River Cities' Reader - Issue 844 - November 27, 2013

River Cities Reader Vol. 20 No.
. 844 November 27 - December 11, 2013 2 Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com
WORDS FROM THE EDITOR
by Kathleen McCarthy
km@rcreader.com
A
s Americans, we had better revisit what
the Bill of Rights means to our countrys
future, because the individual protections
that the Bill of Rights provides each of us are in
real jeopardy. There has been a slow creep by
our legislative, judicial, and executive branches
to erode these protections in favor of adminis-
trative rules and regulations that instead protect
the growth and continuity of government.
The federal government has gone so far
beyond what was originally intended for
our republic that there will be no stopping it
from the top down. The only hope we have
to preserve our future as an open society is
to get involved in our local county and city
governments, including our school districts,
where we can fully participate, oversee, and
influence the politicians and bureaucrats who
are our friends, family, and neighbors.
Common Core is the new national education
initiative of curriculum and standards that
were developed by two private trade groups,
in cooperation with Achieve, Inc., with the
majority of funding provided by the federal
government. Additional financial assistance
came from the Bill & Melinda Gates and Eli &
Edythe Broad foundations, which contributed
$60 million, and General Electric, which gave
$18 million. The two trade groups names the
Under the Radar: Common Core in Our Schools
National Governors Association and the Chief
Council of State School Officers mislead the
public into falsely thinking Common Core was
developed by each states elected representatives.
Rather, the entire curriculum is privately
owned and copyrighted, giving sole control over
its content to a small cadre of developers, who
will also reap massive profits for manufacturing
all new Common Core-approved textbooks,
training materials for teachers, and national-
testing components that will dwarf previous
testing practices in America. These no-bid
contracts are worth billions to private and quasi-
public corporations, such as Pearson, Core One
Press, and Achieve.
Several weeks ago, I attended a public
presentation on Common Core in Peoria,
Illinois. The facilitator queried the audience
of approximately 200 people on whether they
had heard of Common Core prior to the event.
About half the audience raised their hands. He
then asked how many present knew of Common
Core when the state adopted it in 2010. No
hands were raised!
Common Core was implemented through
state education boards in 45 states, including
Illinois and Iowa, without legislative authority
or oversight. Nor did its development include
input from school districts or the academic
community at large. Parents were not notified
of the adoption of these new standards, and it is
still difficult to get substantive information from
schools on the components of Common Core.
Additionally, the mainstream media has given
Common Core precious little coverage, further
shrouding the program elements from public
awareness.
Common Core has slipped in under the
radar of parents and teachers across the country,
and represents a sea change in education
that is mostly experimental, with virtually
no substantive evidence that its controversial
methods are effective in teaching our children.
This extraordinarily high level of risk deserves
participation from all stakeholders, but almost
none were engaged.
The following is a list of need-to-know
aspects of Common Core:
Not a single certified academic participated
in the development of Common Core.
Common Core standards for math and
language arts were published on June 2, 2010.
(Science and other academic categories are
still in development.) Yet most states had
already signed on without knowing Common
Cores content so that they could be eligible for
exemptions from No Child Left Behind or for
a portion of the $4.2-billion in stimulus money
allocated to Race to the Top.
After development, a validation committee
was empaneled to review the Common Core
standards that included five academics, all of
whom refused to sign off on the curriculum
because it fell far short of current standards, both
domestic and international. Two academics,
Stanford and NASA mathematician James
Milgram (math curriculum) and University
of Arkansas Professor Emerita Sandra Stotsky
(language-arts curriculum) are now active
opponents of Common Core.
Schools in Common Core states agree to
establish a longitudinal database to track every
student from pre-K through post-graduation.
The database includes information far beyond
scholastic data, such as birth weight, parents
voting preferences, miles to school, and family
food-consumption habits. It is illegal for the
federal government to have a national student
database, yet the states are collecting the same
data as defined in Common Core, and are able
to share their interoperable databases across
state lines. When, in 2011, the Electronic Privacy
Information Center sued the Department of
Education over unlawful collection of student
data, a federal judge dismissed the case, claiming
Continued On Page 14
River Cities Reader Vol. 20 No. 844 November 27-December 11, 2013 3 Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com
have to work very hard to woo labor leaders
if he wants their support. Dillard speaks their
language, while Rutherford is more of an
unknown quantity. Rutherfords campaign
has far more money on hand than Dillards,
but nowhere near enough to compete with
Rauner.
Still, does any candidate really
want organized labors support
in a Republican gubernatorial
primary? A Capitol Fax/We Ask
America poll conducted August
21 found that a whopping 80
percent of likely GOP-primary
voters said theyd be less
inclined to vote for a Republican
candidate for governor who
received hundreds of thousands
of dollars in campaign
contributions from public-
employee unions.
So others in organized labor are
strenuously arguing against any endorsement
at all, believing todays Republican voters
are so hostile to labors interests that overt
support for a preferred union candidate
would almost surely result in a political death
sentence and therefore in a host of unknown,
uncontrollable possibilities.
That particular faction is arguing hard
for an all-out assault on Rauner during the
primary. None of the other candidates would
be nearly as hostile to labors interest as
Rauner would be, goes the reasoning.
A TV-advertising assault on Rauner could
knock him out of contention. Theres a thick
opposition-research book on Rauner, but his
association with Democrats such as Mayor
Rahm Emanuel would be just as toxic for
GOP-primary voters as public-employee
campaign contributions (83 percent less likely
to support, according to the Capitol Fax/We
Ask America poll).
However, some labor leaders say that
Governor Pat Quinn has been moving to the
opinion that running against Rauner might
not be so horrible after all. Despite Rauners
potential to spend tens of millions of dollars
next year, some Quinn backers think Rauners
background gives them enough ammunition
to thump him.
Rauner has enough of a personal fortune
to stay on the air from now through next
November without a break. His ads are already
focused on painting Quinn as the bad guy, and
that theme will only intensify if he wins the
GOP primary. He could bury Quinn before
the governor has a chance to bury him.

Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax (a daily
political newsletter) and CapitolFax.com.
I
llinois union leaders are reportedly mull-
ing several options about what to do in
the governors race. But the only thing
the leaders appear to agree on so far is that
anti-union Republican gazillionaire Bruce
Rauner cannot be allowed to win.
Some union honchos
are looking at endorsing a
candidate in the Republican
primary. State Senator
Kirk Dillard, for instance,
already has strong support
from the Operating
Engineers, a union that is
now even more opposed
to Rauner since the
candidates endorsement
by the strongly anti-union
Associated Builders &
Contractors group. Other
unions have also taken keen notice of that
endorsement.
Surprisingly enough, Dillard is also being
looked at by some public-employee unions.
Theyre hoping that hell be a no vote on
pension reform. Dillard told the Kankakee
Daily Journal several days ago that he wants
employees to pay more into the system
and wants a later retirement age neither
of which appears to be in the cards at the
moment. Dillard would know what was going
on behind the scenes with the pension-
reform conference committee because his
running mate, Representative Jil Tracy, sits on
the committee.
However he chooses to explain it, a no
vote on pension reform could bring him
closer to a possible union nod. Then again,
Dillard told the Sun-Times last week that he
had always supported pension reform and
denied rumors that he was planning to vote
against the bill. But even a pension-bill yes
vote will not, in and of itself, prevent some
unions from endorsing Dillard.
Dillards campaign has struggled to raise
money, barely able to meet its expenses, so a
labor endorsement would bring in much-
needed dollars. Unions have backed Dillard
in the past, to the tune of $400,000 from
public-employee unions alone during his
career. They know hes a social conservative
(he was endorsed last week by noted figures
on the far right such as Phyllis Schlafly and
Penny Pullen), but they feel they can at least
get a fair hearing from him.
Treasurer Dan Rutherford has tried to
reach out to labor, particularly on the pension
issue. He has attempted to steer away from
taking a hard public line on pension reform,
urging compromise. But Rutherford doesnt
have much history with the unions, so hell
Unions Face Difficult Choice in
GOP Primary
by Rich Miller
CapitolFax.com
ILLINOIS POLITICS
Unions know
Dillards a social
conservative,
but they feel they
can at least get a
fair hearing from
him.
Davenport, Iowa 563.326.7804
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FIGGE ART MUSEUM
Holiday Happenings
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Advent Tours Sundays in December at 1:30 p.m.
Family Holiday Workshop December 5
Shop the Museum Store
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River Cities Reader Vol. 20 No. 844 November 27 - December 11, 2013 4 Business Politics Arts Culture Now You Know RiverCitiesReader.com
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December 14 & December 15 (Preceeding the Matinee Performances.)
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H
unger is a human problem with millions
of faces, but two related numbers can
illuminate the size of the problem in the
Quad Cities and the heartwarming community
generosity thats fighting it.
The first number: Christian Care served
more than 56,000 meals last year at its meal site,
according to Executive Director Elaine Winter.
The second: Our budget [for food] is about a
thousand dollars a year, she said.
The site at 2209 Third Avenue in Rock Island
serves 19 meals week. (Theres no lunch on
Saturday or Sunday.) On average, then, it was
feeding more than 57 people per meal. The cash
cost per meal? Less then two cents.
What this one site illustrates is that food
assistance beyond what taxpayer-funded
government programs provide is a real, persistent
need in the Quad Cities. And the community
through churches, charitable organizations, and
individuals has been meeting the need.
The bad news is that hunger appears to be
growing.
The infrastructure for feeding the hungry
in our area is undoubtedly rich. On the front
lines, there are nine meal sites in the Quad Cities
proper where anybody can get a hot meal.
And there are 29 food pantries in Scott
County, with another 16 in Rock Island County.
Most serve specific neighborhoods, and theyre
typically open between one and five days a week
for a few hours at a time.
Over those is a support network. Twenty-
five food pantries run by 400 volunteers in
the Quad Cities are associated with Churches
United, which provides both food and monetary
assistance. (For example, Hy-Vee recently
donated 1,000 frozen turkeys to Churches
United, which then distributed them to its food
pantries.) Each Churches United pantry spends
at least $12,000 a year acquiring food beyond
what it receives in direct food donations.
And much of the food that is distributed
by local food pantries comes from River Bend
Food Bank in Moline, which serves five counties
in Iowa and 17 in Illinois. Food-assistance
programs can access donated food (for example,
what is collected in the annual Student Hunger
Drive) for a shared maintenance cost of 18
cents a pound. Qualified agencies in Illinois
can, through a state program, get food with no
shared-maintenance cost, and the equivalent
program in Iowa costs agencies between 4 and
14 cents a pound. Programs can also purchase
items that typically arent donated in bulk for
instance, 12 canned hams for $30.66, or 24 cans
of chicken-noodle soup for $12.16.
Beyond serving as a source of food for meal
sites and food pantries, River Bend also has three
Kids Cafs serving evening meals four nights
a week during the school year and a Backpack
Program that provides 1,600 packs of take-home
weekend food to children through nearly 40
schools.
According to Tom Laughlin, executive
director of the River Bend Food Bank, roughly
half of the food his organization distributes
is given away for free without even shared-
maintenance costs.
Of course, none of these would be possible
without the generosity of the community.
Hundreds of individuals, families, businesses,
community groups, foundations, and churches
donate their time, money, cooking skills, and
food to meal sites, food pantries, Churches
United, and River Bend.
But this network is being stretched pretty
thin. Not all of our food pantries have been able
to give families everything that weve normally
given them before, said Anne Wachal, interim
executive director of Churches United. Weve
had to cut back a little bit as well, because either
its costing more to purchase the food, or its not
available, or were trying to get our food to last a
little bit longer because were seeing more people
coming in.
Laughlin said his organization will distribute
approximately 8 million pounds of food this
year 1 million pounds more than last year, and
almost double the amount before the most recent
recession. Demand just keeps increasing, he
said.
The Scope of Hunger
According to a 2013 study by Feeding
America of whose food-bank network River
Bend is a member the Quad Cities area fares
relatively well in food security. The report
defines food insecurity as the household-level
economic and social condition of limited or
uncertain access to adequate food. In other
words, these are not necessarily people who
need to use food pantries or meal sites, but their
situations are tenuous enough that theyre not
far from needing to. As Pam LaRoque, who
coordinates the City Center Ministry food pantry
in downtown Davenport, said, many families
are just a few paychecks away from using a food
pantry.
Overall, Scott and Rock Island counties in
2011 had overall food-insecurity rates in the
lowest range (4 to 14 percent of the population).
But the picture was more grim for children, with
Scott County in the 15-to-19-percent range and
Rock Island County in the 20-to-24-percent
range.
Specifically, Scott Countys overall food-
insecurity rate was 14.0 percent, and its rate
for children was 19.0 percent; an estimated 42
percent of food-insecure children in the county
are not eligible for federal nutrition assistance.
Rock Island County had an overall food-
insecurity rate of 12.0 percent and a child rate of
19.8 percent; the study estimated that 26 percent
of food-insecure children are not eligible for
federal nutrition assistance.
Beyond the potential hunger included in food
insecurity, a better measure of actual hunger is
the use of food-assistance programs.
In 2012, for example, Churches United had
31,314 visits to its affiliated food pantries, Wachal
said. (Households can visit a food pantry once
every 30 days.) Through October, it had 29,072
visits in 2013.
The number of people using Churches United
food pantries, she noted, has grown each quarter
in 2013 from 7,522 to 8,608 to 9,483. Ive not
seen it like this in several years, where every
quarter we rise by almost a thousand, she said.
Thats pretty unusual.
She added that with cuts to benefits in the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
(SNAP, also known as food stamps) hitting
November 1, demand will grow even more. One
food pantry in Illinois, she said, saw a 30-percent
increase in visits on that date all of them first-
time visitors.
Churches United was on a pace through
October to have nearly 35,000 visits in 2013, but
that number will likely be even higher with the
SNAP cuts. Visits in 2010 were 29,120, and in
2007 they were 26,415.
Christian Cares site saw its annual meals rise
from 50,928 in 2009 to 56,586 last year.
As robust as the Quad Cities food-assistance
system is, Laughlin said hes skeptical that it can
feed all those who are hungry as the number of
them grows. He said area food pantries will see
increases in demand of 10 to 15 percent this year.
Theres a gap because of ... federal cuts. SNAP
is the first line of defense against hunger, and
[with] the amount of money theyre cutting,
people are going to feel it. The food pantries, they
were set up as a supplemental resource. They
werent set up to be the primary source of feeding
people in a community.
Whos Hungry?
People involved in feeding the hungry say
that there is a wide variety of people getting food
assistance in the Quad Cities.
Wachal gave a few examples among Churches
Uniteds clientele: families with two children
and household incomes of $40,000; retired
grandparents raising grandchildren; widowed or
divorced women with few job skills.
At the food pantry she coordinates, LaRoque
said she sees many people from downtown
Davenports senior high-rises, and people on
Social Security and disability.
Winter said Christian Cares meal site
serves many low-income families, veterans, the
homeless, abused women, and people whove
fallen on hard times. We see a lot more people
toward the end of the month, because food
stamps have been used up, or whatever assistance
they might have gotten through the month has
been used, she said.
For a broader perspective, Churches United
surveyed its food-pantry users over the summer,
with more than 1,300 responses. While the
survey wasnt a scientific random sample, the
volume of responses was certainly large enough
to be meaningful.
Nearly 95 percent said the food pantry met
their needs.
Demographically, visitors skewed older.
Roughly a third were between the age of 36 and
50, while more than 46 percent were 51 or older.
More than 31 percent of those surveyed were
raising and/or feeding grandchildren including
37 percent of those older than 50.
Almost 60 percent reported being
unemployed in the past six months which
means that more than 40 percent of those
surveyed had been continuously employed but
still needed food assistance.
Laughlin estimated that 40 percent of
households that use food pantries have at least
one member whos employed full-time. Many
clients are faced with life-essential choices,
between food and rent, food and medical care,
food and day care, food and transportation, he
said.
Often among those priorities, Wachal said,
food is last on the list.
A Year-Round Problem
The nature of the holiday season means that
people are particularly generous this time of year.
And theres no doubt that people need more
food assistance in the winter, with higher utility
bills cutting into many families food budgets.
But summer is also difficult for families raising
children, as the kids arent in school and dont
have easy access to free or reduced-price meals.
At LaRoques food pantry, for example, July was
the busiest month so far in 2013.
She stressed that hunger doesnt hit only near
the holidays, and food-assistance programs need
donations and volunteers throughout the year.
As blessed as we are during this time of year
getting donations, hunger is a year-round thing,
she said. We appreciate people remembering the
hungry in April, in July, in September.
Locations and times for area meal sites and food
pantries can be found at RiverBendFoodBank.org/
mealsites.htm.
A Robust Network Fights a Growing Problem in the Quad Cities
A Portrait of Hunger and Generosity
by Jeff Ignatius
jeff@rcreader.com
COVER STORY
requirement. But initially, before the show
received the final thumbs-up from Music
Guilds play-selection committee, the size of
its cast was a concern.
When it was first done in New York, says
John, it was done with one man and two
women, and they eventually made it bigger,
to where it was two men and three women.
And so there was some talk among us of
Okay, do we expand this into more people
and divvy up the parts?
But we really liked the continuity of the
core players on stage, so that it wouldnt be
Oh, theres another new face, theres another
new face ... . So we made the decision early
on that we were gonna keep it a tighter show,
even though we did take the additional step
of making the Dr. Ted character who was
originally just a voice-over a real person.
You know, with that small a cast, the more
people we get involved ... .
Jaci Weigandt, herself a veteran of several
Music Guild productions, adds, I think there
mightve been some disappointment that
there wasnt a chorus in this, because there
are a lot of people, myself included, who only
feel comfortable doing chorus numbers.
But thankfully, says John, here at Guild,
people dive right in to other spots. Jamie
[Bauschka], whos doing our props, came
through auditions, and shes a wonderful
performer, but we had to tell her no this
time. And she jumped right in and said,
Yeah, Ill do props!
According to performers Sondgeroth and
Hardacre, both of whom boast numerous
credits in large-scale Music Guild endeavors,
this more intimate stage experience is
proving quite a memorable one.
Theres something about being on stage
with 30 other people thats really great, says
Sondgeroth. But then theres something
about making a moment happen with only
five other people. You really have to rely on
each other in a different way.
Some of the harmonies are crazy, adds
Hardacre of A Christmas Survival Guides
frequent five-part musical arrangements.
Rehearsing them, you want to pull out
your hair at times. But its a really good, fun
challenge. You have to really know your
S
itting down with director John
Weigandt, assistant director Jaci
Weigandt (Johns wife), and cast
members Faith Hardacre and Jennifer
Sondgeroth prior to a Tuesday-night
rehearsal for Quad City Music Guilds
A Christmas Survival Guide, I mention
that this forthcoming show seemed
like a rather unusual choice for the
organizations wintertime slot.
What? asks Hardacre with mock
surprise. We dont normally have
drunken dances on stage?
Not normally, no. Nor does Music
Guild normally produce holiday
shows with casts composed solely of six
performers. Nor holiday shows referencing
therapy sessions and 12-step programs. Nor,
to be frank, holiday shows with titles that
patrons dont instantly recognize.
Ive been asked many times, What is
this? says Hardacre. People are like, Is this
a new show? Is this something that was at the
Tonys? And Im like, Its just this really cool
compilation revue. Its not really a musical
with lines [of dialogue] and a set plot, but its
a very intense hour and a half. I mean, were
dancing in almost every single scene.
And probably, more often than not,
making us laugh. I think its definitely
appropriate for kids, says Sondgeroth, but
there are definitely some double entendres
and more adult pieces of humor that will,
thankfully, go right over the little ones
heads.
What I like about the writing, adds John
Weigandt, is that some of that double-
entendre stuff goes by so quickly that you, as
an audience member, sit there saying, Did I
just hear that? Did they really say that?
Laughs Sondgeroth, Did that just
happen?
Created by James Hindman, Ray Roderick,
and John Glaudini, and running December
5 through 8 at Molines Prospect Park
Auditorium, A Christmas Survival Guide is,
as Hardacre says, a holiday-themed musical
revue almost wholly devoid of dialogue, and
one that has played regional and community
theatres nationwide since its 2000 debut.
The show has also earned some pretty stellar
reviews, with Louisvilles Courier-Journal
describing it as brimming with enjoyment
and the New York Press deeming it the
funniest Christmas revue around.
Yet given its lack of immediate title
recognition, A Christmas Survival Guide is
still an unexpected choice for Music Guilds
December slot, considering the organizations
offerings over the past eight years have
included A Christmas Carol, Miracle on 34th
Street, White Christmas, Babes in Toyland,
and Its a Wonderful Life twice.
Says Sondgeroth, What weve found with
the Christmas classics, if you will, is that
people are kind of starting to make them
part of their holiday traditions. Were starting
to get calls for tickets from big numbers of
people early on, because Oh, weve been
doing this every year! We all go out to dinner
and see the Christmas Music Guild show!
But there are only so many Christmas
classics that there are musical versions of.
Referencing the holiday production
currently running at the Circa 21 Dinner
Playhouse, John adds, We wouldve loved to
have gotten our hands on A Christmas Story,
bu-u-ut ... .
So we were kind of looking for other
things, says Sondgeroth. But we did want
to stay holiday-themed because of this ... I
dont know ... phenomenon of people wanting
something they could make part of their
Christmas tradition.
With its narrative through-line of shoppers
seen busily preparing for the season, and its
score a blend of original tunes and standards
