2026 PVDFest is the can’t-miss local event this weekend; one of the biggest fests of the year for our city-state. This year reprises last year’s footprint, encompassing Kennedy Plaza with three stages and reaching out...
Crook Point Brewing Company, 65 Massasoit Ave., East Providence; photo credit: Sean Carlson Over the past year, The Grind has gleamed as one of Rhode Island’s coffee gems. Set up at Crook Point Brewing Company (65...
Natasha Hodgson in the Broadway Company of Operation Mincemeat. Photo by Matt Crockett. The Tony Award® and Olivier Award®-winning musical launches the North American leg of its world tour at the Providence Performing Arts Center September...
Hunter Brown, Allie Seibold, and Seth Eliser in You've Still Got a Friend, playing at Bill Hanney's Theatre By The Sea from August 20 - September 13, 2026. Photo by Michael Derr Okee dokee folks… Tonight, at Theatre By The...
Photo by Steve Ahlquist. The unionized workers of the Community Libraries of Providence have been without a contract for two years now. Their patience, which had been wearing thin, was stretched to the breaking point by...
Photo: L-R: Pénélope Rose, Manya Glassman, Emeline Easton, and K. Elisa Garcia. by Mike Ryan. The Rhode Island International Film Festival, also known as Flickers, took place August 4 through August 9, bringing filmmakers, actors, industry...
I think museums and the culture around them have historically gotten a bad rap. When you think of museums, you might associate them with classism, inaccessibility, and wealthy donors and patrons. There’s also the issue...
As the leaves change to amber hues, so do fall beers. Our local brewers are excited about the opportunity to offer these loved styles of craft beer. If you are looking forward to cozy sweaters...
Illustration by Sadie Levine. 1. Adams Farm (pumpkins, hay rides, corn mazes) Plus: Variety fall farm stand 158 Burnt Swamp Road, Cumberland 401-714-4425 2. Appleland Orchard (apples) Plus: Cider, wine, and donuts 135 Smith Avenue, Greenville 401-949-3690 3. Barden Family Orchard (apples, pumpkins) Plus: Farmers...
Okee dokee folks… I just realized that I have been attending concerts for 50 years now. In that span of time I have seen countless shows. I honestly have no idea how many I have...
Moon Leone didn’t set out to make your run-of-the-mill pop songs. They build whole worlds, embodying different characters and using visuals to tell stories that ultimately help people heal from trauma. Performing as YourFriendM00n, they...
On August 12, Motif cohosted a forum on the Arts in Providence featuring Democratic Primary Mayoral candidates Brett Smiley and David Morales. In Providence, the real election typically happens in the primary. The winner will go...
Every election cycle, Motif brings you the candidates in their own words so you can try to compare apples to apples. It’s our way of contributing to the political process while not having the fact-checking...
Environmental Organizations Endorse Foulkes for Governor PROVIDENCE — The Providence Streets Coalition, a grassroots activist organization devoted to increasing funding, safety, and reliability in the state’s transit network, announced July 21 that it is backing former...
For the cover of Motif’s Fall Guide, painter and muralist Nicholas “Niko” Tolentino of Cranston drew inspiration from his childhood days, he relates in an interview at White Electric Coffee Co-Op in Providence. Roger Williams Park...
Centerville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket hosted its first live music event in August. It started big with the Island Roads Fest, featuring popular reggae/ rock bands including Sublime, Slightly Stoopid, Iration, Action Bronson, DENM, Bumpin...
Stepping into a tattoo convention without a tattoo or an array of piercings can be intimidating, like stepping into a gallery show without reading the title first. Aside from a pair of basic ear studs,...
August 12, 6:30 - 8:30 PM Southside Cultural Center - 393 Broad Street, Providence What do the candidates for Mayor of Providence have in mind for the future of arts engagement in the “Creative Capital”? Find...
Can art by Joey Visco Dogs and drafts? Is there any better way to celebrate yappy hour? If you are an animal and craft beer lover, this is an event you do not want to miss!...
Photo by Sindayiganza Photography. The FIFA World Cup tournament was full of thrills, drama, chaos, unity, and live television shots of devastated children in tears after their team lost a heartbreaking match. The final whistle brought...
Matthew Provençal as Thomas Andrews in ‘Titanic: The Broadway Musical’ at Bill Hanney's Theatre By The Sea July 23 – August 15, 2026. Photo by Mark Turek. The challenge to staging a production of “Titanic: The...
