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From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. What does a painting sound like? Rochester trombonist Jon Sievers suggests looking at — and listening to — “Canvas to Composition” at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona. Minnesota composer Eric Heukeshoven created sonifications of four artworks in the museum’s permanent collection. The composer assigned sounds that describe the color, texture and feeling of the works. The compositions will be revealed Friday, at the museum’s New Look Masquerade Party, which is part of its 20th anniversary celebration. In the museum, Sievers says, you’ll be able to hear the music without wearing headphones: “It's like focused sound that's aimed at just at you, and there's an indicator of ‘here's where you should stand’ as you're appreciating the sonification of [each] particular artwork.” A prairie swaying on the gallery wall Kristine Chapin of St. Paul says she was captivated by Linda Snouffer’s installation, “A Prairie Stroll,” at the Dow Gallery in St. Paul. Snouffer’s botanical prints recreate the native grasses and varied shades of the Minnesota sky. Hung on dowels, the dyed and printed fabric sways as you walk through the room, which Chapin says gives you the feeling of walking through a tallgrass prairie. The show’s run has been extended through Oct. 17 to align with the St. Paul Art Crawl, and Snouffer will be on site Oct. 16 from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Oct. 17 from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Folk music for a cause, with room to dance Theater blogger Kendra Plant of St. Louis Park is looking forward to an evening of music when Soul Trouvère and Ukrainian Village Band perform an all-ages concert this Saturday to benefit Unidos Minnesota. Both Minnesota bands perform folk music from Eastern Europe, and Plant says dancing is encouraged. The show is Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Celtic Junction in St. Paul. “I’m drawn to the way the event connects Minnesota’s Ukrainian and immigrant communities through music while supporting Unidos MN. It feels especially relevant to Minnesota right now, and like a strong example of local art responding to the communities around it,” said Plant.

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. An ice-fishing comedy at Commonweal in Lanesboro It's an all-theater Art Hounds this week. Let's start with Commonweal Theatre in Lanesboro, which opens "Eelpout," written by Paul Kruse of La Crosse, Wis., on Saturday. Writer Rayson Lorrey of Rochester saw a preview of the queer comedy about an ice fishing bachelor party gone awry. Its Lake Mille Lacs setting and take on Midwestern culture will feel familiar to audiences, Lorrey said. It runs through Nov. 1. Friday's preview show is County Free Night, where residents of Fillmore and Houston counties can attend free of charge. Lorrey appreciated the icehouse set, the takes on Midwestern male bonding and the unique costumes: "[The show] uses the conceit of a talking eelpout that interacts with the three main male characters: Sven, Ole and Lars. It's a hilarious idea that the Commonweal pulls off really well. There are beautiful eelpout costumes that most of the cast wears at one point, and Laurie Roberts does an amazing job of choreography. You get the idea that there is a school of fish under the ice, dancing. I've never seen anything like it." Morton: The Forgotten (Finnish) Founder As an immigrant to the U.S., actor Patrick Bailey of St. Paul says he's gleaned much of his knowledge of American history from books, screens and theater. He's looking forward to a new opportunity to learn a bit about a lesser-known founding father, John Morton, in a new historical play this weekend. Morton, of Finnish heritage, was a signatory to the Declaration of Independence. "Morton: The Forgotten Founder" was written by Laurie Flanigan Hegge and directed by Wendy Knox of Frank Theater. The free historical play with music takes place for one night only at the Minnehaha Park Pavilion, near the falls. The show is part of FinnFest, which takes place Thursday through Sunday in Minneapolis. The show is followed by live music and dancing with Twin Cities Finnish folk band Lauluaika. Bailey says: "It's kind of a gift from the Finlandia Foundation because it's a free show by Frank Theater, one of the most awesome theater companies in town. It's a fully rehearsed, fully staged [show], costumed with music, hour long. What's not to love?" A staged reading of a new play in Moorhead Derek Dahlsad of Moorhead loves the theater scene in his area, and he recommends seeing a staged reading by local playwright Em Christie. Dahlsad says: “‘Living the Dream’ is about employees at four different businesses trying to get through their day and not go crazy at the end of the world.” The reading is Friday, Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. in the FMCT Community Stage at the Hjemkomst Center in Moorhead.

