Wednesday, April 8th Edition of The Culture Buzz

Greetings, Cultural Catalysts:
Please note that the current Covid-19 pandemic is critically impacting our everyday lives, including our cultural sites and events. Please be safe and wise if you have to venture into public areas. – John Busbee for The Culture Buzz

Quotes of the Week
“Good leadership requires you to surround yourself with people of diverse perspectives who can disagree with you without fear of retaliation.” -Doris Kearns Goodwin (b. 1943) writer, political analyst, and presidential historian

Funding opportunities for self-employed artists:

• Art Project Grants (deadline May 1 extended to June 1) are available through the Iowa Arts Council an annual basis in which the funding can be used in part to pay the artist, but must involve the creation and presentation of new work.
• Greenlight Grants (deadline May 1 extended to June 1) are annually available via the Iowa Arts Council and Produce Iowa to support home-grown Iowa film and digital media productions.
• New Music Solidarity Fund Emergency Grants (due April 30) to support freelance artists in the new/creative/improvised music community
• Frequently updated lists of emergency funding opportunities
  • Creative Capital
  • COVID-19 and Freelance Artist
  • CERF+ - Artist Relief Fund
  • Common Field
  • Grantmakers in the Arts

Isolation Activity Suggestion
Especially for those at home with children, take this opportunity to spend some dedicated time chatting about your family’s ancestry. Share a simple framework of your family with your children, then have them ask you questions that they have about their parents, grandparents, etc. Put these memories down into a book for future reference. If they have relatives easy to reach by phone, help them call grandparents, etc., to ask questions about the family history. Let them lead the curiosity quest in your family’s genealogy.

Featured Cultural Offering
The Ultimate Guide to Virtual Museum Resources, E-Learning, and Online Collections
Considering the current situation, here is an option for cultural adventurism that is not binge-watching television. Check out the options offered globally to explore museums, learning opportunities and collections. If anything, the true Cultural Adventurer is resourceful.
http://mcn.edu/a-guide-to-virtual-museum-resources/


PERFORMNG & VISUAL ARTS plus Other Cultural Consideration
Please check in advance regarding any scheduled performances, exhibitions, museum visits, etc.
Ankeny Community Theatre –
www.ankenycommunitytheatre.com; Facebook: Ankeny Community Theatre
Carousel Theatre of Indianola –
            www.carouseltheatre.org; Faceook: Carousel Theatre Indianola
Class Act Productions –
www.captheatre.org; Facebook: CAPTheatre
Des Moines Community Playhouse/Kate Goldman Theatre –
www.dmplayhouse.com; Facebook: DMPlayhouse
Des Moines Performing Arts/Temple Theater –
www.desmoinesperformingarts.org; Facebook: Des Moines Performing Arts
Des Moines Young Artists’ Theatre –
www.dmyat.org; Facebook: DM Young Artists Theatre
Iowa Shakespeare Experience –
www.iowashakespeare.org; Facebook: Iowa Shakespeare Experience
Iowa Stage Theatre Company –
www.iowastage.org; Facebook: Iowa Stage Theatre Company
Pyramid Theatre Company –
www.pyramidtheatre.org; Facebook: Pyramid Theatre Company
Tallgrass Theatre Company –
www.tallgrasstheatre.org; Facebook: Tallgrass Theatre Company
TheatreMidwest –
            www.theatremidwest.org; Facebook: TheatreMidwest
Urbandale Community Theatre –
www.urbandaletheatre.com; Facebook: Urbandale Community Theatre


AUDITIONS and Cultural Engagement Opportunities:
Please check in advance regarding any scheduled performances, exhibitions, museum visits, etc.


LIVE MUSIC VIRTUALLY – Greater Des Moines Music Tip:
Search for your favorite musicians, as many are creating virtual music experiences as we all work our ways through this current pandemic.


Greater Des Moines Independent Book Store Happenings:
The Culture Buzz shares many authors and their books with its audiences. We encourage you to visit your local independent book store regularly. The folks at these destination locations know books, and welcome the chance to help anyone connect with titles and subjects they seek. Check these sites, as their calendars are always filled with enticing activities and news.

1. Beaverdale Books, Des Moines. http://www.beaverdalebooks.com/
2. Pageturners Bookstore, Indianola. http://www.pageturnersbookstore.com/
3. Artisan Gallery 218, 218-5th Street, Historic Valley Junction, West Des Moines (select author events), http://www.artisangallery218.com/
4. Read a Book Nook, Marshalltown. https://read-a-book-nook.business.site/

Cultural Exploration Resources:
The Culture Buzz will begin including carefully vetted but comprehensive listings where you can do some advance online exploration before scheduling destinations in the region. These are two great websites to know about:

