Billed as an “American comedy,” Steven Dietz’s eerie, densely packed play premiered last fall at the esteemed Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago. Last of the Boys contends with the specter of the Vietnam War and takes place in a present-day trailer park that, appropriately, sits on a toxic dump site; there, a vet is still wrestling … Read more
People sell all kinds of oddities on Craigslist, but if you’re looking for really weird stuff you might want to sign up for an email list generated by the University of Minnesota. That’s how Ben Awes, Bob Ganser, and Christian Dean, who together make up the architecture firm Citydeskstudio, found their skyway. “We signed up … Read more
“Our work is a subjective observation of sound,” said David Berg. As a scientist of sorts for the Acoustics and Audio Group at Orfield Laboratories in Minneapolis, Berg listens for a living. For instance, if you ever wondered what noise a cell phone’s seemingly silent display makes, he has the wherewithal to tell you. Not … Read more
An old-fashioned version of this whole desert-island charade would have had author, television writer, and occasional standup comic Merrill Markoe bringing along her “collected works of Robert Benchley,” because “his silly rage at minutiae combined with great word usage is both a comfort and a reminder to have perspective.” But nowadays, the people who play … Read more
The picture windows beneath the Jerabek’s New Bohemian awning gave a good feel for what was being sold inside. One window showcased the stock of vintage dresses—from satin gowns to housedresses bursting with floral prints. Metallic shoes, two or three cycles since they’ve been in fashion, lined the window’s ledge, tossed in with an oversized … Read more
The candidate was running late, of course. So, on a sweltering June morning, I was left to wander the third-floor headquarters of Peter Hutchinson’s gubernatorial campaign and consider its architect. Two floors above a coffee shop and the funky Architectural Antiques, someone erected temporary walls to form a couple of small offices, and in one … Read more
Often regarded as Tom Stoppard’s best play, this production is a—perhaps the—high point in the Guthrie’s 2006-07 season. A masterpiece of wit that also grapples with romantic love and the havoc wrought by extramarital affairs, the story centers around Henry, a successful playwright often thought to be a stand-in for Stoppard. Henry has just penned … Read more
At 9:28 a.m. thirty-one grain traders are milling around a trading pit—an octagon about the size of a pontoon boat, recessed into the hardwood floor—at the Minneapolis Grain Exchange. Steps are wide and lazy, chests are thrust outward. Several of the men (and they are all men) discuss the price of downtown real estate; a … Read more
Of these three absorbing mini-exhibits, we were most smitten with the 112 small works by Swiszcz, which were hung in grid form on two walls. The Minneapolitan selected these from the results of a painting-a-day spree that lasted for nine months. Some are abstract, but most are quirky studies of everyday life: a cat entreating … Read more
Indulge us for a moment with this ode to Walter Mondale: Fritz, the sight of you on a stroll around the Lake of the Isles stirs the embers of our hometown pride. When, startled from your retirement, you broke into a run, we came to appreciate the full meaning of public service. Your loss, while … Read more