908 River Cities Reader May 12 Thru 25

Piecemeal
Progress
Local and State Governments

Slowly Tackle Racial Disparities
in the Justice System Page 3
The Sisters Are Doin It for Themselves:

Circas Sister Act Page 9
Marvel Us!: Schulz
on Captain America:
Civil War Page 11
Whats Happenin: A Behanding

in Spokane, A Woman Called
Truth, The Obsessed Page 12
Art in Plain Sight: The Annie

Wittenmyer Complexs
Porter House Page 17
Melancholy Mixed with

Fun: Har Mar Superstar
at Daytrotter Page 18
#908
May 12-25, 2016
River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016
Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com

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COVER STORY
By Jeff Ignatius
jeff@rcreader.com
Piecemeal Progress
Local and State Governments Slowly Tackle Racial Disparities in the Justice System
n his annual state of the judiciary

speech to the General Assembly in January, Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice
Mark S. Cady highlighted a new initiative.
Three counties Johnson, Linn, and
Scott are collaborating with Georgetown University on juvenile-court pilot
projects, he said. These projects seek to
eliminate racial disparity in the juvenilejustice system and its adverse consequences to our state.
As part of that, a team from Scott
County representing the states Seventh
Judicial Circuit, county and city government, Davenport schools, and Scott
County Kids went to Georgetown last
August for training in the universitys
Reducing Racial & Ethnic Disparities in
Juvenile Justice program. The local project
which diverts youth offenders from the
court system for simple misdemeanors
launched in January.
But its telling that in our 30-minute
interview about the pilot project, Juvenile
Court Supervisor David Tristan and I
barely discussed race.
Instead, we talked about the fact that
many children who enter the juvenile-court
system are low-level offenders unlikely to
commit another crime yet they end up
with a criminal record. We wanted to
eliminate that, just because a lot of first-time
offenders dont ever come back again into
the system, Tristan said. Unfortunately,
they [still] have this criminal record.
Beyond that, he said, entering the court
system increases the likelihood of future
offenses: Once they walk into our doors,
into juvenile court, their risk level goes up
10 times. ... They become high-risk kids.
Under the new diversion program,
first-time offenders arrested for simple,
non-traffic misdemeanors are eligible to
attend a class with a parent or guardian,
and they avoid a criminal record for that
first offense. Typical crimes would include
shoplifting, simple assaults, and vandalism, with the most common charges
theft in the fifth degree (less than $200),
disorderly conduct, and criminal mischief
in the fifth degree.
Tristan said that the pilot project
which at this point only includes the City
of Davenport, but which he hopes to see
expanded to all five of the judicial circuits
counties is similar to a shoplifting diversion program thats been in place for more
than a decade.
Our shoplifting program has been
very successful, he said. We have an
86-, 88-percent success rate. We never

see these kids again after they attend this
program. The primary difference is that
under the shoplifting program, kids still
have a criminal record; they just dont face
punishment for the first offense. The new
diversion program also has more community partners and social services, and
Tristan said he hopes that as a result the
recidivism rate will be even lower.
So theres nothing about the new diversion program specifically dealing with
race or the racial disparity in the juvenilejustice system. But like many nascent
efforts meant to address those disparities,
race doesnt need to be an explicit factor in
the changes and reforms; the disparity in
many cases is a feature of aggressive and/
or selective enforcement of the laws.
Consider this excerpt from a November
2015 presentation of the Seventh Judicial
District of Iowa: Scott County had 1,165
juvenile arrests in 2014. Of those, 58 percent were African American whereas only
about 12.5 percent of our youth population
is African American.
That is not to say that the racial disparity is entirely a result of how, where, and
on whom police focus their efforts. The
same presentation noted that there was
a disparity in how whites and blacks are
treated by the system after arrest: African
Americans are 8.78 percent more likely to
be referred to juvenile court and [slightly]
less likely to have their cases diverted than
their white peers. Not only does this show
disproportionality, but also disparate
treatment as less African American youth
are being given options other than entry
into the juvenile-court system.
If Theyre Not Serious, Theyre

Fooling Me
The juvenile-court pilot project in Davenport is one of myriad criminal-justicereform efforts in our states aimed, at least
in part, in reducing racial disparities. For
example:
Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Cady
has focused on racial disparities in his past
two addresses to the General Assembly.
Last year, both Iowa Governor Terry
Branstad (with his Governors Working
Group on Criminal Justice Policy Reform)
and Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner (with
his Illinois State Commission on Criminal Justice & Sentencing Reform) have
made justice-system reform a priority. The
reports of both groups have resulted in
modest but promising legislation.
In some ways
what were really
doing here is asking
people to unlearn
behaviors that have
been driven into
their heads over the
last decade-plus.
Ed Yohnka,
Illinois ACLU
Since 2011, St. Ambrose Universitys
Christopher Barnum, a professor of
sociology and criminal justice, has helped
shine a light on racial disparities in traffic
stops made by Davenport police, and the
increased awareness has helped reduce
that disparity.
These illustrate the good news: The
problem of racial disparity in the justice
system can be addressed at the community, state, and federal level from policing
methods to the courts to the laws that are
being enforced to sentencing rules set by
legislatures.
Vera Kelly, as the president of the Davenport NAACP and the first vice president
of the Iowa-Nebraska State Conference of
Branches of the NAACP, has been a part
of many of these initiatives involved in
conversations with Cady and Branstad
and a participant in regular meetings with
the Davenport Police Department.
Its a big issue, she said of racial
disparities in the justice system. They
have been working with us. I know its a
long process, but hopefully in the next two
years they can get it narrowed down. ...
I think they are on the path, she added,
pledging to keep pushing on the issue.
When you start something, you dont quit
til you finish it. ... The thing we needed to
do was work together. Weve been doing it
so far, and I hope they continue.
And she said that the people with whom
shes worked appear earnest in wanting to
reduce racial disparities: I really believe
theyre serious. If theyre not serious,
theyre fooling me.
Yet the fragmented and relatively minor
initiatives so far also highlight the bad
news: The problem has so many layers
and sources that local and piecemeal

approaches will only bear so much fruit.
The problem is persistent across the country and cannot be solved on a city-by-city
or state-by-state basis.
And current efforts largely emphasize
criminal-justice reform in a general sense
that is, trying to reduce incarceration
rates overall. One might expect that doing
so by changing police tactics, by easing
drug laws and penalties, by diverting lowrisk offenders from prison and jail, and
by working to make it easier to transition
from prison to society will naturally lead
to lower disparities in the system.
But thats not always the case. In an
April report, the national research and
advocacy group The Sentencing Project
noted: Between 2003 and 2013 (the most
recent data available), the rate of youth
committed to juvenile facilities after an
adjudication of delinquency fell by 47
percent. Every state witnessed a drop in
its commitment rate, including 19 states
where the commitment rates fell by more
than half. Despite this remarkable achievement, the racial disparities endemic to the
juvenile-justice system did not improve
over these same 10 years. Youth of color
remain far more likely to be committed
than white youth. Between 2003 and 2013,
the racial gap between black and white
youth in secure commitment increased by
15 percent.
For example, the disparity between black
and white commitment rates in Iowa rose 8
percent in that decade. Black youth in Iowa
are 5.7 times as likely as white youth to be
committed to juvenile facilities.
And even though Illinois disparity
dropped 16 percent, black youth in Illinois
are still 3.6 times as likely as white youth to
be committed.
The Problem in Black and White
Those youth-commitment disparities

mirror a problem in the criminal-justice
system overall.
In 2007, The Sentencing Project
analyzed 2005 adult-correctional-center
(prison and jail) populations on a stateby-state basis. Its report, Uneven Justice,
painted a distressing picture: The American prison and jail system is defined by an
entrenched racial disparity in the population of incarcerated people. The national
incarceration rate for whites is 412 per
100,000 residents, compared to 2,290 for
Continued On Page 4
COVER STORY
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Continued From Page 3
Piecemeal Progress
African Americans, and 742 for Hispanics. These figures mean that 2.3 percent of
all African Americans are incarcerated,
compared to 0.4 percent of whites and 0.7
percent of Hispanics.
While these overall rates of incarceration are all at record highs, they fail to
reflect the concentrated impact of incarceration among young African-American
males in particular, many of whom reside
in disadvantaged neighborhoods. One
in nine (11.7 percent) African-American
males between the ages of 25 and 29 is currently incarcerated in a prison or jail.
Iowa was third-worst among the states
and the District of Columbia, with 4,200
African Americans incarcerated per
100,000 of that demographic group. (The
white rate was 309 per 100,000.) Illinois was
substantially better and better than the
national figure with an African-American incarceration rate of 2,020 per 100,000
(compared to 223 per 100,000 for whites).
According to the Prison Policy Initiative, in 2010 Iowas incarceration rate was
3,473 per 100,000 African Americans and
324 per 100,000 whites. Illinois was 2,128
per 100,000 African Americans and 258
per 100,000 whites.
When you look at The Sentencing
Projects rates in ratios of black to white,
Iowa was the worst state in the country,
with 13.6 times as many African Americans incarcerated compared to whites per
100,000 of their respective demographic
groups. Illinois ratio of 9.1 placed it as
14th worst among the states. (Because
it has a relatively low overall incarceration rate, Illinois fared better compared
to other states in its African-American
incarceration rate than it did in the ratio of
black-to-white incarceration rates.)
No state did well in this analysis. The
lowest ratio of black to whites (again,
per 100,000 of a particular demographic
group) was Hawaii at 1.9. The next lowest
was 3.3. Put starkly, in every state in the
union outside of Hawaii, a black person is
at least 3.3 times as likely as a white person
to be incarcerated. Overall in the United
States, the number is 5.6 times as likely.
Nicole D. Porter, director of advocacy
for The Sentencing Project, said her organization is currently preparing an update
of that 2007 report. There has been
modest movement on the issue, she said,
2010 Incarceration Rates Per 100,000 of Demographic Groups

White
Black

United States 450 2,306
Iowa 324 3,473

Illinois 258 2,128
Source: Prison Policy Initiative (PrisonPolicy.org)
highlighting a few states including Iowa
that passed laws requiring racial-impact
statements for laws that create new crimes
or increase penalties.
An Associated Press analysis of Iowas
law early last year suggested it is having
its intended effect: A review of 61 Iowa
impact statements issued since 2009
showed that only six out of 26 bills seen
as having a disproportionate [negative]
effect on minorities passed both chambers
and became law. Meanwhile, bills that
were rated as having no effect or a positive
effect on minority incarceration rates were
nearly twice as likely to pass. Fourteen out
of 35 such proposals became law.
The Bigger Picture
Talking only about racial disparities in

incarceration, however, obscures the larger
issue a problem that is almost certainly
a bigger factor in the criminal-justicereform movement that governments are
slowly embracing.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 2014 more than 2.2 million people
were incarcerated in American jails and
prisons. (Another 4.7 million were on probation or parole.) Prison populations nearly
quintupled over the past four-plus decades.
As recently as the early 1970s, roughly
100 people per 100,000 were incarcerated
in state and federal prisons. Ten years ago,
it peaked at more than 500 per 100,000.
The rate in 2013 was 478 per 100,000
people, according to the Bureau of Justice
Statistics. (These rates are lower than those
from The Sentencing Project because they
do not include people held in local jails.)
Thats hugely expensive for governments costing taxpayers tens of billions
of dollars a year, according to a 2012 study
by the Vera Institute of Justice. The total
per-inmate [annual] cost averaged $31,286

and ranged from $14,603 in Kentucky to
$60,076 in New York, the report said.
Iowa and Illinois were both above the
national average in annual cost.
And at least 24 state prison systems in
2013 were at 98 percent or more of operational capacity adding stress to state
budgets and prison facilities and staff.
In short, the United States has two
intertwined problems: incarceration
overall and a disproportionately high rate
of African-American incarceration.
The United States incarcerates a higher
percentage of its population than any
other country 716 per 100,000 at the end
of 2011, according to the International
Centre for Prison Studies (whose numbers
also include local jails). The United States
has 5 percent of the world population but
nearly a quarter of its prisoners.
A big driver of that, Brookings Jonathan
Rothwell argues, is the War on Drugs:
Drug crimes have been the predominant
reason for new admissions into state and
federal prisons in recent decades. In every
year from 1993 to 2009, more people were
admitted for drug crimes than violent
crimes. In the 2000s, the flow of incarceration for drug crimes exceeded admissions
for property crimes each year. Nearly onethird of total prison admissions over this
period were for drug crimes.
Drug laws and the enforcement of them,
Rothwell notes, have disproportionately
affected African Americans: Arrests of
blacks have fallen for violent and property
crimes, but soared for drug-related crimes.
... The black share of people arrested for
drug offenses has ranged from 23 percent
(in 1980) to 41 percent (in 1991). Blacks
remain far more likely than whites to be
arrested for selling drugs (3.6 times more
The United States has 5 percent of the world population

but nearly a quarter of its prisoners.
By Jeff Ignatius
jeff@rcreader.com
likely) or possessing drugs (2.5 times more

likely). ...
Heres the real shock: Whites are actually more likely than blacks to sell drugs
and about as likely to consume them.
The sources of the disparity include the
targeting of low-income neighborhoods
for enforcement and mandatory minimum sentencing. Sometimes the disparity
is embedded in the law itself.
Under the federal Anti-Drug Abuse
Act of 1986, for example, the federal
government viewed possession of crack
cocaine as equivalent to 100 times as much
powder cocaine in terms of sentencing. In
1995, The U.S. Sentencing Commission
concluded that the law led to more-severe
sentences for low-level crack dealers than
for wholesale suppliers of powder cocaine.
... As a result, thousands of people mostly
African Americans have received disproportionately harsh prison sentences.
The Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 reduced
the disparity from 100 to 18 and also
eliminated a five-year minimum sentence
for crack-cocaine possession.
That change mirrors a gradual shift in
American legislatures and public opinion.
The Pew Research Center noted that
between 2009 and 2013, 40 states took
some action to ease their drug laws ... .
Twenty-seven states moved only in the

direction of easing, while 13 other states
eased some laws and toughened others
often as part of a broader rethink of their
drug policies.
A 2014 survey by Pew Research Center
found that 67 percent of Americans say
that the government should focus more
on providing treatment for those who use
illegal drugs such as heroin and cocaine.
Just 26 percent think the governments
focus should be on prosecuting users of
such hard drugs.
The Complexity of the Problem
In a December 2015 op-ed in the Des

