City’s prelude to Royal Rumble includes murals, beats and laughs
The Indianapolis arts community is expressing excitement for the WWE’s Royal Rumble through murals, a comedy event and a hip-hop show.
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Royal Pin to merge south-side entertainment venue Greatimes with Expo Bowl
The consolidation of the two south-side venues does not include the outdoor attractions at Greatimes, including two miniature golf courses and go-kart racing.
Ahead of Royal Rumble, new Indiana bill could open door to more fighting events
House Bill 1073 would provide regulations for bare-knuckle fighting, professional wrestling, boxing and sparring through the Indiana Gaming Association.
Most tickets sold for Saturday’s WWE Royal Rumble event
The first major event in an eight-year deal with World Wrestling Entertainment, the event is expected to draw as many as 65,000 spectators to Indianapolis, with many coming from outside of central Indiana.
Q&A with Le’Deana Brown, magazine founder and cultural connector
Brown spoke with IBJ about Midwest Leak magazine, the magazines she read as an adolescent, why she opened a community gathering space and what it’s like to be part of the “Keepers of Culture” mural.
Purdue and Butler alum Kaveh Akbar shifts smoothly from poet to novelist
Kaveh Akbar will talk about his acclaimed novel ‘Martyr!’ during a Jan. 28 author event at Indiana Landmarks, 1201 Central Ave.
Q&A with Neale Johantgen on Imax’s big screen, big year, big fun
Johantgen, who has been with the theater nearly four years, said he has high hopes that momentum will continue to build in 2025—particularly as the theater keeps enhancing the visitor experience and finds new ways to fill seats.
Film to focus on activist and medical debt issue
Richard Propes travels in his wheelchair on an annual annual fundraising trek he calls the Tenderness Tour. In 2024, he traveled 150 miles of Indiana trails, raising more than $100,000 for Massachusetts-based nonprofit Undue Medical Debt.
Conner Prairie making plans for new Lenape exhibit
The living-history museum in Fishers is making plans for a larger exhibit that is expected to open in 2029 and better tell the story of the people also known as the Delaware.
Church of Noise gallery unites visual art, music and sensitive plants
The gallery is part of Joyful Noise Recordings’ headquarters near the intersection of East Raymond Street and South Sherman Drive.
After termination, Newfields HR executive makes discrimination claim
Ernest Gause says the art museum and gardens fired him after he repeatedly told CEOs things about discriminatory business practices within the organization they didn’t want to hear.
Newfields’ latest CEO brings financial background to museum leadership
Le Monte Booker, former chief financial officer of Chicago’s iconic Field Museum, is now supervising 300 Newfields employees, interns and fellows.
Electric violinist Cathy Morris leads nonprofit to give ‘big hug of arts’
Arts with a Purpose takes performing arts and visual arts to audiences who lack access to or can’t afford similar experiences.
IBJ Podcast: Dave Lindquist previews can’t-miss entertainment in 2025
IBJ Editor Lesley Weidenbener sat down with IBJ’s arts and entertainment reporter Dave Lindquist to find out what’s on the docket this year in entertainment.
For 2025, 10 ways to be entertained in Indianapolis
The year will include a double bill of the WNBA All-Star Weekend and Indiana Black Expo Summer Celebration, plus a big book debut, the reopening of a landmark museum and the Indianapolis debut of the musical “Six.”
Artist Wayne Bertsch adds unlikely context to pop culture icons
The exhibition ‘Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth’ will showcase more than 50 paintings by Wayne Bertsch at Full Circle Nine Gallery.
Movies in 2024: Lessons from a turbulent year at the box office
Movie ticket sales took a bit of a hit in 2024 after the Hollywood strikes of 2023 delayed productions and releases and led to a depleted calendar for exhibitors and moviegoers. But they were better than expected.
Eiteljorg to use $2.5M Lilly Endowment grant for religion-focused projects
The museum plans to use part of the grant to create an exhibition based on Native American tattoo practices and styles.
2024 Newsmaker: Mali and Alan Bacon
The husband-and-wife team founded GangGang, a cultural development and social justice organization that supports Black artists and the creative economy, in 2020. GangGang has since been part of some of the city’s biggest cultural events.
2024 Year in Review: Entertainment festivals see mixed results
Indianapolis added one homegrown music festival in 2024, while three others were put on hold because of financial challenges in the concert industry.