picks

Chances are you dig these cities we live in; and there's a lot to like too. The Mill City complex, situated in the scenic part of downtown, is definitely one reason, and is as historic as it is beautiful ... and also highly photographed. It's no coincidence that the old mill is situated on the Mississippi RIver—that river being the energy source that brought work and people up north to Minnesota. The Washburn A Mill Tour takes you on a guided walkabout of the building—the only opportunity of its kind, actually. I know it sounds like a glorified grade school field trip, but it's more than just a history lesson. I took my sister to "visit the most explosive museum in the world" last spring and we both still talk about how much random weird fun we had. When else are you going to get to take a picture with a giant box of Bisquick?

Here at the Daily Planet we typically steer you towards independents and hyper-local events, but Memorial Day is here, summer is in full effect, and the time is ripe to shamelessly settle in for a big-budget blockbuster. I've recently reviewed three such films in the Daily Planet, and can guiltlessly send you to the multiplex.

Is there any key to the mysteries of history that's more accessible than fashion? Turn back the clock just ten years, and you can see yourself wearing something that you'd never wear today...but of course, everyone was wearing it back then. In the past. The past(s) is (are) where the Minnesota Historical Society makes its business to dwell, and each year the MHS celebrates fashions past with a "RetroRama" event featuring looks from a selected moment in time. This time around, though, the designers' mandate is thematic rather than periodic: the fashions on display will all be somehow related to politics. Also on tap are custom cocktails, music by the Southside Aces, and "Blingo" with Ellie Blades.

Before. After. Never.'s Kickstarter video is a little, uh, offbeat. But it worked nevertheless, because AEthem Theatre Company now has itself a fully produced play showing at the Sabes Jewish Community Center on May 21 and 22. The premise of the show takes J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan one step further by looking at what happened after Neverland and describes itself as darker than Disney's version. The Twin Cities ensemble specializes in "physical theatre" and is made up on a group of Bethel University students wanting to develop "non-traditional skills." It seems the little company is succeeding in all of that so far.