Moines Register, attorney Jim Benzoni
articulated a compelling explanation for
the racial disparities in the criminal-justice system, focusing on the drug war:
The percentage of persons committing crime is roughly the same
regardless of race, he wrote. Thus,
understanding enforcement demographics becomes critical.
Iowas minority populations tend
to group together in the poorest urban
centers. Law enforcement in populationdense urban areas is easier, cheaper, and
more efficient. Fewer officers are needed
to police more people. Many if not most
of our minority citizens live in the very

areas where ease and concentration of law
enforcement is greatest.
The engine driving this disparity is the
war on drugs. Drugs and drug-related
crimes are more concentrated in population-dense urban areas, exacerbated by
poverty. Thus, drug enforcement increases
in concentrated poor urban areas. ...
It is not necessarily blatant racism; it
is the way we enforce the law. If we are to
correct this disparity, we must end or at
least tone down considerably Americas
longest-running war.
But neither the problem nor the solution
is so simple. Yes, eliminating or scaling back
the War on Drugs for example, by not
incarcerating low-risk people for nonviolent
possession offenses would certainly help.
Yet not all of the racial disparity in the
criminal-justice system comes from arrest
rates or even effects we might expect
to come from poverty rather than race.
According to St. Ambrose Universitys
Barnum, studies have demonstrated
racial bias even after controlling for
poverty. Even when you take into account
income and socioeconomics, there is still
some unexplained disproportionality
between offending rates and whos going
to ... prison, he said.
Biases at Every Point
Looking at Barnums studies of Davenport Police Department traffic stops underscores how carefully one needs to look at
the information. The 2014 report summarized: Officers disproportionately arrested
and (consent) searched minority drivers
across all years of the study. ... In general
terms, the results show that AfricanAmerican drivers tended to be arrested on
a traffic stop more than other drivers.
Those disproportionate numbers come
after matching driver demographics to
neighborhood populations in other
words, ensuring that the racial breakdown
of drivers matches that of the neighborhood being tracked.
In an interview, Barnum cautioned
against equating those disproportionate
arrests to racial bias. For example, in some
neighborhoods African Americans might
be more likely to be driving with bench warrants or while barred. If those are not evenly
distributed across racial categories, then
thatll show up in the traffic stops, he said.
And so that isnt the best indicator of bias.
Bias was evident, however, in officer
requests to search vehicles that is, in
situations with no probable cause. The
Continued On Page 16
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ILLINOIS POLITICS

By Rich Miller
CapitolFax.com
Despite Their Unpopularity,

Rauner and Trump Likely
Wont Boost Democratic Fortunes
ith yet another poll showing plunging Downstate support for Governor Bruce Rauner in a Republican
district and the intense Republican freakout
over Donald Trumps impending presidential nomination and its impact on independent suburban women, there appears
to be a growing feeling among Democrats,
particularly in the Illinois Senate, that they
need to get out of the way to let the other
party crash and burn.
The almost year-long state-government
impasse is most definitely having an impact
on Rauners poll numbers. Bernie Schoenburg reported in the State Journal-Register
last week that a Public Policy Polling
(PPP) poll of appointed Republican state
Representative Sara Wojcicki Jimenezs
Springfield-area district had Rauner upside
down, with 37 percent approving of the
way the governor is doing his job and 54
percent disapproving. Rauner won that
district 58-37 in 2014, according to Illinois
Election Datas numbers. Basically Rauners
numbers have flipped almost entirely.
Another PPP poll of GOP state Representative Terri Bryants southern-Illinois
district near Carbondale was even worse for
the governor. Rauner won Bryants district
60-33, but 57 percent of voters in that
district disapprove of Rauners job performance, while only 33 percent approve. Both
polls were taken April 14 through 17 and
had margins of error of a bit over 4 percent.
A PPP poll taken last August in Bryants
district had the governors job approval
rating at 40 percent and his disapproval
rating at 51. Thats a net loss of 13 points in
eight months. And, again, this is a Republican district, albeit one that has plenty of
government workers.
Bryant is also experiencing a free fall, if the
pollsters numbers are correct. Last August,
PPP had her at a 50-percent job-approval
rating and a 27-percent disapproval rating.
Now shes at 42 percent approval and 43 percent disapproval. Thats a 24-point swing.
Meanwhile, Gallups daily March tracking polls showed 70 percent of women
nationally had an unfavorable view of the
presumptive nominee Trump. That number
is surely higher in Democrat-leaning Illinois, where independent suburban women
have been the deciding factor in just about
every major statewide race since 1990.
It doesnt take a genius to figure out why
Rauner recently let it be known that he
wont endorse Trump and wont attend the
Republican convention in Cleveland this

summer, and why, as I write this, appointed
Comptroller Leslie Munger is expected to
make the same decisions because shes up
for special election this fall.
And you also dont have to be Einstein to
realize that the one-two combo of Rauner
and Trump could spell big trouble for
down-ballot Republicans.
On the other hand, Rauners team says
it has polling that shows, by a two-to-one
margin, that voters blame House Speaker
Michael Madigan more than the governor for
the ongoing impasse. To voters, Madigan is
the all-knowing puppet master, explained
one Rauner official last week. Madigans
been around so long and is believed to have
so much control over Illinois politics and
government that hes seen by voters as the
key to getting something done.
So as long as this impasse is going on,
Rauners legislative allies have a handy
pivot they can use, paid for with Rauners
cash. Whenever Democratic legislators or
candidates demand that their Republican
opponents answer for the latest Trump
outrage or their support for and/or from
the unpopular Rauner, the Republicans can
turn it back on the Democrats by demanding they justify their support for and/or
from the obstructive Speaker Madigan (or
Democratic Party of Illinois Chair Madigan, in the case of Senate candidates).
But even if yet another Fire Madigan
effort by Republicans isnt as effective as
they believe it will be (the first two tries
failed badly), many Democrats will freely
admit right now that voters are overwhelmingly blaming incumbents rather than
a single political party or person for the
impasse and there are a whole lot more
Democratic incumbents than Republicans
in the General Assembly.
Once your opponent goes down in a
campaign, you never take your boot off that
persons neck. So with Rauner and Republican legislators going down and Trump
about to make a big splash, theres naturally
plenty of temptation among a certain type
of Democrat to keep this impasse going.
But all that those legislative Democrats
may wind up doing if the impasse lasts
through November is distract Illinois
voters from the weirdness at the national
and statewide levels.
Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax (a daily
political newsletter) and CapitolFax.com.
Sundays & Thursdays

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Tales of a First-Grade Something
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Blessedly, though, it is. Returning

to the role she previously portrayed in
2009s Junie B. Jones & a Little Monkey
Business and 2011s Junie B. in Jingle
Bells, Batman Smells, Sunshine Ramsey
again dons her red wig and bossy-pants
attitude to play author Parks adorably
tyrannical heroine, and one can only
pray shell continue to until the inevitable staging of Junie B. & Her Bright
Shiny Walker. It takes supreme skill to
make someone youd cower from in real
life into someone you cant get enough
of on-stage, and Ramsey and director
Kimberly Furness (who also helmed the
2009 and 2011 shows) continue to prove
sensationally smart about just how much
obnoxiousness their title character can
get away with without turning into a
royal pain.
This Junie shouts and pouts and
stomps and is openly dismissive toward
both friends and authority figures.
(Kindly move along, she says when
Brad Hauskins teacher Mr. Scary has the
nerve to ask for Junies assignment.) Yet,
incredibly, shes never a pill. Ramseys
exemplary comic timing, and the apparent ease with which she accesses her
inner six-year-old, are so winning that
you actually enjoy Junie most when shes
at her brattiest, and Furness keeps finding clever ways to differentiate the scale
of the girls tantrums and grievances.
(In the funniest one, Junie initiates
a comically threatening, High Noonesque showdown with Janos Horvaths
Herbert over possession of the boys
cafeteria cookie.)
Anyone familiar with Ramseys past
Junie performances should know to
expect another terrific one here, and
should also know to expect less of a plot
than a series of mildly interconnected
sketches, the JBJ:TM ones involving its
leads gradual adjustment to first grade.
These mini-plots (Junie gets glasses,
Junie gets a lunchbox) are perfectly serviceable, and a few, especially Junies and
Herberts tentative school-bus bonding,
are quite touching. Despite the programs
insistence, however, Heislers and Goldrichs adaptation is less delightful than
the overall show. Not all of the vignettes
feel satisfyingly resolved Junie loses her
best friend Lucille with more of a shrug
than this painful, relatable grade-school
conflict deserves and about half of
the dozen or so momentum-stalling
blackout segues were unnecessary. The
individual scenes and musical numbers,
though, are consistently sprightly and
buoyant adjectives that certainly also
apply to Furness cast.
In addition to hoping for more Junies
Kirsten Sindelar, Erin Churchill, Nicholas Munson,

Sunshine Ramsey, Janos Horvath, Brad Hauskins,
Brooke Schelly, and Chris Galvn
starring Ramsey, Id be totally on-board
with numerous spin-offs starring Chris
Galvn as Junies lactose-intolerant,
hypochondriacal classmate Sheldon,
a hilarious Brit-twit-in-training who
elicited, deservedly, the loudest, most
sustained laughs from April 19s largely
grade-school crowd. (Nearby adults and
I were laughing just as hard.) Galvn
also portrays Junies warmhearted
dad opposite the effervescent Brooke
Schellys mom, delivering a charming
dual juggling act in the process, while
previous Junie-musical veterans Horvath
and Hauksins bookend their wittily conceived male characters with happy drag
acts the former as a denim-jacketed
twin, the latter as a curt German lunch
lady with a mustache. (Its that kind
of show.)
I wish the ever-divine Erin Churchill
had more to do as the prissy-in-pink
Lucille, and wish the spirited Nicholas
Munson and Kirsten Sindelar were given
really anything to do as their combined
quartet of schoolkids. But underused
or not, everyone in Junie B. Jones: The
Musical appears to be having a good,
goofy time even if, from the start,
the audience appeared to be having a
better one. Before the show officially
began, Circa 21 Bootlegger Jennifer
Diab warmed up the kids with a If
Youre Happy & You Know It singalong. They energetically clapped their
hands, stomped their feet, and shouted,
Hooray! But Im thinking their
responses mightve been even more animated had the song come at the shows
end, when it was joyously evident that
everyone in that crowd was happy, and
everybody knew it.
Junie B. Jones: The Musical runs at the
Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse (1828 Third
Avenue, Rock Island) through May 21,
and more information and tickets are
available by calling (309)786-7733 extension 2 or visiting Circa21.com.
Vol. 23 No. 908

May 12 - 25, 2016
River Cities Reader
532 W. 3rd St.
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Kathleen McCarthy
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THEATRE
By Victoria Navarro
The Sisters Are Doin It for Themselves

Sister Act, at the Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse through July 2
iss Manners dictates

that in social settings
one should not bring
up religion. But can I just say
that when I was a shy child
of six, seeing a Catholic
nun in full habit scared the
bejeezus out of me? Nuns
were mysterious. You never
saw them eat or drink or
sweat. Never did I see a nun
dance. And they were always
worried about the soul. But
the nuns in the Circa 21
Dinner Playhouses musical comedy Sister Act know
soul as in soul music, sung
Rachelle Walljasper, Kay Francis, Bonnie Spainhower,
with such energy that it had
Antoinette Holman, and Kristin Gilbert
me clapping and swaying
in my seat. And could those
Leading the flock as Deloris is Davennuns dance! This joyful musical based
ports own Antoinette Holman, whose
on the 1992 film was a crowd-pleaser on
strong performance as the sassy disco
opening night, and I predict the same for diva who forms a bond with the sisters is
future performances.
Broadway-worthy. With her exuberance
Set in Philadelphia in the 1970s, aspirin the hand-raising gospel numbers and
ing nightclub singer Deloris Van Cartier
her tender treatment of the ballads, she
accidentally witnesses a killing by her
embraced her character flawlessly the
mobster boyfriend, who then orders
Quad Cities has a new star.
a hit on her. After going to the police,
Although the entire cast gave strong
Deloris is forced into hiding and what
performances, certain actors stood out.
better place to hide than a convent?
Mother Superior Autumn ORyan was
Deloris dons a nuns habit and proceeds
superb. Although called upon to be stern,
to transform the off-key choir into a harher solos such as Here Within These
monious unit whose Sunday-morning
Walls and I Havent Got a Prayer
performances start filling the pews of the revealed her tender side (not to mention
money-strapped church. But when her
ORyans impressive voice), and she delivex-boyfriend discovers where she is, her
ered some of the shows best lines with
life and the lives of her sisters are put in wicked comedic timing. Kristin Gilbert
jeopardy.
as the feisty, energetic Sister Mary Patrick
Director/choreographer Jim Hesselman and Kay Francis as the sarcastic Sister
made some brief comments before the
Mary Lazarus exhibited great comic flair.
performance expressing how joy is made
Molly McGuire, making her Circa 21
up of appreciation, and that he appreciated debut, showed her vocal range along with
everyone in the cast and crew. This theme
the sincerity with which she played the
of joy resonated throughout the producnave Sister Mary Robert.
tion. Although Sister Acts plot is sentiAs Deloris boyfriend, Brandon Godfrey
mental and light, with 15 songs plus six
has the unfortunate task of singing the
reprises, the show runs long. But who can
rather distasteful song When I Find My
resist singing nuns who get their groove
Baby, whose lyrics concern how hell kill
on with R&B and roof-raising gospel, with Deloris. Sung along with his three henchgyrating dance moves to match?
men, with Temptations-style dance moves
incorporated, Godfrey delivers the song with a baritone

