MN Shortlist Aug. 14-20: Dystopia at the museum, the Latino music scene, a clay crawl and more
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Archivist songstress Jayanthi Rajasa sings under an oak tree in St. Paul, a Lanesboro theater stages a musical based on an indie 90s hit, comedian Dulce Sloan (of NPR’s “Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me!”) comes to the Parkway in Minneapolis and more in this week’s MN Shortlist.
‘Free Your Mind’ concert at Amsterdam Bar and Hall in St. Paul — Aug. 14
While artists like Dessa and Lady Midnight have shown that Minnesota has strong and passionate Latino musicians, the reputation of Minnesota as a hub of Latino music, in my opinion, has yet to take off.
Lots of other local artists are making their rounds at bars and restaurants such as St. Paul’s Amsterdam Bar and Hal l— which will be home to an eclectic collection of Latino bands Friday.
“Free Your Mind” is billed as a set of three “Twin Cities Latino bands expressing their music with diverse influences and backgrounds.” The lineup includes Calavrosa, which blends trippy guitar riffs, Latin beats and bongos, the more avant-garde Los Pinches Güeys, and Yuca Frita, which describes itself as a bilingual ska, cumbia and funk band.
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Be ready to jump from genre to genre with each band as you dance and vibe out to a diverse sampling of what Minnesota’s Latino music scene has to offer. (Jacob Aloi)
Dulcé Sloan at the Parkway Theater in Minneapolis — Aug. 14
If you listen to MPR News on the weekends, you probably know Dulcé Sloan is a regular panelist—and fan favorite—on “Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me!” the weekly NPR news quiz. But she is also known for her cutting humor on TV shows like “Great North” and “The Daily Show.” Sloan is bringing her signature comedy, drawing on everything from her international travels as a big Black woman to her intimate relationships, to the Parkway Theater for one night only.
If you miss her in person, you can usually catch her on “Wait, Wait…” on MPR News, Saturdays at 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. and Sundays at 1 p.m. (Jacob Aloi)
Bienvenidos Dystopia at The Museum of Russian Art in Minneapolis — Aug. 15
Imagine this: It’s some unknown year in the future in a post-revolution America and you’re looking back at the remnants of 2026 through the lens of nine Twin Cities artists and musicians. Bienvenidos Dystopia has entered the chat. The annual event, which promotes itself as a dance party-variety show-salon mashup, promises an evening to “celebrate Minneapolis arts and culture before it’s all gone.”
Each artist and musician will give a five-minute presentation of their work, including allison anne on their collages; Jamie Schumacher Kalakaru-Mava on her illustration and writing; and Zak Sally (former bass player for Low-turned-comic artist) on his drone project.
“It's not just people standing up and giving boring lectures,” said event co-curator Taylor Carik, a media theorist, musician and political consultant. “It's really short presentations about people's artwork and how technofeudalism impacts their lives.”
Carik added, “Then we have kind of a party to let people mingle and discuss what they learned and what their thoughts are, and dance to feel better about themselves after some dark humor.”
Bienvenidos Dystopia is set against the backdrop of an exhibition of Soviet-era posters with the mugs of Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin and slogans like “For Motherland!” and “Let’s Fulfill our Plans of Great Work” at the Museum of Russian Art. “The juxtaposition will hopefully be one of the best parts of the event,” Carik said. The event runs from 7 to 10 p.m. and tickets are $14-$20. (Alex V. Cipolle)
Cannon River Clay Tour in Northfield — Aug. 15-16
Minnesota is a great state for clay and for pottery pilgrimages, from the St. Croix River Valley Pottery Tour in the spring to the biennial autumn kiln firing in Collegeville. Next up is the 10th annual Cannon River Clay Tour in Northfield and the surrounding area. The self-guided tour includes three stops.
There’s Eureka Pots in Farmington, home studio of longtime potters Colleen Riley and Donovan Palmquist, who make a colorful and textured assortment of dishes, vases, teapots, mugs and other homewares.
In Northfield proper is the studio of Kelly Connole, an art professor at Carleton College who makes the most mysterious and anthropomorphic ceramic rabbits. Both stops include the work of many other established artists, some more off-center than others, like the goopy concoctions of Margeaux Claude, the playful objects of Amy Sanders and shattered and shadowy sculptures of Monica Rudquist.
One more stop is Larchill Farm in Northfield, which will show the work of emerging ceramic artists. (Alex V. Cipolle)
Jayanthi Rajasa at the Grand Oak Opry in St. Paul — Aug. 15
There’s nothing like listening to live music outside under the shade of a big old tree in the drowsy days of summer. The Grand Oak Opry hosts backyard concerts under a centuries-old oak in the West 7th neighborhood of St. Paul. At 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15, Jayanthi Rajasa, who last performed in the concert series nine years ago, will take the stage. The Twin Cities artist describes herself as an “archivist songstress” and a griot, or an oral historian in the West African tradition.
There are no tickets, but the Opry requests a $15 donation; it says 100 percent of the proceeds go to the artist. (Alex V. Cipolle)
‘The Spitfire Grill’ at Commonweal Theatre Company in Lanesboro — through Oct. 24
If you’re familiar with my theater coverage, you know I have an appreciation for theatrical adaptations. Whether a book, movies or TV shows is turned into a hit musical or play, there’s a special kind of mastery to making a good adaptation for the stage. So I was surprised to learn that the musical “The Spitfire Grill,” which Commonweal Theatre Company in Lanesboro is currently producing, was based on a film from the 1990s.
The musical premiered in 2001 Off-Broadway and has since made the rounds at regional theaters. Commonweal Theatre Company in Lanesboro opened its production earlier this summer. It tells the story of Percy, a young woman recently released from prison who tries to reinvent herself in a sleepy Wisconsin town that is seeking its own renewal.
In her director’s note for the show, Adrienne Sweeney said that when picking the shows, the theater asks, “why this play, why now?”
“When I read ‘The Spitfire Grill,’ I knew immediately,” she wrote. “What we need right now is its message of hope, the possibility of redemption and the transformative power of community.” (Jacob Aloi)
