The Sidewalk Ballet Field Guide

The Sidewalk Ballet Field Guide is a growing collection of people, organizations, projects, books, ideas and ongoing conversations about cities and the people who shape them. It grows out of the podcast, but extends well beyond it—connecting the people doing the work, the places where it’s happening, and the ideas, experiments and resources worth carrying forward. Think of it as part reference library, part trail of breadcrumbs: a way to follow the conversation wherever it leads.

Explore by type, browse alphabetically or by date, or search for something specific. Follow the tags to discover connections—or explore the map to see where the people, projects and ideas in the Field Guide take us.

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Kyle Carter

Kyle Carter is Vice President of Place at the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce, where he leads work focused on creating vibrant, welcoming places across the bi-state region of Iowa and Illinois. His work connects downtown development, placemaking, public spaces, arts and culture, and economic vitality to strengthen communities throughout the Quad Cities.

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Quad Cities Chamber

The Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce works across the bi-state region of Iowa and Illinois to support businesses, strengthen the regional economy, and advance a more vibrant community. Its work spans economic development, business advocacy, talent attraction, placemaking, and initiatives that support the region’s downtowns and commercial districts.

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Compton’s Cafeteria Riots

Compton’s Cafeteria Riots is an immersive theatrical production bringing audiences into the history of the 1966 uprising by transgender and queer people at Gene Compton’s Cafeteria in San Francisco’s Tenderloin. The production used performance and place to reconnect contemporary audiences with a pivotal piece of neighborhood and transgender history.

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Rob Ready

Rob Ready is a San Francisco theater-maker, neighborhood connector, and the kind of person who seems to know everyone. In Sidewalk Ballet’s first episode, he served as a spirit guide to the neighborhood bar as third place—demonstrating how much of city life is built through relationships.

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