March 28, 2024

‘Grant Wood, Prairie Rebel’

“Grant Wood, Prairie Rebel,” a one-man show by Tom Milligan, will be performed at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Jasper County Historical Museum.

The show is made possible by Humanities Iowa, a private non-profit state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The show is free, and the public is encouraged to attend. Milligan’s Newton performance is co-hosted by the Jasper County Historical Society and the Centre for Arts & Artists.

In the show, Grant Wood chats with the audience as if talking to an old friend across the backyard fence or maybe at his home at Five Turner Alley in Cedar Rapids. He tells us about his life and how he changed the art world forever with his work. It is the man behind American Gothic and the story of how he took the moments, memories and the people of Iowa and showed the whole world how special it is. After the presentation, the audience is encouraged to ask questions of the actor about Grant Wood and his life.

Tom Milligan, an award-winning professional actor, has appeared in hundreds of plays across the state, and for 10 years, appeared at Charlie’s Showplace, Iowa’s first dinner theater. Milligan also offers workshops on acting throughout Iowa and also appears on Iowa Public Television.