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. A Teen Musical in the 4-H Building Erik Ostrom of Minneapolis is an improviser, composer and musician—and he always makes a point when he goes to the State Fair to see the 4-H State Arts-In Musical. The program brings together teen thespians from around the state, who spend three weeks creating an original musical, including sets, props, and costumes. Ostrom describes the show as a half-hour song-and-dance production with a live band. They perform three-to-four times a day in the 4-H Building through Labor Day. Ostrom loves seeing the kids’ passion for theater: “I was a small-town theater kid, and I had friends who were other small town theater kids, but it can be isolating, and I like the idea that there are these theater kids coming from all over the state and meeting each other and finding new friends who are excited about the same things they are." Meximalismo Mary Thomas is an art historian and Deputy Director of US Latinx Art Forum. She recommends visiting the exhibition "Meximalismo" at Northeast Sculpture Gallery in Minneapolis, which runs through Sept. 12. Here’s how she describes it: “’Meximalismo’ is a lively and thoughtful exploration of maximalist aesthetics within Latinx art. Curated by Silvana Agostini and Maria Cristina Tavera, this exhibition features a wide range of artists working in mediums that span photography, painting, installation, and multi-media work. The exhibition brings forward multi-dimensional understanding of the social and political significance of maximalism that resonates deeply in a moment that has been overdetermined by narratives of fear and scarcity.” Landscapes with unexpected points of view Looking for a space of beauty to take a breather before the fall arts season swings into action? Doris Rubenstein of Richfield suggests visiting Laura Andrews’ exhibit The Transparent Eye. These “dreamlike” paintings often adjust the viewpoint of typical landscape paintings inviting viewers to look up at the tree canopy or consider the natural world in a new way. The show is on view at the Kolman & Reeb Gallery in the Northrup-King Building in Northeast Minneapolis through Sept. 26. "No one is forcing you to buy a painting, but hold on to your wallet when you see these!”

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. Austin ArtWorks Festival brings visual art, music, books and film downtown Gretchen Ramlo has been involved with the Austin ArtWorks Festival since the beginning, but lately she has stepped back and is looking forward simply to attending this year. The free annual festival takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 28, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 29. The festival includes more than 80 juried artists working in a variety of artistic media as well as a stage with live music. This year’s author’s tent includes authors writing romance, crime and thrillers, and Austin history. The festival kicks off Friday at 4 p.m. with a talk by mystery writer William Kent Krueger. Ramlo says she is looking forward to that event as well as a film screening of the documentary “The Life & Art of Eric Anfinson.” Artists respond to Operation Metro Surge in Northeast Minneapolis exhibition Tricia Heuring is artistic director of Public Functionary in Northeast Minneapolis. She’s excited about a group show taking place in her neighborhood at a nontraditional space: findfurnish on Central Avenue. Titled “The Radical Act of Having Each Other’s Back,” the exhibit features the work of 26 artists created during and since U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements' Operation Metro Surge. There is an opening reception Thursday, Aug. 27 from 6 to 9 p.m., and the exhibition remains on view through Sept. 20. At the center of the exhibit, four graffiti writers have created their own black-and-white version of Picasso’s painting “Guernica,” his response to the Nazi bombing of Guernica, Spain, during the Spanish Civil War. Heuring says this version, and the show, allows artists to reclaim the narrative following the height of ICE enforcement activity during Operation Metro Surge. Visitors can add magnetic pieces to the Guernica mural as a way of interacting with the story it is telling. “I really hope this is the first of many, many shows by artists processing what's been happening in our cities and and in our country. And I really hope that it inspires more artists to start opening up about the narratives that they want to share, so that we can continue just resisting and talking about the things that are happening.” Dede Decker transforms latch hook into contemporary fine art Jes Reyes is an artist and arts administrator in St. Paul. She wants people to know about Dede Decker’s latch hook exhibit at Fresh Eye Gallery in Minneapolis, which runs through Sept. 27. Reyes says: “I'm drawn to artists who embrace intuitive making, blur the boundaries between craft and fine art and create work that is both joyful and deeply personal. As a fiber artist myself, I feel a particular connection to Dede's practice. I'm fascinated by the way she transforms latch hook — a medium many people associate with craft kits — into contemporary fine art through her own original designs. Dede's work also resonates with my own belief that fiber belongs firmly within contemporary art.” (Correction Aug., 27, 2026): A previous version of this story contained a misspelling of Jes Reyes. It has been corrected.

