Portrait of John, drawn by his 11-year-old, Gemma.

John Kissane

Contributor

I live in Grand Rapids with my wife, three daughters, and our dog, Ally McBeagle. Mostly, I write about art, music, and theater. What I love about writing for Revue is the way it's helped me to better appreciate my community. West Michigan has a battalion's worth of passionate, talented people committed to providing great cultural experiences. My work tries to shine a spotlight on them.

What's a particular story you're really proud of/were excited to write for Revue?

Writing "The Middle-Aged Man's Guide To Electric Forest" was a blast. My youth has long since receded into the distance, but I can still recall the festivals of bygone days. Dancing to Tom Petty, sleeping in a tent, not showering for four days...it was an adventure. Attending Electric Forest as a greybeard was also an experience. I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

If we took a peek into your weekend, where would we find you?

Most weekends, I'm hanging out with my kids at a local park: Riverside, Huff, Lamoreaux, Aman, Blandford. This tends to consist of walking until they find something silly and/or dangerous to do. We're big fans of Nantucket Banking Co; it's not unusual to find us there picking up scones, croissants, and cookies. Weekend food falls under different nutritional guidelines than weekday food. Besides, they taste fantastic.

What's a piece of media that really shaped you?

As a kid, I was completely entranced by The Mysteries Cities of Gold, a cartoon about a young Spanish boy who, in 1532, travels to the New World in search of seven golden cities and, not incidentally, his father. The opening song's melody haunts me to this day. I never knew anyone else who had even heard of it until I was in my twenties. Finding someone else who knew it felt like finding a long-lost brother.