voice that adds a darkness
and seals the deal that he is
one bad dude. However, lightness is always present when
Cedric J. Paige is on stage. As
Eddie, the likable cop with a
crush on Deloris, his solo I
Could Be That Guy featured
some initially off-key notes.
But when the tune changed
from smooth groove to disco,
Paige ended strong and
displayed notable vocal power
and be on alert for his clever
costume change.
Speaking of costumes,
designer Gregory Hiatt
outdid himself. (Without
giving too much away, just be ready to see
bling and more bling!) Praise also goes
to scenic and lighting designers Kathy
Voecks and Ronnie Breedlove, respectively, for their dramatically lit arched
church interior. Framed by massive
columns and stained-glass windows, it
would at times be magically transformed
into a disco, police station, or apartment.
And even the over-the-top chase scenes
were aided by a movable doorway that
made those scenes more palatable.
After an evening with the sisters, I must
confess, Sister Act will bring you to your
knees. It is sinfully good and you will have
a devil of a good time, and its Mass appeal
may surprise you. (Okay, Im done with
the religious wordplay.) Circa 21s latest is
a fun, well-preformed, entertaining romp
with a most rousing gospel number titled
Raise Your Voice (my personal favorite
number), and spending an evening at
Sister Act proved good for my soul, musically and otherwise.
Sister Act runs at the Circa 21 Dinner
Playhouse (1828 Third Avenue, Rock
Island) through July 2, and more information and tickets are available by calling
(309)786-7733 extension 2 or visiting
Circa21.com.
10
THEATRE
By Jeff Ashcraft
All Our Memories
Almost Heaven: Songs of John Denver, at the Timber Lake Playhouse through May 15
IT
H
C
T
A
W
s a child of the 60s and 70s, I favored

rock groups such as Kansas. My older
sister Shari loved pop music. For
many kids, music was a way to escape the
turmoil of those decades, and for Shari, it
meant listening to Bobby Sherman or folk
singer John Denver. Being the youngest, I
sometimes teased her about the lameness
of her music and still do, for that matter.
However, even for a precocious little brother,
the music of Denver always struck a chord of
enlightenment in my heart, and thats exactly
what happened again at the Timber Lake
Playhouses opening-night performance of
Almost Heaven: Songs of John Denver.
Almost Heaven is the first production in
Timber Lakes Jukebox Musical Series, and
presents a surprisingly emotional anthology
for the late Denver, who died piloting a small
plane in 1997 in Monterey Bay, California. If
this is an indication of the season to come, its
going to be a very good summer in the woods
of northwest Illinois.
This not a traditional musical, but rather
a lively revue of Denvers music taking the
audience from his days as a member of the
Kingston Trio to worldwide superstardom.
The show opens with a video of Denver literally filling the stage (via Timber Lakes new
projection system) and singing one of his last
songs: Yellowstone (Coming Home). As the
video concludes, a single spotlight illuminates cast member Roy Brown in the audience as he begins singing All My Memories,
and the song progresses as each cast member
steps on-stage and joins Brown in setting a
warm, nostalgic tone for the evening.
Brown is the perfect actor to kick off this
show, because it feels as if he is reuniting
with friends while the audience becomes
reacquainted with Denvers music. Browns
voice is natural and folksy, and his character appears to be the anchor for the rest of
the cast. It would have been easy for him to
overplay one of Denvers more famous songs,
Thank God Im a Country Boy, but Brown
opened Act II singing it with such pure and
simple energy that he was able to get the
audience clapping and singing along as if they
were part of the show.
Amelia Jo Parish gave an emotional
performance early in the evening as she sang
Rhymes & Reasons. Her angelic voice was
juxtaposed against the harsh realities of the
1960s as images of the assassinations of John
F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, and Robert
Kennedy filled the screen behind her. As a
songwriter, Denver wrote one of the most
well-known folk songs of the 60s, and when
Harmony France led the song Leaving on
3CHULZmS2EVIEWOF
THE,ATEST-OVIES/N$EMAND
Anthony Norman
a Jet Plane, her voice gave the number a
smoky, soulful feel that was mournful and
hopeful at the same time.
Another highlight was Carly Glenns
performance of Take Me Home, Country
Roads. Her voice is reminiscent of a young
Sarah McLachlans and her interpretation,
along with images of soldiers in Vietnam
reading letters from their families, brought
my wife to tears.
Anthony Norman actually reminded me of
a young John Denver. He strolled through the
evening as the shows bespectacled balladeer,
strumming his acoustic guitar while backing
up and accompanying his fellow performers.
Normans tenor voice was especially sweet
on Annies Song and in a duet with France
on the well-known number Fly Away. Last
but not least, Adam Fane provided the most
animated performance of the evening. His
facial expressions and earnest vocals were a
lot of fun to watch, and he knocked it out of
the park when leading the popular Calypso,
with his For You solo also beautiful.
Directed by Courtney Crouse with music
direction by Chris Logan, Almost Heaven is
a high-energy journey through some of the
more challenging times in American history,
and in utilizing the deep and joyful music of
Americas greatest folk singer, the show is a
wonderful way to relive those decades in the
perfect setting of Timber Lakes rustic theatre.
Its hard to admit that my older sister got
it right. Its true that the music of our youth
can be an important reminder of our roots
as adults, and I oftentimes think it would
be fun to return to those days to revisit
and immerse myself in my childhood years
and experience it all one more time. Almost
Heaven is the closest thing Ive found to a
time machine.
Almost Heaven: Songs of John Denver
runs at the Timber Lake Playhouse (8215
Black Oak Road, Mt. Carroll) through May
15, and more information and tickets are
available by calling (815)244-2035 or visiting
TimberLakePlayhouse.org.
7+(%2<
Director William Brent Bell displays

a gift for quiet, elegant menace
and positions the films evil
plaything for maximum eerieness,
and lead Lauren Cohan is so strong
that you dont even feel badly
about her spending so much screen
time conversing with creepy, nattily
attired porcelain.
'($'322/
Marvels deservedly R-rated

comic-book adventure boasts an
anarchic spirit, some priceless
pop-culture cues, a legitimately
potent romance, and Ryan
Reynolds, whos quite excellent
whether delivering one-liners at
warp speed or indulging in
surprisingly earned emotionalism.
67$5:$56
7+()25&($:$.(16
A 130-minute smile interrupted

only by occasional gasps and
frequent giggles, J.J. Abrams
franchise-extender is a glorious
blend of old and new delights, and
just as smart, rousing, cheeky,
reverent, touching, and deeply
satisfying as you could want.
#ATCHYOURFAVORITEMOVIES
ANDSHOWSFROM"# ."# #"3
&/8 342: %.#/2%ANDMORE
0LUS WATCHOVER TITLES
ATTHEPRESSOFABUTTON
7.4%6%.-/2% 6)3)4
mediacomtoday.com
#,)#+/.46%6%297(%2%
Movie Reviews
Marvel Us!
CAPTAIN AMERICA:
CIVIL WAR
Its no secret that Marvel Studios routinely

tosses a bonus scene or two into the end credits
of its comic-book movies as a means of jacking
up anticipation for adventures, and Avengers, yet to come. I rarely stay for these things,
as Im usually more than ready to leave the
auditorium by the time Directed by ... flashes
on-screen, and I didnt stick around for the
credit cookies in Captain America: Civil War,
either. (From what I understand, one of them
is designed to build interest in Ryan Cooglers
forthcoming Black Panther. Personally, I
was on-board with the project the instant
I saw Cooglers name attached.) But about
halfway through the good Captains new solo
outing one thats really an Avengers sequel in
everything but title I suddenly found myself
nearly giddy with excitement for an upcoming Marvel flick without having to wait for the
inevitable teasers. Halfway through, you see, is
when Spider-Man arrives.
I know, I know. Him again. And if you
were somehow previously unaware: Yes, the
web-slinger is getting yet another franchise
re-boot. (When the series debuts next year, it
will have been a decade and a half since Sam
Raimis original with Tobey Maguire, which
somehow feels simultaneously like yesterday
and forever ago.) Yet while youd have been
hard-pressed to find anyone less stoked about
Spider-Mans incipient return than me, you
may now have to fight me for first-in-line
honors in 2017, because every second with the
guy here is a grin-inducing treat. If Hulk stole
the show in 2012s The Avengers, Spidey by
which I mean his portrayer Tom Holland
gets bragging rights for directors Anthony
and Joe Russos Civil War, a more-than-decent
superhero epic that delivers occasional

moments of explosive, child-like joy.
To even use the word joy in the context
of a modern comic-book movie is, frankly, a
relief, especially in light of this latest releases
early trailers, which suggested the series was
leaning toward Snyder-ian levels of portentous
ber-seriousness. I shouldnt have worried.
Heaven knows there are Issues addressed and
Themes explored, and the twinned Hero v
Hero plotlines one involving the Avengers
facing U.N. regulation, one involving a terrorist attack presumably initiated by Winter
Soldier Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) certainly give the densely populated cast plenty
of reasons to furrow their brows. But this is
Marvel. (This is also Anthony and Joe Russo,
who, for me, will never be the Marvel directors so much as the guys who directed the
Arrested Development pilot.) No matter how
dire the narrative circumstances, the studio
is always, in the end, committed to fun, even
if some of its titles are wa-a-ay less fun than
others. No matter how bleak events get, you
can always count on the mood being lightened
by clever quips and visual gags and random
pop-culture references. (Among many
options, including the name-dropping of
Mark Furhman, Civil Wars finest throwaway
would have to be Robert Downey Jr.s Iron
Man casually nicknaming Barnes Manchurian Candidate, a joke that I pray lands with
the films target demographic.)
And no matter how chaotic and downright
ugly the action set pieces get with a pair
of early ones here so hyper-edited that you
cant tell what the hell is happening theyre
relatively easy to forget about when a good 75
percent of the movie is spent with predominantly excellent actors just, you know, talking.
I dont know what we did right to deserve our
three minutes with Alfre Woodard, who plays
a grieving state-department official and gives
11
By Mike Schulz mike@rcreader.com
Anthony Mackie, Paul Rudd, Jeremy Renner, Chris Evans, Elizabeth Olsen, and Sebastian Stan
Downey a heartbreaking, wholly deserved
dressing-down. But God bless her for showing
up, and you frequently feel that same sizzle of
performance energy in scenes with Scarlett Johansson, Anthony Mackie, and even
Captain America Chris Evans, all of whom go
toe-to-toe with Downey and shake him loose
from the sardonic lethargy of his recent Iron
Man portrayals. Daniel Brhl, unfortunately,
is underwhelming, and really kind of immaterial, as Civil Wars resident Euro-baddie Zemo;
with his big eyes and adorable chubby cheeks,
he may as well be Tickle Me Zemo. Why
complain, however, when were also given Don
Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Chadwick Boseman
(a very promising Black Panther), Elizabeth
Olsen, Paul Bettany, Paul Rudd, William
Hurt, Emily VanCamp, Martin Freeman,
John Slattery, Hope Davis ... ?
Oh yeah, and Tom Holland. There will, no
doubt, eventually be far more to say about his
Spider-Man/Peter Parker interpretation that,
at present, suggests a sweetly goofy kid whose
amazing powers dropped on him last week
in tandem with the dropping of his testicles.
Yet while there was much to enjoy in this
perfectly solid superhero saga especially the
surprisingly funny six-on-six battle royale and

Evans being stretched between a departing
helicopter and a rooftops edge, his torso forming a perfect V its 19-year-old Holland
who truly embodies the Marvel spirit. His
introduction, a tongue-tied first encounter
with Downey in which Peter endearingly
attempts to hide his alter ego, is one for the
ages, and is made all the more delightful for the
additional intro to Marisa Tomeis Aunt May,
who you (Spidey-)sense will soon be making
Gwyneth Paltrow a distant memory. (I hope
Tomei is comfortable knowing she may be
referred to as Aunt Hottie for the remainder of her career.) Make no mistake: Like its
Marvel forebears, Captain America: Civil War
is assembly-line product. Would that all products in its line were made with such welcome
regard for their customers happiness.
For reviews of Everybody Wants Some!!,
Keanu, Mothers Day, Ratchet & Clank, A
Hologram for the King, and other current
releases, visit RiverCitiesReader.com.
Follow Mike on Twitter at Twitter.com/
MikeSchulzNow.
12
Whats Happenin
Music
The Obsessed
Rock Island Brewing Company, Tuesday, May 24, 8 p.m.
n May 24, the Rock Island Brewing Company hosts

an evening with the doom-metal musicians of The
Obsessed, and the accompanying photograph is of band
members Scott Wino Weinrich, Dave Sherman, and
Brian Costantino. We considered, instead, accompanying
this article with the album cover from the groups second
studio LP Lunar Womb. But we also understand that a
lot of people read our paper over their lunch break and
... . Lets just say the demonic meal featured on the Lunar
Womb jacket Francisco de Goyas Saturn Devouring His
Children might not sit well alongside your chicken-salad
sandwich.
Those with an appetite for loud and thrilling stoner rock,
though, wont want to miss this special RIBCO engagement
that serves as one of the first stops on the newly reunited
ensembles 2016 tour. Originally formed (with Weinrich
one of its co-founders) in Maryland in 1976, The Obsessed
played local and regional gigs until the release of its selftitled debut album, one recorded in 1985 but not released
until 1990. Two additional albums followed over the next
four years 1991s Lunar Womb and 1994s The Church
Within and critics, now and then, were happy to name
The Obsessed masters of their genre. (Reviewing a recent
re-issue of Lunar Womb, Blabbermouth.net raved about
the bands desert-baked, hallucinogenic, heavy-lidded,
and black-hearted doom sound, succinctly describing the
album itself as f---ing awesome.)
Following several changes in the bands lineup, The
Obsessed formally disbanded in 1995. But this past
March, Weinrich announced that The Obsessed was

making a comeback with new members Sherman and
Costantino, and was also working on its first new album
in more than 20 years. RIBCO patrons will no doubt hear
songs from that impending release on May 24, as well as
some of those head-banging, mind-blowing tunes from
The Obsesseds first three albums.
Wanna get in the mood for them, fans? Try filling in the
blanks with the appropriate words to form songs from The
Obsesseds repertoire:
1) Endless _____
2) Living _____
3) Back to _____
4) Forever _____
5) Climate of _____
6) Kill Ugly _____
A) Despair
B) Midnight
C) Rain
D) Circles
E) Zero
F) Naked
The Obsessed performs locally with opening sets by

Karma to Burn and The Atomic Bitchwax, and more
information is available by calling (309)793-1999 or visiting RIBCO.com.
Answers: 1 D, 2 C, 3 E, 4 B, 5 A, 6 F. Fill all those blanks with Naked, and youd get an idea of what Reader staff meetings used to be like. Man, I miss the aughts.
Theatre
A Behanding in Spokane
District Theatre
Friday, May 13, through Saturday, May 21
ock Islands District Theatre opens its

creepy-funny new production, appropriately enough, on Friday the 13th, and the
shows star is Brant Peitersen, who has been
an incredibly active stage performer over the
past few years. For the District, he appeared
in High Fidelity, Big Rock Candy Christmas,
and as Ebeneezer Scrooge in A Christmas
Carol. For Countryside Community Theatre,
he was seen in Shrek: The Musical, Big Fish,
and Jesus Christ Superstar. For the Playcrafters Barn Theatre, he was featured in last falls
Harvey. I even acted with him myself in the
QC Theatre Workshops 2014 Bat Boy: The
Musical. So lets give Brant Peitersen a hand!