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. A twilight circus takes over Raspberry Island Erinn Liebhard, artistic and executive director of Rhythmically Speaking, is looking forward to a one-night-only circus and cabaret performance Sunday, Aug. 23. Insomnia Salon Vol. 3: The River Night Circus takes place from 7 to 9 p.m. at Raspberry Island in St. Paul. The free event begins at twilight and is staged by Deeper Water Arts & Jackson Street Arts in partnership with St. Paul Parks. Liebhard notes that there's abundant free parking a short walk from the performance site. Liebhard says: "This show has brought together more than 45 performers to build an amazing twilight river circus, including fire dancers, aerialists, installation artists, giant puppets, food trucks, all manner of dancers and singers and musicians, tarot card readers, and a mysterious woman who tells your fortune by creating a custom fragrance for you. I'm so excited to bring my whole family to this. The show is going to be a totally delightful end-of-summer treat." Opera, drag and burlesque share the stage in St. Paul Isa Condo-Olvera is an actor and singer and St. Paul. She's a fan of both opera and drag, and she says these two high-drama performance styles combine to form "an absolute blast" in An Opera Theatre's Divas & Drag: Young, Sexy, and Baroque. Now in its fifth year, An Opera Theatre has partnered with the Bach Society of Minnesota, which will provide the musical accompaniment to opera, drag, and burlesque performers. The show takes place at the Historic Mounds Theatre in St. Paul, Aug. 21 – 24. Condo-Olvera says the combination "makes for really diverse audiences. There's the opera fans and there's the drag fans, and there's people that love both, like me. It makes for introducing new forms of art to both of those audience members, which is just so exciting and fun. It's also really fun to witness people discovering those new art forms, because the audience is such a huge part of drag." An upcycled quilt collects memories of Lake Superior Kristen McCoy creates designs from used clothes and textiles in Minneapolis under the brand ReThink and she wants to highlight two interactive, upcycled art opportunities at the Flock ArtFest taking place Aug. 21 and 22 at Bayfront Festival Park in Duluth. Resource Renew is hosting a Free Store where people can take gently used art supplies that were locally donated. Visitors can also contribute to Minneapolis-based artist Sadie Ward's Lake Superior memories quilt project by writing their memories of Lake Superior on denim from upcycled jeans. Ward will sew the pieces into a quilt in the shape of the lake. The choice of denim is intentional, McCoy says, not just for its shades of blue, but because cotton is a very water-thirsty crop. According to reporting from the U.N Environment Programme, making a single pair of jeans can take 800 to 1,000 gallons of water, with less efficient jeans soaking up as much as 2,600 gallons. "I like... everything coming together on this art project for Sadie. Having that parallel of using the denim to tell the stories of water, and also [having] a place where we can hold our memories close to us as climate change is making changes to our waterways and also with human impact changing our waterways too."

This week, Art Hounds is devoted to the Minnesota Fringe Festival. More than 100 individual plays will run on stages across Minneapolis Thursday through August. Fringe is the largest non-juried theater festival in the U.S.; amateur and professional theater makers alike pitch shows that are chosen by lottery. Each show must be fewer than 60 minutes, and there are up to seven slots a day for shows to run. For many, it's the wild diversity of shows itself that is the draw. Performances this year span from musicals to improv, dance to clowning, one-person shows to full casts. Most performers are local, but there are visiting performers who travel to Minnesota to take part. Each show runs five times throughout the 12-day period. Interested in going? There are ticketing options for single shows as well as a range of multi-show options. Check out the shows and ticketing options on the Minnesota Fringe website. For those attending with families, each show page includes recommended minimum ages and content warnings. And while it's hard to select just one or even a few shows to highlight, we asked Art Hounds to do just that. Tech: What could go wrong? Actor Taj Ruler recommends the improv comedy show, Tech. Set on the night before an opening Fringe show, anything can and will go wrong in this ensemble led by Mike Fotus at Strike Theater. "I'm excited because I think it is a stellar cast of improvisers, the best in the Twin Cities. So I think you're in for a good time, and it'll be different every time for the five shows that they have." Watership Down: An authorized musical based on the classic novel Actor and writer Isabella Dunsieth is looking forward to seeing "Watership Down." The musical is based on the 1972 novel by Richard Adams; Rachel Ropella and Timothy Kelly worked with Adams' estate as they adapted it for the stage. Bee Davis of Minneapolis wrote the music and lyrics. The novel tells the story of a band of rabbits on a perilous journey to find a new home. This show by Melancholics Anonymous runs at the Rarig Stoll Thrust Theatre. "I can't wait to see what they do with this. 