Lend us your ear...

Sunday, April 25
1 p.m.
Art Talks with Bruce Carter
WVIK 90.3 FM

Saturday, May 1
6-11 p.m.
Bucktown Center for the Arts
225 East 2nd Street, Davenport

Join us for a celebration of female creativity so big, it spills out of the Bucktown Center for the Arts and into Pershing Street. Experience visual art and performances of all types, installations, interactive exhibits, a marketplace and more and all for FREE. Wine and craft brew cash bar.

Last Venus Standing
Friday, May 28
6-9 p.m.
at the Bucktown Center for the Arts, Suite 400

Join Venus Envy Quad Cities for the closing night of the 2010 visual exhibit sponsored by the Riverboat Development Authority.

Enjoy a complimentary wine tasting and music by singer-songwriter Emily Hurd with special guest Lojo Russo. Pick up our debut album, a CD of the live music performances from the May 1 event night on the Hera Stage, including Venus In My Mind, original song by Lojo Russo. Only 200 tickets are available for this one-of-a-kind event.

You can purchase your ONE DAY ONLY advance tickets for $10 at the Venus Envy booth in the Marketplace at the May 1 opening event. Tickets will be $15 after May 1 and can be purchased at The Wearhouse, Suite 207, Bucktown Center for the Arts and at the door.

All proceeds will benefit the 2011 Venus Envy Quad Cities.

About Emily Hurd
Emily Hurd does not craft tunes for the faint of heart. The wordsmith's live performance showcases her breathtaking vocals, fearless lyrics, and unique piano and ukulele musicianship. Her latest release, "Daytime Fireflies," is being hailed as the indie soul answer to cookie cutter pop music. Hurd's pianistic punch, vintage grooves, stunning arrangements, and memorable melodies are wowing fans across the globe. Come check out what all the buzz is about.

emilyhurd.com

Follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/venusenvyqc.

Hera Stage (Pershing Street)

6 p.m. Olenka

Polish born and New York raised musician, dancer, and visual artist, Olenka will present selections from her upcoming CD.

6:30 p.m. Hersong

Hersong presents a wide variety of women's music styles celebrating the history of our ancestors, reminding us of our achievements, prevailing from the journey of struggle, and opening the mind to think, explore and dream.

7 p.m. Mona

Drummer and vocal stylist Mona Ritemon explores the rhythms of life and love through many genres and creative expressions. Culture, romance, and social justice influence her djembe playing, poetry and song.

7:30 p.m. Zloti Village Chorus

Featuring songs from Eastern and Northern Europe, Zloti Village Chorus is the only chorus in the world performing Slavic songs in English.

8 p.m. Lojo Russo

With raw energy Lojo Russo moves from sweet folk to roots rock without missing a beat. On stage she combines her sense of music with a sense of humor - sometimes outrageous, sometimes intense, always original.

8:45 p.m. Armonia

The women of Armonia met as members of Hersong. These spirited women perform all over the Quad Cities offering acoustic folk, rock and blues harmonies familiar and original.

9:30 p.m. Kumari Keiko

Kumari Keiko hails from the Indianapolis area and is pleased to share with you her acoustic folk-pop songs.

10 p.m. On Distant Shores

On Distant Shores describes their sound as raw and pure with a mix of pop/punk/alt-rock/indie. All of the members are Augustana students excited to be releasing a 5 song EP soon.

Salome Stage (3rd floor conference room)

Destination Tribal

These American Tribal World Fusion belly dancers are from the Burlington, IA area. You can expect to hear Caribbean world drum beat, Indian-Asian cafe' groove, Industrial gothic improvisation, some dark Cabaret sword sass and American Funk classics.

7-7:30 p.m. Workshop
7:30-8 p.m. Performance

Eclectic Tribal Bellydance

Tribal Fusion Belly Dance is a form of modern belly dance fusing together dance forms ranging from Hip Hop to Cabaret to Flamenco to Balinese and other folkloric dance styles. We believe belly dancing is for men and women, all shapes and sizes, and any age range! It is a unique and intriguing form of dance, bonding and exercise.

8:30-9 p.m. Workshop
9-9:30 p.m. Performance

Luna Bonita

This group is the precocious pet of Ynes, a principal dancer with Ancient Rhythms Studio. Ynes began teaching choreography in 2006 and formed Luna Bonita Dance in 2007 in response to demand and expansion of her teaching.

10-10:30 p.m. Workshop
10:30-11 p.m. Performance
 

Sophia Stage (loft space)

7 p.m. Dance Knots Project ~ Analia Alegre-Femenias

Analia Alegre-Femenias is the director of Dance Knots Project, a new organization that strives to provide opportunities to artists to come together and collaborate. Inspired by Pablo Picasso’s bull drawings, “The Sum of Additions and Destructions” is a solo performance presenting the female body in a powerful and physical manner.

7:15 p.m. Jennifer Weber and Samantha Cremer

Coming to the Venus Envy stage from the Dance program at the University of Iowa, Jennifer Weber and Samantha Cremer are both dancers and choreographers. In “Bubble Gum” you will find movement that inspires meaning, a shared friendship that has manifested into movement, and exploration into something new, longing for things not had, and discovery of relationships that will last.

7:30 p.m. Two Girls and an Audience

Kelly Pulford and Gina Stebbins began working together in the Masters of Interdisciplinary Arts program at Columbia College Chicago. ”Knot” explores the metaphorical and physical functions of a rope. Live performance, coupled with recorded text, traces the rope’s history: from rope lore, to boy scout knot-tying, to the ways that we are bound in our own lives.

8 p.m. Midwest Dance Group ~ Kathleen Ridlon

“Boundaries” is a duet about the space that we find, use and take within a relationship. The dancers press against and give into each other - sometimes they collide. It’s about negotiation, play and uncertainty. At times it asks: where does my space begin and your space end?

8:15 p.m. Back & to the Left Productions ~ Jennifer Smith

Life seems to move so quickly.  We get lost in the daily grind worrying over the little details.  What if however, time is really a circle, bending back on itself, life repeating every moment?  In this world, as in “Endless Circle” time repeats itself, precisely, endlessly.

8:30 p.m. Mona Ritemon

Drummer and vocal stylist Mona Ritemon explores the rhythms of life and love through many genres and creative expressions. Culture, romance, and social justice influence her djembe playing, poetry and song.

9 p.m. Dance Knots Project ~ Analia Alegre-Femenias

9:15 p.m. Jennifer Weber and Samantha Cremer

9:30 Midwest Dance Group ~ Kathleen Ridlon

10 p.m. Back & to the Left Productions ~ Jennifer Smith

Follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/venusenvyqc.

The artwork of 60 amazingly creative women await you at Venus Envy Quad Cities 2010. Peruse the list for your favorite regional artists. We'll feature a handful in future blog entries, but you have to be at the Bucktown Center for the Arts on May 1 to experience the rest.

If you can't join us on the 1st, the visual exhibit continues through May 28 during Bucktown's normal hours of operation, Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

If you don't already have the date marked with a big, purple V on your calendar, Saturday, May 1, 2010, is the square to mark. The event will be from 6-11 p.m. once again at the Bucktown Center for the Arts in downtown Davenport, Iowa.

We are looking for talented, creative women who fit any number of visual and performance genres, or who defy any categorization whatsoever. You can find the call for artists and for performers for download below.