No, seriously. He really, really needs a
hand. Preferably a leftie.
Peitersen, you see, is now the lead in A
Behanding in Spokane, running at the District
Theatre May 13 through 21. And while Peitersens drifter character Carmichael is short
on several things, including patience and
temper, its the absence of his left hand, understandably, thats really making his blood boil.
This acclaimed dark comedy opens with
Carmichael in a dingy, small-town hotel
room, awaiting the arrival of Tony and
Marilyn a pair of grifters who claim to have
the hand forcibly removed from Carmichael
27 years prior. Theyre willing to sell it back to
him for 500 bucks, and Carmichael is willing
to pay. But is the hand they offer him actually
the one he lost? And if not, whered they get
this hand? And where is Carmichaels? And
why does that odd receptionist Mervyn keep
barging into the room?

If you know your modern ber-grim
comedies, you likely know these are questions that could only be answered by Martin
McDonagh, the Tony-nominated, Oscarwinning talent behind such twisted theatre
pieces as The Pillowman and Beauty Queen
of Leenane and those violent movie riots In
Bruges and Seven Psychopaths. With 2010s A
Behanding in Spokane, McDonagh lends his
signature laugh-til-you-gasp inventiveness to
this tale of betrayal and retribution peppered
with gloriously Byzantine monologues the
sort that Peitersen and castmates Jordan
McGinnis, Liv Lyman, and Aaron Lord
will no doubt tear into for District director
Michael Turczynski.
Described by the New York Daily News as
a wildly entertaining black comedy, and
Bloomberg.com as insane yet also fiendishly funny, the area debut of A Behanding in
Jordan McGinnis, Liv Lyman, and Brant Peitersen

Spokane will no doubt thrill audiences with
with its unpredictable blend of terror and
laughs. So make reservations now. This thing
could wind up making money hand over fi ... .
Sorry, Brant. Didnt mean to rub it in.
A Behanding in Spokane will be performed
Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and
Sunday at 2 p.m., and more information and
tickets are available by calling (309)781-5972
or visiting DistrictTheatre.com.
13
by Mike Schulz
mike@rcreader.com
Theatre
f youre familiar
Thats unique in
with the name
itself, he continof abolitionist and
ues, but then you
human-rights
realize that this is all
A Woman Called Truth
activist Sojourner
taking place in the
Playcrafters Barn Theatre
Truth, who lived
northeast part of the
Friday, May 13, through
from 1797 to 1883,
country, as thats
Sunday, May 22
you may be familiar
where Truth was
with her legendary
born into slavery
speech commonly
and subsequently
known as Aint I
chose to live as a free
a Woman?, which
woman. So things
Truth delivered at
are a bit different.
the Ohio Womens
Not that slavery
Rights Convention
is any different.
in 1851. After all, as
Theyre a little more
frequent area actor/
advanced in the
director Fred Harris
northeast. But still,
Jr. says, YouTube is
slavery is slavery.
stacked with it. So
Despite the plays
Shellie Moore Guy
many actresses have
dramatic elements,
done that piece for
however, Harris says
themselves on the Internet; you can find it, like, 50,000 times.
that Ashers work also has a lot of music infused into it. We hear
Yet despite the speechs fame, when it came time to begin
her [Truths] actual words, but theyre combined with authentic
rehearsals for the Playcrafters Barn Theatres biographical drama A
slave songs, spirituals, folk songs ... . Really, its kind of like only the
Woman Called Truth (running at the Moline venue May 13 through second musical Ive directed. And we got fortunate to have some
21), show director Harris says his team collectively realized that
extremely gifted singers.
they were all better acquainted with Truths words than with her
Playcrafters cast includes such talents as local storyteller and
history. Everybody was in the same boat, says Harris. We all
radio host Shellie Moore Guy as Truth whom Harris previously
knew who she was, but we really didnt realize the extent of her life. directed in 2009s A Raisin in the Sun along with an ensemble
For audiences similarly unaware of Sojourner Truths extraorthat features venue veterans Don Faust, Rae Mary, Joseph
dinary saga, playwright Sandra Feniche Ashers A Woman Called Obleton, Renaud Haymon, and Jim Strauss. And A Woman
Truth will no doubt offer an illuminating, deeply moving, and
Called Truth continues Playcrafters tradition of being the most
ultimately triumphant introduction to a person who, in 2014,
consistently reliable area venue in terms of bringing plays on the
was included in Smithsonian magazines list of the 100 Most
African-American experience to area patrons, with recent titles
Significant Americans of All Time.
including not only Raisin but also Fences, A Lesson Before Dying,
Truths life story is filled with astounding milestones: She
and Blues for an Alabama Sky.
became the first black woman to win a custody-based court case
Playcrafters has really done a very good job of bringing some
against a white man; she recruited black troops for the Union
diverse plays to the Quad Cities, says Harris. Theyre well-attended,
Army during the Civil War; she had private meetings with Presieverybody enjoys them ... . And with this one, theres a historical
dents Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant. And according to
aspect that I think is good for students as well as adults. Id really like
Harris, A Woman Called Truth chronicles her life from the day
people to take away a piece of history that they can relate to.
that she was sold away as a young girl through her struggle to free
A Woman Called Truth runs Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30
herself and her son, and then as she emerges as a popular figure
p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m., and more information and tickets are
advocating abolition and womens rights.
available by calling (309)762-0330 or visiting Playcrafters.com.
Heart @ iWireless Center - May 17
What Else
Is Happenin
MUSIC
Friday, May 13, and Saturday, May

14 QC Steel Guitar Show. The areas 25thannual steel-guitar celebration featuring
performances by the Dale Thomas Band,
Joe Wright, Russ Weaver, and other area
and regional musicians. Davenport Eagles
Club (4401 West Locust Street, Davenport).
Friday 5:30 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. $10. For
information, call (563)391-1921.
Friday, May 13 All Sweat Productions
Presents: Abbey Road. The legendary
Beatles album interpreted by area musicians
Alan Sweet, Bret Dale, Randy Leasman,
Dustin Cobb, Mike Rodbard, Dave Abdo,
Craig Heidgerken, Jason Carl, Zach Harris,
Zac Tatum, Kellen Myers, Don Gustofson,
Ellis Kell, and Erin Moore. Redstone Room
(129 Main Street, Davenport). 9 p.m. $11.5050. For tickets and information, call (563)3261333 or visit RiverMusicExperience.org.
Saturday, May 14 Weedeater. Concert
with the stoner-metal musicians, featuring
opening sets by Author & Punisher, Today Is
the Day, and Lord Dying. Rock Island Brewing
Company (1815 Second Avenue, Rock Island).
8 p.m. $16 advance tickets. For information,
call (309)793-1999 or visit RIBCO.com.
Saturday, May 14 Camp Euforia
Battle of the Bands. Sets with local
outfits Have Your Cake, The Tritones Jazz
Ensemble, and Jason Carl & the Whole
Damn Band, with the winners earning a
slot at the July 14 through 16 Camp Euforia
14
What Else Is Happenin

festival in Lone Tree, Iowa. Redstone Room
(129 Main Street, Davenport). 9 p.m. Free.
For information, call (563)326-1333 or visit
RiverMusicExperience.org.
Sunday, May 15 The Edgar Crockett
Quartet. Polyrhythms presents a 6 p.m.
concert themed Voice of the Trumpet with
musicians Crockett, Corey Kendrick, Ron
Wilson, and Manuel Lopez III, preceded by
a 3 p.m. all-ages jazz workshop. Redstone
Room (129 Main Street, Davenport). $10-15
concert; $5 workshop, free for kids. For tickets
and information, call (309)373-0790 or visit
Polyrhythms.com or RiverMusicExperience.org.
Sunday, May 15 Har Mar Superstar. Pop
and R&B singer/songwriter Sean Tillmann in
concert, with an opening set by Solid Gold.
Daytrotter (324 Brady Street, Davenport). 8
p.m. $15-20. For tickets and information, visit
Daytrotter.com.
Tuesday, May 17 Heart. Concert with
the chart-topping Rock & Roll Hall of Famers,
with an opening set by Lynch Mob. iWireless
Center (1201 River Drive, Moline). 7 p.m. $2569.50. For tickets, call (800)745-3000 or visit
iWirelessCenter.com.
Tuesday, May 17 Halestorm.
Pennsylvania-based rockers in concert, with
opening sets by Lacuna Coil and Cilver. Adler
Theatre (136 East Third Street, Davenport). 7:30
p.m. $31.50-54. For tickets, call (800)745-3000 or
visit AdlerTheatre.com.
Tuesday, May 17 Edward Sharpe &
the Magnetic Zeros. A Codfish Hollow
Barnstormers concert with the independent
folk musicians. Codfish Hollow Barn (5013 288th
Avenue, Maquoketa). 7 p.m. $35. For tickets and
information, visit CodfishHollowBarnstormers.com.
Friday, May 20 The Nadas. Concert with
the Iowa-based alt-rock and country musicians,
with an opening set by Eric Pettit Lion. Redstone
Room (129 Main Street, Davenport). 9 p.m.
$16.75-17. For tickets and information, call
(563)326-1333 or visit RiverMusicExperience.org.
Friday, May 20 Jack Lion. Jazz and
electronica musicians in concert, with an opening
set by The Curl. Rozz-Toz (2108 Third Avenue,

Rock Island). 9 p.m. $5-10. For information, call
(309)200-0978 or visit RozzTox.com.
Friday, May 20 Josh Thompson. Concert
with the Nashville-based country singer. Red
Rodeo (1720 Second Avenue, Rock Island). 8
p.m. $15-20. For tickets and information, call
(309)206-8508 or visit TheRedRodeo.com.
Friday, May 20 Bucktown Revue. A
celebration of Mississippi River Valley culture
through music, storytelling, poetry and
humor, with emcee Scott Tunnicliff and special
guests. Nighswander Theatre (2822 Eastern
Avenue, Davenport). 7 p.m. $13 at the door.
BucktownRevue.com.
Saturday, May 21 Verskotzi. Concert
with the Minneapolis-based singer/songwriter
Joey Verskotzi, featuring opening sets by
Greyhounds and Foxholes. Daytrotter (324
Brady Street, Davenport). 8 p.m. $8-12. For
tickets and information, visit Daytrotter.com.
Saturday, May 21 Mayday Madness.
Concert with area hip-hop musicians
MC Squar3d, Boogie Getem, Grewsum,
Cattacombs, Crush, and Reality. Redstone Room
(129 Main Street, Davenport). 8 p.m. $8.50-9. For
tickets and information, call (563)326-1333 or
visit RiverMusicExperience.org.
THEATRE
Saturday, May 14 Quad City Playwrights

Festival. The 17th-annual presentation of
staged readings of 10-minute works, followed
by a reception and talk-back with the actors,
directors, and playwrights. Augustana
Colleges Potter Theatre (Bergendoff Hall, 3701
Seventh Avenue, Rock Island). 1:30 p.m. Free.
Augustana.edu/arts.
Wednesday, May 18 The Genesius Guild:
Past, Present, & Future. Guild founder Don
Wooten will describe the beginnings of the
troupe, its place in area-theatre history and
Quad Cities cultural life, and its future plans.
Rock Island Public Library (401 19th Street,
Rock Island). 6 p.m. Free. For

information, call (309)732-7323 or
visit RockIslandLibrary.org.
VISUAL ARTS
Through Wednesday, May

18 Bruce Carter: Retrospective.
Exhibit composed of work ranging
from the late artists college days
to more-recent paintings. Scott
Community College Library Gallery
(500 Belmont Road, Betendorf). Free. For
information, call (563)441-4338 or visit EICC.edu.
Saturday, May 14, through Sunday, May
22 Young Artists at the Figge: Pleasant
Valley Schools. Annual exhibition of works by
elementary art students. Figge Art Museum
(225 West Second Street, Davenport). Tuesday
through Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Thursday
10 a.m.-9 p.m., Sunday noon-5 p.m. Free with
$4-7 museum admission. For information, call
(563)326-7804 or visit FiggeArtMuseum.org.
Wednesday, May 18, through Friday, July
1 Don Heggen and David Smith. Exhibit of
sculptures and prints by Smith and watercolors
by Heggen, the latter of whom passed away
last May. Quad City Arts Center (1715 Second
Avenue, Rock Island). Tuesday through Friday
10 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Free.
QuadCityArts.com.
Friday, May 20, and Saturday, May 21
Metro Mini Makers of the Quad Cities:
Miniatures from the Heart of the Country. The
32nd-annual sale and exhibition of dollhouse
miniatures, featuring workshops, raffle prizes,
and more. Davenport RiverCenter (136 East
Third Street, Davenport). Friday 4-8 p.m.,
Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m. $5, ages 12 and under
free. For information, call (309)797-6489 or visit
RiverCtr.com.
EVENTS
Thursday, May 12 Girls Night Outback:

