Arts and Culture

The 23rd annual Whittaker St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase includes stories set in St. Louis and explorations of local history. They include science fiction tale “The Box” and “Somewhere in Old Missouri,” a Western with supernatural elements and lots of music.

In her new book, Aisha Harris shares her experiences as a Black, suburban, '90s-kid-turned-30-something, city-dwelling journalist while digging into the shifting ways we interact with pop culture — and how it touches us in ways we may not even realize.

An upcoming research initiative by the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis will help the group establish its priorities.

WerQfest, a celebration of Black, queer culture will feature national headliners Durand Bernarr and Jaida Essence Hall plus a slew of St. Louis-based artists including Sunny Rain and DJ PBnJeffy.

Counterpublic 2023 features public art by more than 30 artists. They explore social issues facing the neighborhoods where their art is placed. The citywide exhibition runs through July 16.

St. Louis singer Neil Salsich gained national attention this year performing on “The Voice,” the NBC show that pits singers against each other for a record deal. St. Louis Public Radio’s Chad Davis spoke with Salsich about his time on the show, his musical roots and his band the Mighty Pines.

The Regional Arts Commission gets most of its funding from the hotel-motel tax. With tourism down since the outset of the pandemic, a new marketing campaign aims to raise the profile of St. Louis as an arts destination.

East St. Louis musician David Dee, a longtime fixture on the Midwest blues scene, has died. His musical resume was long. He performed with his vocal group David and the Temptations in the 1960s and later played with Howlin’ Wolf and Albert King.

“Confluences,” an exhibition of Faye Heavyshield’s work at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation, includes new pieces that reflect on Cahokia Mounds and the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.

Opera Theatre of St. Louis will present three short operas, all by artists of color who’ve worked largely outside the opera world. The works address the roots of Black, queer ballroom culture; three important inventors who were Black women, and the Supreme Court battle over a rock band’s attempt to reappropriate a racial slur.