1. The Culture Buzz – John Busbee and associates have re-launched the website for The Culture Buzz, providing cultural adventurers a comprehensive overview of what The Culture Buzz provides. Included in this new site, by popular demand, is an archive library of favorite interviews and a new section of theatre reviews for Greater Des Moines theatre companies. http://www.TheCultureBuzz.com/
2. Center Stage – This Cityview monthly column provides insights into Central Iowa’s theatre. Distributed throughout the region and available online. Current column: http://www.dmcityview.com/center-stage
3. Cityview – Central Iowa’s monthly printed and continually updated online resource to all things happening in your community, from arts & culture, to music, to civic and political discourse, to fascinating columnists and stories. Cityview is the reliable source for keeping you informed and engaged in the Greater Des Moines community and beyond. http://www.dmcityview.com/
4. Art Beacon Des Moines is Central Iowa’s home for promoting the visual arts. Our calendar of events highlights exhibitions, art talks and calls for art. Subscribe to the Art Beacon Weekly, our online newsletter filled with links to the latest art happenings. Find us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. http://artbeacondesmoines.com/
5. A Gentle Guide to Des Moines Theatre is Central Iowa’s source for knowing what productions by which companies are available when. In short, you can know what’s playing before it happens rather than after the fact. Timothy Rose created this site with its comprehensive theatre calendar for you, the cultural consumer. He includes articles and more, making this a worthy destination when curious about what’s happening in Central Iowa’s theatre scene. http://www.gentleguidedsm.com/
6. 900Views Podcast. An exploration of arts and community with Host Pat Boddy. Based out of Mainframe Studios in downtown Des Moines, 900Views provides a platform for glimpsing the creative work and lives of the Midwest's cultural producers and influencers. https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/900views-pat-boddy-RCELj1xc7Wh/
7. Greater Des Moines Community Jazz Center is this region’s source for a decades-established advocacy group for jazz, and established jazz professionals guiding and nurturing next generations of jazz musicians and fans. http://dmcommunityjazzcenter.org/
8. Central Iowa Blues Society is the area’s connecting point for performance, presentations and education in the world of blues. www.cibs.org

As always, I appreciate news and information from you out there in the cultural trenches and am ready and willing to pursue a story or interview to share with my audiences.

Creatively yours, John Busbee
C: 515-707-1532


Are you curious about where I find most of my quotes? Dr. Mardy Grothe is considered the foremost authority on quotations, and offers a weekly newsletter (free, quick read, always great content) and use his online “Dr. Mardy’s Dictionary of Metaphorical Quotations” to search for topic-referenced quotes. http://www.drmardy.com/dmdmq/


There is a diverse and appealing array of cultural indulgences awaiting the Cultural Adventurer in Central Iowa. Leave the personal devices behind and savor the rich offerings that performing arts, exhibitions and more offer. Sally forth and reward yourself.


Wednesday, April 8, 2020 - THE CULTURE BUZZ - 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM Central Time
Broadcast regionally on KFMG 98.9 FM
Streaming globally through www.kfmg.org


11:00 AM – Director, writer, producer Tricia Brouk shares some time on this show to talk about her Big Talk Academy as well as offering Culture Buzz listeners free access to her 7-step Formula to Fearless. Tricia parlays her international award-winning directing and producing skills into helping others learn how to make public speaking a powerful part of their skills. In less than 3 years, she has put more than 45 speakers onto more than 15 TEDx stages.
https://triciabrouk.com/
@tricia_brouk


11:20 AM – Jen Chapin’s track, “Paris,” from her 5 Song EP.
www.jenchapin.com


​11:23 AM – Poet Kyle McCord reads “The Soft Machinery of the Dark” from his award-winning collection, “Sympathy for the Devil.”
www.kyelmccord.com


11:25 AM – Andrea Rothman blends her science career with her creative muse to launch her first novel, “The DNA of You and Me,” a fascinating and compelling story.
"This sharp debut…sets a bittersweet love story within the cut-throat world of academic research, a great pairing Rothman explores with heart, smarts, and a lot of furtive sex…It's Rothman's aching study of loneliness, heartbreak and forgiveness that resonates." -Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
http://www.andrearothman.com/


11:41 AM – Polk County Supervisor Robert Brownell shares news about the county’s burgeoning, productive and contributory immigrant population. The county works closely with Lutheran Services of Iowa in providing needed support. Listen and learn about a facet of our region to be proud of.
https://lsiowa.org/refugee/


12:00 PM – Award-winning Iowa poet Julie Hanson returns to chat about her new collection, “the audible and the evident.” Sharing her thoughts about this latest collection, winner of Hollis Summers Poetry Prize, she reads one of her poems from this book during the interview.
https://www.ohioswallow.com/book/The+Audible+and+the+Evident


12:18 PM – Dr. Thomas Cook leads an inspiring conversation about the subject matter of his new book, from Ice Cube Press, “Clubfoot: The Quest for a Better Life for Millions of Children.” Tom shares insights about the international efforts to bring successful correction techniques to third world countries, where the low-cost treatment can change the lives of children who may otherwise be marginalized in their environments from the stigma of untreated clubfoot.
https://icecubepress.com/2019/10/29/clubfoot-2/


12:34 PM – Photographer Mike Whye added his pen to his new book, “Detour Iowa,” which encourages exploring the historical and interesting sites across Iowa, just waiting for you to experience. Mike adds enticing descriptions to his exceptional photographic images, making this a great guidebook for in-state adventures.
“Mike Whye expands his photographic eye to include beguiling descriptions of many wonderful destinations in Iowa. His book should be part of anyone’s planning for launching grand adventures to many great Iowa destinations.” -The Culture Buzz
https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/Products/9781467143455


12:47 PM – Cheryl Mullenbach has a wonderful gift for capturing history in ways that interest and engage young readers. Her book, “Women in Blue,” is one such offering, especially giving young girls inspiration to expand career goals and options.
https://www.cherylmullenbachink.com/


Streaming on www.kfmg.org