Australias Thunder from Down Under.
Josh Thompson @ Red Rodeo - May 20

Interactive show featuring male dancers,
seductive routines, and cheeky humor.
Davenport RiverCenter (136 East Third Street,
Davenport). 7:30 p.m. $25-35. For tickets, call
(800)745-3000 or visit RiverCtr.com.
Saturday, May 14 Forget-Me-Not
Victorian Day. Celebrate the160th anniversary
of the cemeterys official incorporation
through storytelling, guided tours, period
music, and more. Oakdale Memorial
Cemetery (2501 Eastern Avenue, Davenport).
Noon-5 p.m. $5, ages 12 and under free.
OakdaleMemorialGardens.org.
Monday, May 16 Garden Brothers
Circus. Nationally touring performances with
the circus troupe boasting acrobats, aerialists,
motorcyclists, clowns, animal acts, and more.
iWireless Center (1201 River Drive, Moline). 4:30
and 7:30 p.m. $9-34. For tickets, call (800)7453000 or visit iWirelessCenter.com.
Friday, May 20, and Saturday, May 21
Bottoms Up Quad City Burlesque: Sensual
Circus. Traditional burlesque and vaudeville
entertainment with the area artists and emcee
Joshua Kahn. Circa 21 Speakeasy (1818 Third
Avenue, Rock Island). 8 p.m. $16-18. For tickets
and information, call (309)786-7733 extension 2
or visit Circa21.com.
Saturday, May 21 St. Ambrose University
Wine Festival. Enjoy samples of numerous
wines and appetizers in the annual outdoor
fundraiser for student scholarships. St. Ambrose
University (518 West Locust Street, Davenport).
3 p.m. $45-50. For tickets and information, call
(563)333-6290 or visit SAU.edu.
MUSIC
15
By Mike Schulz
mike@rcreader.com
How Sweat It Is
Area Musicians Perform the Beatles Abbey Road in an All Sweat Productions Concert, May 13 at the Redstone Room
hen area blues-rock vocalist Alan

Sweet, aided by numerous musician friends, prepared to launch
the tribute project All Sweat Productions performing a beloved album, in
its entirety, in a live concert he knew
exactly which band, and which specific
release, he wanted to honor first.
Abbey Road is probably on the top of
my list of albums Ive listened to more
than any other music, says Sweet, who
has served as lead vocalist for the Candymakers for the past four years. Its my
favorite Beatles album. Its easily on my
top five of favorite albums ever. And when
I decided that that was the one I wanted to
do as a live show, there was this outcry of
people wanting to play on it. Everybody I
got a hold of was just like, Yes. Yes!
But while one of Sweets stated goals
with All Sweat is to re-create the liveshow sound, he and his musical collaborators immediately realized, as every
Beatles fan knows, that there was a catch
to their playing Abbey Road in concert
the way its creators did.
The Beatles werent performing live
then, says Sweet, referencing the 1969
release of Abbey Road. When Bret
[Dale] and I were first talking about how
to play songs from the album, we were
like, Well, well just see how the Beatles
played it and do it like that. And then
wed remember: They never played this
song live! Were screwed!
Sweet laughs after saying that perhaps because he knows that, given
the talents performing Abbey Road at
Davenports Redstone Room on May 13,

the chances of their being screwed are
intensely low.
In addition to Sweet and Candymakers
guitarist Dale, the All Sweat Productions
assemblage recruited for Abbey Roads
concert includes such familiar local
musicians as Ellis Kell, Jason Carl, Zach
Harris, Dustin Cobb, Erin Moore, Randy
Leasman, Craig Heidgerken, and numerous others I think 18 to 20 people
now says Sweet during our April 27 conversation. And thats the way Id like to
keep it from now on. Therell probably be
over a dozen people every time we do one
of these shows.
The concept for All Sweat Productions,
Sweet says, was an idea of Dustin Cobbs
a long time ago, who talked about starting a band that specialized in playing
albums like whole albums. And when
we talked about it, we knew we wanted
to be able to grab a lot of musicians from
the area to pay tribute to certain acts,
concentrating on moments in rock-androll history that really affected us.
Basically, the idea behind All Sweat

Productions is to help market and produce shows in the area, he continues,
and to find ways to get more people out
to see music. And this seemed like a good
way to start that, with this kind of coverband, tribute-band thing.
Having so many gifted musicians as
friends, says Sweet, certainly aided in
getting All Sweat off the ground.
When you put together something
like this, you have to put a name behind
it an identity. So thats why my name
is out there. But its not just me. Its all of
my really close friends. I could never do
this on my own. Im not that bright, he
says with a laugh, so I need a lot of help.
And that help certainly comes in handy
when tackling an album as musically
complex as Abbey Road.
Were doing the album just as its
written, says Sweet. Itll be Come
Together all the way down to Her
Majesty. And since the Beatles werent
performing it live, theres a lot of extra
instruments on the songs more than
just the two guitars and the bass and
the drums. Theres a lot of piano, a lot of
organ, a lot of synth, some percussion
things here and there ... .
So thats why we have so many people
involved, he continues. I had to hire
people that could sing the parts and sound
the parts. So we have a piano player, a
synth player, and a total of five or six
guitar players. Those guys wont all be
playing every song at the same time, with
all six guitars, but if there are six guitars
in one of the songs, they will. We want to

have the same sounds that you hear on the
album coming from the stage.
Following May 13s presentation of
Abbey Road, Sweet has another livealbum re-creation scheduled for All
Sweat Productions: an August 12 celebration of Princes Purple Rain.
And then, to be honest, I dont really
know where were gonna go from there,
says Sweet, although the River Music
Experience Web site lists upcoming
tribute possibilities that include Pearl
Jam, Led Zeppelin, the Police, Creedence
Clearwater Revival, and Tenacious D.
What I would really like to do is open
up All Sweat Productions to almost
anybody who wants to do a show. We just
want to be able to throw some good parties and have some good shows.
Basically, its about trying to keep the
integrity of the music alive. Its kind of a
hassle getting so many people together
to rehearse, he says with a laugh, but
when everybodys there, its just smiles
all around.
All Sweat Productions ensemble will perform Abbey Road at the Redstone Room
(129 Main Street, Davenport) at 9 p.m.
on Friday, May 13. Tickets are $11.50-12,
and more information and reservations
are available by calling (563)326-1333 or
visiting RiverMusicExperience.org.
For information on participating in a
future All Sweat Productions concert, visit
TheCandymakers.com.
16
COVER STORY
Piecemeal Progress
2014 report said: Officers were more likely
to ask for consent to search from African
Americans than from other drivers. The
findings for consent searches are interesting
because hit rates (or seizure of evidence)
were actually higher for non-minority drivers. This means that although officers were
more likely to ask an African-American
driver for consent to search, the officers
were more likely to make a seizure from a
non-minority driver on a consent search.
While that disparity is problematic,
Barnum said that since hes been collecting data, the disproportionality between
races has dropped significantly. Initially
in Davenport, we found some level of disproportionality the difference between
the percentage of minorities stopped by the
police and a valid baseline ... . he said. The
level of disproportionality decreased for
the most part. The general trend is down.
The racial disparity is most pronounced
among NETS officers the Neighborhoods Energized to Succeed units targeting problem neighborhoods. Yet even in
that category, the disparity from 2011 to
a second survey in 2013 had dropped by
roughly half.
The difference in disparity between
NETS and patrol officers illustrates the
knotty problem of high-crime neighborhoods with concentrations of racial-minority populations. How do we want police to
address that problem? Barnum asked. Do
we want the police to go in and conduct a
lot of investigatory stops? If the police do
that, that will show up as disproportionality in the stops and arrests and everything
else, and of course then that will show up
down at the back end in jails and prisons.
How should we deal with these
complex social issues like crime ... ? he
continued. Its not just a law-enforcement
issue. It has to be dealt with prior to getting
to that point such as through education
and jobs. I really dont see this problem
being fixed by law enforcement.
But law enforcement can play in role in
reducing disparities in the criminal-justice
system, and progress in Davenport, he
said, is likely the result of conscientious
attention reflecting both the police
departments willingness to look at the
issue and the public scrutiny that comes
with the studies: I dont know whether for
sure its the sunlight shined on it or not,
but thats as good an explanation as any for
why its occurring. ...
They know theyre being watched, he
said. But he added that the Davenport police
department has made a commitment to
address racial disparities: In my interactions
Although officers
were more likely
to ask an AfricanAmerican driver for
consent to search,
the officers were
more likely to make
a seizure from
a non-minority
driver on a consent
search. 2014
study of Davenport
Police Department
traffic stops
with the police administration, I think they
honestly care about it. I definitely think
theyre making an honest and good-faith
effort to do whatever they can do.
Racial disparities in traffic stops are
not, of course, a problem exclusive to
Davenport. And theyre symptomatic of
the larger issue of disparities in the justice
system overall.
People of color are far more likely in
many communities to be stopped than
white motorists, said Ed Yohnka, director
of communications and public policy for
the Illinois ACLU. Once theyre stopped,
theyre far more likely to be asked for consent to search their car ... . He noted that
police are more likely to find contraband
in the car of a white motorist, yet people of
color are, for example, eight times as likely
be arrested for marijuana possession, even
though all the data shows that people use
drugs actually, people also sell drugs at
about the same rate across different races.
The Sentencing Projects Porter said that
racial disparities in incarceration are the
result of the cumulative disadvantages
that defendants experience, starting from
arrest through sentencing to post-conviction discretion decisions by judges.
Yohnka concurred: We see that its
present at virtually every step along the
way in the criminal-justice system. ... At
every level, our justice system is broken. ...
The system has these built-in biases ... that
we just havent been able to wrestle with
and repair. Theres an urgency to do that
now ... .
Its a Down Payment
That urgency can be seen in the Illinois

State Commission on Criminal Justice &
Sentencing Reform, which produced part
one of its final report in December. That
report resulted in three pieces of bipartisan legislation supported by the governor,
all of which had passed the Senate and
were in a House committee as of May 9:
Senate Bill 3164, which would require
a pre-sentencing report showing why
probation or conditional discharge is
not an appropriate sentence for lowrisk offenders.
Senate Bill 3294, which would expand
the use of electronic monitoring following
release from incarceration.
Senate Bill 3368, which would give
offenders a state ID card upon release from
incarceration.
Its a reflection of a very good-faith
effort ... , Yohnka said of those bills. Its a
down payment.
The December report explicitly notes
that the commission has not yet addressed,
among other things, truth-in-sentencing
laws, the racial impact of sentencing,
sentences for drug-law violations, and
sentencing ranges all major factors
in high levels of incarceration and racial
disparities in incarceration.
Theres real hope that there can be
some true reforms that come out of
that process, Yohnka said. It is a real
opportunity at a unique moment to move
beyond the promise of being tough on
crime and instead find ways to be smart
on crime.
And although the commissions proposals thus far have been modest and havent
yet addressed racial disparities head-on,
Yohnka said that not yet doesnt mean not
ever. ... They understand that those are the
ones that theyre going to have to tackle
in order to really meet the goal of significantly reducing the number of people who
are in prison in Illinois. ... They didnt sort
of do the low-hanging fruit and then just
say, Our work here is done. Thats a very
positive development. ...
It merits remembering that ... in
some ways what were really doing here
is encouraging and asking people to ...
unlearn behaviors that have been driven
into their heads over the last decade-plus
that the only way to take care of crime or
to make our streets safer is to pass longer
sentences, to criminalize more things ... .
That process may take a little while.
... Well get there. It may take longer than
some of us who are impatient want.
In Iowa, the work of the equivalent
Governors Working Group on Criminal Justice Policy Reform isnt nearly so
encouraging.
By Jeff Ignatius
jeff@rcreader.com
It suggested that juvenile-delinquency

records should remain confidential unless
a judge specifically finds that it is in the
best interests of the child and the public
to make the records publicly available.
As with the Scott County diversion pilot
program, the goal is to reduce the number
of youth who carry a criminal record
into adulthood. Legislation enacting that
recommendation Senate File 2288
passed both chambers and was signed by
Branstad on March 9.
The groups recommendations also
included dedicated statewide funding to
drug courts and mental-health courts,
with consistent participant criteria ...
developed for statewide use in drug courts
and mental-health courts. The effectiveness of drug courts and mental-health
courts should be measured against nonparticipants sharing that profile.
But the remaining recommendations
were minor increasing the diversity of
jury pools and lowering the cost of phone
calls from jail and prison.
But if the working groups recommendations were disappointing, there are
still signs of progress in the Iowa General
Assembly. A Senate amendment to House
File 2064 would allow nonviolent drug
offenders who are not high-risk to reoffend to be eligible for parole after serving
at least 50 percent of their mandatory
minimum sentence, according to a fiscal
note on the bill.
In terms of practical impact, the fiscal
note states: As of January 11, 2016, there
were 673 drug offenders in prison serving
drug mandatory minimum sentences. ...
Of these, 564 (83.9 percent) were assessed
as low or medium risk for violence and
other victim offenses, and could be
affected by this proposal. During Fiscal
Year 2015, there were 348 new prison
admissions of drug offenders sentenced
to serve mandatory minimum terms ... .
Of these, 316 (90.8 percent) were assessed
as low-risk or medium-risk for violence
and other victim offenses, and could be
impacted by this proposal.
In other words, the bill which passed
both chambers with the amendment but
as of May 9 still awaited action from the
governor could potentially release hundreds of nonviolent drug offenders from
Iowa prisons.
If Branstad signs it into law, that legislation will be a major step forward a sign
that Iowa is truly serious about solving its
prison problem, and the racial disparities
that go along with it.
Sources for this article can be found in a
hyperlinked version at RCReader.com/y/
prison.
ART
17
Article and Photos by Bruce Walters, BD-Walters@wiu.edu
Art in Plain Sight: The Porter House
tylistically, the Porter Building in the

Annie Wittenmyer complex at 2800 Eastern Avenue in Davenport is an English
Period Cottage. Its half-timbered frame and
steep pitched gables are drawn from European
medieval building techniques.
Its architectural style is fairly unusual for the
Quad Cities. What really sets it apart visually,
however, is its playful, creative brickwork.
Regular rows of bricks give way to unorthodox
coursing patterns in the middle section of the
walls. Like a stream of consciousness, like the
drip paintings by Jackson Pollock, the rows of
bricks wrap around large stones, rise up and
down in waves, then suddenly are stacked
at odd angles.
The building was designed by Bradley Rust
(1908 -2000), an Iowa City architect. It is his
earliest work that still stands, and perhaps
his most creative. Nearly 500 construction
and remodeling projects created by Rust are
maintained by the State Historical Society of

