Friday, September 7
Music in the Park
WHAT: Concrete and Grass Lowertown Music Festival
WHERE: Mears Park, St. Paul
WHEN: 7 p.m.
Gary Louris of the Jayhawks closes out this three-day festival in the verdant park, which also features Dosh, the Jack Brass Band, and St. Paul-centered groups like the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. concreteandgrass.com
Friday, September 7
Eating Autumn
WHAT: Kramarczuk’s Kielbasa Festival
WHERE: Kramarczuk East European Deli, Minneapolis
WHEN: 5 to 10 p.m.
Consider this an appetizer before the true Oktoberfest celebrations kick in later this month. Here, you can enjoy beer, sausage, and the music of Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles as well as polka bands. Learn more at kramarczuk.com
Saturday, September 8
A Real Art House
WHAT: Why We Do This
WHERE: Soap Factory, Minneapolis
WHEN: 7 to 11 p.m.
Andy DuCett, perhaps the most amiably ambitious visual artist in Minnesota right now, has spent the summer filling every nook of the huge Soap Factory gallery—some 12,000 square feet—with dioramas, videos, drawings, etc. All of it ties back to shared memories and experiences, such as paddling a canoe through the Boundary Waters, watching clouds from an airplane, or glimpsing Sasquatch from a log cabin. Naturally. Learn more at soapfactory.org
Saturday, September 8
Gone to Pots
WHAT: American Pottery Festival
WHERE: Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis
WHEN: 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
This three-day celebration of contemporary ceramics features the work of many top artists, some of it for sale (you need to register if you want to get in on the morning sale of Warren MacKenzie’s pots). Other activities include talks and panel discussions. Learn more at northernclaycenter.org
Sunday, September 9
The Bayou Beckons
WHAT: The Brothers Size
WHERE: Dowling Studio, Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis
WHEN: 7 p.m.
The second part of a loose trilogy by the galvanizing playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney (the first was last year’s Dowling Studio hit In the Red and Brown Water), this story staged by Pillsbury House follows a man fresh out of prison, trying to reconnect with his bayou roots. The play features perhaps the best three-man cast in any play this fall: James Willliams, Namir Smallwood, and Gavin Lawrence. Learn more at guthrietheater.org
Sunday, September 9
Black Gold
WHAT: Moreechika: Season of Mirage
WHERE: Southern Theater, Minneapolis
WHEN: 7:30 p.m.
First of all, if you haven’t been in a while, the Southern Theater is still alive and kicking, thank you very much. And it’s continuing to host important shows like this one, Ananya Dance Theatre’s evening-length work on the environmental and cultural costs of oil, particularly on women of color. Learn more at southerntheater.org
