Dozens of people crowded into The Englert Theatre Friday night to experience the searing and cathartic sounds of indie punk rock band Mannequin Pussy.
The band, composed of bassist and vocalist Colins “Bear” Regisford, percussionist Kaleen Reading, guitarist Maxine Sheen, and guitarist and vocalist Marisa “Missy” Dabice, performed in Iowa City for the first time as part of the 2025 Mission Creek festival. Dabice shouted to the audience at the beginning of the set, asking who had seen them in Iowa City before.
The answer was: nobody. Mission Creek would be the band’s debut performance for most Hawkeyes.
The set was complete with an array of colorful flashing lights, punk-rock guitar riffs, and ambitious new and old musical tracks, which invited the audience to release any pent-up emotions they may have been hanging onto.
“The show was amazing. They were so talented,” Cora Zirnhelt, an audience member, said.
Zirnhelt attended the show with Adelaide Capps, after both had learned about the band when researching the Mission Creek Festival. The two first received their tickets a few weeks ago, along with tickets to see Julien Baker — before Baker’s headlining act was canceled last week.
Even with the cancellation, Zirnhelt and Capps have enjoyed the shows they have gotten to see, including the set from Mannequin Pussy.
Zirnhelt listened to a few of the band’s songs before showing up at the concert. Throughout the show, the band played tracks from their latest album, “I Got Heaven,” along with select songs from their previous albums “Patience” and “Romantic.”
One highlight of the show was when the band performed “Drunk II” from their album “Romantic.” Before Mission Creek, Dabice hadn’t performed the song in a long time, saying her body was rejecting it and it was a difficult song to sing.
“Live music is always amazing,” Capps said. “Even if you don’t know the band, it’s always fun to see live music.”
Capps and Zirnhelt were not alone in their first-time viewing. Another question from Dabice invited audience members to raise their hands if Friday was their first experience at a Mannequin Pussy concert. Nearly three-quarters of the room shot their hands in the air.
“I particularly enjoyed all of the spoken word advocacy, which all felt very impactful and important,” Zirnhelt said.
At different points throughout the set, Dabice would pause the music to directly address the audience, prompting them to stand up for themselves against the government and to not be ashamed of expressing their femininity.
At one point during the show, Dabice called out to all men and boys in attendance and asked them to perform one simple task: shouting out the word pussy. They did so, and a chorus of “pussy” filled the halls of the Englert.
To Capps, another stand-out moment happened when the audience was asked to let out a deep scream, letting loose all the anger from the pits of their stomachs. The result was a cathartic release of emotion, a feeling which Mannequin Pussy tries to evoke with all their music at every show.