such as Silent Night, Silver Bells, and O
Holy Night, A Christmas Survival Guide
certainly fulfills the holiday-themed
Nontraditional Tradition
Quad City Music Guild Presents A Christmas Survival Guide, December 5 through 8
THEATRE
by Mike Schulz
mike@rcreader
Vol. 20 No. 844
Nov. 27- Dec . 11 2013
River Cities Reader
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Kathleen McCarthy
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Continued on Page 17
Chris Castle, Jennifer Sondgeroth, Tom Naab,
Faith Hardacre, and Zach Hendershott
ideas, melodic content, style, and nuance
from each voice.
Higdon suspends the audiences
dependence on conventional form
and tonality as the basis for music and
transforms what sound, in its essence, can
express. Gradually, and quite naturally, my
mind begins to linger over things mental
images, emotions, people as I feel my
mood guided by something in the music. At
times, the profuse density of textures makes
the piece coalesce into a fabric of sound
not individual strands from specific
instruments. They become compelling in
their mystery how they are put together.
The solo violin evolves into an evocative,
more sensual instrument by saying fresh,
important things through inventive new
sounds.
Structurally, instead of organizing
her musical ideas into, for example, the
sonata A-B-A form, Higdon employs
a compositional technique similar to
Baroque through-composing relatively
continuous, non-sectional, and non-
repetitive music-writing, a form of musical
free-association. I may think the music is
going to go one place, but sometimes the
music has other ideas, she wrote. I trust it
enough to follow it, to see if the suggested
path is good. Sometimes it works, and
sometimes it doesnt.
But Higdon still adheres to many of
the hallmarks of the concerto style the
technical flair demonstrated by the soloist,
musical interaction with the orchestra, and
the grouping of music into the standard
three-movement format with a predictable
path: dramatic, slow, and fast.
The title of the first movement is 1726,
the street number of the Curtis Institute
of Music where Higdon was a student and
now works as an adjunct professor. She
uses these numbers in a form of music
encryption; the fundamental tones used in
the movement are created by assigning a
pitch to each digit. This is a modern version
of an idea that dates back to the Baroque
period, when Bach used his family name
as the thematic motive for some of his
compositions.
Higdons second movement reflects a
direct conventional approach, slowly and
lyrically exploring the beautiful cantabile
or singing sound of the violin. Titled
Chaconni the plural form of the
Baroque Chaconne the movement uses
several repeating chord progressions, some
overlapping with improvised-like variations
in the orchestra and containing more
The Quad City Symphony Performs Jennifer Higdons Bewildering, Beautiful Violin Concerto
Compelling Mystery
J
ennifer Higdons Violin Concerto
unfolds as a slow burn with flickering,
firefly-like tones, then straps you into
a sonic roller coaster, corkscrewing through
ever-changing musical images. When you
have experienced the sublime disorderliness
of Higdons concerto, it seems miraculous
that it ultimately makes sense; you have
experienced something that was perceivable
if not completely comprehensible.
The winner of the 2010 Pulitzer Prize
for Music, Higdons concerto could be
bewildering for audiences at the Quad City
Symphonys December 7 and 8 concerts,
with its copious, fast-changing variations of
instrumental combinations and dynamics:
violin harmonics with small finger cymbals,
tingling high woodwinds with low, growling
cellos and basses, sudden changes in
volume, and constantly contrasting textures
of sound. The musical events might seem
random at first, but somewhere in your
brain, you should be able to recognize and
reorganize them enough to get a sense of
Higdons complex yet stunningly accessible
musical thinking.
For context, its helpful to understand
the composers creative process, which she
described to me in an e-mail exchange over
the summer: It is purely a decision made
by the sound. No thought to the theoretical
construction of the movements whatsoever.
No pre-determined scales, no established
form, no generated harmonic motion.
Those things might be there in some form,
but if theyre there, I am not aware of them.
Intentional or not, familiar forms and
tonality are everywhere in this piece.
Traditional compositional elements such
as repetition, imitation, melody, Classical
and Baroque forms, ornamentation, chords,
tone rows, development, and recapitulation
are all present.
But, crucially, they are secondary to her
instinctive approach, and they drift into
and out of their expected sequence. The
succession of musical ideas is determined
through improvisation, and her artful
control of tonality, emotional content,
colorful orchestration, and the flow of
energy ties the piece together.
The overlapping, contrasting musical
ideas create vivid tapestries of musical
color. Rather than using one tonal system
such as G Major, whole tone, or 12-tone
rows she combines many with changing
orchestration and dynamics. Warm,
resonant chords mix with exchanges
between the solo violin and several
soloists in the orchestra, and they are not
imitating each other but generating a group
instrumental conversation with distinct
by Frederick Morden
f.morden@mchsi.com
MUSIC
palette and within such a
narrow dynamic range. The
songs are varied, but in their
mildness they blend together
after a while.
Minus Six (which also
features Kameron Rummans
on bass and Rob Baner on
drums) bills itself as a rock
band without guitar, but in
reality theres precious little rockin. Grassfed
references times when the musics pumpin in
a chorus meant to get a rise out of the listener,
but Cartons voice which has echoes of Peter
Gabriel and the music are simply not forceful
enough to be convincing.
So Come Out ... leans too heavily on earnest
ballads and pleasant piano pop both good
fits for the band in small doses. Let Me Come
Around is the high point in the latter style,
with its catchy chorus and tonal digressions
that pack a lot into just over three minutes.
But even with the songs structural
adventurousness, it often feels like something
is missing. Theres a sterile sameness in
the production and mix that reminds me
of musical theatre in the prominence and
clarity of the vocals and Cartons held-
back articulation of the lyrics; the need to
be understood trumps variety and messy
emotion.
Perhaps more damaging are lost
opportunities, hints of promising paths not
taken. The jazzy, energetic instrumental
interplay of Grassfed and the ukulele,
whistling, and French lyrics on closing track
Loiseau senfuit show that Minus Six isnt
timid. Unfortunately, Come Out from Where
You Hide too often is.
Minus Six will play an album-release show at
RIBCO (1815 Second Avenue, Rock Island) on
Wednesday, November 27, starting at 9:30 p.m.
For more information on Minus Six, visit
MinusSix.com.
by Jeff Ignatius
jeff@rcreader.com
MUSIC
O
n Minus Sixs new
album Come Out
from Where You Hide,
Grassfed boldly announces
itself with gorgeously inter-
twined fast runs on sax and
piano downhill, then up, and
back down again, a deft flash of
early jazz grafted onto verses of
piano rock. The instrumental
breaks elevate the whole, with pianist Kevin
Carton and saxophonist Matt Sivertsen given
the space to playfully develop and explore.
Its telling that these sections represent the
whole of the songs progression, as the verses
and chorus are (relatively speaking) inert
which is where the album falters as a whole.
The dominant style and overly consistent mix
dont sustain interest over the course of the
record, and fertile detours dont come quite
often enough.
Thats not a problem at all on the tight
Burn, which is bracing in a way similar to
Grassfed but more thoroughly, with urgency
and a level of detail and variation in the
singing to match whats happening with the
piano and the creamy honk of the saxophone.
Those are my two favorite songs on Come
Out from Where You Hide, which has plenty
of other highlights. Theres the almost tangible
yearning of Cartons singing thats mirrored
in the bass on jaunty lead track Orions Belt.
The jarringly sudden discordant shift of
Lucid Dreaming, announced by the sax and
brought to fruition by the piano with a sunny
chorus shoving the clouds away just as quickly.
And the writing and vocal phrasing at the
beginning of Lullaby, pleading but clear-eyed:
The powers out / Theres more important
things than paying bills on time.
I could go on, and theres no doubt that Come
Out ... is a collection of polished, skillful
songs. Yet while its by no means bloated, the
albums 15 tracks (running just under an hour)
become strangely numbing a function of
the quartets choice to work with such a static
Too Few Detours
Minus Six, Come Out from Where You Hide; November 27 at RIBCO
I-280 and Hwy 92, Exit 11-A Rock Island, IL
309-756-4600 800-477-7747 Open 7am-5am daily
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can
be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER(1-800-426-2537).
How do you mark 5 fabulous years of
Las Vegas-style casino excitement?
With a party and free stu of course!
JUMERSTHANNIVERSARYCELEBRATION
December!
JUMERSISPULLINGOUTALLTHESTOPS!
First 500 people receive a Jumers 5th Anniversary T-Shirt
Live music on the casino oor by The Old 57s
5 tier cupcake tower and free cupcakes while supplies last
FREE trinkets throughout the day
Live remote with Jillene from WLLR the Quad Cities #1
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Six Appeal
Comedy Group
Saturday, March 29
COMING NEXT!
Casey Abrams
SINGER-SONGWRITER AND
AMERICAN IDOL FINALIST
Saturday, Dec. 7 | 8 p.m.
Concert in the new Center for Student Life
3435 9 Ave., Rock Island
Tickets $10 general admission
(309) 794-7306 or augustana.edu/arts/tickets
The club sponsors
numerous activities
encompassing many
types and aspects
of photography. It
holds digital and
print competitions
most months. At its
meetings, members
discuss the images,
help each other
to improve, and
socialize. The club
also holds special
learning workshops
and small groups
that meet on
specific photography
topics, and
occasionally offers
interesting shooting
opportunities.
The club meets at
6:30 p.m. the first
Thursday of the
month September
through June at the
Butterworth Center,
1105 Eighth Street in Moline.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Featured Image from the Quad Cities Photography Club
(Editors note: The River Cities Reader
each month will feature an image or
images from the Quad Cities Photography
Club.)
I
n May, the Quad Cities Photography
Club sponsored a photography trip
to Costa Rica with Foto Verde Tours.
Jay Brooks and his wife were among the
members on the trip. Jay said that the
diversity of photography [subjects] in this
beautiful country is truly amazing, and
many participants are eager to return.
Jays high-scoring image is a green
basilisk lizard. Said Jay of his image:
What makes it very unusual is the ant
carrying a leaf that must have taken a
wrong turn and is sitting on the lizards
head. The lizard did not eat the ant, and
it eventually continued its journey with a
newfound route. Pure luck is how I was
able to capture this unique image.
He shot this image with a Canon 6D
with a Canon 100-400-millimeter lens
at ISO 1600, 380 millimeters, f/5.6, and
1/1,000 of a second.
The Quad Cities Photography Club
welcomes visitors and new members.
For more information on the club, visit
QCPhotoClub.com.
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by Mike Schulz mike@rcreader.com by Mike Schulz mike@rcreader.com
Movie Reviews
by Mike Schulz mike@rcreader.com
game, wouldnt he have insisted on an
environment that this natural hunter
mightve felt less comfortable in? (In
the original Hunger Games, we were
told that the competitions artificial
locales were altered annually: deserts
one year, tundras the next, et cetera.)
Another question: Wouldnt a change
of scenery have been more fun for all
of us? Despite, however, diverting-
enough attacks by poisonous fog and
crazed baboons and, creepiest of all,
birds whose chirping sounds just like
the tortured shrieks of the contestants
loved ones, Catching Fires setting,
and the means by which the game
reaches its conclusion, feel too much
like business as usual. And despite
the promising introduction of fellow
challengers played by Jena Malone,
Sam Claflin (quite good as Finnick),
Jeffrey Wright, Lynn Cohen, and the
beloved weirdo supreme Amanda
Plummer, were even deprived of
almost all chances to watch the games
participants battle one another. (Each
of the aforementioned new arrivals
winds up a friend to Katniss and Peeta,
and as Pulp Fiction fans will attest,
giving Jennifer Lawrence an adversary
with fanged teeth is way less interesting
than the possibilities inherent in
letting her square off against Amanda
Plummer.) Even at almost two and
a half hours, this Hunger Games
blockbuster is never boring, and there
are certainly enough compelling actors
and situations to keep me psyched for
THE HUNGER GAMES:
CATCHING FIRE
My unfamiliarity with its source
material was, Im convinced, a large
part of why I enjoyed last years The
Hunger Games movie so much. To
be sure, I dug the film itself, with its
exciting and moving survival-of-the-
fittest encounters, and its fierce Jennifer
Lawrence performance, and its bevy of
grandly outr supporting figures (and,
in the Capitol sequences, beyond-outr
production design). But not having
read any of the three books in Suzanne
Collins seminal young-adult adventure
series, what I was most taken with
was the surprise of the experience.
Hunger Games newbies such as myself
were allowed to take in Collins richly
imagined dystopian saga with gradual
understanding and horror, much the way
(Im presuming) the books readers did,
and while we had every reason to expect
Lawrences teen warrior Katniss Everdeen
to survive, the storyline was just spiky
and unpredictable enough to make us
wonder how, exactly, she ever would.
For my money, the series second
cinematic installment, The Hunger
Games: Catching Fire, doesnt inspire
anywhere near that level of Whats
gonna happen next? engagement. Its
a solid, mostly enjoyable follow-up and
with Francis Lawrence taking over
the directorial reins from Gary Ross
sometimes even better than that; Jennifer
Lawrences already-excellent performance
has significantly deepened, as have those
of several of her co-stars, and the visual
effects this time
around have notably
improved. And
sure, as the second
segment in a trilogy
one that will, as
is the norm these
days, be stretched
into four movies
there was bound to
be a certain amount
of disappointment
built into the tale. (Mild spoiler: As the
connective tissue between the original
film and the forthcoming Mockingjay
movies, Catching Fire isnt really designed
as a stand-alone entertainment, and its
finale is really just a teaser for a finale yet
to come.) But as someone unschooled
in Collins literary works, I still left
this sequel thinking: Is that it? Were
goosed with a potentially fascinating and
scary narrative in which Katniss, Josh
Hutchersons teammate Peeta, and 22
other survivors of previous challenges-
to-the-death are forced into combat, and
they (and we) are merely plunked into
another jungle setting, with oddly similar
threats, nearly identical to that of the first
Hunger Games?
Theres more to Catching Fire than that,
of course primarily the planned revenge
of President Snow (the marvelously
icy Donald Sutherland), who, aided
by inscrutable gamesman Plutarch
Heavensbee (Philip Seymour Hoffman),
hopes that Katniss televised demise will
end the growing threat of nationwide
insurrection. Yet beat for beat, and
despite it being less overtly sentimental
than Ross film,
this new outing felt
like such a carbon
copy of its forebear
that I found
myself slowly but
unmistakably
losing interest in
the proceedings.
Another grim
prelude in the
slums of Panems
District 12, with actor Liam Hemsworth
as Katniss sidelined beau Gale again
suggesting that brother Chris Thor
Hemsworth got all the charisma genes
in the family. Another prepping-for-
the-games tour, with returning players
Woody Harrelson, Lenny Kravitz, Stanley
Tucci, and the wondrous Elizabeth
Banks collectively cornering the market
in eccentricity. (Happily, Banks Effie
Trinket gets to be eccentrically human
in this one.) Another series of training
sequences. Another chastely romantic
rendezvous between Katniss and Peeta,
the latter of whom (as is telegraphed in
Hutchersons uncharacteristically listless
portrayal) is given even less to do in
this installment. And another slow rise
from the subterranean depths as Katniss
enters her Most Dangerous Game-esque
surroundings, snags a bow and arrows,
joins up with some allies, and enters
a tree- and vine-infested habitat that,
luckily for her, looks and despite the
intense heat feels an awful lot like the
woods back home.
Question: If President Snow really
wanted to keep Katniss off-balance in the
Listen to Mike every Friday at 9am on ROCK 104-9 FM with Dave & Darren
Kat-and-Mouse Game
Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson
in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Theatre
A Fairy Tale Christmas
Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse Friday, November 29,
through Saturday, December 28
H
ey, you parents
out there, would
you mind handing
the paper to your
grade-school kids for
just a sec? Got a new
theatrical production
Id like to tell em about.
Thanks.
Hiya, kids! As Im
sure you know, its the
holiday season again, and that means
that Rock Islands Circa 21 Dinner
Playhouse is presenting another big,
exciting musical comedy just for you!
Its called A Fairy Tale Christmas,
and it runs November 29 through
December 28, and even if you havent
heard about the show before, youre
certainly going to be familiar with its
characters!
It takes place in a land called
Happily Ever After, and its all about
a bunch of people getting ready for
the Crystal Christmas Ball, and what
happens when one of them doesnt
quite follow the rules. But look whos
on the guest list! Cinderella, her Fairy
Godmother, Snow White, her Magic
Mirror, Goldilocks, Puss in Boots, the
Three Little Pigs, Grumpy, Jack (the
kid with the beanstalk), and no fewer
than three Prince Charmings!
A Fairy Tale Christmas story and
songs were written by Scott Bradley
and Matt and Tina Jo Wallace, who
