WRITING FESTIVAL
A Decade of Prose and Poetry at Powderhorn
Ten years ago, Roy McBride had the brilliant idea to gather together Powderhorn area writers and artists for a writing festival to celebrate grassroots, literary endeavors. The festival, which has continued to this day, hosts myriad events, from writing workshops to
poetry/puppetry cabarets. Tonight’s event includes readings by Amy Ballestad, Emily Bright, Laura Flynn, Margo McCreary, and Maureen Skelly. Roy McBride himself will be the evening’s keynote performer and will enjoy the unveiling of a 10th Anniversary Powderhorn Writers Festival broadside, featuring his poetry and the visual art of Powderhorn’s renowned color woodcut master, Nick Wroblewski.
Fridat at 7 p.m., May Day Café, 3440 Bloomington Ave. S., Minneapolis.
DRUMS
The Taiko Artistry of Mu Daiko
This weekend our very own Twin Cities taiko ensemble Mu Daiko will be joined by LA’s TaikoProject for a rhythmic and energetic performance. The TaikoProject has been featured on network TV and Mitsubishi commercials in
performance infused with hip-hop movement, theater, music, and video. They are, in fact, the first American-based group to win the Tokyo International Taiko Contest. And Mu Performing Arts, the foremost Asian American theater and taiko company in the Midwest, lends traditional and contemporary theatre to the presentation. With two of the country’s most recognized Japanese drumming ensembles, this ought to be an incredible performance.
Friday & Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m., Ritz Theater, 345 13th Ave. N.E., Minneapolis; 612-824-4804; $26 (students and seniors $24).
DANCE
Tu Dance
In 2005, Toni Pierce-Sands (“T”) and Uri Sands (“U”) hit the Twin Cities dance scene by storm with an innovative and powerful performance that somehow led to a proper dance company, complete with nonprofit status
and a new name, TU Dance. Tonight, the two former Alvin Ailey dancers present two world premieres choreographed by Sands: Beverly, which explores the background music of his Miami childhood, And Let Go, which explores release and meditation. Also on the agenda is Clear as Tear Water, Ron Brown’s McKnight-commissioned solo for Toni Pierce-Sands.
Friday& Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m., The O’Shaughnessy, College of St. Catherine, 2004 Randolph Avenue, Saint Paul, 651-690-6700, $27.
THEATER & PERFORMANCE
Anton in Show Business
“The American theater’s in a shitload of trouble.” So reads the
opening line in the latest offering from the small St. Paul-based
troupe Starting Gate Productions.
As both poison-pen letter and love note to the theater, this play is
directed by a woman with no small opinions on the matter: Leah Cooper, former executive director of the Minnesota Fringe Festival. Anton depicts the chaos behind the scenes of a production of Chekhov’s Three Sisters.
An all-female cast depicts everyone involved, from producers and actors
to critics. Embedded within Jane Martin’s drama are countless
meta-theater references; characters range from an Our Town-esque stage manager to audience members who just won’t shut up. —by Danielle Kurtzleben
Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m., Mounds Theatre, 1029 Hudson Rd., St. Paul; 651-645-3503; $18 (students & seniors $16).
ART
Enchanted
Fantastical, magical creations are very popular as of late—lots of
dragons and magicians and cyber-wonders fill pages and screens—and the
art world is stepping into that terrain as well. Does it mean dreams
will become reality, or does it mean dreams will keep reality at bay?
That’s for the viewer to decide. But these artists’ confected worlds
will be interesting to contemplate regardless. Curated by Minneapolis
sculptor Andréa Stanislav, Enchanted is colored by her surreal tastes: Local fabulists Chris Larson, Alexa Horochowski, and Erik Ullanderson will show alongside Hawaiian Scott Yoell and Londoner Isha Bohling, among many others. Tune out the evening news; when reality sucks, these artists create new ones. —by Ann Klefstad, art by Jenni Schmid
Opening reception Friday from 6 to 8:30 p.m., Katherine Nash Gallery, 405 21st Ave. S., Minneapolis; 612-624-6518.
Minnesota Bienniel: 3D II
Eagerly anticipated by sculptors across the state, this overview of
the medium promises to be quirky and eye-opening. Jennifer Jankauskas,
associate curator at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, chose just twenty-seven sculptors from 147 submissions. Some, such as Pete Driessen and Ruben Nusz, are better known as painters than sculptors; others, like David Swanson and Anastasia Ward,
predicate alternate realities that are by turns amusing and disturbing.
Some are well known in the Cities; some are completely new. Expect some
surprises; sculpture has been spreading out to embrace new territories.
Perhaps it is the medium best able to absorb the constant shifts in
contemporary culture. —by Ann Klefstad, art by David Swanson
Opening reception Saturday from 7-10 p.m., free tour Sunday at 1 p.m., Minnesota Museum of American Art, 50 Kellogg Blvd. W., St. Paul; 651-266-1030, $10 (members $5).
MUSIC
Judy Collins
Of the two folk-pop female vocalists who broke through to massiveappeal beginning in the late ’60s, Joni Mitchell was the hippieartiste, Judy Collins
the classically trained songbird. Now, atsixty-eight, Collins has taken
care of her clarion soprano, deliveringup lush, conservative material
ranging from children’s and Christmasfare to interpretations of Dylan
and, most recently, Lennon andMcCartney. Don’t be surprised if these
supper club concerts mix goldenoldies (“Someday Soon,” “Both Sides
Now,” “Suzanne,” “Send in theClowns”) with more overtly political
songs, plus a poignant dollop ofpersonal revelation. Collins’s own “My
Father” is a career highlight,and her book about her son’s suicide, Sanity and Grace, is an honestand elegant chronicle of a harrowing episode in her life. —Britt Robson
Saturday at 8 & 10:30 p.m., Sunday at 8 p.m., Rossi’s Blue Star, 80 S. Ninth St., Minneapolis; 612-312-2828; $50-$225 (premiere dinner package.
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