'Watership Down' with Melancholics Anonymous is a little something different for that company. Typically, they're doing silly tongue-in-cheek coming-of-age type stories. Last year at Fringe, they did Joan of Arc for Miss Teen USA, which was, you know, very funny, but also really grounded in community and girlhood and caring for others. It was very beautiful. I feel like Watership Down is maybe a little darker for melancholics, and so I'm very interested to see how they make that tonal shift." And three more ... Sarra Beckham-Chasnoff and her wife treat the Fringe as a staycation, taking time off work to see a show in every time slot over the next 12 days. Pressed to name a few shows she particularly wanted to see, she cited "Watership Down" and "Tech," as well as these: Bay Creek by the Miller Company, written and performed by Derek Lee Miller, at the Barbara Barker Center for Dance "I've seen this show performed at another fringe festival and at the Twin Cities Horror Festival, and in my mind, I forget that he's the only person on stage. It's creepy and well-acted, written beautifully, and has some surprises in it." A Confluence of Magical Arseholes by the Winding Sheet Outfit, at Rarig Stoll Thrust Theatre. "Winding Sheet Outfit have always done beautiful productions that really highlight why coming to a theater is so much different than going to a movie or listening to music. They often have music in their performances. Their presentations are beautiful, and I always come away feeling moved and learning something new. It appears that this one may be more comedic, and I'm really excited to see how they weave comedy into their shows." Leave Room for Jesus by Hannah Wydeven, at Barbara Barker Center for Dance "It's an improvised comedy musical where Hannah Wydeven takes on the role of a pastor who believes that she is very charismatic and does a revival. Her hang-ups become very clear early in the show, and she, of course, uses some information that she gets from the audience. It's just a wild romp."

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. A world-class music festival in the Brainerd Lakes Hedy Holmberg spends the summers by Bay Lake in the Brainerd Lakes Region. In the past five years, she's been attending the Lakes Area Music Festival, which she calls a hidden gem. The series kicks off Friday and runs through Aug. 23 with a series of concerts. Some of the highlights, Holmberg says, are Friday night’s gala opening and a performance of Carmen Aug. 14 and 16, both at the Gichi-ziibi Center for the Arts. She also loves bringing her grandchildren to the family-friendly Sound Garden event at the Northland Arboretum in Baxter, in which musicians perform throughout the gardens; that free event is Saturday, Aug. 1, at 10 a.m. Many of the concerts are also livestreamed. Holmberg says, "It is an absolute hidden gem to have these world-class musicians from all over the world come to Brainerd, Minn., and put on these amazing, high-quality, very professional concerts and other events. It's absolutely astounding to me. “And part of it is when we talk to the musicians, they talk about how much they love to come up here, how welcoming the community is. They stay with people in their lake homes. They develop a relationship with them over the years. I just can't say enough about it." Jazz dance takes center stage Susana di Palma is the founder and advisory artistic director of Zorango Flamenco Dance Theater. She wants dance lovers to know about Rhythmically Speaking's new show, Groovers & Makers, in which four choreographers will premiere new works with their takes on jazz dance. Rhythmically Speaking focuses on jazz, tap and American social dance styles, and di Palma says you'll leave wanting to dance yourself. The show runs Thursday through Saturday at the Southern Theater in Minneapolis. Di Palma is a big fan of artistic director Erinn Liebhard: "Erin's piece will be [about] time, good times and time travels. She is joined by three other choreographers that are all amazing. One is a great angel of a choreographer, Karla Grotting, and she is a master. And then there are two other choreographers: from New York, Maiya Redding, and Alexis Robbins from Connecticut." A graffiti pioneer steps into the gallery Installation artist Eric Rieger, who works under the name Hot Tea, started graffiti writing in 1996 and "immediately gravitated" to the work of George Thompson (aka EWOK). Thompson's exhibit "Zigged When I Should've Zagged" opens Friday and focuses on his studio practice as it has evolved from his graffiti writing. The exhibit includes nine works on paper created since 2020 as well as a print of his 2019 work "Cop Car." The exhibit is presented by Burlesque of North America, which is also launching a limited-edition zine featuring photographs of decades of Thompson's graffiti. The show at the Southside Preservation Society in Minneapolis runs through Aug. 28. Friday's launch from 7-10 p.m. includes a chance to screen-print a t-shirt with one of Thompson's designs. Rieger describes Thompon's style: "I would describe the artwork as almost, like, otherworldly, but also very familiar. It's almost like you're looking at a still life, but from like the year 30,000."

