PLAY LIST

Dear Play Listers, Unless you flew to Puerto Rico for Bad Bunny’s “No Me Quiero Ir de Aquí” 30-concert residency, you probably experienced really bad FOMO all of 2025. Perhaps you watched the Super Bowl halftime show thinking, “This is as close as I’ll ever get to that casita with celebrities dancing in it.” Well, I’m here to tell you, there’s another way. Local DJ Juan “Don Juan” Muñoz built a re...

Dear Play Listers, Halloween is a holiday with a lot of range. Some people celebrate with fake blood and guts, others by sipping hot apple cider.  There’s those who might try talking to dead people, and those who’d rather dress up as something goofy.  With that in mind, we put together a list that we hope can check all the boxes in your group. We have family-friendly events, gatherings with adult...

Dear Play Listers, Where should we start? Today we have a story about a gifted wig maker, an interview with “FLAVA FRESH !” creator and curator D. Del Reverda-Jennings, a look back to pre-colonial Indiana and a staff update from the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields.  Also: a comic strip, a spooky print show and a free event with a Los Angeles-based labor activist playwright. He read a littl...

Hello Play Listers, There’s no way around it. We’re in October and we must shift our attention to all things ghosts, pumpkins and witches.  This week we made you a list of metaphysical shops, gatherings and practitioners that you can put in your pocket and save for a rainy day. We also have details on an exhibit of artists taking big risks, stories about historical reenactors, a deep-dive on the r...

Dear Play Listers, It was the late 1990s when mariachi Enrique Blanco first visited Indianapolis. Javier Amezcua, the owner of the famous Mexican restaurant El Sol de Tala , who died in 2015, used to bring Mariachi Sol Jalisciense from his hometown in Jalisco, Mexico, to create an authentic atmosphere at his eastside Indianapolis restaurant. The mariachi group fell in love with Indy. They stayed....

Hello Play Listers, It’s that time of the year — as we dip into sweater weather and get more introspective, our minds crave more stimulation. We seek out conversations and ask big questions.  Enter Arc Fest: Free Press Indiana’s one-day palooza bringing together influential voices, artists, journalists, civic leaders and community members.  The free festival is from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Oct. 3 at IU...

Dear Play Listers, Hispanic Heritage Month, where we celebrate the contributions of Latinos to the history and culture of the United States, kicked off on Sept. 15. One way to note the occasion is to support local, Latino-owned small businesses. Check out shops and restaurants in your neighborhood, get curious, try new things and go beyond the influencer rec list.  Another way to celebrate is by a...

How’s it going Play Listers, Because of all those years kicking off the school year in September, I’m hardwired to start things this month.  Whether that be ordering a 2027 planner or deep-cleaning my house to welcome the change of seasons, the month feels packed with checklists. If that’s you, too, that’s ok! We’re getting things done.  But don’t forget to have fun and let loose here and there. S...

Dear Play Listers, In September, we’ll be saying goodbye (some of us unwillingly) to summer and ushering in autumn.  To kick off the month, I made you a “things to do” list and sprinkled a little bit of everything for every possible mood you might find yourself in. Use this list to find fun in the city all month long. Get more Indianapolis arts and culture coverage at MirrorIndy.org/Arts . You can...

Dear Play Listers, Do you know what “La Chona” is? My 8-month-old son danced to it for the first time with me last Saturday at the Polkas Norteñas Fest at the Indiana State Museum. Musician Polka Bob from Indy Polkamotion was there to highlight the musical connections between Europe and the north of Mexico. Indy Folklore Academy and Grupo Folklorico Macehuani were there, too. Listen here and then...

Hello Play Listers, It’s been a week. We’re thinking of everyone affected by floodwaters. If you missed Mirror Indy’s reporting on the historic flooding of local neighborhoods, please see this list of flood relief resources . If you are an artist or creative who lost their work, art supplies or equipment you use to make a living and you want to tell your story, please reach out to arts & cultu...

Dear Play Listers, Today we have a back-to-school poem written by teacher/poet David Strange.  You might know David from the open mic series Listen, Please , which happens every second Thursday at Chatterbox Jazz Club. We also have a look at six IndyFringe plays. With 63 acts and over 300 performances across six venues, you will need help making choices! There’s art news and updates and fun things...