Iowa in Iowa City.
There isnt another building in the Quad
Cities quite like it. Its connections to history,
however, are equally unexpected. And genuinely significant.
The building was completed in 1934 for use
as a preschool at the Iowa Soldiers Orphans
Home. It was also used by the University of
Iowa for psychological testing of children three
to five years old.
Beth Lucy Wellman (1895-1952) was among
the team of university psychologists who
conducted research on the development of children. Her comparative studies at the Orphans
Home preschool demonstrated that a childs IQ
can be changed based on stimulation from the
environment.
This may not strike us, now, as revolutionary.
In the 1930s, however, this finding shook the
world of psychology; the study stood in direct
contrast to prevailing scientific and societal

attitudes. A 1937 Fortune magazine poll, for
example, found that two of three respondents
supported eugenic sterilization of mental
defectives, and 63 percent supported sterilization of criminals.
Wellmans landmark findings were the spark
that led to the development of programs such
as Head Start (established in 1964) and Home
Start (1972). Her studies also helped shape the
educational models for daycare and the early
education of children with learning disabilities.
The preschool had an adjacent playground
enclosed by a picket fence. One of the features
of this play area was a four-foot-high grassy
mound with a large oak tree at its center.
When this 50-foot diameter circular mound
was excavated in 2003, it was determined to
be a burial mound from the early to middle
Woodland period, 800 BC to 400 AD.
Through art, we can connect with people
from distant times and places. The people

who created this and other geometric earthen
mounds may not have considered them art,
but like the cave paintings discovered in the
past century, they are the surviving physical
expressions of a culture that no longer exists.
Architecturally, the Porter House connects
us with medieval Europe. The earthen mound
connects us with an even more ancient people.
Beth Wellmans studies continue to impact
the present and through the enriched lives of
children the future.
Bruce Walters is a professor of art at Western
Illinois University.
This is part of an occasional series on the history
of public art in the Quad Cities. If theres a piece
of public art that youd like to learn more about,
e-mail the location and a brief description to
BD-Walters@wiu.edu.
18
Ask
the
The Bleh Lagoon
Advice
Goddess
Im a guy in my late 20s. Two years ago, I

started a friends-with-benefits thing with a
woman, which has honestly turned into one
of the most relaxed, comfortable relationships Ive had. Unfortunately, the sex isnt
that great. Ive tried to get her to work with
me on that, but she just isnt very physical. I
also get the sense that shes holding out for
a serious relationship with me (babies/marriage/house). Im just not in love with her
that way. I dont want to hijack her uterus,
but Im having trouble breaking up with
her. The relationship isnt broken, and I
dont want to hurt her. Im not sure I have it
in me to say, Youre bad in bed, so Im out.
Shallow
Surely, you wouldnt find the bunnyhugging vegan shallow for not being up for
the long haul with the guy who electrocutes
the cows.
The rational decision is clear: You dont
have what you need, so you should move on.
The problem is what the late Nobel Prizewinning cognitive scientist Herbert Simon
deemed bounded rationality. This describes
how our ability to make rational decisions is
limited by, for example, incomplete information about our alternatives, how much
time we have to decide, or, as in your case,
our emotions: dreading hurting somebody
and feeling like kind of a pig for dumping a
perfectly nice woman just because her sexual
spirit animal is the paperweight.
Simon didnt just point out the decisionmaking problem; he came up with a solution
his concept of satisficing. This combo of
satisfy and suffice means making a good
enough choice, as opposed to incurring
the costs of endlessly searching for the best
choice. (Think of somebody who spends an
hour looking for the primo parking space by
the store entrance to save time walking to and
from their car.)
To decide whats good enough, figure
out the minimum stuff (good sex, etc.) that
you absolutely must have to be satisfied in a
relationship, and keep searching until you
find somebody who has it. Forget about what
you should need. If your life is not complete
unless a woman will, say, wear a doorbell on
each nipple, well, ring on, bro.
As for breaking up, this means telling
somebody its over, not that their sexual
technique is a ringer for hibernation. Give her
BY AMY ALKON
only as much info as she needs to make her

way to the door, like I love you, but Im not
in love with you, and I need that. Though
she wont be happy to hear it, whats cruel
isnt telling her; its waiting to tell her. As that
mildewed saying goes, If you love something
. Dont hang on to it until its uterus sends
you to the drugstore for a box of mothballs.
Glue in the Dark
Last week, I went out with a guy I met

on a dating site. He was very attentive
and affectionate, and he even texted me
the next day. Well, I think I screwed up,
messaging him at the same frequency and
intensity as before our first date, which
was quite a lot, and mentioning seeing him
again before he suggested it. His responses
were infrequent and short. I havent heard
from him for five days, and he hasnt made
plans for a second date. Is there any way to
remedy this? Should I message him with
some witty banter?
Faux Pas?
Sadly, our genes have not been introduced
to Gloria Steinem.
As I frequently explain, theres a problem
with a woman overtly pursuing a man, and
it goes back millions of years. It comes out of
how sex leaves a man with about a teaspoon
less sperm but can leave a woman with
child (an adorable term that makes pregnancy sound like a quick trip to the drugstore
with someone under 10). From these rather
vastly differing costs, explain evolutionary
psychologists David Buss and David Schmitt,
come differing sexual strategies. Women
evolved to be the choosier sex looking for
men to show signs theyre willing and able to
commit themselves and their resources and
men co-evolved to expect to work to persuade
them. So, when women turn the tables and
act like the, well, chase-ier sex, it sends a message of the Free!!! Please take me! variety
youd see taped to a toaster somebodys put
out on the curb.
In other words, no, do not contact him.
Not even with witty banter. Seeming
amusingly desperate is not any more of a
selling point. The way you remedy this is by
turning it into a learning experience. In the
future, sure, go ahead and be flirtatious just
not with the, um, eagerness of that guy in
the hockey mask chasing people through the
woods with a machete.
Got A Problem? Ask Amy Alkon.
171 Pier Ave, #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405

or e-mail AdviceAmy@aol.com (AdviceGoddess.com)
2016, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved.
MUSIC
By Hannah Bates
bateshannaha@gmail.com
Melancholy Mixed with Fun

Har Mar Superstar, May 15 at Daytrotter
ar Mar Superstars latest album, Best

Summer Ever, doesnt always have the
fun vibes one would expect given the
title. Listen to How Did I Get Through the
Day, a ballad that wouldnt have sounded
out of place on AM radio 60 years ago,
for example. Im all alone, watching the
phone, sings Sean Tillman, who performs
under the name Har Mar Superstar. But
you aint coming home.
The songs longing feels perfectly at
home on Best Summer Ever. Many of the
tracks focus on departures and yearning,
such as closing track Confidence and
the synthesizer-driven version of Bobby
Charles I Hope.
Yet maybe these songs arent in conflict
with the albums title. Summertime
is fleeting, as is the youth with which
summer fun is most commonly associated.
Tillman explained the name of the sixth
Har Mar Superstar record, which was
released last month, in a phone interview
ahead of his May 15 appearance at Daytrotters Davenport venue. Its something
I say when people ask me to take photos
with a group of friends, or if people are
toasting, he said. No matter what time of
year, I always say, Best summer ever.
Theres more to the title than just being
a goofy refrain Tillman uses with friends:
Since the albums also kind of melancholy
at a lot of points, I think that its got a nice
kind of haunting, weird, sad vibe as well.
Those vibes emanate from the whole
record, even in more-upbeat songs such as
Famous Last Words, one of the highlights of the album. Pockets of foreboding,
ugly distortion hang over the power-pop
track, accentuating the vague references to
leaving and dying and begging Mama not
to cry. In the commentary-track edition
of Best Summer Ever on Spotify, Tillman notes that the lyrics are actually the
famous last words of well-known figures
such as Truman Capote.
The undercurrent of sadness doesnt
overwhelm the fun energy driving this
record, though. The melancholy is mixed
with the fun, dance-floor-ready tracks
such as the Julian Casablancas-penned
Youth Without Love or Haircut, a
track co-written with Yeah Yeah Yeahs
frontwoman Karen O. Another of the
great dance songs on the album is It Was
Only Dancing (Sex), which Vices music
blog Noisey praised for Tillmans voice,
supple like a 17-year olds thigh.
Tillman called the album a sort of fictitious greatest-hits record spanning 1950 to
1985. This stylistic jumping around from
decade to decade keeps the album interesting throughout.
But the idea to produce the album
that way didnt occur to Tillman until he
was fairly far along in the process of its
creation. Once we started producing,
I thought thatd be a fun way to kind of
encapsulate all of the songs, capture each
ones style, kind of not be stuck in one
sorta like zone as far as mixing and finishing out all the instrumentation, he said.
Best Summer Ever is a stylistic departure
from his previous record, the soul album
Bye Bye 17, but the process of writing was
similar. I think I wrote both of them
kind of the same way, mainly just on a
guitar, kind of getting weird by myself,
Tillman said.
Har Mar Superstar will be ending its
North American tour at Daytrotter, and
audiences who saw Tillman perform on
Halloween 2014 at Codfish Hollow Barn
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Russian
writer Anton Chekhov was renowned
for the crisp, succinct style of his short
stories and plays. As he evolved, his pithiness
grew. I now have a mania for shortness, he
wrote. Whatever I read my own work, or
other peoples it all seems to me not short
enough. I propose that we make Chekhov your
patron saint for a while. According to my
analysis of the astrological omens, you are in a
phase when your personal power feeds on terse
efficiency. You thrive on being vigorously
concise and deftly focused and cheerfully
devoted to the crux of every matter.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
Creativity is intelligence having fun.
Approximately 30,000 sites on the
Internet attribute that quote to iconic genius
Albert Einstein. But my research strongly
suggests that he did not actually say that. Who
did? It doesnt matter. For the purposes of this
horoscope, there are just two essential points to
concentrate on. First, for the foreseeable future,
your supreme law of life should be creativity is
intelligence having fun. Second, its not enough
to cavort and play and improvise, and its not
enough to be discerning and shrewd and
observant. Be all those things.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): In
Western culture, the peacock is a
symbol of vanity. When we see the bird
display its stunning array of iridescent feathers,
we might think its lovely, but may also mutter,
What a show-off. But other traditions have
treated the peacock as a more purely positive
emblem: an embodiment of hard-won and
triumphant radiance. In Tibetan Buddhist
myths, for example, its glorious plumage is said to
be derived from its transmutation of the poisons
it absorbs when it devours dangerous serpents.
This version of the peacock is your power animal
for now, Gemini. Take full advantage of your
ability to convert noxious situations and fractious
emotions into beautiful assets.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Clear
moments are so short, opines poet
Adam Zagajewski. There is much
more darkness. More ocean than terra firma.
More shadow than form. Heres what I have to
say about that: Even if it does indeed describe
the course of ordinary life for most people, it
does not currently apply to you. On the
contrary. Youre in a phase that will bring an
unusually high percentage of lucidity. The light
shining from your eyes and the thoughts
coalescing in your brain will be extra pure and
bright. In the world around you, there may be
occasional patches of chaos and confusion, but
your luminosity will guide you through them.
LEO (July 23-August 22): Dear Smart
Operator: My name is Captain
Jonathan Orances. I presently serve in
the United Nations Assistance Mission in
Afghanistan. I am asking for your help with the

safekeeping of a trunk containing funds in the
amount of $7.9 million, which I secured during
our teams raid of a poppy farmer in Kandahar
Province. The plan is to ship this box to
Luxembourg, and from there a diplomat will
deliver it to your designated location. When I
return home on leave, I will take possession of the
trunk. You will be rewarded handsomely for your
assistance. If you can be trusted, send me your
details. Best regards, Captain Jonathan Orances.
You may receive a tempting but risky offer like
this in the near future, Leo. I suggest you turn it
down. If you do, I bet a somewhat less interesting
but far less risky offer will come your way.
VIRGO (August 23-September 22):
Some things need to be fixed, others
to be left broken, writes poet James
Richardson. The coming weeks will be an ideal
time for you to make final decisions about which
are which in your own life. Are there relationships and dreams and structures that are either
too damaged to salvage or undeserving of your
hard labor? Consider the possibility that you will
abandon them for good. Are there relationships
and dreams and structures that are cracked, but
possible to repair and worthy of your diligent
love? Make a plan to revive or reinvent them.
LIBRA (September 23-October 22):
Once every year, it is healthy and wise
to make an ultimate confession to
express everything you regret and bemoan in
one cathartic swoop, and then be free of its
subliminal nagging for another year. The
coming days will be a perfect time to do this.
For inspiration, read an excerpt from Jeanann
Vernees Genetics of Regret: Im sorry I lied.
Sorry I drew the picture of the dead cat. Im
sorry about the stolen tampons and the nest of
mice in the stove. Im sorry about the slashed
window screens. Im sorry it took 36 years to say
this. Sorry that all I can do is worry what
happens next. Sorry for the weevils and the
dead grass. Sorry I vomited in the wash drain.
Sorry I left. Sorry I came back. Im sorry it
comes like this. Flood and undertow.
SCORPIO (October 23-November
21): According to the British podcast
series No Such Thing as a Fish, there
were only a few satisfying connubial relationships
in late 18th Century England. One publication at
that time declared that of the countrys 872,564
married couples, just nine were truly happy. I
wonder if the percentage is higher for modern
twosomes. Whether it is or not, I have good news:
My reading of the astrological omens suggests
that you Scorpios will have an unusually good
chance of cultivating vibrant intimacy in the
coming weeks. Take advantage of this grace
period, please!
SAGITTARIUS (November
22-December 21): Some days I feel
like playing it smooth, says a character
19
By Rob Brezsny
in Raymond Chandlers short story Trouble Is
My Business, and some days I feel like playing
it like a waffle iron. I suspect that you Sagittarians will be in the latter phase until at least May
24. It wont be prime time for silky strategies and
glossy gambits and velvety victories. Youll be
better able to take advantage of fates fabulous
farces if youre geared up for edgy lessons and
checkered challenges and intricate motifs.
CAPRICORN (December 22-January
19): Author Rebecca Solnit says that
when she pictures herself as she was at
age 15, I see flames shooting up, see myself
falling off the edge of the world, and am amazed I
survived not the outside world but the inside
one. Let that serve as an inspiration, Capricorn.
Now is an excellent time for you to celebrate the
heroic, messy, improbable victories of your past.
You are ready and ripe to honor the crazy
intelligence and dumb luck that guided you as
you fought to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. You have a right and a duty to
congratulate yourself for the suffering you have
escaped and inner demons you have vanquished.
AQUARIUS (January 20-February
18): To regain patience, learn to love
the sour, the bitter, the salty, the clear.
The poet James Richardson wrote that wry
advice, and now Im passing it on to you. Why
now? Because if you enhance your appreciation
for the sour, the bitter, the salty, and the clear,
you will not only regain patience, but also
generate unexpected opportunities. You will
tonify your mood, beautify your attitude, and
deepen your gravitas. So I hope you will invite
and welcome the lumpy and the dappled, my
dear. I hope youll seek out the tangy, the
smoldering, the soggy, the spunky, the chirpy,
the gritty, and an array of other experiences you
may have previously kept at a distance.
PISCES (February 19-March 20): A
thousand half-loves must be forsaken
to take one whole heart home. Thats
from a Coleman Barks translation of a poem by
the 13th Century Islamic scholar and mystic
known as Rumi. I regard this epigram as a key
theme for you during the next 12 months. You
will be invited to shed a host of wishy-washy
wishes so as to become strong and smart
enough to go in quest of a very few burning,
churning yearnings. Are you ready to sacrifice
the mediocre in service to the sublime?
Homework: Whether or not we believe in gods,
we all worship something. What idea, person,
thing, or emotion do you bow down to? Testify
at FreeWillAstrology.com.
Go to RealAstrology.com to check out Rob Brezsnys
EXPANDED WEEKLY AUDIO HOROSCOPES