also created the family musicals
Rapunzel and A Velveteen Rabbit
Christmas! The show
is being directed by
longtime Circa 21
favorite Brad Hauskins,
whom you probably
saw in the theatres
productions of Click,
Clack, Moo: Cows That
Type, How I Became a
Pirate, and Freckleface
Strawbery: The Musical!
And look whos in the
cast! Kelly Lohrenz from Pinkalicious!
Cara Chumbley from Legally Blonde!
Sunshine Ramsey, who played
the title character in not one, but
two Junie B. Jones musicals! Plus
Adrienne Bergeron, Chuckie Dixon,
Jeremy Lagunas, Nicholas Munson,
Kate Turner ... its gonna be a great
time, and I know youve been extra
good this year, so make sure your
parents get you this extra cool treat
for the holidays!
You can hand the paper back to
your Mom or Dad now. And were all
going to pretend that you didnt also
read that article on RIBCOs Life &
Times Tour, right? Right! Bye, kids!
Thanks, parents. We had a nice
little chat.
For dates, times, and tickets to A
Fairy Tale Christmas, call (309)786-
7733 extension 2 or visit Circa21.com.
Music
The Life & Times Tour
Rock Island Brewing Company
Friday, November 29, 9 p.m.
T
he Rock Island Brewing
Company has a very special
engagement set for November 29,
when the District venue hosts a
night with the visiting performers of
The Life & Times Tour. Ah-h-h ...
. The Life & Times Tour. Sounds
so nostalgic! So hearth-and-home!
And apparently, the tour features two
gentlemen from suburban Georgia,
and a young woman who based her
stage name on Snow White! Lets
meet these family-
friendly artists, shall
we?
Among the
headliners and the
one whose debut CD The Life &
Times of Jonny Valiant gave the tour
its name is Jonathan McCollum,
better known by his stage handle
Rittz (pictured). A rapper currently
signed to Tech N9nes Strange Music
label, Rittz had a 2010 breakthrough
on the Yelawolf song Box Chevy,
and has since gone on to demonstrate
his vigorous, rapid-fire technique on
tracks such as Bloody Murdah, Far
from a Bitch, and I Dont Give a F---
, with DJBooth.net saying that Rittz
makes really good f---in music ... .
Okay then. Whos next ... ?
Ah! Its Jarren Benton, another
Georgia native who had a studio-
album debut this year with My
Grandmas Basement now thats
family-friendly! With BeatStars.
com calling the CD an independent
classic and Benton himself
definitely a star in the making, the
rap artist has performed international
tours throughout the United States,
Australia, and Europe, and his
propulsive mix tapes and music
videos feature such titles as Huffing
Glue with Hasselhoff, Freebasing
with Kevin Bacon, We on (My Own
D---) ... . All righty. Moving right
along ... .
Now here we go! Its Claudia
Feliciano, whose professional
name is Snow Tha Product, a
Theatre
The Prenzie Players
Two Gentlemen of Verona
QC Theatre WorkshopFriday, December 6,
through Saturday, December 14
F
ollowing their first completely Bard-less
season, the verse-theatre talents of the
Prenzie Players return to their roots with one
of Shakespeares fastest, funniest comedies: Two
Gentlemen of Verona, running at Davenports QC
Theatre Workshop December 6 through 14.
A farcical tale filled with romantic mix-ups,
action, and, to quote the film Shakespeare in Love,
a bit with a dog,
Two Gentlemen
of Verona is being
directed by veteran
Prenzie Player Andy Lord, and finds troupe
newcomer Joseph Curtiss among its performers,
continuing for more than a decade now the
groups run of featuring at least one Prenzie
newbie in each production.
But beyond Curtiss, the
comedys cast will also boast 10
gifted actors familiar from their
appearances in previous Prenzie
outings. If you know their work,
and know Two Gentlemen of
Verona, try guessing who plays
which character in this latest
endeavor. (As usual with the
Prenzies, dont let the roles
original genders mislead you!
runs Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. and
Sunday at 2 p.m., and more information and
tickets are available by calling (309)278-8426 or
visiting PrenziePlayers.com.
Whats Happenin
Whats Happenin
A n s w e r s : 1 E , 2 H , 3 G , 4 C , 5 F , 6 I , 7 A , 8 D , 9 J , 1 0 B . T h a t l a s t o n e i s i r o n i c , b e c a u s e T r a c y S k a g g s a c t u a l l y l i v e s i n M i l a n ! O f c o u r s e , i t s W e s t M i l a n . . . a n d
i t s i n I l l i n o i s , n o t I t a l y . . . a n d t h e c i t y i s p r o n o u n c e d M y - l u n h e r e , b u t s t i l l . . . . N u t t y c o i n c i d e n c e , h u h ? ! ?
1) Kitty Israel
2) Stephanie Moeller
3) Catie Osborn
4) Maggie Woolley
5) Denise Yoder
6) Andy Curtiss
7) Andrew Koski
8) Adam Michael Lewis
9) Cole McFarren
10) Tracy Skaggs
A) Antonio
B) Duke of Milan
C) Julia
D) Launce
E) Lucetta
F) Panthino
G) Silvia
H) Speed
I) Thurio
J) Valentine
Event
Handmade City Holiday 2013
Davenport SkyBridge
Saturday, December 7, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
T
he local arts-and-crafts
collective Handmade City
has something special in store for
holiday shoppers and window
shoppers alike with the groups
seventh area show, Handmade
City Holiday 2013. But a warning
to you window shoppers: Youre
gonna need a re-e-e-eally tall
ladder.
Yeah, its cool that were in the Davenport
SkyBridge for the third time, says
Handmade City arts-and-crafts director
Rose Noble of the December 7 event. I
think more people should host stuff up
there, to be honest. Of course, if the group
continues with the frequency of past shows
this is its third SkyBridge event of 2013
more people might not get the chance to.
Herself a local artisan, Noble says
Handmade City originated because my
friend Leah [Sprott] and I noticed that the
Quad Cities didnt really have a craft show
that sold the more traditional crafts we
were making. And surrounding areas like
Chicago, Madison, and Iowa City seemed
to have shows that were a bit pricey to apply
for. So we kind of wanted to have a show
for all of our super-talented friends that
was affordable, and was able to give them a
chance to sell more indie-craft artwork.
Held at Theos Java Club in December of
2010, Noble says, the very first show we did,
we had 11 artists, and I kind of had to beg a
couple people to be in it. Come on! Itll be
really cool! But we ended up packed, I had
people sell out of things ... . It was awesome.
The following year, when Handmade
Citys show was held at Rozz-Tox, we easily
had 35 people who
applied. And to me,
that made me feel
like, Okay, other
people are really
wanting this around
here. Word-of-
mouth has really
worked pretty well
for us.
Given Nobles description of the unique
handmade items available for purchase and
perusal, its easy to guess why. We have
everything from clothing to jewelry, candles,
home dcor, candy, cupcakes ... . Theres
artwork, prints, letterpress, stationery ... .
Pretty much anything you could think of.
And Handmade City will be doing gift wrap,
so people can get their presents wrapped
there, too.
Plus, if past shows are any indication,
you should probably also expect some more
unusual items. One time, we had a guy
who made little robot ornaments out of old
batteries. That was awesome, and he actually
had a deal where if you brought him old
batteries, youd get a discount on whatever
you were buying. Kinda hoping he returns
on December 7. I just looked in my kitchen
junk drawer, and that man could decorate
freakin Festival of Trees next year.For more
information on Handmade City Holiday
2013, visit Handmade-City.com.
Ah! Its Jarren Benton, another
Georgia native who had a studio-
album debut this year with My
Grandmas Basement now thats
family-friendly! With BeatStars.
com calling the CD an independent
classic and Benton himself
definitely a star in the making, the
rap artist has performed international
tours throughout the United States,
Australia, and Europe, and his
propulsive mix tapes and music
videos feature such titles as Huffing
Glue with Hasselhoff, Freebasing
with Kevin Bacon, We on (My Own
D---) ... . All righty. Moving right
along ... .
Now here we go! Its Claudia
Feliciano, whose professional
name is Snow Tha Product, a
moniker inspired by Disneys
Snow White! Whew! A rap artist
who, just four weeks ago, inspired
FreeMusicEmpire.com to write 2013
is better with Snow Tha Product in
it, the musicians complex yet catchy
vocal and lyrical arrangements can
be heard on such efforts as Drunk
Love, Damn It, Cookie Cutter
Bitches, Holy Sh-- ... .
Wow. I shouldve maybe done
more research before also writing
about A Fairy Tale Christmas on
these pages, huh?
Fridays Life & Times Tour
performance features an opening
set by AWTHNTKTS, and more
information on the night is available
by calling (309)793-4060 or visiting
RIBCO.com.
But beyond Curtiss, the
comedys cast will also boast 10
gifted actors familiar from their
appearances in previous Prenzie
outings. If you know their work,
and know Two Gentlemen of
Verona, try guessing who plays
which character in this latest
endeavor. (As usual with the
Prenzies, dont let the roles
original genders mislead you!
runs Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. and
Sunday at 2 p.m., and more information and
tickets are available by calling (309)278-8426 or
visiting PrenziePlayers.com.
MUSIC
Sunday, December 1 Jim
McDonough: Holiday Grande.
New stage production featuring the
pianist and International Steinway
Artist, a 14-piece orchestra, and
a cast of singers and dancers
performing Christmas music and
other favorites. Adler Theatre (136
East Third Street, Davenport).
2:30 p.m. $35-40. For tickets, call
(800)745-3000 or visit AdlerTheatre.
com.
Friday, December 6, and
Saturday, December 7 Christmas
at Augustana. The Augustana Brass
Ensemble, Augustana Symphony
Orchestra, Augustana Choir, Jenny
Lind Vocal Ensemble, Wennerberg
Mens Chorus, Cantilena Augustana,
Ascension Ringers, and others
perform for the sixth-annual holiday
concert. Augustana Colleges
Centennial Hall (3703 Seventh
Avenue, Rock Island). Friday 8 p.m.,
Saturday 4 p.m. $10-20. For tickets
and information, call (309)794-7306
or visit Augustana.edu.
Saturday, December 7, and
Sunday, December 8 Quad
City Symphony Orchestra. The
Masterworks III concerts, featuring
guest conductor Alasdair Neale
What Else
Is Happenin
Whats Happenin
by Mike Schulz
mike@rcreader.com
Continued On Page 14 A n s w e r s : 1 E , 2 H , 3 G , 4 C , 5 F , 6 I , 7 A , 8 D , 9 J , 1 0 B . T h a t l a s t o n e i s i r o n i c , b e c a u s e T r a c y S k a g g s a c t u a l l y l i v e s i n M i l a n ! O f c o u r s e , i t s W e s t M i l a n . . . a n d
i t s i n I l l i n o i s , n o t I t a l y . . . a n d t h e c i t y i s p r o n o u n c e d M y - l u n h e r e , b u t s t i l l . . . . N u t t y c o i n c i d e n c e , h u h ? ! ?
A) Antonio
B) Duke of Milan
C) Julia
D) Launce
E) Lucetta
F) Panthino
G) Silvia
H) Speed
I) Thurio
J) Valentine
the percentage of literature and increasing
informational texts as the student advances in
grades. The result of this, according to language-
arts academics, is severely diminished critical-
thinking skills that are specifically developed
through exposure to literary texts.
Common Core methodologies are so
different that teachers require extensive re-
training to implement the curriculum. Teachers
compensation will be tied to testing results.
Common Core is not the product of
legislative action. It is being implemented
solely through administrative procedure using
federal dollars as the incentive for states to
adopt its programming. This is a monumental
change in education policy, yet state legislators
had no say or oversight in its development or
implementation. Fifteen states are introducing
legislation to remove Common Core from their
schools, including Michigan, Georgia, and North
Carolina.
School districts are technically not mandated
to adopt Common Core, because it is illegal for
the federal government to involve itself in state
school-curriculum testing. It gets around this
prohibition by allowing the states to determine
proficiencies and then ties dollars to minimum
proficiencies that incentivize lower standards
across the nation. Because it is voluntary,
communities can engage and accept or reject
Common Core according to their judgment.
But this requires that parents, teachers, and
administrators fully investigate its merits or
lack thereof.
Common Core is basically a
repackaging of George H. Bushs outcome-
based education, whose curriculum was
resoundingly defeated when the Christian
community rallied against it in the early
1990s. The objections then were similar,
including an excessively intrusive government
agenda, pre-determining students career
pathways, and a disturbingly inappropriate
focus on influencing students value systems
at the expense of scholastic achievements.
Common Core is this same program
on steroids because of the advances in
technology and behavioral science, and the
increasing erosion of parents rights. Because
Common Core is regulated via administrative
procedure, it is not answerable to the U.S.
Constitution. Ponder that while you still have
critical-thinking skills to do so.
Please see this article online at RCReader.
com/y/core for source links and reading
recommendations on Common Core.
and violinist Naha Greenholtz, with a
repertoire including Jennifer Higdons
Pulitzer Prize-winning Violin Concerto
and Rachmaninoffs Symphony No. 2.
Saturday: Adler Theatre (136 East Third
Street, Davenport), 7:30 p.m. Sunday:
Augustana Colleges Centennial
Hall (3703 Seventh Avenue, Rock
Island), 2 p.m. $10-55. For tickets and
information, call (563)322-7276 or visit
QCSymphony.com.
Saturday, December 7 Casey
Abrams. Concert with the singer/
songwriter and American Idol finalist.
Augustana College Center for Student
Life (639 38th Street, Rock Island). 8 p.m.
$10. For tickets and information, call
(309)794-7306 or visit Augustana.edu.
Sunday, December 8 Pokey
LaFarge. Country-blues and early-jazz
musician in concert, with an opening
set by The Tillers. The Redstone
Room (129 Main Street, Davenport).
7:30 p.m. $8-10. For tickets and
RiverMusicExperience.org.
Sunday, December 8 An
Ambrosian Christmas. Concert
featuring St. Ambrose Universitys
Chamber Singers, University Chorale,
Symphonic Band, SAU-Community
Symphony Orchestra, Jazz Ensemble,
STAMVOJA, and Bee Sharp. Adler
Theatre (136 East Third Street,
Davenport). 7 p.m. $2-5. For tickets and
SAU.edu.
Tuesday, December 10 Branson
on the Road: Christmas Style. Holiday
concert of bluegrass, rockabilly,
gospel, and comedy with the touring
performers. Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse
(1828 Third Avenue, Rock Island). 11:30
a.m. doors, 11:45 a.m.-12:45 p.m. plated
lunch, 1 p.m. show, $42.32. 7 p.m. show,
$25-30. For tickets and information,
call (309)786-7733 extension 2 or visit
Circa21.com.
THEATRE
Thursday, December 5, through
Sunday, December 8 A Christmas
Survival Guide. Quad City Music
Guilds musical-comedy revue about
the most stressful time of the year,
directed by John Weigandt. Prospect
Park Auditorium (1584 34th Avenue,
Moline). Thursday-Saturday 7:30 p.m.,
Sunday 2 p.m. $10-15. For tickets and
QCMusicGuild.com.
Friday, December 6, through
Sunday, December 15 A Christmas
Carol. Tristan Tapscotts and Danny
Whites adaptation of Charles
Dickens holiday classic. District
Theatre (1611 Second Avenue, Rock
Island). Thursdays-Saturdays 8 p.m.,
Sundays 2 p.m. $20. For tickets and
DistrictTheatre.com.
Saturday, December 7, and
Sunday, December 8 Toy Camp.
Toy-themed family musical, directed
by Corinne Johnson. St. Ambrose
Universitys Galvin Fine Arts Center
(2101 Gaines Street, Davenport). 3 p.m.
$7-8. For tickets and information, call
(563)333-6251 or visit SAU.edu.
Wednesday, December 11, through
Sunday, December 15 A Green River.
Returning-soldier drama by Aaron
Randolph III, directed by Philip Wm.
McKinley. Augustana Colleges Potter
Theatre (3701 Seventh Avenue, Rock
Island). Wednesday-Saturday 7:30 p.m.,
Sunday 1:30 p.m. $9-11. For tickets and
Augustana.edu/tickets.
HOLIDAY EVENTS
Friday, November 29 Bottoms Up
Quad City Burlesque Christmas Show.
Holiday-themed evening with the area
burlesque artists and comedians. Circa
21 Speakeasy (1818 Third Avenue, Rock
Island). 8 p.m. $10 plus an unwrapped
toy for Toys for Tots. For tickets and
information, call (309)786-7733
extension 2 or visit Circa21.com.
Sunday, December 1 19th
Century Christmas. Annual event
featuring live music, festive holiday
trimmings, and homespun arts
and crafts. Butterworth Center
(1105 Eighth Street, Moline).
Noon-5 p.m. Free admission. For
ButterworthCenter.com.
Friday, December 6 Gallery Hop!
Seasonal event featuring art exhibits,
presentations, discounts, and more
at numerous downtown locales. The
District of Rock Island. For information,
call (309)788-6311 or visit RIDistrict.com.
Continued From Page 13
What Else Is Happenin
even if the answer is incorrect. If a student can
make a case for 2 times 2 equals 5, the student
is considered successful in the lesson, regardless
that the answer is wrong. Faction writing
allows the student to use a combination of facts
and fiction in writing research papers/essays on
factual/historical events. As long as the process
is believable, the work is acceptable regardless if
facts are wrong or nonexistent. Common Cores
deliberate departure from empirical answers
as the primary objective in learning is arguably
irrational and potentially dooms students to an
inferior knowledge base.
One of the architects of Common Core,
David Coleman, is also the president of the
College Board, which provides the SAT college-
entrance tests, ensuring that curricula will have
to conform to Common Core for students to
score well on the SATs.
Common Core testing is actually data-
mining that, instead of testing what students
actually know, tests for beliefs, attitudes, habits,
and actions.
Cursive writing is eliminated from the
Common Core curriculum.
Reading requirements are based on a
percentage ratio of literature (fiction, poetry)
to informational texts (nonfiction), decreasing
the organization had no standing (EPIC.org/
apa/ferpa).
Schools can collect and distribute a massive
amount of private data without parents
permission.
The Family Educational Rights & Privacy
Act (FERPA) protects student information
from being shared in the same way the Health
Insurance Portability & Accountability Act
(HIPAA) protects health information. However,
Common Core has been given an exemption
from FERPA, allowing schools to share student
information with multiple governmental
agencies (even across state borders) and private-
sector corporations.