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. Wheel Appeal Lorrie Kummeth of Maple Grove has been attending the Minnesota Pottery Festival in Hutchinson for the last five years and says it's always a fun event. The festival runs Saturday, July 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, July 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Masonic West River Park in Hutchinson. She notes the area is flat and accessible with easy parking. Artists will be selling pottery at a range of price points. Kummeth also recommends watching the demonstrations: "They do pottery throwdowns: Four or five potters up on their wheels, and they have to produce a specific item or a quantity of items,” said Kummeth. “I know this year there are also a couple of raku demonstrations. They're very dramatic. [The pottery] actually is put into fire, and that is part of what creates the colorations, like iridescent blues, blacks, burgundies. The potter doesn't know what the final glazing will look like until it's done firing." Hotdish and Hijinks Twin Cities actress and singer Jen Maren suggests seeing "A Second Helping: A Church Basement Ladies Sequel." This musical comedy is the second of nine shows in the series, set in a rural Minnesota church basement in 1969. The show runs through Aug. 9 at the Plymouth Playhouse in Plymouth. Maren says to expect laughs, hotdish and dancing from veteran comedians Greta Grosch (who also wrote the show), Dorian Chalmers and Janet Paone: "These three women know these characters so well,” said Maren. “They're in their 21st year of running these shows, so it's a great chance to go see some great comedians at work." A Wider View of Winona Michael William Doyle is a poet, musician and historian living in Winona. He appreciates the way photographer Mary Farrell captures the landscapes and architecture of his beloved town in her exhibit, "Wide Angle Winona: A Panoramic View," on view at the Winona County History Center through Sept. 13. "Mary decided to try to show us the horizontality of our community with its tree-covered bluffs, and the islands, and the historic built environment: the last remaining boathouse community on the entire length of the Mississippi River; the Wagon Bridge where many of them are moored near Latsch Island; the port of Winona [and more]. Because she's lived here for so long, she knows exactly where to go at what time of day to capture the way the light falls on this distinctive area," said Doyle.

'As You Like It’ puts Shakespeare to music in Grand Marais Scotty Reynolds, producing artistic director of Mixed Precipitation, is shining a light on the Grand Marais Playhouse. The theater is staging a musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It" this summer. Music and lyrics are by Shaina Taub, the creator of the Broadway musical “Suffs.” This local production opens Thursday and runs through Aug. 9 at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts. This is Artistic and Technical Director Sue Hennessy’s final summer production before she retires in spring 2027. She has two more community plays planned for this fall and spring. Reynolds says: “’As You Like It’ is one of Shakespeare's fantastical rom-coms, which has lots of fun frolicking and gender bending happening in the forest of Arden. The way [Taub] sets it to music using a multi-generational cast is just really special, fun, magical; it makes you laugh and cry, kind of within 20 seconds, with its sweetness and earnestness.” The Jayhawks headline Nature Rocks in Aitkin Stephanie Mollet loves the arts and music scene of her hometown of Aitken, Minn., where she is the executive director at the Aitken Area Chamber of Commerce. She recommends the annual Nature Rocks concert put on by the Long Lake Conservation Center. The Jayhawks are headlining this year’s fifth annual event. It’s the Minnesota band’s only concert in its home state this summer. Martin Zellar & the Hardways open, though the whole event kicks off with a special performance by kids from Long Lake’s camp, who have been learning about live music this week. The concert, a fundraiser for scholarships at the Long Lake Conservation Center, takes place July 18 at the Aitken County Fairgrounds. Attendees should show up early to grab a picnic table or bring your own chair and shade umbrella. Mollet says to arrive by 5:45 p.m. if you want to hear the children: “I'm really excited to see it because these kids — let me tell you — it's amazing the things that they know and how much they care for the area that's around them.” Dances at the Lake brings movement to the Lake Harriet Rose Garden Jose Leonardo Santos is an anthropologist at Metropolitan State University. A big fan of the arts, Santos particularly enjoys watching dance. He recommends bringing your lawn chair to see Dances at the Lake, which takes place at Lake Harriet Rose Garden July 17 and 18 at 7 p.m. This year’s event, organized by KASM Dance Collective, includes 15 dance troupes in various styles. Santos says there’s something special about seeing live dance performance in that beautiful outdoor setting. “The thing I love about dance is that it's totally immersive, right? A video of [a dance performance] is not the same thing; you've got to be there to enjoy it. Dance can be just like the funnest little thing, or it can make you cry, and you don't even know why because there's no words, right? It forces you to just go off of your senses.”

