Art Hounds

Singer-songwriter Katy Vernon, who was born in London and now lives in White Bear Lake, Minn., recommends Theatre 55’s production of  “A Chorus Line – In Concert,” based on the 1975 musical about aspiring Broadway dancers.“Everything they do is geared towards performers 55 and up,” she says. “And as a performer myself, reaching that age in the next few years, I just really am encouraged and inspired by theater that shows none of us have an expiration date.”She adds: “‘A Chorus Line’ is all about putting yourself out there.”Performances run Friday through July 23 at Caponi Art Park in Eagan.Pamela McNulty of Minnetonka has been retired for four years after two decades of working in fundraising for women's higher education. Her recommendation, Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” is produced by The Gray Mallard Theater Co. and is their second production.“It is incredibly special, given the wonderful production, the fact that it's free and open to everyone in the community and presented by outstanding actors w

Anastasia Hopkins Folpe of Rochester, Minn., first encountered the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona several years ago. “I would describe it as a hidden gem,” Folpe said. “It's on the river in Winona, kind of behind the downtown. You have to hunt for it a little bit.”  She credited the museum’s director Scott Pollock for investing in spaces devoted to younger visitors.   “It's just a very welcoming and mellow place. I just like to go there and hang out. I think people just don't know about it. So I hope everyone learns and goes there.” Peg Guilfoyle is a writer living in downtown St. Paul and a longtime arts enthusiast. She’s also a fan of sea shanties. “There is something about coming off the street into a room filled with singing,” she explained. “I'm here to testify to the flat fun of the sea shanty sing-along held monthly at the Dubliner Pub on University Avenue in St. Paul, and also in Minneapolis at Merlin's Rest on Lake Street.” “No band, no sheet music or lyrics and all volunt

Kyle Bernier is a Minneapolis-based art therapist and author of “Lazy Creativity: The Art of Owning Your Creativity.” He wanted to introduce Art Hounds audiences to the work of Susanna Gaunt, whose work can be seen through Sept. 5 at the Merrill Lynch Fine Arts Gallery of the Great Lakes Aquarium in Duluth. “Susanna is a Duluth-based artist who's been working at the GLA for a year now on the Great Lakes Almanac,” Bernier said. “Susanna has been gathering stories from the community about their engagement with natural history, whether at the aquarium or just out in nature in general. Susanna has taken the survey and created artwork from those stories that she's now put up on display.” Gaunt’s work can also be seen online. Heather Beal of Minneapolis is a journalist who writes about the arts and all aspects of the built and natural environments. She recently heard about an art event that she says “sounds very cool.” The event is Midsummer: a Summer Solstice Festival, taking place Saturday from 5 p.m. to

Noah Hynick of Minneapolis works at an escape room. He recommends a new play at Bryant Lake Bowl titled “The Assassination of the Archduke of Austria-Hungary Franz Ferdinand.” The play was written by Minnesota stand-up comic Joey Hamburger and is produced by Jackdonkey Productions. “It's all about the events leading up to the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand,” Hynick explains. “It's sort of a tragic comedy and follows some real things that happen as well as some not quite true things.”  “Lots of places are still feeling the effects of COVID and everything. And now having new theaters come out, I think it's a really good chance to support smaller theaters and new art,” Hynick said. The show runs June 14-17, with an additional performance June 22. Amy Garretson of Rochester is the education and community outreach coordinator with the Rochester Art Center. She’s excited that a new art house movie theater has opened in the Cooke Park neighborhood of Rochester, Pop’s Art Theater. “The type of films

Ellen Mueller is an artist based in Minneapolis. She recommends “Im/perfect Slumbers,” on view in the window galleries and skyway entrance of the Minnesota Museum of American Art through August 20. “You can be walking down the street, and you will get the privilege of passing by several very cool artworks,” Mueller says. She especially likes the work of Peng Wu, “who has some really great vinyl installations.” Mueller also recommends Rachel Breen's recycled textiles and fiber creations and Katya Oicherman’s work. According to Mueller, the theme of the show is sleep, and especially disrupted sleep, “which everybody can connect to.” Jenny Fogarty lives in Le Center, Minn. and attended an exhibition of photographs by Edward S. Curtis, who was raised partially in Le Sueur County and whose work often focused on Native American subjects. “I went to go see the exhibit, not really expecting much. And I walked in and I was floored,” Fogarty explains. She was especially struck by an early 20th century photograph