Common Core programming provides
for intensive surveillance of students while at
school including cameras in the classroom,
wrist sensors, chair sensors, and mouse sensors
to collect physical and psychological data for
specific types of academic and labor-related
profiling.
The Common Core curriculum replaces
learning fundamentals (reading, writing,
arithmetic, critical-thinking skills) with an
experimental focus on processes. For example,
estimative math is concerned with the
students thought process in deriving an answer,
Under the Radar: Common Core in Our Schools
by Kathleen McCarthy
km@rcreader.com
WORDS FROM THE EDITOR
even something as specific as a single
line reading that made you sit up and go,
Whoa.
The deadline for inclusion in the
Readers collaborative Year in Theatre
project is Monday, December 16, at
5 p.m. Please send contributions to
mike@rcreader.com, with the subject
heading Year in Theatre, and please
include a daytime phone number.
A number of chosen selections will
appear in the online version of the article,
and from those, well also choose a couple
dozen or so to publish in the Readers
December 26 print edition.
A full list of eligible titles can be found
in the online version of this article at
RCReader.com/y/2013theatre, and we
thank you very much, in advance, for
your involvement! Were psyched to hear
what everyone has to say!
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November 27 January 20
by Mike Schulz
mike@rcreader.com
T
he past three Decembers, theatre
reviewer Thom White and I have
wrapped up the Readers annual
stage coverage with published conversa-
tions on the year, rife with opinions on
local plays and musicals enjoyed (and
sometimes not). But this time, we want to
hear from you!
So this December, in lieu of another
Thom-and-Mike chat, the River Cities
Reader is planning to publish what local
theatre-goers and theatre participants
found memorable about our areas 2013
stage scene. Your stipulations for sharing
are:
1) Your contributions must come in
at 100 words or fewer.
2) Your contributions can only be
about stage works in which you were
not personally involved. (For the
Seeking Contributions to The Year in Theatre, 2013: Community Project
THEATRE
artistic directors among you, this means
sticking with shows that took place in
venues other than your own.)
Were hoping especially for
contributions that suggest just how
thrilling the stage can be shows or
performances or details or weird and
wonderful accidents that made you go,
This is why I love theatre! Allow Thom
and I to offer two of our own.
Thom: Among the theatrical elements
that stick out in my mind from this past
year is the wash of blood that poured
over Lucy after the Count bit her in Ballet
Quad Cities Dracula. While blood is to
be expected in any representation of the
story, the release of this thick ribbon of
red was a shock the climax of a sensual
encounter between the two characters,
and effectively disturbing for the sudden
release of blood and the believability of
its look. This frightful moment was truly
a bit of theatrical magic.
Mike: I was at Countryside
Community Theatres Les Misrables the
night a storm knocked out the power
in Eldridge, causing the performance,
unfortunately, to be canceled after 25
minutes. But before everyone was sent
home, the cast with no functioning
stage lights took the stage for the
rousing Act I closer One Day More,
and, as a parting gift, sang the absolute
hell out of that thing, uniting actors,
musicians, crew, and audience in a
gloriously unplanned spectacle that
earned an incredibly sincere, hugely
deserved standing ovation. Canceled
show or not, it was unforgettable theatre.
Those are our fewer-than-100, but
feel free to use your words to discuss
several shows, or several individuals, or
RiverCitiesReader.com
thinking about the face of Chiwetel
Ejiofor. For much of the movie, the actor
is asked to convey unspeakable outrage
and anger literally without speaking,
and the burning ferocity in Ejiofors eyes
makes even Ridleys smart, beautifully
literate dialogue borderline-irrelevant.
After, however, Solomon surreptitiously
tells the story of his capture and
enslavement to Pitts plantation visitor
Bass, with the latter stating that hell do
what he can to get word of Solomons
plight to his family, McQueen gives us a
scene a single shot, actually in which
Solomon stares toward the camera for a
full minute while quiet thunder rumbles
ominously in the background. Its a
moment that could be easily mistaken
for a throwaway; narratively speaking,
it doesnt look like anything is really
happening in it. But as the shot continues,
with Ejiofors eyes slowly brimming with
tears, we gradually realize that its not that
nothing is happening; its that Solomon
is listening for something, and not
necessarily for the storms arrival.
Could it be the help that Bass vowed
to provide? Could it be Epps learning
of Solomons treachery? Could it be
God, answering an unspoken prayer?
These and numerous other options are
seen in the tender, ravaged landscape
of Solomons face, and without making
any kind of showy deal of the moment,
Ejiofor suggests all of them with a
nearly unblinking expression of torment
suffused with an unmistakable measure
of hope; its a staggering brief scene,
and perhaps the richest piece of acting
within Ejiofors almost impossibly great
performance. (At present, only Cate
Blanchetts Blue Jasmine turn would rival
it for the title of 2013s finest.) It might
appear to be one of those movies you go
to more out of duty (or, possibly, guilt)
than genuine desire, but I urge you not to
miss 12 Years a Slave. There will no doubt
be times you find yourself not wanting
to be there. You need to be there. And
afterward, you may even find yourself
wanting/needing to be there again.
For reviews of Delivery Man, Enough
Said, Dallas Buyers Club, The Best Man
Holiday, and other current releases, visit
RiverCitiesReader.com.
Follow Mike on Twitter at Twitter.com/
MikeSchulzNow.
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Kat-and-Mouse Game
by Mike Schultz
mike@rcreader.com
part three. I just wish I didnt leave this
professionally rendered, narratively ho-
hum Hunger Games endeavor thinking
the Catching in its title wasnt accidentally
replaced by Lacking.
12 YEARS A SLAVE
Its impossible to imagine any viewer
of director Steve McQueens 12 Years
a Slave not haunted for hours, if not
days or weeks, by its potent, frequently
horrific imagery. Be it the protracted
sight of protagonist Solomon Northrup
hanging from a tree, his wiggling toes
barely touching the dirt, or the early
shot of Northrup caged in a Washington,
D.C., prison with the camera slowly
tilting upward to implicate Capitol Hill
in his (and all slaves) ordeal, McQueen
continually delivers wrenching visual
representations to match this already-
wrenching tale. Yet if pressed for the
one image that I find lingering above all
others in this magnificent, devastating
film, it would simply be the face of
Chiwetel Ejiofor, who, in one unbroken
take near the finale, almost seems
to encapsulate hundreds of years of
injustice in one
anguished stare.
Unless, for
some strange
reason, youve
heard that
the movie is
bad, probably
everything
youve heard
about 12
Years a Slave
is true. This
factual tale of Solomon Northrup a
prosperous Northern violinist (played
by Ejiofor) who, in 1841, was kidnapped,
sold into slavery, and made to endure
a dozen hellish years toiling on a series
of Southern plantations is oftentimes
painful to watch, featuring brutal
depictions of the loathsome conditions,
and loathsome people, Solomon and
countless others were forced to suffer
under. McQueens and screenwriter
John Ridleys considerable artistry,
however, makes the film, if not an easy
sit, at least a consistently gripping one,
and one could hardly find fault with the
exemplary production design or near-
ceaseless parade
of outstanding
performances.
(Only the
overly laid-
back readings
of Brad Pitt,
who shows up
toward the end
as a sympathetic
Canadian and
virtual deus ex
machina, seem
somewhat anachronistic.)
Time and again in 12 Years a Slave,
McQueen and his on- and off-screen
collaborators offer sights, sounds, and
actions that you feel might be burnished
in your memory forever. An inebriated
and confused Solomon, after a happy
night drinking with presumed patrons
of the arts, waking to find his wrists
and ankles shackled. The sadistic,
alcoholic plantation owner Epps (Michael
Fassbender, transfixing and terrifying)
walking Solomon into the night, his
lantern creating an incongruously warm
glow beneath the mans nightmarish,
whispered threats. Epps monstrous wife
Mary (a rigid, superb Sarah Paulson)
casually lifting a heavy glass decanter
and bouncing it off the forehead of
her husbands favored slave Patsey (the
luminous and heartbreaking Lupita
Nyongo). And as he also demonstrated
in his previous films Hunger and Shame,
McQueen has a true genius for sustained
shots, some lasting for minutes on end,
that draw you in with a staggering,
hypnotic pull. In one sequence here, Epps
forces Solomon to whip Patsey for her
insubordination, and it isnt until this
aching, bloody spectacle is nearly over
that you realize why (beyond the obvious)
its so particularly harrowing. As operated
by the marvelous cinematographer Sean
Bobbitt, McQueens circling camera never
flinches from the pain; the shot demands
that we take in Solomons mortification
and self-loathing, and Patseys broken
body and spirit, without edits providing
any desperately wanted yet inaccessible
emotional distancing. You think
watching this is tough? McQueen may
as well be asking. Imagine living it.
And yet, for all of the movies
memorable images and dramatic urgency
and sterling portrayals (I havent even
mentioned the pitch-perfect character
work provided by Paul Giamatti,
Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano,
Garrett Dillahunt, and the beyond-
sublime Alfre Woodard), I cant stop
Michael Fassbender and Chiwetel Ejiofor in
12 Years a Slave
MOVIES
elaborate passages in the solo violin.
The third movement, called Fly
Forward, is a lively finale that, Higdon
wrote, allows the soloist to delight the
audience with feats of great virtuosity.
Like many composers, Higdon was
inspired to write the concerto for a specific
player. Hilary Hahn, a violin student in
Higdons 20th Century Music class, had a
penchant for what Higdon called exploring
and discovering new musical languages and
styles. The collaboration expanded the role
of the soloist, creating extended phrases
of elaborately ornamented lines that swirl
around the slower-moving accompaniment
or thematic statements in the orchestra.
Now a professional soloist, Hahn has
championed the concerto in both concert
halls and recordings.
The Times of London concisely distilled
the concerto by noting that Higdons
work is traditionally rooted, yet imbued
with integrity, freshness, and a desire to
entertain. A promising mixture.
For me, in the beginning it was a
thousand pieces of string dangling without
form or logic leading some place I had
never been. But when it was over, Higdon
had artfully crocheted a wedding dress of
music, and all I could do was sit back and
try to take in the marvelousness of it.
Jennifer Higdons Violin Concerto will be
paired with Rachmaninoff s Symphony No.
2 at the Quad City Symphonys concerts
on December 7 (at the Adler Theatre)
and 8 (at Augustana Colleges Centennial
Hall). For tickets or more information, visit
QCSymphony.com.
Frederick Morden is a retired orchestra-music
director, conductor, composer, arranger,
educator, and writer who has served on the
executive board of the Conductors Guild.
Nontraditional Tradition
by Mike Schultz
mike@rcreader.com
THEATRE
stuff, and you have to be on cue, and its led
to lots of ... I dont know, a lot more bonding
between us.
And theres some fantastic music in
this, says Jaci, and a number of songs that
everybodys gonna recognize. Although
maybe not quite like this.
She isnt kidding. A Christmas Survival
Guides song list does, for instance, boast the
holiday perennial 12 Days of Christmas. In
this version, however, its titled 12 Steps of
Christmas, with its singer looking forward
to receiving the serenity to accept the things
I cannot change, the courage to change the
things I can, and the wisdom to know the
difference, a session with my therapist Ted,
and, from her sponsor, fi-i-ive smoki-i-ing
pa-a-atches!
And while the traditionally mellow Silver
Bells may start much like you remember
it, the song, here, quickly morphs into a far
more manic serenade to holiday-shopping
madness.
All of a sudden, says John, it becomes
about the sounds and sights and smells
that are literally assaulting you all at once
during the holiday season. Chuckling, he
adds, Yeah, Silver Bells kind of goes off the
tracks.
I really like Johns premise, says
Sondgeroth of A Christmas Survival Guide,
in that its like one of those old-school The
Julie Andrews Christmas Hour things where
its kind of song, song, song, but then there
are these fun little vignettes added in. And
even though its not a known classic, there
are definitely things in it both funny and
touching. Anybody that has experienced the
holidays is going to be able to relate to it, in
many ways.
Quad City Music Guilds A Christmas
Survival Guide runs December 5 through 8
at the Prospect Park Auditorium (1584 34th
Avenue, Moline), with Thursday through
Saturday performances at 7:30 p.m. and
Sundays performance at 2 p.m. For more
information and tickets, call (309)762-6610 or
visit QCMusicGuild.com.
Compelling Mystery
MUSIC
by Frederick Morden
f.morden@mchsi.com
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face the holidays
yourself a ring didnt work and why you
felt undervalued and ashamed when your
boyfriend got down on one knee, but only so
he could plug in a moderately priced kitchen
appliance and propose, How bout we put
stale bread cubes on sticks and dunk em in
melted cheese?
Being too needy to live alone is reason to
get a dog or paste a face on your robot vacuum
cleaner, not rush into a lifelong commitment.
The way to figure this out is by spending
time together without living together until
hes ready to commit or youre ready to throw
in the towel. But pick a date to take stock of
whether progress is being made so you arent
hanging on endlessly. As they say in the fondue
world, there comes a time when a guy needs to
either dip or get off the pot.
Paradise Lust
I want to break up with my girlfriend, but
we are supposed to go to Costa Rica and have
already paid for the house were renting for
the month with her friends. Is it ridiculous
to wait til after Costa Rica to break up?
I Sound Like a Jerk
When you put off canceling a relationship
to avoid canceling your vacation, even
posing for photos can get complicated. You
might find yourself trying to put a native
person or pre-Columbian artifact between
the two of you to avoid blurting out, Hey,
can you stand a little farther away from me?
Itll make it way easier to crop you out.
Unfortunately, you cant do much to cushion
the blow when she invariably squeezes out
of you that you stuck around long after
you stopped loving her, which will make
her feel stupid and humiliated, in addition
to the usual fun feelings that come with
being dumped. Barring some immediate
need for your emotional support (like your
partners grandmas impending funeral or
bail hearing), the kindest thing you can do is
break up as soon as you know its over even
if it bummers up your travel plans and means
youll eat some costs. Letting your girlfriend
go without you to Costa Rica might allow her
to look back fondly on both the relationship
and the vacation in a way she couldnt if
she were flipping through her trip photos
saying, And this is the guy who wanted
nothing to do with me kissing me under a
jungle waterfall.
Got A Problem? Ask Amy Alkon.
171 Pier Ave, #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405
or e-mail AdviceAmy@aol.com (AdviceGoddess.com)
2013, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved.
Ask
the
Advice
Goddess
BY AMY ALKON
Took the Wind Out of
Her Zales
Around Valentines Day, my beloved
boyfriend of a year kept hinting about a big
surprise. Hed been talking about moving in
with me, and I was expecting a proposal and
a ring. I got a fondue pot. I have two children
and, apparently, the idea that a man should
put a ring on a womans finger before moving
in with her and her kids. He said hed propose
when he was ready. Then, by accident (I
think), he left his Amazon.com page open
on my computer, showing the tackiest,
cheapest ring in the world and a pocketknife
for himself (which cost more than the ring).
I told him to move in and forget the ring. I
bought myself a ring, but that didnt work.
I felt undervalued and ashamed. We fought
often, and he ended up moving out. He wants
me back, but I dont want to live with him
without the stupid ring. Were both too needy
to live apart. Can we salvage this?
Heartbroken Mama
The man you love did give you a shiny
object that you could show off to the girls at
the office, even if the admiring remarks you
were hoping for werent Look at that thing!
Its twice the size of Mirandas Crock-Pot! and
Ooh, is that stainless steel?
Diamond engagement rings can seem like
a completely stupid thing to want. Theyre
absurdly expensive and hard to tell from
lab-created rings available at a fraction of
the cost. And what good are they, really? As
evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller
jokes in The Mating Mind, Why should a man
give a woman a useless diamond engagement
ring when he could buy her a nice big potato,
which she could at least eat?
Well, the answer is that men can walk
away after sex and women may walk away
with a bunch of little mouths to drag around
and feed, so women evolved to seek reliable
signs that a man has access to resources
and a willingness to provide them. Any
hump-em-and-dump-em smooth talker can
make promises. The most reliable signs of
commitment are those economists call costly
signals, meaning that they require substantial
effort or financial investment and are therefore
difficult to fake. Basically, only a guy whos
madly in love with you would be willing to
prove it with an object as wildly expensive
and useless as a diamond. Thats why buying
elevated capacity for both giving and receiving
pleasure. In fact, I predict that your ability to feel
really good and make other people feel really good
will be at a peak. I hereby designate this the Week
of Supreme Bliss.

