October 2008
October 29, 2008Southern Theater's new hires promise new era
Things couldn't have gone worse, PR-wise, for the Southern Theater recently if falling sandbags had knocked out the first few rows of patrons. At just about the same time that the cutting-edge Minneapolis performing arts venue announced its new president and CEO, Patricia Speelman, word spread that its longtime artistic director, Jeff Bartlett, had been dismissed without public explanation. In fact, as it later became clear, the Speelman announcement was made in lieu of explaining Bartlett's departure (folks quickly put two and two together) because the board had been advised not to do so. In the past week, more announcements have been made--but... Read more » Posted on Wednesday, October 29, 2008 in Front & Center | Permalink | Comments (0) |
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October 23, 2008Keillor doc opens Sound Unseen film fest
Sound Unseen, a film festival about music, now in its ninth year, has typically been a hipster event showcasing hip bands in hip venues. Which is far from a bad thing. But it may be growing up a bit. Take the opening film, screening tonight at 7:15 pm at the Riverview Theater in Minneapolis: "The Man on the Radio in the Red Shoes," a gentle documentary about the curious genius of Garrison Keillor. And for every film during the rest of the festival on Sonic Youth or Sigur Ros there are some truly compelling and diverse selections that we should be so lucky to have screening here. On Sunday, October 26, the film "Half Moon"... Read more » Posted on Thursday, October 23, 2008 in Front & Center | Permalink | Comments (0) |
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October 20, 2008Why the airport security breach doesn't matter
So according to a piece in this month's Atlantic Monthly, a magazine writer named Jeffrey Goldberg approached security at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in order to fly to Washington, D.C., having splashed water on his face to make it appear he was sweating nervously, wearing a coat in summer and an Osama bin Laden shirt, and claiming to have lost his photo ID. Oh, and he had a fake boarding pass. After a conversation with a security supervisor, he was allowed to pass (he doesn't say whether he was allowed to board). Are you scared? I'm not. I'm... Read more » Posted on Monday, October 20, 2008 in Front & Center | Permalink | Comments (0) |
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October 16, 2008The world's greatest pianist comes to town
Did you know that the world's greatest pianist--or at least one of the top five, who can really tell?--is coming to St. Paul next Tuesday the 23rd? I wouldn't either, if the Schubert Club hadn't sent me the press release. The highest levels of the recital circuit, much less the lowest for that matter, revolve in such tight concentric circles of taste and interest that most folks wouldn't know Marc-Andre Hamelin from Mark Hamill. It's not anyone's fault, per se--except the Beatles, perhaps, for driving us so far down the road to pop oblivion that we forgot a piano can do more than bang out "Long Tall Sally." And yet it would seemingly be our loss--the world's greatest anything entering our airspace would seemingly be big news. Entertainment, however, is... Read more » Posted on Thursday, October 16, 2008 in Front & Center | Permalink | Comments (0) |
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October 14, 2008What to expect at Minnesota's own doc film fest
There haven't been too many popular documentaries made about Minnesota--and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Columbine, corrupt automakers--we can be grateful that our state hasn't lent itself to such sensational topics. So what stories would we choose to tell about ourselves? See for yourself starting Thursday, Oct. 16, as the Minnesota Historical Society opens its third annual documentary film festival with Fritz, about our own Walter Mondale, by local doc superstar Melody Gilbert. The festival is free and runs through Oct. 21 at the Minnesota History Center. It's an ingenious concept: the MHS asks for 10-minute doc submissions which it can not only screen but add to its archive documenting the state. This will be the final year that the festival focuses on the... Read more » Posted on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 in Front & Center | Permalink | Comments (0) |
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