& DAILY TEXT MESSAGE HOROSCOPES
The audio horoscopes are also available by phone at
1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700
20
Crossword
METAPHYSICS FOR COMICS May 12, 2016
April 28 Answers: right
MUSIC
Melancholy Mixed with Fun

can expect a different experience at the
upcoming show. His band at Codfish
Hollow featured standard rock instrumentation, but this time around Tillman will
be performing with a seven-person band,
complete with horns. Tillman assures that
the Quad Cities can expect a really fun,
good-ass time.
Har Mar Superstar will perform on Sunday,
May 15, at Daytrotter (324 Brady Street,
April 28 Crossword Answers
ACROSS
1. Funny, funny guy
5. Overtake
9. Coarse files
14. Enough and more
19. _ mundi
20. Mixture
21. Value system
22. Of the palm
23. S tart of a quip by 29-Across: 3 wds.
25. Smoothie
26. Touches on
27. Night goddess
28. Black, in Bologna
29. Speaker of the quip: 2 wds
31. Deles undoing
32. Ladd or Lane
33. Seed attachment
34. Sphere
37. Hurls
38. Black Friday event: 2 wds.
42. Slacken
43. Stars that flare
44. Boost
45. Insurance type: Abbr.
46. Nevus
47. Saddle animal
48. French painter
49. Umps decision
50. Pigeon _
51. Thunders
52. Academic award: Abbr.
53. Fresco
54. Divine law in Buddhism
56. Doctrine
58. _ Tullius Cicero
59. Part 2 of quip: 6 wds.
62. Trimmed
63. Slag
64. Wildes John Worthing
65. Flexible tubes
66. Tax agcy.
67. Concern of dieters
68. _ tide
71. Means of escape
72. Lackluster
75. Twelve: Comb. form
76. Veritable
77. Compass pt.
78. Country ways

79. Like a posse comitatus
80. Scions
81. Leftovers
83. Exclaimed
84. Point in time
85. Former
86. Steps
87. Evidence of surprise
88. Part 3 of quip: 2 wds.
92. British composer
93. Toss
96. Like like crazy
97. Family Guy weatherman
98. End of the quip: 4 wds.
100. Horsewoman
101. Pretender
102. _ Cooper
103. Measure of farmland
104. Acts
105. Pitchers
106. Tablets
107. Beast in heraldry
DOWN
1. Meteorological event
2. The lowdown
3. Cameo stone
4. Plus
5. Illegal whiskey
6. Vigilant
7. Farm structure
8. Costa del _
9. Paraphrase
10. OUs city
11. Use a plane
12. Food fish
13. Situation
14. Cupidity
15. Kinetic sculpture
16. Stopper
17. Wood strip behind plaster
18. Formerly, formerly
24. Loosen
29. Plant fiber
30. Carpus
31. Fill to the gills
32. Chappelle and Brubeck
34. Muffle
35. Orchestra member

36. Troubled, in a way
37. Control
38. _ excellence
39. Cooked cold meats
40. Diacritical mark
41. Rings
43. Watts or Campbell
44. Roundup
47. Prepared apples
48. _ doeuvre (masterpieces)
49. Checks
51. Subjects to heat
52. Exhort
53. Junior workers
55. Sharpens
56. Line segment within a circle
57. Feared
58. Cable network
59. Roughly
60. Tests
61. Went wrong
62. Start for gram or graph
67. Approaches
69. Reduce to gray powder
70. Outdo
72. Imagination
73. Steenbok or gemsbok
74. _ Plaines
75. Wipes
76. Certain office worker
78. Banks, frequently
79. Bowmen
80. OT book
82. Anchored
83. More cunning
84. Predacious insect
86. Beat
87. Routine work
88. Old aromatic ointment
89. Garfield pup
90. Foretell
91. Downward
92. Home to billions
93. _ citato
94. Gumbo
95. Batter ingredient
98. Devilkin
99. Quick hit
By Hannah Bates
bateshannaha@gmail.com
Davenport; Daytrotter.com). The 8 p.m.

show also features Solid Gold, and tickets
are $15 in advance and $20 at the door.
For more information on Har Mar
Superstar, visit HarMarSuperstar.com.
Hannah Bates is a recent St. Ambrose University graduate who likes music more than
she likes most other things.
21
Live Music Live Music Live Music

Email all listings to calendar@rcreader.com Deadline 5 p.m. Thursday before publication
THURSDAY
12
Chuck Murphy (6pm) Go Fish Marina

Bar & Grill, 411 River Dr., Princeton IA
Jordan Danielsen Harringtons
Pub, 2321 Cumberland Square Dr.,
Bettendorf IA
Makenna & Brock Riverside Casino
and Golf Resort, 3184 Highway 22,
Riverside IA
Nutrio Kali Yuga Rozz-Tox, 2108
Third Ave., Rock Island IL
Poundgame Addison Rocky Jay
Asthmatic Whensday Will
Murk Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S
Linn St, Iowa City IA
Tom Hamiltons American Babies
Live Broadcast Gabes, 330 E.
Washington St., Iowa City IA
Tom Mason & the Blue Buccaneers
HomeBrewed (6:30pm) The Mill,
120 E. Burlington St., Iowa City IA
FRIDAY
13
3 Pill Morning The Zealots RIBCO,

1815 Second Ave., Rock Island IL
All Sweat Productions Presents
Abbey Road The Redstone
Room, 129 Main St, Davenport IA
Corey Cox Red Rodeo, 1720 2nd Ave.,
Rock Island IL
Dara Sisterhen (6:30pm) Ca dZan,
411 South Rd., Cambridge IL
Doug Brundies Big Acoustic Show
Missippi Brew, River Dr, Muscatine IA
The Dweebs Riverside Casino and
Golf Resort, 3184 Highway 22,
Riverside IA
Ego Death Strange Relations
Gosh! Jerk Rozz-Tox, 2108 Third
Ave., Rock Island IL
HiFi (6:30pm) Lavender Crest
Winery, 5401 US Highway 6, Colona IL
Jazz After Five: 3 Dawgs & a Bone

(5pm) Jack Lion Cubits
Subatlantic (9pm) The Mill, 120 E.
Burlington St., Iowa City IA
Jerry Beauchamp Dance Walcott
Coliseum, 116 E Bryant St, Walcott IA
Jumbies Gabes, 330 E. Washington
St., Iowa City IA
Justin Morrissey Jumers Casino &
Hotel , 777 Jumer Dr., Rock Island IL
Kerry & Rich Acoustic Duo Len
Browns North Shore Inn, 700 N.
Shore Dr., Moline IL
Live Lunch w/ Tony Hoeppner
(noon) RME Community Stage,
131 W. 2nd St., Davenport IA
Lowdenstein My Place the Pub, 4405
State St., Bettendorf IA
The Manny Lopez Big Band (6pm)
The Circa 21 Speakeasy, 1818 Third
Q.C. Steel Guitars in Concert:
Dale Thomas Band (5:30pm)
Davenport Eagles Club, 4401 W.
Locust St., Davenport IA
Schools Out for the Summer Bash: In
the Attic Summertown Flash in a
Pan Soul Phlegm Super Jam Iowa
City Yacht Club, 13 S Linn St, Iowa City IA
Soul Storm 11th Street Precinct, 1107
Mound St., Davenport IA
Threshold Harley Corins, 1708 State
St., Bettendorf IA
SATURDAY
14
Adam Keith Red Rodeo, 1720 2nd

Andina & Rich Uptown Bills Coffee
House, 730 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City IA
The Blackstones Hawkeye Tap
Sports Bar N Grill, 4646 Cheyenne
Ave., Davenport IA
Blue yster Cult April Wine
Jr. Future Jobs Rozz-Tox, 2108

Smooth Groove (6:30pm) The
Dweebs (8:30pm) Riverside
Casino and Golf Resort, 3184
Highway 22, Riverside IA
State Champs (6pm) Zeta June
(10pm) Gabes, 330 E. Washington
St., Iowa City IA
Tommy Emmanuel Englert Theatre,
221 East Washington St., Iowa City IA
Weedeater Author & Punisher
Today Is the Day Lord Dying
RIBCO, 1815 Second Ave., Rock Island IL
Halestorm @ Adler Theatre - May 17

Riverside Casino Event Center, 3184
Highway 22, Riverside IA
Bugeye Sprite Harley Corins, 1708
Camp Euforia Battle of the Bands:
Have Your Cake Jason Carl & the
Whole Damn Band The Tritones
Jazz Ensemble The Redstone
Room, 129 Main St, Davenport IA
Celebrate Mom at the Pops: An
Evening of Leroy Anderson
Orpheum Theatre, 57 S. Kellogg St.,
Galesburg IL
Cobalt Blue 11th Street Precinct, 1107
Dave Weld & the Imperial Flames
Flatted Fifth Blues & BBQ, 300

Potter Dr., Bellevue IA
Detroit Larry Davison & Friends
Cabanas, 2120 4th Ave., Rock Island IL
Harringtons Pub - Port Byron, 102 S.
Main St., Port Byron IL
Eric Taylor Uptown Theatre - First
Street Community Center, 221 1st
Street NE, Mt. Vernon IA
Greg & Rich Acoustic Duo Jims
Knoxville Tap, 8716 Knoxville Rd.,
Milan IL
Mississippi Heat Grace Performing
Arts Center, 316 S. Main St., Princeton IL
Motherlode UI Area 51 Jazz Combo
Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S Linn St,

Iowa City IA
Music @ the Wine Terrace: The
Ukulele Connection (2pm)
Creekside Vineyards Winery & Inn,
7505 120th Ave., Coal Valley IL
Q.C. Steel Guitars in Concert: Joe
Wright Russ Weaver, Davenport
Eagles Club, 4401 W. Locust St.,
Davenport IA
QC Slim My Place the Pub, 4405 State
St., Bettendorf IA
Russ Reyman Request Piano Bar
The Phoenix Restaurant & Martini
Bar, 111 West 2nd St., Davenport IA
Sister Grotto C.J. Boyd Bob Bucko
SUNDAY
15
MONDAY
16
Har Mar Superstar Solid Gold

Daytrotter, 324 Brady St., Davenport IA
Jim Ryan (2:30pm) Len Browns
North Shore Inn, 700 N. Shore Dr.,
Moline IL
Parker Millsap The Grahams The
Mill, 120 E. Burlington St., Iowa City IA
The RiverCity 6 (3pm) St. Johns
United Methodist Church, 109 E 14th
St, Davenport IA
Spa Moans Golden Birthday RozzTox, 2108 Third Ave., Rock Island IL
Third Sunday Jazz: The Edgar
Crockett Quartet (6pm) The
Redstone Room, 129 Main St,
Davenport IA
Mississippi Valley Country &

Western Music Association Dance
East Moline American Legion, 829
16th Ave., East Moline IL
Moeller Mondays: Patrick Sweany
22
Live Music Live Music Live Music

Email all listings to calendar@rcreader.com Deadline 5 p.m. Thursday before publication
The Pork Tornadoes Towncrier

(5pm) McGrath Amphitheater, 475
1st St. SE, Cedar Rapids IA
QC Homeschool Band Spring
Showcase (5pm) RME Community
Stage, 131 W. 2nd St., Davenport IA
Rude Punch RIBCO, 1815 Second
Serious Business My Place the Pub,
4405 State St., Bettendorf IA
Sugar Daddy Harley Corins, 1708
Tony Hoeppner & Friends (6pm) HyVee Market Grille - Silvis, 2001 5th St.,
Silvis IL
Topper Riverside Casino and Golf
Resort, 3184 Highway 22, Riverside IA
Sex Knuckle Divinion High Five

Sinners Gabes, 330 E. Washington
St., Iowa City IA
TUESDAY
17
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic

Zeros Codfish Hollow Barn, 5013
288th Ave., Maquoketa IA
Halestorm Lacuna Coil Adler
Theatre, 136 E. Third St., Davenport IA
Heart Lynch Mob i wireless Center,
1201 River Dr, Moline IL
QuadCities Kix Band RME
Community Stage, 131 W. 2nd St.,
Davenport IA
SATURDAY
WEDNESDAY 18
Bobby Ray Bunch (6:30pm) The

Faithful Pilot Cafe & Spirits, 117 N
Cody Rd, LeClaire IA
Thirstys on Third, 2202 W. 3rd St.,
Davenport IA
Lost in Artificial Reality Rozz-Tox,
2108 Third Ave., Rock Island IL
THURSDAY
19

(6pm) Go Fish Marina Bar & Grill,
411 River Dr., Princeton IA
Kudde$ 1996 Nxbel Price YNTU
Jim Swim Tee Jay Gabes, 330
E. Washington St., Iowa City IA
Laura Gibson Englert Theatre, 221
East Washington St., Iowa City IA
Shannon & the Clams Samuel Locke
Ward Karen Meat The Mill, 120 E.
Tough Old Bird Ren Edstrand Rozz-Tox,
Lost in Artificial Reality @ Rozz-Tox - May 18