VIRGO (August 23-September 22):
The BBC reported on an expert who
combs Switzerlands Risoud Forest to
find the spruce trees whose wood can be made
into the highest quality violins. After years of
experience, Lorenzo Pellegrini knows which few
trees will produce instruments with the most
resonant tones. They grow slowly and have few
knots. They need to have had enough water to
grow strong, but not so much water that theyre
mushy. Your task in the coming weeks, Virgo, has
a certain resemblance to the master tree-pickers
work. Its time for you to start selecting and
gathering the raw materials you will use to craft
your own lyrical story in 2014.

LIBRA (September 23-October 22):
Heres the bad news: For all of us,
including you, there is a gap between our intentions
and our actual effects. Heres the good news: Now
is your special time to narrow that gap. More bad
news: All of us, you included, are periodically guilty
of sending out mixed messages. We confuse people
with our ambivalence; what we say is sometimes
different from what we feel. More good news: Now
is your special time to reduce your mixed messages
to as close to zero as possible. One more taste of
bad news: Like all of us, you are a bit hypocritical.
You engage in behavior that you criticize in others.
You dont practice what you preach. One last piece
of good news: Now is your special time to work on
being forthright, genuine, and consistent.

SCORPIO (October 23-November
21): I am very fond of strawberries
and cream, said author Dale Carnegie,
but I have found that for some strange reason,
fish prefer worms. So when I went fishing, I
didnt think about what I wanted. I thought about
what they wanted. I didnt bait the hook with
strawberries and cream. Rather, I dangled a worm
or grasshopper in front of the fish. Thats a good
teaching story for you, Scorpio. In order to get your
desires fulfilled by the people who have the power
to do that, you should give them what they actually
long for not what you long for, or what you wish
they would long for. This is always true, of course,
but its especially applicable to whats going on in
your life right now.