Dear Play Listers, The Indiana State Fair kicks off Friday. Are you even ready? I made a quick primer so that you don’t get caught crying helplessly over corn on the cob. First: If you want discounts on admission tickets, parking passes and ride wristbands, you have to buy before 11:59 p.m. Aug. 6 . Next, old-timey is in — a VHS revival, a state fair train and a big tent circus were announced as p...

Hang on tight to the very last pool days of the summer. Soon, kids and teachers will be back to school and the city pools will close even though it’ll still be hot outside.  You’ll just have to drink a tall glass of water and attend any of these 40 events arts & culture reporter Mesgana Waiss rounded up for us.  Expect a Phoebe Bridgers’ album release party, a historic Black burlesque exhibit,...

Dear Play Listers, Close your eyes and listen. Can you hear that? That’s lawnmowers and kids giggling while splashing water. There’s construction somewhere — everywhere — and people making deals at a garage sale. These are the sounds of summer as collected by sound artist Clockwork Janz, who goes around the city recording everyday sounds like a music treasure hunter. You can hear them all here and...

Dear Play Listers, July is scorching us. Stay cool with the news we have for you today. We have drive-in movie recs, a video game shop to check out and documentaries you can stream from home or watch at an outdoor film festival.  We also have a conversation with two filmmakers — Jessica Dunn and Michael Moskaliuk — who will show their first movie at the Indy Shorts Film Festival.  Get more Indiana...

Dear Play Lister, You are invited to the cookout. This is an episode you don’t want to miss. We have: A new Potluck Party video featuring barbecue magic. Baroque music goodness with musician Robert Bolyard. He will tell us about the Blakeman Gerber Indianapolis International Baroque Competition and play the viola de gamba for us! Thoughts on hospitality in a new City Chatter by Ebony Chappel. Here...

This edition of Play List is a big lunch. Reporter Mesgana Waiss has been covering Mirror Indy’s arts and culture beat for over a year now. In that time she has written about budget cuts to arts organizations, did a look back at 10 years of the Chreece hip-hop festival and launched weekly reels with ideas for things to do. Last week, Mesgana won the Excellence in QPOC Coverage Award from the Assoc...

Dear Play Listers, Just from eavesdropping in the Mirror Indy newsroom I know people around me are going to the Caribbean, the Grand Canyon and New York City. But not all of us will get to travel — be it because of gas prices or because it simply is not a good time. Whether you’re staying home because you have to or want to, we have a guide for a delightful staycation in Indianapolis. It packs out...

Dear Play Listers, It’s lunch time, and as I type this, I’m dreaming of the feta fries from Yazsh, the ones recommended by Byron and April Elliott in their illustrated near east side food adventure . And so, in the spirit of hunger — metaphorical and physical — I share this collection of Mirror Indy stories that answer the age-old question: Where should we go eat?  Get more Indianapolis arts and c...

Dear Play Listers, Save this email. Share this email. Print this email. It's filled with info on many of the city's major events, music series and Juneteenth celebrations. If you’re like me, you’ll pull out your paper planner and just get to blocking what you’re doing when, underlining the events you definitely don’t want to miss. You can see our full calendar with 57 things to do in Jun...

Dear Play Listers, We invited artist Israel Solomon to read the newsletter for you today. We’re doing this to highlight the new Mirror Indy merch store , featuring limited-edition tote bags, journals and puzzles with his artwork.  You may have seen Israel’s paintings at BUTTER or the Children’s Museum. His works stand out for being colorful, with people and objects painted to look like bright shap...

It’s almost Race Day, baby. The Indianapolis 500 is “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” and we all get to be a part of it.  If you have the passion and the patience, you can make your way to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and watch it live. Or you can celebrate Race Day with porch parties, family get-togethers, full-blown barbecues or what have you. I usually see it in person with my uncle-in-law...

Dearest Play Listers, Do you know how you’re spending your summer yet? It’ll be here in a blink.  For some, it already kinda is. Prom happened, graduation caps went up in the air, the Chreece headliners were announced and the signups for the public library’s summer reading program started. It’s the perfect time to choose patio seating or get an ice cream cone. Everyone is looking pretty outside. ...

Dear Play Listers, Now that I’m a new mom, I’m looking around in this new-to-me landscape of advertisements and celebrations for Mother’s Day.  According to Good Housekeeping magazine (which my mother read religiously from the 1970s until the early 2000s), Mother’s Day started as an anti-war movement. It evolved to what it is now, a $25 billion commercial holiday.  This makes me think. How can we...