This week’s picks
On the radar: Outsider music—music by untrained musicians who are unaware or dismissive of popular conventions—won’t be making Beyoncé nervous any time soon, but it has produced at least one bona fide star: Daniel Johnston, a man so heartfelt and ragged he makes Tom Waits sound like Miley Cyrus. He’ll be at First Ave tonight.
Under the radar: Most clothing stores have sales. VState, in Calhoun Square, has cocktail parties, fashion shows, and ladies’ nights. Simultaneously.
On the radar: At Macy’s Glamorama, a fundraiser for cancer research, hundreds will make the noble sacrifice of spending their Friday evening drinking cocktails, looking at beautiful people, and listening to hip music. (It’s for the children.) The rest of you selfish bastards can go to the Vampire Hands LP release show at the Turf Club.
Under the radar: If you want to do good in the world but just can’t find the right heels to go with that cocktail dress, pull on a pair of Chucks instead and join People Serving People at the Twins game, with pre-game entertainment by Jeremy Messersmith. The way the Twins have been playing, you will indeed suffer for the cause.
On the radar: Afrifest, the second of two major summer celebrations of African-Minnesotan culture, takes place in Crystal. Meanwhile, Latino culture is in the spotlight at the Loft, which is hosting a reading by emerging writers in the Inroads Program.
Under the radar: Counting the days ’til the State Fair? Get your fix at the Mall of America, which is hosting the first-ever “sneak peek” of the Fair…or, if you hate the MoA on principle, you can stay safely away and still enjoy some of that sweet, sweet sweet corn at (how Minnesotan can you get?) a big community corn feed.
On the radar: I have yet to see Mad Men, but everyone tells me I would love it. I’m a man who loves Vanilla Sky, so take that for what you will—but anyway, a lot of people seem to be pretty into the show, the third season of which kicks off tonight at Jax with Mad-Men-era standards performed by Jeremy Messersmith (he’s freakin’ everywhere!) and Lucy Michelle.
Under the radar: EWOK! hosts its second annual socialist social, an ice cream party in Powderhorn Park to benefit anti-I-69 arrestees facing racketeering charges in Southern Indiana.
 |
On the radar: It’s a slow night, even for a Monday—which makes the always-appealing Cheap Date Night at the BLB all the more appealing.
Under the radar: Do the words tempura and sushi appeal to you? How about if I add the words ninjas and flying guillotine? Still with me? Okay, let me throw one more at you: drill bra. Still there? Okay, have fun tonight at the Turf Club.
On the radar: “When playing live,” reports Wikipedia, Blink-182 “typically play their songs at a faster tempo and often replace certain lyrics with toilet humor and various gags.” If that prospect makes you feel flushed, head to the X tonight.
Under the radar: Perhaps you’ve heard about the coming bee extinction crisis, which may lead to the subsequent demise of all life as we know it? If it’s gonna happen, it’s gonna happen—but if you have an interest in forestalling armageddon at least until the last Harry Potter movies come out, it can’t hurt to nurture a few bees in your backyard.
On the radar: In a concert moved amidst much ballyhoo from the Minnesota Zoo when Chrissie Hynde unsurprisingly objected to the idea of playing among caged animals (which also meant Myth was out), the Pretenders are at the Orpheum tonight with Cat Power and Juliette Lewis.
Under the radar: The Wesley United Methodist Church, now almost surrounded by the Minneapolis Convention Center, was built in 1891 to house the oldest Methodist congregation in Minneapolis. It’s an imposing and beautiful Richardsonian Romanesque building with space for 1,000 and a stained-glass dome. With the congregation’s size dwindling, the congregation is being forced to abandon the building; what will become of it? Tonight, a historical preservationist will lead an open discussion about the options.
Have an event you’d like to put on our readers’ radar? Submit it directly to our calendar.
 |
Daily Planet arts roundup
Despite the travails of its sponsoring institution Intermedia Arts, the B-Girl Be is returning to Minneapolis—and Justin Schell has the story. Onstage this week were Mos Def and Casper and the Cookies; and in the studio (!) was Dwight Hobbes.
Actors Charlyne Yi and Jake Johnson were in town recently promoting their new movie Paper Heart, and Jim Brunzell sat down to talk with them about their charming, unusual film.
Hmm, let’s see, was there anything going on in local theater this week? No, not really…oh wait! That’s right! The Fringe! I seem to recall that we published a few blog entries about that.
Rachel Reiva:
• My thoughts on Paisley Poppies
• My thoughts on Alice Unwrapped
• My thoughts on In Another’s Size
John Munger:
• Like You Mean It—A view
• Fringe fried
Kate Hoff:
• Thursday. Sick and tired. No shows, but big plans…
• Friday: Nerds, bedroom stories, a troubled teen, and some coffee
Wendy Gennaula:
• Wallabies, misfit toys, and a houseplant
• Tommy’s Top 10 2009—Part 2
Matt Everett:
• Love Me or Die! (Five stars)
• Rumspringa: The Musical (Three and a half stars)
• I’m tired, but not that tired
• June of Arc (Three and a half stars)
• Visions of Johanna (Three stars)
• My Body Made Me Do This (Five stars)
• Bard Fiction (Five stars)
• Hogg and the Humors (Four and a half stars)
This year I actually managed to catch one Fringe show myself: Lili’s Burlesque Revue. Meanwhile, Kevin Kling and Michael Sommers took Flight to Open Eye Theatre, and Paul Herwig of Off-Leash Area slipped a few hints about the nature of their annual Garage show, which is coming up in October. Finally, in what definitely qualified as a theatrical event despite its spiritual nature, whirling Dervishes performed at the U.
Amy Rea hit the Red Stag, Jeremy Iggers hit Giapponese, and I bar-crawled from Seven to Eli’s to The King and I.
Did you submit your artwork for consideration for judging at the State Fair? If not, sorry, it’s too late. What it’s not too late for, though, is to see the work of artists with disabilities responding to the photography of Wing Young Huie.
Not books exactly, but poetry—and what poetry! The St. Paul Soapboxing poetry team won the national poetry slam this week, and Justin Schell has the story.
Not a subscriber? Click here to get Arts Orbit Radar in your inbox every Thursday—and follow ArtsOrbit on Twitter for 24/7 updates on the local arts scene. For a new video on the local arts scene every weekday, bookmark the Daily Planet’s 3-Minute Egg page.
Jay Gabler (jay@tcdailyplanet.net) is the Daily Planet’s arts editor.
| Support people-powered non-profit journalism! Volunteer, contribute news, or become a member to keep the Daily Planet in orbit. |
Comment