PHOTOS: Open Window Theatre’s Leaving Iowa Arts Theatre by Amy Donahue - May 2, 2022May 2, 2022 The cast of Open Window Theatre's production of Leaving Iowa, which opened April 29 in Inver Grove Heights, MN. Photo by Kayla Ninnemann. There is a great population reshuffling going on in the United States. In 2020 and 2021, numerous households fled the big cities for larger in-door spaces and outdoor
PREVIEW: Shostakovich, Britten, and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra Arts Music by Basil Considine - April 30, 2022April 30, 2022 The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra in 2015. Photo by Ash & James Photography. How long does it take to learn a cello concerto? If you were Mstislav Rostropovich, the Soviet cellist for whom Dmitri Shostakovich composed his Cello Concerto No. 1, the answer is "4 days, memorization included". Even at just
NEWS: CAORC Announces 2022 Multi-Country Research Fellows Arts by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 26, 2022 The Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC) announced today the 2022 award recipients for its Multi-Country Research Fellowship and the Mary Ellen Lane Multi-Country Travel Award. Now in its 29th year, the Multi-Country Research Fellowship supports advanced regional and trans-regional research in the humanities, social sciences, and allied natural
PREVIEW: The Return of the Spotlight Showcase (Hennepin Theatre Trust) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Amy Donahue - April 24, 2022April 24, 2022 A promotional image for the Hennepin Theatre Trust's Spotlight Education Spotlight Showcase event. The Spotlight Showcase, Minnesota high school theater’s biggest night, returns to the historic State Theatre in Minneapolis this June. This two-evening affair organized by the Hennepin Theatre Trust unites high school theater students from across the state for
REVIEW: Remembering, Forgetting and Battling Impunity in Atacama (Full Circle Theater) Arts Theatre by Kit Bix - April 23, 2022April 23, 2022 Pedro R. Bayon and Lara Trujillo star in Full Circle Theater's production of Atacama, now playing at Park Square Theatre in Saint Paul, MN. The mission of the Full Circle Theater, the program reminds us, is “to produce heartfelt, groundbreaking theater that artfully addresses issues of diversity and social justice for
REVIEW: Straighten Up and Fly Right!: John Pizzarelli at The Dakota Arts Music by Brian Bix - April 13, 2022April 13, 2022 Three looks at singer John Pizzarelli (color) with his bandmates pianist Isaiah J. Thompson (center-bottom) and bassist Mike Karn (center-top). The Dakota was packed last night with hard-core John Pizzarelli fans. Many knew of Pizzarelli through his radio show with his wife Radio Deluxe), followed his regular streaming show It’s
REVIEW: Deedles is Back!: The Diane Schuur Quartet at Crooners Arts Music by Brian Bix - April 6, 2022April 6, 2022 L-R: Diane Schuur, saxophonist Michael Cox, UR: bassist Roger Hines, LR: drummer Kendall Kay. The great jazz vocalist Diane Schuur (two-time Grammy winner, five-time nominee) was born blind, but it has never slowed her down. She wears spangle-rimmed, almost Elton John-worthy sunglasses and includes references to her situation in her banter. One
REVIEW: That’s How You Jazz: Jelly’s Last Jam (Theater Latté Da) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Brian Bix - April 3, 2022April 3, 2022 Julius Collins (center) as Buddy and the cast of Theater Latté Da's production of Jelly’s Last Jam, which opened last night at the Ritz Theater in Northeast Minneapolis. Photo by Dan Norman. When George C. Wolfe brought Jelly’s Last Jam to Broadway in 1992, jazz fans were happy to see the important
PHOTOS: A Look at Jelly’s Last Jam (Theater Latté Da) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 2, 2022April 2, 2022 Andre Shoals as the Chimney Man in the Theater Latté Da production of Jelly’s Last Jam. Photo by Dan Norman. "Jelly Roll" may seem an odd nickname for a musician. At the start of the 20th century, the term certainly referred to the familiar dessert – but in African-American slang of
PREVIEW: The Rape of Lucretia (An Opera Theatre) Arts Music Opera Theatre by Amy Donahue - April 1, 2022April 2, 2022 Lucretia (mezzo-soprano Kara Morgan) holds a laurel wreath – symbolizing honor in ancient Roman society – in An Opera Theatre's production of The Rape of Lucretia, which opens this evening at the Southern Theater in Minneapolis, MN. Photo courtesy of An Opera Theatre. Twin Cities opera fans have a lot of choices in