5 Must-Do April Events

4.7

Seed

Winter Miller’s 2007 play In Darfur was lauded nationally for its urgent portrayal of human-rights abuses through character-driven drama. Seed, her latest, arrives in this staged Playwrights’ Center reading: It’s a weirdo futuristic comedy about genetically modified shenanigans and a world full of dark humor near Lake SamWalton and the labs of Monsanto. • 4/7, pwcenter.org

4.9

Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings

Sharon Jones has emerged from a cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy with spirit intact to hit the road in support of her latest, Give the People What They Want. Her update of classic soul and R&B sounds remains essential, vital, and infused with life-filled energy—timeless, in other words. • 4/9, hennepintheatretrust.org

4.12–27

The Magic Flute

Mozart’s spiky fairy tale of a young prince, his search for love, and the Queen of the Night is a great hallucinatory joyride. This production arrives via Berlin and L.A. with a contemporary genre-bending take that incorporates film animation and a good deal of conceptual sorcery. • 4/12–4/27, mnopera.org

4.25–5.4

Dante’s Inferno

James Sewell (with his ballet) delivers a work he’s envisioned for decades: a dance adaptation of The Divine Comedy with the circles of hell as metaphor for life and transformation. With electronic visuals and an all-out staging as the centerpiece of the JSB’s 20th season. • 4/25–5/4, jsballet.org

4.25–27

Saint Paul Art Crawl

Lowertown becomes the hub for hundreds of artists and thousands of visitors in this year’s iteration of a venerable and always-entertaining institution that can double as an arty date or an afternoon with the kids. A handful of cash doesn’t hurt, either, since a new work on the wall can be a real paradigm-shifter. • 4/25–27, stpaulartcrawl.org