Month: October 2006

Bouncing between near misses (Cold Mountain) and outright dogs (the risible Stepford Wives), Nicole Kidman could use a surefire hit, at least critically. Whether or not this so-called imaginary portrait of doomed photographer Diane Arbus will be the tonic for Kidman’s post–Oscar malaise is an intriguing question. Looking almost too clean and bright for its subject matter, Fur appears to suggest that Arbus was molded by a mysterious presence—here, in the form of a hairy Robert Downey Jr., who lurks in an apartment below her studio. To suggest that Arbus was anything but a visionary on her own terms is sadly typical of Hollywood’s general squeamishness about artists, especially female ones. Director Steven Shainberg scored an art-house hit with his bland Secretary, and in casting Kidman’s perfect face (instead of, say, Maggie Gyllenhaal’s softer, less-chiseled mug), you wonder if he hasn’t missed the point of Arbus’ entire oeuvre.

As a condiment, wasabi is earthy, spicy, and slightly mysterious. As the new sushi place off Washington Avenue, Wasabi is bright, happy, and kinda cute. Glass-bead curtains, green bamboo framework, and an automated door sensor that shouts “genki!” (how are you?) to new arrivals give this place a whimsical touch. What is earthy and spicy is the menu, full of customary Japanese offerings. Traditional sushi and sashimi are fresh and generous, but pay special attention to the chef’s specials like the Crazy Tuna roll, which employs smoky, pepper- encrusted tuna balanced with silky avocado. Hearty noodle dishes, flavorful don buri, and entertaining hibachi dinners are all great pre-Guthrie or post-Dome options. Lunch service is perfectly timed, and most specials are under ten dollars. 903 Washington Ave. S., Minneapolis; 612-338-6688

For the food-obsessed, the arrival of Jean-Georges Vongerichten in our town is nothing less than a blessed event. But does Chambers Kitchen live up to the hype? Maybe. The David Rockwell interior achieves cool without sacrificing comfort. The staff, while efficient and knowledgeable, can still manage a genuine smile. But in the end, it’s all about the food, isn’t it? With offerings like house-made mozzarella with grilled figs, glazed short ribs with crispy cheddar polenta, and halibut with Malaysian chili sauce, nothing is shockingly revolutionary—but that’s fine, because who can eat that all the time? Jean-Georges hits you not with superficial dazzle but developed flavor. The dishes are balanced, nicely portioned, and seem intended for true eaters, not chef groupies who push the plate away after one orgasmic bite. As in his other restaurants, he proves here that high style and sophistication don’t have to come at the price of sincerity. 901 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis; 612-767-6900; www.chambersminneapolis.com

We enjoy a make-over just as much as anybody. But when it happens to a favorite dining spot, we get a smidge skittish. Will they go too glossy? Will they forget that we like to bring the kids with us? Happily, the Edina Grill has been successfully updated without losing its soul. There’s a new sassy bar, but a giant orange-juicing machine stands right around the corner. Despite modish art on the walls and sophisticated dark-wood booths, the tables are still set with terry towels for napkins and a malt tin full of silverware. As always, you can enjoy your Elvis burger or killer waffles, but there’s also new fare, like the ahi tuna with vibrant herbs and sweet-potato risotto, or a BBQ sandwich that goes for tangy and vinegary over sweet. Some new dishes need a tweak, but old faves sing all the more beautifully in this new space. 5028 France Avenue, Edina; 952-927-7933; www.edinagrill.com

Roughly translating as “dance of utter darkness,” Japanese Butoh evolved in large part amid the rubble left by World War II. Sankai Juku, the thirty-year-old company that’s appeared here previously a handful of times, is perhaps the most acclaimed practitioner of this avant-garde form. The troupe’s approach favors minimalist movements and poses that appear heavier and more grounded than other styles of modern dance; Sankai Juku founder Ushio Amagatsu describes it as “sympathizing or synchronizing with the gravity.” Per the Butoh standard, this performance involves a cast of just seven dancers who appear with shaved heads, white costumes, and white body paint from head to toe. Under a canopy of lotus leaves, they’ll enact a series of movements that, according to Amagatsu, extract various metaphors from the act of self-reflective gazing. 612-624-2345; www.walkerart.org www.northop.umn.edu

Too often the only news most Americans hear from the Indian subcontinent involves violence between Hindus and Muslims there. But followers of these religions weren’t always at each other’s throats. Kathak, the classical Indian style of dance that originated in the twelfth century, for example, was patronized by Hindu and Muslim rulers alike. As a result, it embraces diversity, much in the same way Sufism, the mystic outgrowth of Islam, has evolved. Honoring this affinity between the dance and the religion, Katha Dance Theater sets its signature kathak-inspired moves to the words of various Sufi poets, including Rumi. 345 13th Ave. N.E., Minneapolis; 651-209-6689; www.kathdance.org

Word is slowly getting around about the Ten Thousand Things company, which is best known for playing prisons and halfway houses. By reducing layers of artifice to the simplest costumes and rudimentary props and using only the best actors in town, this troupe has proven its knack for tapping into the emotional core of classical texts. That’s the sort of theater many of us “on the outside” are also hungry for, so the company has been adding a smattering of public performances to its schedule of late. In producing Shakespeare’s play about gambling for love, Ten Thousand Things has rounded up a cast that includes company veteran Steve Hendrickson as Shylock the Jew and Stacia Rice—recently christened a “curtain-call cutie” by another local magazine—as the lovely heiress, Portia. 612-203-9502; www.tenthousandthings.org

The script for this eighteenth-century comedy of British manners, stereotypes, and romantic entanglements is quite a mouthful, but by adding a few musical flourishes, the Jungle aims to create a rather more rollicking production. However, no amount of song and dance can steal the show from Mrs. Malaprop, the source of the term malapropism. A plum role for any actor, here she’s played by Claudia Wilkens, who’s demonstrated her comic chops on the Jungle stage many times before. 612-822-7063; www.jungletheater.com

So a burned-out social worker walks into a bar … and sets about drowning his sorrows. Just as he gets to talking smack about the cadre of mentally and physically disabled clients he serves, they begin showing up at the bar in droves. Sure, Interact’s productions often deal with disabled people and their challenges, but they forgo the preachy, treacly after-school-special treatment in favor of a humorous approach. For example, Worldwide Church delves into the type of intracommunity discrimination that has the wheelchair-bound asserting their superiority over the blind; the brain-injured refusing to put themselves in the same category as folks with Down syndrome; and so on. Sooner or later, they all must come to terms with their prejudices—including the seemingly fearless social worker, who faces down his own personal nemeses: dwarfs. 212 3rd Ave. N., Minneapolis; 612-339-5145; www.interactcenter.com

What do you get when you pair a television-production designer—the guy responsible for the look of shows like Law & Order and The Sopranos—with a woman who, as a former production designer for Matthew Barney, was instrumental in translating the bizarre visions of Mr. Björk into real-life objects? SooVAC will answer that question with Quantum Circus, a collaboration between New Yorker Michael Zansky and ex-New Yorker, now Minneapolitan Andréa Stanislav—both of whom also create art off the TV screen and outside of Barney’s studio. Together, they promise to fill the SooVAC space with a “multimedia spectacle,” drawing inspiration from such diverse sources as the House on the Rock, string theory, and glam rock. 2640 Lyndale Ave. S., Minneapolis; 612-871-2263; www.soovac.org