A first of many in a new cabaret series, The Mockingbird On Main will proudly present WISHES, evening of song, laughter and love with

Wendy Czekalski

Wendy Czekalski.

Wendy Czekalski has been a powerful force in the Quad City theatre and music community for decades and with WISHES, she steps into the spotlight for a solo show that no one will soon forget.

Accompanied by Karl Bodenbender, Czekalski will serenade us with such Broadway classics as Ladies Who Lunch, Old Friends, Losing My Mind, Maybe this Time and many more!

WISHES: An Evening with Wendy Czekalski

September 16, 17, 18

Doors open at 7:30pm

Show begins at 8:00pm

Tickets: $10

For details and tickets please visit TheMockingbirdOnMain.com!

New Orleans Coming To Downtown Rock Island

Sponsored by Illinois Casualty Company, Holiday Inn Rock Island, Rock Island Brewing Company, Daiquiri Factory and The Arena

Bend Your Way To Beginner’s Yoga at the Davenport Public Library

The Black Box Theatre located in downtown Moline is presenting ‘The Guys’ by Anne Nelson to honor the heroism of first responders on the 20^th anniversary of 9/11, and today at 2 p.m. is the final show of the run.

Based on a true story, “The Guys” follows an editor named Joan, who receives an unexpected phone call on behalf of Nick, a fire captain who has lost most of his men in the 9/11 attack. He is looking for a writer to help him with the eulogies he must present at their memorial services. Nick and Joan spend a long afternoon together, recalling the fallen men through recounting their virtues and their foibles, and fashioning the stories into memorials of words. In the process, Nick and Joan discover the possibilities of friendship in each other and their shared love for the unconquerable spirit of the city.

The Black Box production will star Jim Harris as Nick. Harris, a born and raised New Yorker who moved to the Quad Cities, has an especially close relationship to the day as he watched the towers fall and discovered that his publishing partner’s son had been on the 102^nd floor of tower one. Jim was last seen at the Black Box in “I Never Saw Another Butterfly.” Playing Joan is Jennifer Cook Gregory. Jennifer recently completed “Guys and Dolls” at First Presbyterian Church and will appear in “Company” scheduled for October at The Black Box.  Directing and design will be by Lora Adams.

Due to new Covid restrictions patrons are required to wear masks and actors will be in face shields.

Tickets may be purchased at theblackboxtheatre.com

Murr Coming To Rust Belt TONIGHT!

It’s a hilarious hang out with your favorite impractical joker at your favorite venue.Tickets ($35 – $42) are available HERE.

Putnam Museum Explores Nature’s Blueprints

In an age of complex environmental challenges, why not look to the ingenuity of nature for solutions? The forms, patterns, and processes found in the natural world—refined by 3.8 billion years of evolution—can inspire our design of everything from clothing to skyscrapers.

This approach to innovation, called biomimicry, is becoming increasingly popular. Nature’s Blueprints: Biomimicry in Art and Design is running at the Putnam Museum and Science Center (1717 W. 12^th St., Davenport), a Smithsonian affiliate.

“The Putnam is the first stop on this exhibit’s national tour and we’re honored to be selected for its premiere,” Rachael Mullins, CEO/president of the Putnam, said in a museum release. “Our ability to host this exhibit—our first traveling show since before the pandemic—speaks to the Putnam’s resiliency and the many ways that the Quad-City community has supported cultural institutions during this difficult period in history. We are so grateful to our community and can’t wait to show a bit of our appreciation through this wonderful new exhibit.”

Nature’s Blueprints: Biomimicry in Art and Design brings together design and environmental science using artifacts and photography, and interactive learning stations. The traveling exhibit will be enhanced with special items from the Putnam’s own treasured collection.

Don’t ‘Waste’ Time, See This Art Exhibit!

Chicago artist Toby Zallman will have her solo exhibition, “Our Plastic Trash,” on display through Friday, Sept. 24 at the Western Illinois University Art Gallery.

Zallman is a Chicago artist whose art practice focuses on sculpture and drawing. In 2004, after becoming aware of how damaging our plastic and e-waste is to the environment, she changed her materials to both incorporate recycled/re-purposed materials in her sculpture, as well as a source of visual inspiration for both the sculptures and drawings. She has used computer detritus, plastic bags, plastic bottles and solid plastic trash to create unique art works that shed light on the environmental devastation cause by our culture of consumerism.

Zallman shows both locally and nationally. She was the recipient of several Illinois Arts Council grants, an Individual Artist Program Grant, City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and has had artist residencies at the MacDowell Colony, Yaddo and Ragdale.

Admission is open free to the public. Visitors are expected to be vaccinated and masks are required

For more information about the Gallery, visit wiu.edu/artgallery.

RME Rocks With Live At Five On Fridays

Bryan West (left), with engineer Casey Wasner, Jeni Grouws and Chris Avey.

The River Music Experience, 2^nd and Main streets, Davenport, has brought back the free Live@Five on Fridays from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The RME courtyard will host live music featuring a wide range of genres and styles.

This year’s schedule of bands is:

• Sept. 17: Avey Grouws Band
• Sept. 24: The Wontu Trees
  sponsored by Dahl Ford Davenport