SAGITTARIUS (November
22-December 21): Touted as a prime
source of kick-ass spirituality, author
Danielle LaPorte has advice thats good for you to
hear. You will always be too much of something
for someone, she says, too big, too loud, too soft,
too edgy. But thats exactly as it should be, she
adds. It would be a mistake to round out your
edges, because then you would lose your edge.
Go to RealAstrology.com to check out Rob Brezsny's
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
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY by Rob Brezsny
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Thinking
inside the box will be a crime against
your nature in the coming weeks.
The last place you want to be is in a pigeonhole.
I advise you to stay far away from tight squeezes,
claustrophobic sanctuaries, and convenient
confinements. If youre in a one-size-fits-all
situation, you simply wont be able to access your
highest intelligence. So then where should you
be? I am rooting for you to wander into the wild
frontiers where unsanctioned wonders and marvels
await you. Id love for you to find virgin terrain and
uncharted territories where the boring old rules
dont apply.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Mike
Finnigan is a veteran keyboardist and
blues vocalist who has toured with more
than 20 major acts, including Jimi Hendrix, Etta
James, Leonard Cohen, and Los Lonely Boys.
Theres a primal quality to his singing. Its gritty
and fluid and tempestuous, almost feral at times. I
understand perfectly why Bonnie Raitt has called
him a tall drink of bacon. The sound he makes
with his voice is that lush and tasty. Can you guess
his astrological sign? Its Taurus, of course. Im
naming him your patron saint this week because
you yourself are as close as you have ever come to
being a tall drink of bacon.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): French
painter Henri Matisse thought highly of
his own work. He tended to ignore critics
because he didnt think they understood his art
well enough to produce intelligent critiques. There
was one person whose opinion he was willing to
heed, though a single colleague who he said had
earned to right to evaluate and assess his art: Pablo
Picasso. I encourage you, Gemini, to come up with
your own short list of people whose judgment you
totally trust and respect. Its a good time to seek out
their feedback on how youre doing.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): How is it
possible that you have come so far and
worked so diligently only to be resigned
now to hanging out in limbo, waiting around for
the lucky break that may or may not ever arrive?
Im here today to escort you out of this infernal
place. If you resist, my assignment is to drag you
out. Why am I so adamant? Because I am sure its a
mistake for you to be passive and hope for the best.
You need to resume working diligently, focused
for now on whats right in front of you without
worrying too much about the big picture. In my
opinion, that approach will lead you to unforeseen
help and a clarification of the big picture.

LEO (July 23-August 22): Your levels of
personal magic are high. The radiance
beaming out of your eyes is extra sparkly.
Theres an artistry to the way you are expressing
yourself. Without even trying, youre exuding
natural charisma and animal magnetism. In light
of all these advantages, I suspect you will have an
And Im here to tell you that you need all of your
edge right now, Sagittarius. Its time to ignore
peoples mediocre expectations and push past their
limits. To be true to yourself, you will probably
have to be too much of something for several
someones.

CAPRICORN (December 22-January
19): Going into my spiritual mentoring
session with the priestess, I had the
intention of discovering truths about myself I didnt
know before. That meant stirring up revelations
about my ignorance as well as my potentials. I
wanted assistance in facing my flaws as well as in
tapping into my dormant powers. It worked. Her
guidance was a potent catalyst. I was able to shed
the debilitating nonsense stories Id been telling
myself about who I am. I awakened strengths that
had been asleep. What I wish for you, Capricorn
indeed, what I predict for you is a comparable
experience. To expedite matters, go out in search of
a person, adventure, or breakthrough that can help
provide you with the kind of prod I received.

AQUARIUS (January 20-February
18): I bet people will be gossiping
about you more than usual. Is there
anything you can do to ensure that its mostly
benevolent gossip? Yes, there is. First, make
sure that when you gossip about others, you are
unfailingly positive in your comments. If you
dont have anything good to say about someone,
dont say it. Second, be on your best behavior.
Communicate clearly and dont even think about
taking unethical shortcuts. Finally, contribute more
inspirational energy than usual to every group
youre part of. Be an effervescent team player.

PISCES (February 19-March 20): Maybe
your ego isnt big enough. Im serious.
Is it possible that you could benefit
from being more proud of yourself? Would it be
healthy for you to give yourself more credit for the
struggles you have weathered and the skills you
have mastered and the beauty you have managed
to forge out of the chaotic raw materials that life
has given you? Ive got a good feeling about this,
Pisces. I can imagine you summoning the playful
courage you will need to express more confidence.
I can even picture you beginning to fantasize about
embarking on certain stirring adventures youve
never believed you were strong enough to try
before now.

