TUESDAY PICK | Let’s talk about food, baby

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Food is more than just sustenance. It holds cultural and, yeah, emotional value. As I think everyone in my family has said at one point or another: “We’re Halaskas, we like to eat.” Because it makes us feel better. We don’t need much of an excuse to get together and celebrate with food at the center. Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift realize food’s place at the table (har har), as their syndicated radio show The Splendid Table reflects. On Tuesday, April 3, the pair will talk about their latest collaboration The Splendid Table’s How to Eat Weekends (their book that contains 100 recipes for enjoying Saturdays and Sundays). And, I can’t say for sure about this book club, but there’s usually food … 

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MONDAY PICK | TwitQ, a conversation in #s and @s

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If I had to explain today’s pick in 140 characters or less: Behind the scenes at the Oscars, @ArtsOrbit asks @IceCrmSocialite & @jjmillard to spill it all #tcdptwitqIf I didn’t: First, a little background. Courtney Algeo and Jamie Millard covered the Academy Awards for the TC Daily Planet back in February (the only Minnesota news source to do so), taking their reporting prowess to a national level. On Monday, April 2, Jay Gabler will be facilitating a conversation via Twitter for all the juicy celeb gossip and pro-tips they picked up during their epic journey through Tinseltown. You and your handle are invited to join in with any questions or comments you may have. The time is noon and the place is the Internet. Continue Reading

MUSIC REVIEW | Of Monsters and Men at the Fine Line Music Café were total animals

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When I heard Of Monsters and Men for the first time a few months ago on the radio, I said to my friend, “Who is this?” (A fair question for someone who doesn’t listen to the radio much, I think. We ended up deferring to Shazam.) I liked them immediately. Their fame has just begun to snowball in the US since winning Iceland’s Músiktilraunir (a battle of the bands) in 2010. I can only imagine they left their competition shaking in their boots after they finished their set. After Thursday’s performance at the Fine Line Music Café on March 29, that hunch was validated.

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SUNDAY PICK | “What’s the Word For” new seconds

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Jeffrey Hatcher’s What’s the Word For was part of Illusion Theater’s Fresh Ink Series in 2011. Now the little-play-that-could is not only making its world premiere in the city and theater it originated, but doing so with the likes of Tony-award-winning Melissa Hart and Twin Cities veteran thespian Michael Paul Levin. The vague plot (two characters “faced with a difficult decision”) is an empty canvas for the two-person cast to woo audiences with their charisma and charm of the script—something it surely did last year. 

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SATURDAY PICK | “Minnecanos” for the bilingual and monolingual alike

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Minnecanos just opened last weekend at the Parkway Theater, but tonight is the last chance to catch the hour-long touring production that strives to enlighten Minnesotans of the strong Chicano presence in the Twin Cities. Mixed Blood introduced Minnecanos to its repertoire back in 1994 and the show has been around ever since. The production has evolved since then, now longer to incorporate modern issues and also the projection of both English and Spanish supertitles. If you haven’t already taken advantage of Mixed Blood’s Radical Hospitality initiative (free admission, based on availability), Minnecanos is a good place to start—not only for its important cultural history lesson, but for the relevance of the topic today in understanding our city.

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SUNDAY PICK | Macy’s Flower Show in full bloom

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Bougainvillea and Rhododendron are two of my favorite flowers (not on account of their aesthetic quality—I actually don’t know what they look like—but because their names appear in two songs I love: “Thistled Spring” and “Passing Afternoon“). These flowers are more than just a pretty name, they’re two of the bounty of flowers featured at Macy’s Flower Show. This year’s “Gardens in Paradise” theme is inspired by the lush Brasilian landscapes and designed by Roberto Burle Marx. Among the features of the two-week-long floral gallery is the availability of Bachman’s Master Gardeners to answer any question you may have about flowers, planting, and the like. So go ahead, stop and smell the roses … or bougainvillea blooms.

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TUESDAY PICK | “The Nine Muses” makes you think

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You might not be able to fully gather the premise of The Nine Muses just by watching the trailer, but British/Ghanaian director John Akomfrah’s film created quite a stir among critics at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. The film is described as “part documentary, part personal essay” about the immigration from the UK to Alaska in 1960 and beyond; Variety called it “cerebral and sensual.” The Nine Muses makes its Minnesota debut at the Pillsbury House Theatre on Tuesday, March 20. In exchange for an Abe Lincoln, you’ll see what the buzz is all about.

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SATURDAY PICK | A St. Patrick’s Day celebration … without the beer

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Everyone has a little Irish in them on St. Patrick’s Day, and that seems to be especially true in the U.S. For some, the day is defined by green beer and blacking out. For others, it’s more than that. The Irish Music & Dance Association’s 31st annual St. Patrick’s Day Celebration and 9th annual Day of Irish Dance highlights the rich cultural traditions of the Irish this weekend, providing an alternate option in St. Paul to joining the bar-hopping masses. Held at the Landmark Center on Saturday and Sunday, there will be Irish dance, Celtic vendors, Irish eats, pipe bands and crafts and entertainment for kids. And, lest I forget, Erin go Bragh!

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