Articles Tagged: Festivals

The 17th annual Iowa City Book Festival, taking place from Oct. 5-12, 2025, will showcase a dynamic mix of original events and collaborative programs with partner organizations, all celebrating the power of the written word and the exchange of ideas. Fans of fiction, poetry, social engagement and politics, or the craft of writing will find several events of interest among the usual mix of authors and topics.

The indie rocker will play new material with The Attachment Theory and participate in a free, public interview with Nightbitch author Rachel Yoder.

“Train Dreams,” a stunning cinematic adaptation of the national bestselling novella of the same name by Iowa Writers’ Workshop alum Denis Johnson, is set to open FilmScene’s 4th annual Refocus Film Festival this fall.

The Vogues have gone from forming in Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania, in 1960 to touring annually with The Turtles on the Happy Together Tour, which returns Saturday, Aug. 23 to the Riverside Casino & Golf Resort for its 16th year there.

The multidisciplinary arts festival includes performances by indie songwriter Sharon Van Etten, actress Lili Taylor, UI faculty and students, and more.

The annual Shellsburg Big Days festival had to delay the start of the parade due to weather, but the events still drew a crowd on Saturday. Events included a duck race, tug-of-war competition and motorcycle show.

Hancher Auditorium’s 53rd season features over 70 performances ranging from the grand to the personal, from the familiar to the new. The schedule includes a Broadway series, traditional performing arts events, cutting-edge multidisciplinary arts, contemporary touring music and comedy, and special events like the Infinite Dream festival.

There are a number of reasons to catch the Feralings, who will perform Saturday as part of the Northside Summer Nights series. One of them is the group's lush harmonies.

Jazz and soul band Confluence will headline Jazz in July beginning at 7 p.m. Friday, July 18 at the Amana Performing Arts Center, 39 38th Ave., Amana.

In its 34th year, the Iowa City Jazz Festival continues to draw acclaimed performers from across the country.

This year’s lineup for the Iowa Craft Brew Festival features several breweries from around the Corridor.

Summer is right around the corner, which means its prime time for live music, festivals, fairs and family fun. From jazz to rap to country to rock, there’s plenty to listen, dance and sing along to in Eastern Iowa and beyond this summer.

Here’s what we tried at the second annual Freedom FEASTival.

A news release about the cancellation of Washington, Iowa’s Latino Festival cited non-specific “current circumstances.” But in an interview late last week, an organizer said the decision was driven by safety concerns, citing nationwide arrests and deportations by federal immigration officials since President Donald Trump took office.

From flower festivals and patriotic parades to county fairs and hot air balloons taking to the skies, there is so much to do, see and celebrate around Eastern Iowa in the coming months.