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. Experience immersive audio story walks on the North Shore Art enthusiast Erin Walsh of Minneapolis is looking forward to heading to the North Shore this weekend to attend the launch of Diver Van Avery’s original immersive story walks. These two new, site-specific audio stories are designed as self-guided experiences for listeners on nature trails near Sugarloaf Cove in Schroeder, Minn. A launch celebration is scheduled for Saturday, July 11, from 1 to 4 p.m. After that, the stories will remain available year-round. You can check out a listening device from the Sugarloaf Cove Nature Center, or you can download the audio any time and listen on your phone. Walsh says: “One of the walks really invites us into the history of that site. Another of the walks just invites us to just sit down and receive the offerings of the place. For myself, I do a lot of efficient listening to things: I walk my dog and I listen to podcasts and I fill my brain with information. I'm really looking forward to the opportunity to put something in my ears that doesn't take me away from my body and away from the landscape around me, but actually invites me towards both of those things.” A bluegrass band with a punk spirit Rachel Felicia Calvert is a fiddle, vocalist, and music educator living in Minneapolis. She recommends that people explore the music of bluegrass band Pert Near Sandstone and their recent album “Side by Side.” They perform Thursday, July 9 at Milk and Honey Ciders in St. Joseph at 7 p.m. and Friday, July 10 in Jackson, Minn. as part of the 20th annual Rhythm of the River Festival. Calvert says: “Sometimes I describe them as if, like, a punk band played bluegrass music. They just bring more of a rocker sensibility to this old folk music that they perform. They are excellent live—just wonderful. They have a really beautiful community of fans as well. They're also really great mentors to up-and-coming bands.” A funny, heartfelt musical about acceptance Twin Cities vocalist Jennifer Eckes is looking forward to seeing the musical “The Prom” performed at Lyric Arts in Anoka. The musical comedy, which was on Broadway in 2018-2019, is set in a small town in Indiana that chooses to cancel its high school prom rather than allow two girls to attend together. Four Broadway actors grab onto this cause and decide to throw a prom for the school. “Mayhem ensues,” Eckes said. She added that the show has a message of acceptance. The production runs July 10 through Aug. 9. Of Lyric Arts, Eckes says: “It's a lovely little theater, very intimate. There's not a bad seat in the house. This production is bound to be chockfull of great talent, great singing, great music, great dancing," said Eckes. "I have every confidence it's going to be a gangbuster show.”

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. A sprawling surrealist exhibit Twin Cities painter David Amdur recommends seeing "The Internal Affairs of Mr. Invincible," an exhibition of more than 100 mixed-media drawings by Lou Ferreri at Hopkins Center for the Arts, on view through August 1. Amdur says: “To get some sense of it, imagine a collaboration between Salvador Dalí and R. Crumb. They are entire editorial pages from the New York Times that have been painted on with acrylic pens, so they're very colorful, and most of the images are quite complex and very surreal, very strange. Also in the exhibition are monumental charcoal drawings that are more than four feet across. It's not a show to rush through. There's really a lot to take in. I would give myself time to linger with the drawings. You'll find unexpected and surprising connections emerge.” Sculpture walking tours Tony Austinson of Fridley got interested in public sculpture during the pandemic, when viewing art indoors wasn’t an option. Visiting the sculpture walks created by various Minnesota cities has turned into a hobby, and he likes to go with his literal art hound, Tillie, at his side. Over time, he’s come to recognize and appreciate the work of individual artists, such as Tim Nelson of Bemidji, who makes sculptures from scrap metal. Austinson recommends checking out the sculpture walks in a city near you. Here are links to self-guided walking tours in Mankato, Bemidji, Park Rapids, Fergus Falls, Hutchinson, Red Wing, and Delano, as well as Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Performance art meets political theater Sarra Beckham-Chasnoff is a theater superfan in the Twin Cities. One standout theatrical performance from last fall—which she is excited to see return this weekend—is “In the Backroom,” created and performed by Michael Torsch. The show is 70 minutes without intermission and runs July 2-5 at 7 p.m. at the Southern Theater in Minneapolis. Beckham-Chasnoff says this play-within-a-play surprised her at every turn, and its themes feel timely for the Fourth of July. “Michael Torsch is just a local treasure, so he does a type of performance art that is very smart and funny, and simultaneously very accessible. He introduces some controversial 21st-century American figures. I think it just kind of has a more complicated view of what America is, and so with the 250th anniversary, I just think it will be a poignant piece to see. “The [theater] is just a few blocks away from where the fireworks will be in Minneapolis, and so for folks going to the July Fourth show, they'll be able to walk over and watch the fireworks afterwards.”

