Big Talk

Named the director of the Monroe County Public Library system in May 2022, Grier Carson knew he’d face some daunting challenges. But he was surprised by the news he received when he woke up on January 15th this year, The brand new, award-winning Southwest branch building had suffered extensive damage thanks to an overnight flood. The facility has been closed …

Like the robin and the crocus, Trashion Refashion is a sign of spring in Bloomington. This year’s runway show at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater is the 15th annual exhibition of clothing designs made of repurposed materials. Molecular biologist Bettina Kehoe is typical of the amateur designers who dabble in recycled  couture. They join artists and trained designers in producing more than …

She taught herself how to play the guitar and now she wants to help young girls, trans kids, and those questioning their assigned gender learn how to play music too. Amy Oelsner, known to many around Bloomington as Amy O and leader of two bands, one named for her and the other called Brenda’s Friend, is more interested in working …

Audrey Heller, co-founder of the Jewish Theatre of Bloomington, has said it took a lot of chutzpah to start the stage company in South Central Indiana. The organization launched in 2005 and is reprising its very first production, “Another Antigone,” by academician and playwright A.R. Gurney. This iteration will be a staged reading with multiple performances in April. Directed by …

With Bloomington’s music scene experiencing a renaissance in the wake of the pandemic, new performers are emerging and longtime singers, songwriters, and players are staging comebacks. They’re all entering (or re-entering) rapidly changing performance and recording environments. Guitarist Clements and WFHB DJ Nicki 7 last summer founded the nonprofit HooMac, the Hoosier Original Music Association, in hopes of guiding musicians …

A little more than a year after the Indiana legislature voted to bar state funding for the Kinsey Institute, the world-renowned human sexuality research center will remain part of Indiana University. The IU Board of Trustees voted on March 1, 2024 to keep the Institute after considering allowing it to spin off as an independent nonprofit in the wake of …

She’s been helping people trace their Hoosier roots as the maven of the Monroe County Public Library’s Indiana Room for years. Now, Friesel is spearheading the MCPL’s effort in getting the Hoosier Character digital map of the state in the 19th century off the ground. The map depends on oral histories and traditional sources to mark where “the common and …

What started out as a side gig, a vanity project, has become Drew Wehrle’s day job. He and his brother Cole Wehrle founded the historical board game maker, Wehrlegig Games. Drew handles the production and business end of the operation while Cole is a noted game designer. They’ve produced two board games thus far: one dealing with the aftermath of …

He has bussed tables, washed dishes, waited on diners, bartended, managed restaurants, and now serves as the operations director for the Chocolate Moose. Jordan Davis realized early on in his career that making the dining out experience successful entails the efforts of many people, coming from many backgrounds, doing many jobs. His weekly No Dishes podcast allows viewers to peek …

Koch (pronounced kaw) took the reins last July from longtime executive director Tamara Loewenthal and this year will oversee the 31st Lotus World Music & Arts Festival from start to finish. Koch runs the business end of the nonprofit Lotus Educational & Arts Foundation while Loewenthal, who remains on board as artistic director, concentrates on the arts, cultural, and performance …