Arts

On May 4, Border Crossing, a play about immigration, finished an 8-day-run at the Ritz Theater. The play was produced and directed by the Off-Leash Area, a Minneapolis company known for adventurous movement-based productions. Reviews were complimentary, but the playwright, Marcie Rendon, refused to see it. Rendon also insisted that the program read: “The text was adapted and excerpted from a larger body of work by Marcie Rendon.” She asked for corrections in reviews that didn’t make that clear, and posted a letter on her blog after the play opened. MORE »

While we were waiting for the Avett Brothers to take the stage at the Cabooze Thursday night, I pointed out to my girlfriend that there were not one, not two, but three banjos plugged in and ready for action. She shook her head in admiration. “Shit is going to start on fire!” MORE »

To some people, it’s public art; to others, it’s a nuisance. Some city officials say that both aerosol art and illegal graffiti are problematic. Aerosol art is legal spray painting done in public spaces or on canvases, while graffiti is illegal marking on public or private property. MORE »

It’s probably a coincidence that Rhino released expanded and remastered versions of the first four Replacements albums on the same day that Rhymesayers Entertainment dropped Atmosphere’s latest full-length album, When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold. The album debuted at #5 on the Billboard chart, making it the highest-charting release in the history of Rhymesayers, a Minneapolis hip-hop label home to artists including Brother Ali, I Self Divine, and Eyedea & Abilities. MORE »