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. 1967: Summer of Love “Summer of Love-In,” presented by Adventures in Hostessville at the Hive Collective in St Paul runs June 25-28. Shows will run Thursday through Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Jen Maren says: “This event is fascinating. Melanie Wehrmacher curates a themed evening that is part cabaret, part comedy, part TED talk, part cooking show, part trivia game, all with live music AND complimentary 1960s themed food and drinks. She takes a specific year and highlights food, music, style, trivia, and history from that year. There is also a deep dive into a specific event from that year, this one being Haight-Ashbury and the Summer of Love. It is one of the most unique events I have been to in a very long time.” Kelly Schamberger’s scenes of the North Shore Aurora Webster, an artist and designer who works at the Duluth Art Institute, was delighted to attend the artist reception of Kelly Schamberger. Schamberger was recently named the 2026 Artist of the Year by the Depot Foundation, and she painted this year’s official Grandma’s Marathon 50th Anniversary Commemorative Poster. Her solo oil painting exhibit, “International Attentions” runs through Labor Day weekend at the Great Lakes Aquarium gallery in Duluth. Webster says: “All but the largest of the vibrant, dreamy landscapes on view were done en plein air, often over the course of days, weeks, or months of trekking out to a remote North Shore vista with the full oil painting setup—quite the accomplishment. The aquarium's gallery is a hidden gem, featuring shows that connect visitors to the beauty of the natural world, and Schamberger's work in the space feels like a literal breath of fresh air.” Folk Dances from Latvia, Bulgaria, Ireland, and more Rita Pelecis is looking forward to seeing “Land of 10,000 Ethnicities: Vol 2,” a folk-dance performance by Ethnic Dance Theatre. Shows are June 26 and 27 at 7:30 p.m. and June 28 at 2 p.m. at the E.M Pearson Theatre in St Paul. A Q&A will be held with the company following Saturday’s performance; Sunday’s performance has ASL interpretation. Pelecis says Artistic Director Donald LaCourse “has traveled the world to find dances and buy costumes from very remote regions, a lot of them Eastern European and Northern European. From the dance to the story to the costumes, their performances are just stunning. I love the storytelling that goes along with it.”

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. West African Drum & Dance Conference Joshua Gillespie, a Minneapolis drummer and storyteller who performs as Brotha Ase, wants everyone to know about the Fakoly Drum & Dance Conference this weekend, put on by Duniya Drum and Dance. The conference includes classes in West African drumming and dance for beginners as well as experienced performers. Instructors are visiting from Guinea, Mali and Nigeria. Classes run Friday through Sunday at the Barbara Barker Center for Dance on the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Campus. A culminating performance, “Bridges of Rhythm: A Path of Generations,” is open to all this Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Duniya Drum & Dance also teaches weekly community classes. Brotha Ase says: It's a great opportunity that you should take advantage of this weekend, if you're looking for something cool to do and getting some cultural healing in your spirit. — Brotha Ase Plein Air painters flock to Red Wing Joshua Cunningham is a landscape painter in St. Paul who works primarily with Groveland Gallery in Minneapolis. He highly recommends the 20th annual Red Wing Arts Plein Air events taking place this month. Artists are painting within a 25-mile radius of Red Wing, including in the city itself, over the next week. Opportunities to watch artists at work — and for kids to paint for free — include this Saturday from 9-11 at the Red Wing Arts. An exhibition of the work they create runs June 20 – Aug. 16 at the Depot. Joshua says: They have had between 50 and 100 paintings done every year, so you can imagine the body of work that has been created over the last 20 years. Though some of those areas get painted more frequently than others, [each] day only comes once. The light and the air of a given day is what defines all of the colors and the values — and often the mood of the place — so you're never really standing in the same place twice. — Joshua Cunningham Football meets dance performance Scott Pakudaitis, board chair of Revolution Dance Works, has been a fan of Corpus Dance Works since he saw their fringe show inspired by plant biology in 2022. He’s looking forward to their new dance show inspired by sports team culture, “Line of Scrimmage,” at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis June 11-15. He anticipates high energy and some comedy that will appeal to sports and dance fans alike: Scott says: They create very innovative and frenetic dances that touch on a lot of things that everybody can relate to. There will be things like mascots and a marching band and dancing referees, a look behind the locker room, tackles and lots of balls flying in the air from dancers who do not know how to catch footballs. — Scott Pakudaitis

