Waverly native and member of the Texas Tenors, sharing details about their new album and upcoming performance at the Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center in Cedar Falls

Tune in on Saturday, June 10th at 11 AM and 5 PM for the June & July Showcase.

Committee Members for this year’s Cedar Falls Authors Festival, Barbara Lounsberry and Mary Taylor, outline events. The festival celebrates authors who were born in Cedar Falls or spent substantial time in the city living and writing. The featured authors include Bess Streeter Aldrich, Ruth Suckow, James Hearst, Nancy Price, and Robert James Waller. June and July events include readings, screenings, panel discussions, an exhibit of artwork by Cedar Falls artist Marjorie Nuhn, and an exhibit of Nancy Price’s original book illustrations. Cedar Falls Authors Festival events will continue through May of 2018.

Composer Michael Ching and CROT Artistic Director Daniel Kleinknecht fill us in on the company’s upcoming production of Ching’s comic opera Speed Dating Tonight! Follow a group of speed daters as they experience hilarious and exasperating encounters in the search for love. The CROT’s performance will take place June 15th-17th, 2017, at 7:30PM at the Peggy Boyle Whitworth Amphitheater at Brucemore Mansion.

Dr. Mark Baumann, chair of the 2017 North Central Convention of the American Guild of Organists, reveals details about this summer’s convention. The convention will feature presentations and performances by world-class organists. It takes place June 19th-22nd on various organs and in various locations in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

Des Moines Metro Opera General and Artistic Director, Michael Egel, speaks on the company’s upcoming 2nd Stages production of Astor Piazzolla’s Maria de Buenos Aires and their Words & Music Capital Campaign fundraiser. Maria de Buenos Aires tells the steamy tale of a young seductress who was “born on the day God was drunk.” The Words & Music Capital Campaign aims to raise funds to restore their home in the Carnegie Library and converting and adding new space for educational outreach and community engagement.

Tim Schiffer, Executive Director of the Figge Art Museum, explores artist Jean Shin’s exhibit entitled “MAiZE.” Shin’s work will ultilize thousands of repurposed green plastic bottles crafted into “cornstalk” sculptures to form an elaborate maze on the Figge Art Museum’s third floor. In addition to demonstrating the power of art-making and community collaboration, the installation will engage visitors in a dialogue about plastic waste, food choices and environmental stewardship. MAiZE will be on view June 24th - September 24th, 2017, at the Figge Art Museum in Davenport.

John Hagen, member of the Texas Tenors and Waverly native, reveals tidbits about their new album and upcoming performance in Cedar Falls. Finding their fame six years ago on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent,” the group combines crystal clear classical tenor voices with their unique Texas Western flare. They have performed more than 1000 concerts around the world, including a 24-city tour in the United Kingdom, Shanghai, China and collaborations with some of the most prestigious symphonies in the US. Their concert at the Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center takes place at 7:00 pm on Saturday, July 8.

Jacqueline Halbloom is a Sr. Music Producer and Classical Music Host