Homework: What part of you is too tame? How can
you inspire it to seek wilder ways of knowing? Write
FreeWillAstrology.com.
Nov. 14 Answers: Right
HOWS THAT AGAIN November 27, 2013
ACROSS
1. Kind of woody fiber
5. _ _ nothing
10. Bilbos nephew
15. Old Hebrew instrument
19. Love, personified
20. Soft, in music
21. Less done
22. Source of inspiration
23. Start of a quip by 63-Across: 3 wds.
25. Giraffid animal
26. Thin Man canine
27. Awards
28. Committee
30. Brits ciggy
32. Colleen
33. Jansch and Convy
34. House for a cleric
35. Pas de deux
37. Kind of gun
38. Japanese sport
39. Mil. rank
42. Flees
43. Container
44. Part 2 of quip: 3 wds.
47. Some colonists
48. Start of a palindrome
50. Jot
51. Manage to live
52. Part of Scand.
53. Daughter of Lear
55. Letters
56. Struck
57. Harsh sounding
59. Andre _ Chenier
61. Son of Judah
62. Cavity in rock
63. Speaker of the quip: 2 wds.
67. Nonsense!
68. Little bit
70. Horse on a track
71. A flower: 2 wds.
75. _ Came a Spider
77. SSW or NNE, e.g.
78. French explorer
81. Whey-faced
82. _ a deux
83. Within: Prefix
85. Part of 100-Across
86. Heal
87. Part 3 of quip: 3 wds.
90. French article
91. Rec room game
92. Admissions test
93. Birds, the class
94. Bury
96. Role in Lohengrin
97. After
99. Consternation
100. Sch. in Annapolis
102. Customize
104. Ship part
105. Make rough
109. Reasoners word
110. Place of assembly
112. End of the quip
114. Yearn
115. Looked
116. Stun gun
117. Romney and Radcliffe
118. Phooey!
119. Destroy by degrees
120. Cache
121. _ -majeste
DOWN
1. Thai money
2. Pt. of CSA: Abbr.
3. Manhattan neighborhood
4. Three siblings, sometimes
5. Orbital point
6. Still _ (paintings)
7. _ and the Real Girl
8. Yoko _
9. Cavorted
10. Seat location: 2 wds.
11. Libertines
12. Nuncupative
13. EPA cousin
14. Paper-folding art
15. Collect
16. Power-line supports: 2 wds.
17. Bone: Prefix
18. Raise
24. _ What Friends Are For
29. Bedouin
31. Battery terminals
33. Elephant in juvenile tales
34. Essentials
35. Patron
36. Form of invisible radiation: 2 wds.
37. Coarse
38. Eye injury
40. _ del Sol
41. Repeatedly
42. Ka-boom!
43. Sour
45. A possessive
46. Breed of horned sheep
48. Cal. abbr.
49. Comedian of a kind
53. Spear for fish
54. Sticker
58. Root veggie
60. Published again
64. Thinks
65. Country star _ Brooks
66. Reference book
67. Norma _
68. Handles
69. Stadium in Oahu
72. Annex
73. North Pole denizen
74. Termini
76. Legato anagram
77. Discourage
79. City on the Willamette River
80. Affirm
84. Amorous look
86. Kind of tropical fever
88. Mean
89. Catch
91. Star in Cygnus
95. Rewards for a pooch
98. Bitter _
99. Made public
100. Conductor of a kind
101. Tapering part
102. Race
103. Medieval chest for riches
104. Famed clown
105. Lhasa _
106. First-rate
107. Casks
108. _ est percipi
111. Needlefish
113. Beer or bath
November 14 Crossword Answers
Live Music Live Music Live Music
Email all listings to calendar@rcreader.com Deadline 5 p.m. Thursday before publication
Milky Way CD Release Show- Errol
Hem - Hyphon - Molly Conrad - Jus-
tin Means -Bier Stube Moline Black-
hawk Room, 417 15th St. Moline, IL
Mixology -Gabes, 330 E. Washington
St. Iowa City, IA
Night People -Wi l d Rose Casi no &
Resort, 311 Riverview Dr Clinton, IA
North of 40 -Wildwood Smokehouse
& Saloon, 4919 B Walleye Dr Iowa
City, IA
Paul Franklin (5:30pm) - Funktastic
Five (8:30pm) -The Rusty Nail, 2606
W Locust Davenport, IA
Powell -Rustic Ridge Golf Course Grille
& Pub, 1151 East Iowa St. Eldridge, IA
Propaganda -Fargo Dance & Sports,
4204 Avenue of the Cities Moline, IL
Southern Thunder Karaoke and DJ
-Hollars Bar and Grill, 4050 27th St
Moline, IL
The Return of the Hawk - Curti s
Hawkins & Friends -The Muddy
Waters, 1708 State St. Bettendorf, IA
Nitrix -Rudys Sports Bar & Grill, 117 N.
Prospect St. Cambridge, IL
North of 40 -Martinis on the Rock, 4619
34th St Rock Island, IL
Pieta Brown -Englert Theatre, 221 East
Washington St. Iowa City, IA
Propaganda -Fargo Dance & Sports,
Radoslav Lorkovic CD Release Show
-CSPS/Legion Arts, 1103 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, IA
Russ Reyman Request Pi ano Bar
(7pm) -Phoenix, 111 West 2nd St.
Davenport, IA
Soul Phlegm - Aitas - Doctor Murdock
- The Evan Stock Band -Iowa City
Yacht Club, 13 S Linn St Iowa City, IA
Stayin Alive: A Tribute to the BeeGees
-Quad-Cities Waterfront Conven-
tion Center, 1777 Isle Parkway Bet-
tendorf, IA
The Modern Era -RIBCO, 1815 2nd
Ave. Rock Island, IL
Todd Wolfe Band -The Muddy Waters,
1708 State St. Bettendorf, IA
Wild Oatz -Purgatorys Pub, 2104 State
St Bettendorf, IA
2013/12/01 (Sun)
ABC Karaoke -The Rusty Nail, 2606 W
Locust Davenport, IA
Central Standard Time: christmastime
-Coralville Center for the Performing
Arts, 1301 5th St. Coralville, IA
Detroit Larry Davison and Chris Avey
(6pm) -The Muddy Waters, 1708
State St. Bettendorf, IA
Freddie Steenbock Duo (8am) -Daven-
port American Legion, 702 W. 35th
St. Davenport, IA
Hol i day Zi ther Concert -Ger man
American Heritage Center, 712 W.
2nd St. Davenport, IA
2013/11/27 (Wed)
Acoustic Jam Night w/ Steve Mc-
Fate -McManus Pub, 1401 7th Ave
Moline, IL
Burlington Street Bluegrass Band -The
Mill, 120 E Burlington Iowa City, IA
Chuck Murphy -Daiquiri Factory, 1809
2nd Ave. Rock Island, IL
Cody Road -Jesses Saloon, 803 1st
Ave. Silvis, IL
Corporate Rock -Plamor Bowling Alley,
1411 Grandview Ave. Muscatine, IA
Cross Creek Karaoke -Heros Pub, 3811
N. Harrison St. Davenport, IA
Cross Creek Karaoke -La Hacienda,
120 Main St. Columbus Junction, IA
DJ Joe Tingle -Barrel House Moline,
1321 5th Ave. Moline, IL
Glenn Hickson (5:30pm) -Lees Lanes,
925 S. Oakwood Ave. Geneseo, IL
Ho Le Tuy & Winnie Duy Uyen -River-
side Casino and Golf Resort, 3184
Highway 22 Riverside, IA
Jam Session w/ Ben Soltau -Iowa City
Karaoke Night w/ Fat Dawgs Produc-
tions -QC Fami l y Entertai nment
Center, 4401 44th Ave. Moline, IL
Keller Karaoke -Martinis on the Rock,
4619 34th St Rock Island, IL
Lynn Allen -Purgatorys Pub, 2104 State
St Bettendorf, IA
Minus Six CD Release Party -RIBCO,
1815 2nd Ave. Rock Island, IL
North of 40 -The Rusty Nail, 2606 W
Open Mic Night -Boozies Bar & Grill,
114 1/2 W. 3rd St. Davenport, IA
Open Mic Night w/ Dave Ellis -Bleyarts
Tap, 2210 E. 11th St. Davenport, IA
Rude Punch -Barrel House 211, 211 E.
2nd St. Davenport, IA
Cross Creek Karaoke -Stickmans, 1510
Doug Miller - American Dust - Brooks
Strause -Rozz-Tox, 2108 3rd Ave.
Rock Island, IL
Family Groove Company - The Dawn
-The Redstone Room, 129 Main St
Davenport, IA
Geoff Landon -Riverside Casino and
Golf Resort, 3184 Highway 22 Riv-
erside, IA
Karaoke King -Chucks Tap, 1731 W. 6th
St. Davenport, IA
Koobys Karaoke -Funky Desi, 1409 5th
Ave. Moline, IL
Life & Times Tour featuring Rittz -
Snow: The Product - Jarren Benton
- AWTHNTKTS -RIBCO, 1815 2nd
Ave. Rock Island, IL
Lynn Allen Throw Back DVD Release
Night -Rascals Live, 1418 15th St.
Moline, IL
Winterland -Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S
Linn St Iowa City, IA
2013/11/30 (Sat)
ABC Karaoke -Creekside Bar and Grill,
3303 Brady St. Davenport, IA
Chuck Murphy -Barrel House 211, 211
E. 2nd St. Davenport, IA
Cody Road -Wildwood Smokehouse &
Saloon - Iowa City, 4919 B Walleye
Dr. SE Iowa City, IA
Community Drum Circle (10:30am)
-RME (River Music Experience), 131
W. 2nd St. Davenport, IA
Cosmic -Mound Street Landing, 1029
Mound St. Davenport, IA
Crosstown Collision - Fairhaven - Run
& Punch - The Suites -Rozz-Tox,
2108 3rd Ave. Rock Island, IL
DJ K -Funky Desi, 1409 5th Ave. Mo-
line, IL
Funktastic Five -Rascals Live, 1418
15th St. Moline, IL
Guy Drollinger & Gary Mortensen
-Uptown Bills Coffee House, 730 S.
Dubuque St. Iowa City, IA
Jason Carl & the Whole Damn Band
-11th Street Precinct, 2108 E 11th St
Davenport, IA
Joe Tingle -Barrel House Moline, 1321
5th Ave. Moline, IL
St. Davenport, IA
Karaoke Night -Headquarters Bar &
Grill, 119 E. 22nd Ave. Coal Valley, IL
Karen Michael (6pm) - Simon Says
Uncle (9pm) -The Rusty Nail, 2606
Kentucky Headhunters (8pm) - Geoff
Landon (9:45pm) -Riverside Casino
and Golf Resort, 3184 Highway 22
Riverside, IA
Lyle Beaver Trio -Walcott Coliseum, 116
E Bryant St Walcott, IA
The Chris & Wes Show -Mound Street
Landing, 1029 Mound St. Daven-
port, IA
The Hooks -Rascals Live, 1418 15th
St. Moline, IL
Them SomBitches - Idpyramid - Erin
Moore -Bier Stube Moline Blackhawk
Room, 417 15th St. Moline, IL
Wicked Liz & the Bellyswirls -The
Muddy Waters, 1708 State St. Bet-
tendorf, IA
2013/11/28 (Thu)
DJ & Karaoke Night -The Rusty Nail,
2606 W Locust Davenport, IA
Double Dz Karaoke -Purgatorys Pub,
2104 State St Bettendorf, IA
Jam Sessions with John OMeara &
Friends -The Muddy Waters, 1708
Karaoke Night -Crabbys Bar & Grill, 826
W. 1st Ave. Coal Valley, IL
Mixology -Gabes, 330 E. Washington
St. Iowa City, IA
Open Mic Night -Uptown Bills Coffee
House, 730 S. Dubuque St. Iowa
City, IA
Open Mic Night w/ Karl -Kilkennys, 300
W. 3rd St. Davenport, IA
Reggae Night w/ Two Peace -Rookies,
2818 N. Brady St. Davenport, IA
2013/11/29 (Fri)
ABC Karaoke -Circle Tap, 1345 Locust
St. Davenport, IA
Big Joes DJ & Karaoke Show -V.F.W.
Post 9128, 2814 State Street Bet-
tendorf, IA
Chuck Murphy -Longshots Bar & Grill,
3312 W. Rock Falls Rd Cedar Falls, IL
Jim McDonough @ Adler Theatre December 1
29 FRIDAY
28 THURSDAY
30
30 SATURDAY
1 SUNDAY
27 WEDNESDAY
Jim McDonough: Holiday Grande
2013 (2:30pm) -Adler Theatre, 136
E. 3rd St. Davenport, IA
Karaoke Night -The Torchlight Lounge,
1800 18th Ave East Moline, IL
Midnite Riders (5pm) -East Moline
American Legion, 829 16th Avenue
East Moline, IL
Open Mic Afternoon (3pm) -Mama Comp-
tons, 1725 2nd Ave Rock Island, IL
Soul Karaoke -Top Shelf Lounge, 1327
13th Ave East Moline, IL
Sunday Funday Karaoke (3pm) -Fricks
Tap, 1402 W. 3rd St. Davenport, IA
Sunday Jazz Brunch (10: 30am &
12:30pm) -Bix Bistro, 200 E. 3rd St.
Davenport, IA
Troy Harri s, Pi ani st (10am) -The
Lodge Hotel, 900 Spruce Hills Dr.
Bettendorf, IA
2013/12/02 (Mon)
ABC Karaoke -The Muddy Waters, 1708
Mi cawber - Ganesha - They Wi l l
Repent - Mutilated by Zombies
-Gabes, 330 E. Washington St. Iowa
City, IA
Musical Morning (7am) -Brewed Awak-
enings, 221 Brady St. Davenport, IA
Open Mic at the Paddlewheel hosted
by Silly C & Slack Man -Paddlewheel
Sports Bar & Grill, 221 15th St Bet-
tendorf, IA
Open Mic w/ J. Knight -The Mill, 120 E
Burlington Iowa City, IA
The Chris & Wes Show -Marys on 2nd,
832 W 3rd St Davenport, IA
2013/12/03 (Tue)
Studebaker John & the Hawks -The
tendorf, IA
The Hitman -Rustic Ridge Golf Course
Gri l l e & Pub, 1151 East I owa St.
Eldridge, IA
2013/12/07 (Sat)
Casey Abrams -Augustana College
Center for Student Life, 639 38th St.
Rock Island, IL
Caught in the Act -The Rusty Nail, 2606
Chuck Murphy -Bleyarts Tap, 2210 E.
11th St. Davenport, IA
Cody Road -Generations Bar & Grill,
Cosmic -11th Street Precinct, 2108 E
11th St Davenport, IA
Destino (2:30pm) -Moline Public Li-
brary, 3210 41st St. Moline, IL
DJ K -Funky Desi, 1409 5th Ave. Mo-
line, IL
Holy Sheboygan! - Donnie Bobb -Rozz-
Tox, 2108 3rd Ave. Rock Island, IL
Jason Carl & Mike Miller -Stoegers
Bar and Grill, 1520 Washington St.
Davenport, IA
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra w/
Wynton Marsalis (5 & 8pm) -Iowa
City West High School, 2901 Melrose
Ave Iowa City, IA
Joe & Vicki Price -The Muddy Waters,
1708 State St. Bettendorf, IA
Joe Tingle -Barrel House Moline, 1321
5th Ave. Moline, IL
Josh Duffee & His Orchestra -Rhythm
City Casino, 101 W. River Dr. Dav-
enport, IA
St. Davenport, IA
Open Mic & Jam - The Grahams -RME
(River Music Experience), 131 W. 2nd
St. Davenport, IA
port, IA
2013/12/05 (Thu)
Jon Wayne & the Pain - Rude Punch
-The Redstone Room, 129 Main St
Davenport, IA
Gas Rag - Los Voltage - Dead in Bed -
Flaw -Gabes, 330 E. Washington St.
Iowa City, IA
Glenn Hickson (5:30pm) -Jake Os
Grille, 2900 Blackhawk Rd. Rock
Island, IL
Open Jam w/ the Harris Collection
-Brady Street Pub, 217 Brady St.
Davenport, IA
Open Mic Night -Cool Beanz Coffee-
house, 1325 30th St. Rock Island, IL
Open Mic w/ Jordan Danielsen -11th
Street Preci nct, 2108 E 11th St
Davenport, IA
2013/12/04 (Wed)
Moline, IL
Cross Creek Karaoke -Heros Pub, 3811
Karaoke Night w/ Chuck Murphy
-RIBCO, 1815 2nd Ave. Rock Is-
land, IL
Ol d 57s ( 6pm) - Karaoke Ki ng
(9:30pm) -The Rusty Nail, 2606 W
Open Mic & Karaoke Night -Pep-
perj acks, 1225 E. Ki mberl y Rd.
Davenport, IA
City, IA
Open Mic Night w/ Rob Dahms -Rustic
Ridge Golf Course Grille & Pub, 1151
East Iowa St. Eldridge, IA
Open Stage Night -Theos Java Club,
213 17th St. Rock Island, IL
2013/12/06 (Fri)
St. Davenport, IA
tendorf, IA
Celebrate the Holidays -Heri tage
Church - Rock Island, 4801 44th St
Rock Island, IL
Chuck Murphy -Barrel House Moline,
Destino (3pm) -Deere-Wiman Carriage
House, 817 11th Ave. Moline, IL
Eleven Fifty Two - Fist to the Sky -
AsBigAsAMouse - 3 Years Hollow
-Rascals Live, 1418 15th St. Moline, IL
Jon Wayne & the Pain - Dan DiMonte
& the Bad Assettes -Gabes, 330 E.
St. Davenport, IA
Karl & the Country Dutchmen -Walcott
Coliseum, 116 E Bryant St Walcott, IA
Kevin Lonergan Benefit Show: DJ
Hi-Tech - Simon Lonergan - Chris
Soppe - Devastating Dennis - Josh
Barnes - Shane Brown - Richie
Heller - Tyson Howell -RIBCO, 1815
2nd Ave. Rock Island, IL
Ave. Moline, IL
Night People -CASI (Center for Active
Seniors), 1035 W. Kimberly Road
Davenport, IA
Rumpke Mountain Boys -Iowa City
Russ Reyman Trio (5:30pm) - Past
Masters (8:30pm) -The Rusty Nail,
2606 W Locust Davenport, IA
Savannah Jack Band -Riverside Casino
and Golf Resort, 3184 Highway 22
Riverside, IA
Sinjo Thraw Mash - Darling Slag - Blue
Movies - Randall Hall w/ Augusta-
na Avant Garde -Downtown Central
Perk, 226 W. 3rd St. Davenport, IA
-Hollars Bar and Grill, 4050 27th
St Moline, IL
Jon Wayne & the Pain @ Redstone Room December 5
7 SATURDAY
5 THURSDAY
00
6 FRIDAY
4 WEDNESDAY
3 TUESDAY
2 MONDAY
Christmas at Augustana
Friday, December 6 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, December 7 at 4 p.m.
Centennial Hall, 3703 7th Avenue
Featuring performances by the Augustana
Brass Ensemble, Ascension Ringers,
Augustana Symphony Orchestra,Augustana
Choir, Cantilena Augustana, Jenny Lind
Vocal Ensemble and the Wennerberg Mens
Chorus, this moving holiday concert is not
to be missed!
Tickets: $20 for adults, $16 for senior
citizens, $10 for students and children
Lessons and Carols
Thursday, December 19 at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Ascension Chapel, 820 38th Street
Enjoy a beautiful spiritual presentation of
lessons and carols within the intimate setting of
Ascension Chapel. The Augustana Chamber
Singers and Campus Ministries present the
story of Christs birth in readings and song.
Free and open to the public
A Christmas Messiah
George Frideric Handel
Saturday, December 14 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, December 15 at 2 p.m.
Centennial Hall, 3703 7th Avenue
Handel Oratorio Society
Handel Oratorio Society
Chamber Orchestra
Jon Hurty, conductor
A new take on a Quad-Cities Christmas
tradition! Diferent from previous years, the
performance will last less than 90 minutes
without an intermission and will focus on
the Christmas story.
Soloists:
Michelle Areyzaga, soprano
Lauren McNeese, mezzo-soprano
Eric Ashcraft, tenor
Liam Moran, bass
Tickets: $20 for adults, $16 for senior
citizens, $10 for students and children
A limited number of free tickets are available for
junior and senior high school students, thanks to
generous support from the Meredith Foundation. Tickets are available through the Augustana
Ticket Ofce. Please call (309) 794-7306
or visit augustana.edu/tickets for more information.
Gl ori a Hardi man - Bruce Teague
-Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S Linn St
Iowa City, IA
Good Gravy - Zeta June -Gabes, 330 E.
Human Aftertaste - Peach Pies Ca-
burlesque -Rozz-Tox, 2108 3rd Ave.
Rock Island, IL
In the Flesh: Pink Floyd Tribute
land, IL
Jason Carl -Bleyarts Tap, 2210 E. 11th
St. Davenport, IA
Jazz After Five w/ Equilateral (5pm)
-The Mill, 120 E Burlington Iowa
City, IA
St. Davenport, IA
Ken Paulsen Orchestra w/ Darlene
-CASI (Center for Active Seniors),
1035 W. Kimberly Road Davenport, IA
Ave. Moline, IL
Larry Bo Boyd (6pm) -Cool Beanz
Coffeehouse, 1325 30th St. Rock
Island, IL
LeAnn Rimes -Riverside Casino Event
Center, 3184 Highway 22 Riverside, IA
Lost Country Dancers Dance -Walcott
Coliseum, 116 E Bryant St Walcott, IA
Night People (6:30pm) - Karaoke
Night (11pm) -The Rusty Nail, 2606
Retro Ron -Rustic Ridge Golf Course
Gri l l e & Pub, 1151 East I owa St.
Eldridge, IA
-Hollars Bar and Grill, 4050 27th St
Moline, IL
The Manny Lopez Big Band (6pm) -The
Circa 21 Speakeasy, 1818 3rd Ave.
Rock Island, IL
The Nashville Machine -Riverside Ca-
sino and Golf Resort, 3184 Highway
22 Riverside, IA
Pokey LaFarge - The Tillers -The
Redstone Room, 129 Main St Dav-
enport, IA
Soul Karaoke -Top Shelf Lounge, 1327
13th Ave East Moline, IL
Sunday Funday Karaoke (3pm) -Fricks
Tap, 1402 W. 3rd St. Davenport, IA
Sunday Jazz Brunch (10: 30am &
12:30pm) -Bix Bistro, 200 E. 3rd St.
Davenport, IA
Troy Harri s, Pi ani st (10am) -The
Lodge Hotel, 900 Spruce Hills Dr.
Bettendorf, IA
Vienna Teng -CSPS/Legion Arts, 1103
3rd St SE Cedar Rapids, IA
2013/12/09 (Mon)
Musical Morning (7am) -Brewed Awak-
enings, 221 Brady St. Davenport, IA
Open Mic at the Paddlewheel hosted
by Silly C & Slack Man -Paddlewheel
Sports Bar & Grill, 221 15th St Bet-
tendorf, IA
2013/12/10 (Tue)
Branson on the Road: Christmas Style
(1 and 7pm) -Circa 21 Dinner Play-
house, 1828 3rd Ave. Rock Island, IL
Glenn Hickson (5:30pm) -Jake Os
Grille, 2900 Blackhawk Rd. Rock
Island, IL
Open Mic & Karaoke Night -Pep-
perj acks, 1225 E. Ki mberl y Rd.
Davenport, IA
City, IA
Open Mic Night w/ Rob Dahms -Rustic
Ridge Golf Course Grille & Pub, 1151
East Iowa St. Eldridge, IA
Open Stage Night -Theos Java Club,
213 17th St. Rock Island, IL
Trans-Siberian Orchestra: The Lost
Christmas Eve -i wireless Center,
1201 River Dr Moline, IL
2013/12/13 (Fri)
St. Davenport, IA
tendorf, IA
Chuck Murphy -Big Shots, 419 15th
St. Moline, IL
Cody Road -Martinis on the Rock, 4619
34th St Rock Island, IL
Cosmic -Rascals Live, 1418 15th St.
Moline, IL
Curtis Hawkins Band -The Muddy
Waters, 1708 State St. Bettendorf, IA
port, IA
The Hitman (6pm) - Karaoke King
(9:30pm) -The Rusty Nail, 2606 W
2013/12/12 (Thu)
Chuck Murphy -Hooks Pub, 318 N. 4th
St. Clinton, IA
Open Jam w/ the Harris Collection
-Brady Street Pub, 217 Brady St.
Davenport, IA
Open Mic Night -Cool Beanz Coffee-
house, 1325 30th St. Rock Island, IL
Open Mic w/ Jordan Danielsen -11th
Street Preci nct, 2108 E 11th St
Davenport, IA
2013/12/11 (Wed)
Moline, IL
Burlington Street Bluegrass Band -The
Mill, 120 E Burlington Iowa City, IA
Festival of Carols -Englert Theatre, 221
East Washington St. Iowa City, IA
Karaoke Night w/ Chuck Murphy
land, IL
Karaoke Night -Headquarters Bar &
Grill, 119 E. 22nd Ave. Coal Valley, IL
Marbin -Iowa City Yacht Club, 13 S Linn
St Iowa City, IA
Milk & Eggs - Ruth LaPointe -Uptown
Bills Coffee House, 730 S. Dubuque
St. Iowa City, IA
Night People -Duckys Lagoon, 13515
78th Ave Andalusia, IL
North of 40 -Heros Pub, 3811 N. Har-
rison St. Davenport, IA
Richie Lee -Riverside Casino and Golf
Resor t, 3184 Hi ghway 22 Ri ver-
side, IA
RME Guitar Circle (2pm) - River Prairie
Minstrels (6pm) -RME Community
Stage, 131 W. 2nd St. Davenport, IA
Russ Reyman Request Pi ano Bar
(7pm) -Phoenix, 111 West 2nd St.
Davenport, IA
Saving Able - 3 Years Hollow - 3 Pill
Morning - Aterra Tale -Rascals Live,
1418 15th St. Moline, IL
The Knockoffs -Fargo Dance & Sports,
Yesterdays Gone -Purgatorys Pub,
2013/12/08 (Sun)
Jason Carl Unplugged (6pm) -The
tendorf, IA
Midnite Riders (5pm) -East Moline
American Legion, 829 16th Avenue
East Moline, IL
Open Mic Afternoon (3pm) -Mama
Comptons, 1725 2nd Ave Rock
Island, IL
13 FRIDAY
11 WEDNESDAY
9 MONDAY
10 TUESDAY
The Modern Era @ RIBCO November 30
12 THURSDAY
8 SUNDAY
gogreenmetro.com
Download the free My QC Metro mobile app
in the Android and Apple marketplaces today!
FOR JUST 30 BUCKS
A MONTH I RIDE
METRO TO W
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HEREVER LIFE
TAKES ME, GIVING
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River Cities Reader Vol. 20 No.

Cosmetic (50 Units) and

XC (1 syringe) for one incredible price!

Injectable Gel, LATISSE

Injectable Gel, and Latisse

Cosmetic and LATISSE

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River Cities&#39; Reader - Issue 844 - November 27, 2013

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River Cities&#39; Reader - Issue 844 - November 27, 2013

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Copyright:

Available Formats

River Cities Reader Vol. 20 No.

Cosmetic (50 Units) and

XC (1 syringe) for one incredible price!

Injectable Gel, LATISSE

Injectable Gel, and Latisse

Cosmetic and LATISSE

are registered trademarks of Allergan, Inc., and JUVDERM

You might also like

River Cities' Reader - Issue 844 - November 27, 2013

River Cities' Reader - Issue 844 - November 27, 2013