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. Six new plays from Arab American Theaterworks Deborah Copperud of Minneapolis hosts the podcast “Read Minnesota Books.” She’s looking forward to a new event, the Festival of New SWANA Plays, this weekend. SWANA stands for Southwest Asian and North African, and it's a culmination of the New Arab American Theater Works Playwright Incubator Program. Open Book in Minneapolis will host staged readings of six new plays by Midwestern SWANA playwrights. Three play readings happen each day at 1, 4 and 7 p.m. with a moderated audience talkback following each show. Tickets are $15 per day. Deborah says the plays are all different: There's a psychological thriller, a fairy tale adaptation, a domestic drama and a travel quest. Sana Wazwaz is a playwright from Minneapolis, and she is presenting “Birthright Palestine” [Saturday at 7 p.m.]. The play was inspired by her experience organizing for Palestinian liberation as a college student. — Deborah Copperud 5-Minute Film Festival in Duluth Denise Voie de Vie is a working artist in Duluth specializing in mixed media and acrylics. She’s expecting to be part of a good crowd at Prøve Collective this Saturday for their 5-Minute Film Festival. The free event will screen 17 or 18 very short films by local artists, ranging in style from animation to documentary to abstract and beyond. Doors open at 7 p.m. Denise admires the work coming out of Prøve: There is a really lively art scene here in Duluth, and Prøve has carved out that niche for new and upcoming talent. There are a lot of really young and talented people on the board, and they are willing to take chances on art. It's a place where some of the most exciting things happen. — Denise Voie de Vie Art meets healthcare in Med City Lauren Hutchinson lives in Rochester, having previously worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. She recently enjoyed seeing the exhibition “Forms of Care: The Art of Representing the Body” at Rochester Center for the Arts. It’s a thought-provoking multi-artist exhibition that explores the field of medicine and its interaction with human bodies as well as the ethics of representing human bodies in medical texts. The show includes 2D work, sculptures and an opportunity for visitors to sit for portraits. It runs through January 2027. Lauren says: It really makes you question: Can one body be used to represent an entire population of diverse individuals? I hope lots of doctors and medical staff will get to experience the exhibition and see the creativity and artistry that's hidden behind a lot of their work. — Lauren Hutchinson

From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what’s exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here. A new professional concert band Ross Wolf of Minneapolis is a band director at Spring Lake Park High School and a saxophone player. He recommends the first full-group concert by Minnesota Winds, a new fully professional concert band in the Twin Cities. Composer Katherine Bergman, one of the group’s co-founders and artistic director, previously played with Wolf in a saxophone quartet. Minnesota Winds performs at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis on May 30 at 7 p.m. Ross says: What I think is really special about this is it creates that professional level experience for young students who are playing an instrument for amateur adults like myself to hear the highest level of performance on in a band concert. — Ross Wolf Plein air myths and legends Francesca Bernardi of Minneapolis is manager at Groveland Gallery. She recommends “Myth and Legends,” the newest show at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona. The exhibit features plein air painters from the Outdoor Painters Association of Minnesota connecting outdoor painting with myths and legends of Minnesota and other cultures. The show recently opened and runs through Sept. 13. Francesca says: The Outdoor Painters Association of Minnesota, they do a big show every year, and I think that specifically plein air painting does such a good job at storytelling in and of itself, because the artist is there and they're reacting to the outdoors and really being present in these spaces, and so I think including that with the myths and legends, it's kind of a nice combination. — Francesca Bernardi Abstract paintings and resilient trees Raven Miller of Minneapolis recommends a joint exhibit at Vine Arts Center in Minneapolis featuring Andrea Bo and Miriam Queensen. Miller says the two artists are from different age groups, have known each other, and are showing their work together for the first time. Andrea Bo creates layered abstract paintings based on songs and personal relationships. Miriam Queensen makes landscapes, including isolated trees, which Miller says represent resilience. The show is open Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. through June 6. Raven says: You think that they wouldn't go together, but they actually do go together. — Raven Miller