Kate Lawson, a former arts administrator and current arts enthusiast living in Minneapolis, is excited for Art-A-Whirl, the sprawling northeast Minneapolis open studio art tour that begins Friday.  In particular, she wants to point people to Hossle Woodworks. Founder Justin Hossle creates mid-century modern furniture and home decor. “The clean lines and natural finishes of his pieces really let the beauty of the woods stand out,” she said. “And it's a really fun experience to get to see how the pieces are put together in his workshop.” Hossle Woodworks will offer demonstrations and classes throughout the weekend. Sarah McGrill is an art consultant and educator in Minneapolis. She is a fan of visual artist Tammy Ortegon, who she says “has been a force in south Minneapolis, as she's owned her own gallery for 20 years and realized that she had never had a solo exhibition.”  To remedy this, Ortegon is offering a retrospective of her work in her own space, called the ColorWheel Gallery. The exhibit is cal

Sarah Schultz is a freelance curator and writer in Minneapolis. “I am really excited to see this body of work,” she says of the exhibition “Paysage Français: mémoire et fantasme” by Minneapolis artist Ilene Krug Mojsilov, which brings together decades of the artist’s work. Schultz explains the show title translated into English is “French landscape: memory and fantasy.” She says Mojsilov’s work is inspired by time the artist spent in France. “It's a rich assortment of work. It's both abstract, has elements of realism. [It] is a series of drawings and pastels and also large paintings. It's really beautiful and evocative,” Schultz said. “Paysage Français” is on display at Alliance Française in Minneapolis through June 10. South Minneapolis resident Davis Brinker took time away from cat sitting to recommend the play “West Point Players,” produced by Spiral Theater at the Phoenix Theater in Uptown Minneapolis. The comedy tells about a troupe of aspiring Army thespians who put on a show to raise mone

Patricia Anderson of Rochester is a choral director who teaches voice. She is excited about a forthcoming concert by Resounding Voices Chorus, “a wonderful organization that is part of a growing worldwide movement to improve the lives of people living with some sort of dementia and with their support partners through musical participation.” She explains that artistic director Suzy Johnson ”gets a wonderful mix of music … and then she arranges them so that they really fit very well with the people that are singing in the choir.” The concert is called “Rain or Shine” and will take place May 14 at Calvary Evangelical Free Church in Rochester. Louise Robinson of Minneapolis has a career managing professional dance companies in Minnesota. “I grew up in Winona in the 60s and never imagined finding a connection with the South Indian dance form of Bharatanatyam,” she says. “But years ago, my paths crossed with Ranee Ramaswamy, artistic director of Ragamala Dance here locally, and I have been captivated by the form

South Minneapolis playwright and poet William Nour recommends “Returning to Haifa” by Pangea World Theater. This is a U.S. premiere of a play based on a novella by Palestinian author Ghassan Kanafani. The play tells of a Palestinian couple who return to Haifa after the 1967 war to find the baby they left behind in 1948. They find a Jewish family of Holocaust survivors living in their old home. “It's my reality,” Nour says. “I came here when I was 16. Basically, because there were no opportunities for Arabs in Israel, like as second-class citizens. So it's very poignant for me and it's just — I cried when I saw it for the first time.”  “Returning to Haifa” plays through May 6 at the Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis. Eric Heukeshoven is the director of Worship, Music and Arts for Central Lutheran Church in Winona, Minn. He says he’s “really excited” to attend “Portraits,” the spring concert for the Winona Symphony. The piece that he's most looking forward to is called “Peanuts Gallery.” Ameri

