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Summer does not last long enough around here, as everyone knows, and you should make any excuse to get Uptown and have a walk around Lake Calhoun. Here’s one: This Southern-themed restaurant on the shores of Minneapolis’ primary pond. We’ve had great luck with the carnivore-friendly fare on recent visits, enjoying the crab-cakes appetizer and the Bag O’ Bonz, a corny name for a scrumptious sack of hickory-smoked ribs featuring the same sweet sauce that you get with the also-recommended BBQ chicken entrée. We most enjoyed the honey pecan chicken, southern-fried with tasty caramelized pecans on top. Eat it slowly, and savor. Speaking of pecans, they make a worthy pie too. Ironically enough, the mint julep wasn’t great, which probably means some kind of penance is in order. But it did let us see some true southern hospitality from our waitress, who cheerfully brought a glass of fine Yankee merlot in its place.

Classical canonical theater is, of course, what the Guthrie does best, even if upstarts like Jeune Leune are giving them a run for their money. Last year, Irish actor Alan Stanford developed this adaptation of one of the English language’s most beloved novels. It’s a natural fit for the stage, and the buzz from the other side of the proscenium is that thespians love Jane Austen because her characters are as perfectly realized as they are complex. Guthrie, 725 Vineland Place, (612) 377-2224, www.guthrietheater.org

The jewel in the crown of the long collaboration between W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, The Mikado has been wowing musical-theater audiences for 118 years. Its take on Japanese culture lacks a certain amount of authenticity, perhaps, but pointing out that Nanki-Poo, Ko-Ko, and Yum-Yum aren’t real Japanese names would be missing the point of this most deliberately silly and delightful work. If you only know the play through Mike Leigh’s movie Topsy-Turvy, make the time to check out TRP’s staging. Those of you who’d like to see greater governmental involvement in the arts will be pleased to hear that the lead role of unwilling executioner Ko-Ko is played by Minneapolis City Council Member Scott Benson, who’s done the role previously with the local Gilbert and Sullivan Very Light Opera Company. Theater in the Round, 245 Cedar Ave., (612) 333-3010, www.theatreintheround.org

Like the titular vamp of this summer’s production, the Showboat’s enjoying a new life after death, now in its second season in a new St. Paul barge built after the old one was destroyed in a devastating fire. Written and directed by longtime Showboat skipper Charles Nolte, Dracula matches the U of M theater’s traditionally light and campy tone, milking jokey melodramatics out of Bram Stoker’s Victorian allegory of repressed sexuality. It’s frothy, fun, and worth (ahem) staking out. Breaking up the main action are U musicologist Vern Sutton’s olios—authentic turn-of-the-century showtunes he’s unearthed and done up in charmingly silly vaudevillian style. Think showgirls in giant flower headresses and vegetable costumes, chirping out lyrics that literally rhyme “moon” with “June” and “spoon.” (One thing’s never made clear, though: Since everyone knows vampires can’t cross running water, how can Drac stand being on a stage that floats on the Mississippi? Get us rewrite!) Showboat, Harriet Island, St. Paul, (651) 227-1100

On the edge of an industrial zone in southeast Minneapolis, the Rogue Buddha’s found success off the beaten path, recently adding an extra 400-square-foot gallery space in its basement. Owner and artist Nicholas Harper makes a concerted effort to keep things from getting into a rut, displaying his most edgy and avant-garde artists next to a very traditional landscape watercolor. He also branches out beyond visual art to stage plays, indie filmmaker showcases, and, on July 11, a gathering of zine artists. This month’s group show, which opens with a party on July 5, includes Charlie Kraft’s discarded car mufflers, which he’s painted over with a series of cartoony, tiki-like heads, creating a weirdly cool blend of two- and three-dimensional space. Aimee Whatley’s photography has a semi-Gothic sensibility, sometimes seeming more like Dali-inspired drawings than images captured with a lens. Rogue Buddha, 2402 East Hennepin Ave., (612) 331-3889, roguebuddha.com

It was noted art critic Jack Handey who first noticed the relationship between boxing and fine art, describing it as “like a ballet, except there’s no music, no choreography and the dancers hit each other.” Except Handey’s not an art critic, he’s the guy who wrote “Deep Thoughts” for Saturday Night Live. Boxing and art have been one-two punching together for decades, with artists finding rich ground for exploring issues of race, masculinity, and violence. The Walker’s 30-artist exhibit goes the full 15 rounds with modern representations of the sport, covering the period from Muhammad Ali’s 1970s heyday to the present. Works include Jean-Michel Basquiat’s graffiti tribute to Sugar Ray Robinson, and Stephan Banz’s intriguing photography series of more than 100 people from across Europe striking their best Ali pose.
Charlie Kraft, Aimee Whatley, Matt Larson, Levi and Gabriel Michael

Three decades of existence is long enough for any art space to be proud of, and Groveland takes a well-deserved bow with this 30-artist showcase featuring many of the gallery’s longtime favorites. Much of the work on display is recent, but there are several notable pieces that go back even before Groveland existed, including a 1962 Mondrianesque work by “Dean of Minnesota painters” Cameron Booth. A bit of trivia we picked up in our research: Gallery founder Al Keith also leased cows to local farmers, who, we suppose, wanted the milk but didn’t want to—well, you probably know the joke. (Keith himself moved on to new pastures in 1976.) Meanwhile, in the Annex behind the gallery is a tribute to history of a different sort there—Stuart Klipper’s “Louisiana Purchase,” commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Jeffersonian land deal in a series of lovely panoramic photographs of each state carved from the territory. Groveland, 25 Groveland Terrace, (612) 377-7800, grovelandgallery.com

Call him the Baryshnikov of—no, wait, this really is Mikhail Baryshnikov, the most famous ballet dancer in the world, and, in his prime, possibly the greatest. In recent years, the Russian expatriate has moved into modern dance—leading to inevitable (and weakly founded) whisperings that he’s too old for ballet. Choreographers have always clamored to work with him, and this tour is no exception—accompanied only by pianist Pedja Muzijevic, he’ll perform material especially created for him by a half-dozen of the most prominent names in the field. No word on whether he’ll make a courtesy call on Stillwaterite Jessica Lange, mother of his daughter Shura. Pantages, 710 Hennepin Ave., (612) 339-7007, hennepintheatredistrict.com

Call him the Baryshnikov of North Indian dance. Still going strong well into his 60s, Birju Maharaj has been called the greatest living exponent of the kathak tradition, a family torch he took on from his father and uncles, all famous dancers themselves. He’s also an accomplished singer and drummer. His O’Shaughnessy visit, part of a July residency with the local Katha Dance Theatre, will also feature his choreography for the film Devdas, a hit at last year’s Cannes festival. O’Shaughnessy, 2004 Randolph Ave., St. Paul, (651) 690-6700, www.stkate.edu/oshaughnessy; kathadance.org

Normally, we’re kind of cynical about pop sensations like Norah Jones, and honestly if we hear “Don’t Know Why” on the radio one more time, we’ll throw the infernal device out the window. (But we don’t hold it against her, we hold it against computerized program directors at computerized radio stations. Beethoven’s Ninth would drive us nuts, too, in heavy rotation.) Word is that Ravi Shankar’s love child can really play live, and there’s nothing like an intimate show in the lovely surroundings of Northrop to melt our jaded hearts. Northrop, 84 Church St. S.E., (612) 624-2345, northrop.umn.edu