2108 Third Ave., Rock Island IL
Waubeek Trackers Riverside Casino
and Golf Resort, 3184 Highway 22,
Riverside IA
FRIDAY
20
Bucktown Revue Nighswander Theatre,

2822 Eastern Ave, Davenport IA
Corporate Rock 11th Street Precinct,
1107 Mound St., Davenport IA
Thirstys on Third, 2202 W. 3rd St.,
Davenport IA
DubuqueFest: Arc Numbers (6pm)
Minus Six (7:30pm) Condor & Jaybird
(9:30pm) Town Clock Plaza, Dubuque IA
Greg & Rich Acoustic Duo (6pm)
Oculus Sports Bar - Jumers Casino
& Hotel, 777 Jumer Dr., Rock Island IL
Hand Practices In the Mouth of

Radness Acoustic Guillotine
Speakerwire Collins Gabes, 330
E. Washington St., Iowa City IA
Iowa City High & West High Jazz
Ensembles (6:30pm) Pedestrian
Plaza, Downtown Iowa City, Iowa City IA
Jack Lion The Curls Rozz-Tox, 2108
Josh Thompson Red Rodeo, 1720
2nd Ave., Rock Island IL
Lost Country Dancers Dance
Walcott Coliseum, 116 E Bryant St,
Walcott IA
The Maytags The Candymakers
Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S Linn St,
Iowa City IA
The Nadas Eric Pettit Lion The
Redstone Room, 129 Main St,
Davenport IA
21
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy w/ Orchestra

Iowa Paramount Theatre, 123 3rd
St. SE, Cedar Rapids IA
The Blackstones Harley Corins, 1708
Charlie Hayes & Detroit Larry
Davison Bleyarts Tap, 2218 E. 11th
St., Davenport IA
Circle of Heat Meteor Cat Iowa City
Yacht Club, 13 S Linn St, Iowa City IA
Devin Clemons Red Rodeo, 1720 2nd
Governors Pub & Grill, 3470 Middle
Rd., Bettendorf IA
DubuqueFest: Dubuque Senior High Jazz
Studio (11am) Betty Calling (2:30pm)
Awful Purdies (4pm) Pure Colours
(5:30pm) The Multiple Cat (7pm)
Charlie Parr (8:30pm) Down North
(10pm) Town Clock Plaza, Dubuque IA
DubuqueFest: The Fiddlers
(11:30am) Awful Purdies (1pm)
Washington Park, Dubuque IA
Eric Taylor Princeton Coffeehouse, 25

E. Marion St., Princeton IL
Farewell Angelina Timber Lake
Playhouse, 8215 Black Oak Road, Mt.
Carroll IL
Frankie Fontagne & the Ramblers
Flatted Fifth Blues & BBQ, 300 Potter
Dr., Bellevue IA
Gray Wolf Band Len Browns North
Shore Inn, 700 N. Shore Dr., Moline IL
Hap Hazard 11th Street Precinct, 1107
Highgraves Old Gold Last Will &
Testament Otros Outros Gabes,
330 E. Washington St., Iowa City IA
Lily & Madeleine Shannon Hayden
Hand Drawn Hearts The Mill, 120
E. Burlington St., Iowa City IA
Lyle Beaver & the Brass Notes Dance
Walcott Coliseum, 116 E Bryant St,
Walcott IA
Mayday Madness: MC Squar3d
Boogie Getem Grewsum
Cattacombs Crush Reality
The Redstone Room, 129 Main St,
Davenport IA
Russ Reyman Request Piano Bar
The Phoenix Restaurant & Martini
Bar, 111 West 2nd St., Davenport IA
Satellite Heart Waking Robots
Subatlantic RIBCO, 1815 Second
Snake Chasers Uptown Bills Coffee
Topper Riverside Casino and Golf
Resort, 3184 Highway 22, Riverside IA
Verskotzi Daytrotter, 324 Brady St.,
Davenport IA
Wild Oatz Band Missippi Brew, River
Dr, Muscatine IA
SUNDAY
22
DubuqueFest: Xiaomei Zhu (1pm)
Ballyheigue (2pm) Washington

Park, Dubuque IA
Greg & Rich Acoustic Duo (2pm)
Len Browns North Shore Inn, 700 N.
Shore Dr., Moline IL
The Jayhawks Folk Uke Englert
Theatre, 221 East Washington St.,
Iowa City IA
Learn Fest: An Atomic Whirl A
Light Among Many The Central
Relentless Approach Ronin
Petrichor Closet Witch
National Hero Rozz-Tox, 2108
MONDAY
23
TUESDAY
24
Moeller Mondays Presents

Wolves & Wolves & Wolves & Wolves
Brother Moses Gabes, 330 E.
Washington St., Iowa City IA
Live Lunch w/ Sedgewick (noon)

RME Community Stage, 131 W. 2nd
St., Davenport IA
Moodie Black The Mill, 120 E.
The Obsessed Karma to Burn The
Atomic Bitchwax RIBCO, 1815
Second Ave., Rock Island IL
WEDNESDAY 25
Burlington Street Bluegrass Band The

Mill, 120 E. Burlington St., Iowa City IA
Chuck Murphy (6:30pm) The Faithful
Pilot Cafe & Spirits, 117 N Cody Rd,
LeClaire IA
John Davey Bedroom Shrine Erin
Moore Rozz-Tox, 2108 Third Ave.,
Rock Island IL
LUNCH AT THE FIGGE
Tuesday-Saturday 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
NOW OPEN ON
SATURDAYS
Davenport, Iowa 563.326.7804

www.figgeartmuseum.org
23
DJs/Karaoke/Jams/Open Mics
Karaoke Night Thirstys on Third, 2202
6pm) Theos Java Club, 213 17th St.,
W. Third St., Davenport IA
Rock Island IL
THURSDAYS
Karaoke
Night
w/
Mike
Matthews
DJ Night w/ 90s Music Thirstys on
Hollars
Bar
&
Grill,
4050
27th
St.,
Third, 2202 W. Third St., Davenport IA
TUESDAYS
Moline IL
Just Let Go (May 19) Skellington Manor
Banquet & Event Center, 420 18th St.,
Rock Island IL
Karaoke Night Bier Stube Moline, 415
15th St., Moline IL
Karaoke w/ Double Dz Purgatorys
Pub, 2104 State St., Bettendorf IA
Open Jam Night Harley Corins, 1708
Open Jam Night My Place the Pub,
4405 State St., Bettendorf IA
Open Mic Night Uptown Bills Coffee
Open Mic w/ H.C. Wallace (May 12)
Geneseo Brewing Company, 102 S.
State St., Geneseo IL
Rock the House Karaoke Bottoms Up
on 7th, 1814 7th St., Moline IL
Thumpin Thursdays DJ Night Rascals
Live, 1414 15th St., Moline IL
FRIDAYS
Cross Creek Karaoke Firehouse

Bar & Grill, 2006 Hickory Grove Rd.,
Davenport IA
DJ Dolla The Smoking Dog Pub, 1800
DJ K Yung Barrel House Moline, 1321
Fifth Ave., Moline IL
Karaoke Night Circle Tap, 1345 West
Karaoke Night The Grove Tap, 108 S. 1st
St., Long Grove IA
Karaoke Night Miller Time Bowling,
2902 E. Kimberly Rd., Davenport IA
Karaoke Night Roadrunners
Roadhouse, 3803 Rockingham Rd.,
Davenport IA
Comedy
THURSDAY
12
The Blacklist (8:30pm) Theos Java

Club, 213 17th St., Rock Island IL
FRIDAY
13
Brian Hicks (7:30pm) Penguins

Comedy Club, 208 Second Ave. SE,
Cedar Rapids IA
ComedySportz (7pm) The Establishment,
220 19th St., Rock Island IL
An Evening with David Sedaris
(7:30pm) Orpheum Theatre, 57 S.
Kellogg St., Galesburg IL
Rock into Murder (6pm) Skellington
Manor Banquet & Event Center, 420
18th St., Rock Island IL
Studio Series: Nocturne Falls
(9:30pm) The Establishment, 220
19th St., Rock Island IL
SATURDAY
14
The After Hour (9pm) Circa 21

Speakeasy, 1818 Third Ave., Rock Island IL
Brian Hicks (7:30pm) Penguins
Comedy Club, 208 Second Ave. SE,
Cedar Rapids IA
ComedySportz (7pm) The
Establishment, 220 19th St., Rock
Island IL
Open Mic Coffeehouse (May 13) First

Lutheran Church, 1600 20th St., Rock
Island IL
Open Mic Night Bowlmor Lounge,
2952 Brady St., Davenport IA
Q.C. Steel Guitars in Concert Jam
Session Davenport Eagles Club,
4401 W. Locust St., Davenport IA
SATURDAYS
DJ Dolla The Smoking Dog Pub, 1800

Karaoke Night The Grove Tap, 108 S.
First St., Long Grove IA
Karaoke Night Miller Time Bowling,
2902 E. Kimberly Rd., Davenport IA
Karaoke Night Roadrunners Roadhouse,
3803 Rockingham Rd., Davenport IA
Karaoke Night w/ Jim Harker 4050
27th St., Moline IL
Open Mic Night Downtown Central
Perk, 226 W. 3rd St., Davenport IA
Twisted Mics Music & Entertainment
Barrel House Moline, 1321 Fifth Ave.,
Moline IL
SUNDAYS
Karaoke Night 11th Street Precinct,

Open Mic Night (5pm) Lynns BBQ &
Saloon, 1151 E. Iowa St., Eldridge IA
MONDAYS
Acoustic Jam Night w/ Steve McFate

(May 24) Mr. Eds Liquor Store & Tap,
127 Fourth St. W., Milan IL
Acoustic Music Club (4:30pm)
River Music Experience, 129 N.
Main St., Davenport IA
Karaoke Night My Place the Pub, 4405
Open Mic Night Broken Saddle, 1417
Fifth Ave., Moline IL
Open Mic Night Cool Beanz
Coffeehouse, 1325 330th St., Rock
Island IL
Tuesday Blues Jam w/ Mark Avey &
Detroit Larry Davison Cabanas,
2120 Fourth Ave., Rock Island IL
WEDNESDAYS
Acoustic Jam Night w/ Steve McFate

McManus Pub, 1401 Seventh Ave.,
Moline IL
Celtic Jam (May 18, 6pm) Moline Public
Library, 3210 41st St., Moline IL
Karaoke Night 11th Street Precinct,
Karaoke Night Circle Tap, 1345 West
Karaoke Night RIBCO, 1815 Second
Open Jam w/ Earth Ascending Bent
River Brewing Company, 512 24th St.
Rock Island IL
Open Mic Night Boozies Bar & Grille,
114 1/2 W. Third St., Davenport IA
Musicians Jam w/ C.J. Lomas (May 16,
Studio Series: True Story (9:30pm)

The Establishment, 220 19th St., Rock
Island IL
SUNDAY
15
The Circumstantial Comedy Show

(10pm) Brew, 1104 Jersey Ridge
Rd., Davenport IA
A Night of Magic & Laughter (3:30 &
6pm) The Establishment, 220 19th
St., Rock Island IL
MONDAY
16
TUESDAY
17
Honeycombs of Comedy (9pm)

Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S. Linn St.,
Iowa City IA
Comedy Open Mic (8pm) Harley

Corins, 1708 State St., Bettendorf IA
WEDNESDAY 18
The Backroom Comedy Open Mic

Night (7:30pm) The Backroom
Comedy Theater, 1510 N. Harrison
St., Davenport IA
Comedy Open Mic (7:30pm)
Penguins Comedy Club, 208 Second
Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids IA
THURSDAY
19
FRIDAY
20
SATURDAY
21
The Blacklist (8:30pm) Theos Java

Club, 213 17th St., Rock Island IL
The Only Comedy Show in Town
(8:30pm) Boozies Bar & Grille, 114
W. 3rd St., Davenport IA
ComedySportz Helping with

Humor Fundraiser (7pm) The
Island IL
Studio Series: Dodgeball (9:30pm)
The Establishment, 220 19th St., Rock
Island IL
ComedySportz (7pm) The

Island IL
Studio Series: Survivor (9:30pm)
The Establishment, 220 19th St.,
Rock Island IL
SUNDAY
22
The Circumstantial Comedy Show
(10pm) Brew, 1104 Jersey Ridge

Rd., Davenport IA
MONDAY
23
Crew Neck Comedy Show w/ Dave

Ross (7pm) Garage3, 817 22nd St.,
Rock Island IL
Honeycombs of Comedy (9pm)

Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S. Linn St.,
Iowa City IA
TUESDAY
24
Comedy Open Mic (8pm) Harley

Corins, 1708 State St., Bettendorf IA
WEDNESDAY 25
The Backroom Comedy Open Mic

Night (7:30pm) The Backroom
Comedy Theater, 1510 N. Harrison
St., Davenport IA
24

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Piecemeal

Local and State Governments

The Sisters Are Doin It for Themselves:

Whats Happenin: A Behanding

Art in Plain Sight: The Annie

Melancholy Mixed with

River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016

Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com

Learn more at uscellular.com/bonus.

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River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016

Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com

n his annual state of the judiciary

86-, 88-percent success rate. We never

If Theyre Not Serious, Theyre

and sources that local and piecemeal

The Problem in Black and White

Those youth-commitment disparities

River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016

Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com

David Bowlin, Artistic Director

Continued From Page 3

2010 Incarceration Rates Per 100,000 of Demographic Groups

United States 450 2,306

Iowa 324 3,473

The Bigger Picture

Talking only about racial disparities in

per-inmate [annual] cost averaged $31,286

The United States has 5 percent of the world population

River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016

Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com

likely) or possessing drugs (2.5 times more

Twenty-seven states moved only in the

The Complexity of the Problem

In a December 2015 op-ed in the Des

of our minority citizens live in the very

Biases at Every Point

1635 Ave. of the Cities

River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016

Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com

Despite Their Unpopularity,

Republican convention in Cleveland this

Sundays & Thursdays

PLUS: Learn about Prohibition here in the Midwest

May 8 & 12 | 9PM

May 22 & 26 | 9:30PM

Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com

River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016

Tales of a First-Grade Something

n the program cover for the

(hopefully) going to be our opinion, but

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Blessedly, though, it is. Returning

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River Cities Reader Vol. 23 No. 908 May 12 - 25, 2016