Updated: 9:35 a.m. Daniel Doktori and his wife moved to Minneapolis and found painter Evan Abrahamson's work at local art fairs.  “We kept running into Evan and his booth and his work. And we really fell in love with it,” Doktori says. “His work is oil on canvas. And it combines this kind of really impressive skill in terms of rendering lifelike images of both landscapes and people with this kind of blurring technique that results in a kind of a haunting or like a dream-like type image and we think it's really quite wonderful.” The show at Gallery 360 in Minneapolis runs through May 28. Merritt Olsen recently moved to Minnesota from the West Coast and recommends the Rochester Civic Theatre’s production of “The Miracle Worker” on stage through Sunday. Olsen recommends the play not only because it's a “wonderful, timeless play,” but also because there's an exhibit called “Child in a Strange Country” that accompanies it. “This exhibit highlights the Innovations in Education for the blind and the

Nancy Crocker of Minneapolis recommends the musical “How to Avoid Burnout in 73 Minutes: A Minimally Invasive Musical Procedure.”  “I saw this show in its initial run. This is a wonderful, life-affirming show,” Crocker said. The show was created by Dr. Stuart Bloom, who also performs. It depicts his journey from a comedian in New York to an oncologist in Minnesota. The show is built around a simple premise: Bloom reads from a questionnaire designed to determine if someone is experiencing burnout at their job. “And of course, doctors – and especially oncologists – have one of the highest burnout rates of any profession,” Crocker explains. “And so he goes through this questionnaire, one question at a time, but his answers are always in the form of a song.” The musical is at the Southern Theater in Minneapolis from April 19-23.  John Orbison of Minneapolis is an amateur musician. He recommends the season finale of the Bakken Ensemble at Antonello Hall at MacPhail Center for Music. “All of the composers on the p

Pamela Lundstrum is a member of the Cultural Centre of Bird Island, which brings fine art to central Minnesota, south of Willmar. The center is offering an exhibit by wildlife painter Bradley Donner called “Wild Art,” which continues through the end of the month. Donner explains on his website that he enjoys going to the “wilds of northern Minnesota, Canada and the Driftless trout streams of southeast Minnesota and Wisconsin” to research art. “I am so excited about the newest exhibit,” Lundstrum says. “It's very exciting to see something that is just so beautiful and so perfect. And we only have to go to Bird Island to see it.” “Wild Art” will be on display at the Cultural Centre of Bird Island through April 22.  Bonnie Stewart is the executive director of the Fosston Community Library & Arts Association. She is looking forward to attending performances by singer/songwriter Dan Rodriguez, who she calls “an amazing performer. He's a talented musician. He writes his own songs, he sings beautifully.

Catherine Glynn is artistic director of Audacious Raw Theater in Lanesboro. She was able to see a preview of the play that opens Commonweal Theatre’s 35th season: “Bernhardt/Hamlet” by Theresa Rebeck. Glynn calls the play “a love letter to the theater and the art of collaboration.” The play is a work of historical fiction about actress Sarah Bernhardt, who was wildly celebrated in her time. Set in Paris in 1899, when Bernhardt’s theater has become riddled by debt. In order to save it, she decides to play the lead role in “Hamlet.” All of Paris is up-in-arms over whether she can pull off a “pants role.” Bernhardt herself is daunted by Shakespeare’s language. Glynn notes that this a perfect show to cap off Women’s History Month, having been written, directed, costumed and sound-designed by women. Glynn says that the role of the famous actress is beautifully played by Commonweal company member Adrienne Sweeney, who herself is no stranger to playing roles originally written for men. Sweeney played Ebeneezer Scr

Minneapolis actor Nissa Nordland was drawn to the play “Wish You Were Here” because of the premise: It’s a one-act improvised comedy about grief. A group shares memories about a friend who has died some time before. The show, which tends to vary each night, considers how their relationships have changed since the loss. “I love that it's the idea of bringing joy to a situation that we often are looking at with a sad lens,” said Nordland. “We are celebrating the person… and finding the joy in remembering them, and then figuring out, where do we go now?” The show was created and directed by Mike Fotis, a co-founder of Strike Theater, which is dedicated to building a community of sketch comedy, storytelling and the spoken word. Nordland says the cast features a group of Twin Cities “comedy legends” who are sure to bring a funny and heartfelt show. “Wish You Were Here” runs March 10-11 and 23-25 at 7:30 p.m. at Strike Theater in Minneapolis. Actor Meghan Kreidler of Minneapolis is a big fan of JuCoby Johnson’

