Josie Fischels
Arts & Culture ReporterExpertise: Performance art, visual art, Iowa life
Education: The University of Iowa
Favorite Iowa Destination: Dunnings Springs, Decorah
Experience:
- Covered local and statewide arts, news, and lifestyle features for <i>The Daily Iowan</i>, <i>The Denver Post</i>, NPR and currently for IPR
- Has written features on Iowans participating in the Hollywood writers’ strike, the nation’s largest historic theatre backdrop collection – housed in Iowa, the reopening of the African American Museum of Iowa and an ‘inside-the-culture’ feature on local drag kings, among others
- Is an award-winning reporter, including a retrospective of Iowa’s first poet laureate, Marvin Bell, following his death in 2021
- Writes regularly for IPR’s internationally award-winning newsletters
- Covered the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics, climate and the Kabul takeover by the Taliban in 2021 for NPR’s news desk
- Served as an editor and mentor for multiple projects with NPR’s Next Generation Radio
- Created IPR’s weekly news quiz and launched IPR’s TikTok (follow us!)
My Latest Stories
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The Color the Wind Kite Festival in Clear Lake takes place on the lake's frozen surface, which has thinned near the shore due to unseasonably warm weather. The unsafe ice conditions have caused the event organizers to cancel this year’s festival. -
Since 2020, Des Moines has lost several cornerstones of its live music scene, from small clubs to major festivals. The closures have narrowed the path for local artists to develop, even as new venues and entertainment giants reshape how live music operates in the metro. -
Across the U.S., demand for romance books continues to boom, including locally. This Valentine’s season, the genre has reached a fever pitch thanks to the success of media based on romance books, including LGBTQ hockey romance Heated Rivalry and Netflix's Bridgerton. -
Performance venues and cultural organizations are seeing a spike in artists from abroad canceling performances and demonstrations — and rethinking U.S. tours. -
The new, multi-site, month-long festival in Iowa City centers on Afrofuturistic art, fashion, literature, media and community dialogue. -
The prestigious James Beard Awards, which recognize culinary excellence in the U.S., released its list of 2026 semifinalists. It includes a bakery in Iowa City, a cocktail bar in Des Moines and chefs at two Des Moines restaurants. -
Cedar Summerstock Theatre in Saint Ansgar was awarded $18,000 by the National Endowment for the Arts to present a series of performances that highlight American history. It’s part of a $16 million initiative to support projects celebrating America’s 250th birthday. -
Iowa roller derby leagues are carrying on a sport rooted in community and inclusion. -
In March, the entire Institute of Museum and Library Services staff was placed on administrative leave by the Trump administration, indefinitely pausing all work processing 2025 grant applications. Now, the IMLS has reinstated terminated grants. -
Brass concerts are a centuries-old holiday tradition that symphonies across Iowa have picked up over the years. We've compiled a list of all the holiday concerts to catch this season.