The Tattoo Awards featured a gallery wall populated by local artists. Here is a selection of the artwork on display! By Brianne Elizabeth @foxhallowart By Victori Leo Riel Grab Your Heart & Go by Allie Boyer @peaceflowercreations MONSTROELIZASUE by...
Photo by Jess Lee Images. I met Lily Spencer in an acting class taught by Eric Lutes, whom many television fans will remember from the 1990s sitcom “Caroline in the City.” Eric, who now lives in...
Rachel WS. Favorite Animal/ Favorite Floral Tara D’Agostino – Iron Lion Tattoo By the numbers, Tara D’Agostino got her first tattoo at the age of 15, picked up her own tattoo machine at the age of 19, opened...
Photo by Jillian Clark. There’s no feeling quite like finally being able to fully step into your own, to truly embrace your whole self and carry yourself through the world with that mentality. Not an identity...
Kai Nanfelt. Okee dokee folks… Last weekend I went on a ten-hour, each way, road trip to play a show. The drive wasn’t so bad, but the music was horrible. As I have mentioned before, I...
Photo by Isaac Laliberte Wards 2, 9 and 12 all report the same. Mendez wins in each! It appeared that Providence was perfectly poised to usher-in its first female mayor in history. The polls were closed and...
“You’re late, Brother,” she said, hovering outside the weathered cottage near a pebbly beach, indistinguishable from the shadows cast by moonlight that hit the thick hydrangeas. It was late in the evening of a seawind-chilled...
It’s almost Cthulhu – pardon my hiccup, I meant, “election” – season again. And if the tactics of these times don’t make your head swim and your bowls ache, as if you were being eviscerated...
When cover artist Bob Eggleton of Warwick first got interested in art and started sketching nightmarish creatures, he recalls, an aunt asked him, “What’s drawing a monster gonna get you in life?” He’s spent the last...
The ninth annual Providence Children’s Film Festival (PCFF) will take place February 16 through 25 in downtown PVD. The goal of the fest is to introduce people to film as a serious artform at an early age and to focus on the benefits of self-expression, artistry and connections that film can provide. I spoke with […]
For this new, locally focused side to AltFacts, we find ourselves intrigued by the shenanigans of RI town councils. The Burrilville Town Council has been accused of lying and acting in bad faith by lawyers representing Invenergy, the unpronounceable company that wants to build a new power plant in that town. AltFacts writers remember a […]
Have you ever met someone who just gave you a a slimy feeling? Maybe others perceived them as polite and charming, yet, you walked away with the definitive thought, I didn’t like that guy.” You’re probably subconsciously reading this person’s micro expressions. Micro expressions are very quick facial cues as to how someone is really […]
Steve Smith and the Nakeds Turn 45 Celebrating four and a half decades this February are acclaimed R&B/soul group Steve Smith and the Nakeds. The band has become a mainstay of the live music circuit both locally (there’s no higher level of RI cred than being featured in the final Benny’s commercial) and nationally. What […]
We’ve all had at least one well-meaning friend who fancies themselves a Cupid. Sometimes these meddling matchmakers operate through generalities (“You both watch ‘Game of Thrones’! It’s a sign from the cosmos!”). Other times, your romantic ambassador may truly have a preternatural eye for chemistry. Then there’s the valuable friend who is simply brave and […]
Bombs Away. Far, Far Away. Fake news continues to play a prominent role in real news, creating a surreal media Orobourus [pic] that continues to shake the world. It reached new heights (so to speak) recently over Hawaii, when Skynet launched an automated tweet announcing incoming missiles. For about half an hour, many organizations were […]
Eight years ago, Steve Stycos of the Cranston City Council proposed an ordinance to allow chickens to be kept in backyard areas by residents. The ordinance passed through the council, but was eventually vetoed by Mayor Alan Fung and the council couldn’t gather enough votes to override it. In the intervening years, there has been […]
Okee dokee folks… Maybe you made a New Year’s resolution to finally get out and perform in public. If so, open mics are a great stepping stone to get into the world of music performance. In case you are not completely sure what an open mic is, I will clue you in. First of all […]
In the recently released copy of Governor Raimondo’s budget, many changes to the state’s medical marijuana program were proposed. While these proposed changes will more than likely be altered, they offer a glimpse into the state’s vision of the future of marijuana. If approved, the changes will go into effect July 1, 2018. Acute Pain […]
Many jazz standards have faded from popular memory and been usurped by newer charts, but a select few continue to be played throughout the years, never losing their luster and sounding as current as the day they were composed. In the spirit of the upcoming romantically themed holiday I’ll explore one such standard: My […]
