What originally began as a commemoration of a Roman-Christian festival during Roman times has gradually become a unique American holiday. Since the commercialization of Valentine’s Day in the United...

This is Amy Haeussler’s favorite part of the year. Not because Valentine’s Day is soon approaching and not because she will graduate in a few months. What Haeussler loves most about February is the...

Lucy Silag’s novels have given her plenty of reasons to celebrate. The Iowa Writers’ Workshop student sold the movie rights to make her first novel, Beautiful Americans. The third novel in the series...

When William Elliott Whitmore steps onto an Iowa City stage, toting tattoo covered arms, a banjo, and a bottle of Jack Daniel’s, he feels at home. “The shows, man, they are always just so damn fun,”...

Usually a home for music, theater, and film, the Englert is about to play host to a new type of performer: the acrobat. The Peking Acrobats will flip, tumble, and skate their way into the Englert Theatre,...

In 2000, St. Raphael Orthodox Christian Chapel found fertile soil in Iowa City. Over 10 years, the chapel has matured and attracted a congregation of more than 100 Syrians, Russians, Romanians, Greeks,...

When he was working on the book By Myself: An Autobiography with longtime friend David Trinidad, one could say that D.A. Powell heard music. Powell, a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, mentioned...

As many women are being spoiled with Ghirardelli chocolates and a dozen perfect red roses on Valentine’s Day, Angie Toomsen will light up the stage with songs about shredded love letters and slashed...

Winard Harper doesn’t let his status as a master percussionist in the jazz world get to his head. He realizes it is as important to stay on the road, playing shows and hosting workshops. “In this...

Wells Tower loves everything about language. Since childhood, he has had an unwavering passion for all things involving the written and spoken word and the realm of linguistics. He recalls storytelling...

Sid Mali wanted to give back. After seeing the devastation in Haiti, Mali knew the right cause. He reached out to his friends in the music industry, and the result is the J. Holiday Pre-Valentine’s...

After singer/songwriter Rosanne Cash paid tribute to her family, including father and country mega-legend Johnny Cash, with the 20-song album Black Cadillac and a subsequent tour, she is now seeking to...