Updated: 2:55 p.m. St. Cloud-based concert pianist Mark Ochu is looking forward to an eclectic evening by vocal and musical trio Partly Tame, presented by the Granite City Folk Society. The trio consists of the group’s founder Mariénne Kreitlow, violinist Cristina Seaborn and Susan Schleper, vocals. “All three musicians are authentic performers … comfortable in multiple genres ranging from classical to folk, to slap stick comedy, to the introspective and spiritual,” Ochu said, adding that he never knows quite what will be on the program. He said Kreitlow, a composer, is an intuitive performer, shifting to incorporate poetry, jazz improv, and more as the mood of the show requires. The one-night show starts at 7 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in St. Cloud. Art lover Doris Rubenstein of Richfield is excited that after several difficult years, the Artistry Theater and Visual Arts is in full swing. This week galleries will feature visual art shows by local artists, which Rubenstein says makes March a good

Retired science teacher Ellen Fahey says art galleries are her refuge, and she’s gone three times to see Peyton Scott Russell’s retrospective exhibition at the White Bear Center for the Arts. The show features 40 years of Russell’s work, from elementary school through today. A graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Russell is perhaps best known for his murals, including one painted in 2020 of George Floyd, entitled “Icon of a Revolution.” The exhibit features that work as well as examples of Peyton’s Graffiti art, stenciling, jean jackets and sculpture. The exhibit runs through March 3, with an open house March 2 at 6:30 p.m. Jendayi ‘Jedi Maji’ Berry of Minneapolis loved creating abstracts to live music back in September as part of MacPhail’s Spotlight Series: Musical Explorations in Spectral Colors. He strongly recommends seeing the next installment of the series, “Translucent Beauty” Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Antonello Hall in Minneapolis. This performance will feature visual art and shor

Rachel Coyne, an author and artist in Lindstrom, Minn., plans to attend the opening artist reception this Friday for Robert DesJarlait’s show “Woodland Visions” in Hinckley. The solo show at the East Central Regional Arts Council Gallery features 21 watercolor paintings describing Ojibwe stories and culture. Coyne loves DesJarlait’s brightly colored paintings of dancers whose movement seems to leap off the canvas. Coyne looks forward to standing in the middle of this gallery and taking in the energy of the whole show. DesJarlait is a member of the Red Lake Nation. He’ll give an artist talk at 5:30 p.m. Friday. The exhibit’s opening reception takes place from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. The show runs through March 17. Lucy Soderstrom, director of the Ely Folk School, loves seeing the streets and businesses of her town transformed into an outdoor art gallery for the annual February Ely ArtWalk. A team of dedicated volunteers coordinate around 100 artists, whose work is on display in the storefronts of 40 local businesses

Mina Leierwood is a Minneapolis art teacher who creates art and puppets of recycled materials. Recently, she saw a retrospective of Anita White’s work entitled “Journeys” at Vine Arts Center in Minneapolis, and was fascinated by White’s documentary art style and the stories told. White has a daily practice of capturing the people and images she sees with marker and watercolor. The exhibit includes White’s world travels, her spiritual journey and her navigation of the medical system. The artist learned as an adult that her grandmother was Jewish, a fact hidden in order to avoid Nazi persecution in Europe. One series of drawings explores her Jewish identity and family history, incorporating old family photos and her travels to her ancestral home in Romania, as well as sparks of the divine. Leierwood was also struck by White’s drawings of her medical journeys as she documented her husband’s illness and death. “Her way of dealing with a crisis was to draw your way through,” said Leierwood. White’s journal images

A discussion at Open Book in Minneapolis explores artist Sam Robertson’s illustrated art-book take on the King James Bible. Sarah Nassif’s hands-on “Weaving Water” workshop connects the ancient art of indigo dyeing and spinning fiber with local water systems. And at The Southern Theater, the group Cumar combines West African rhythms and Celtic dance to create something new.

This week’s Art Hounds recommend the spine-tingling play “The Haunting of Hill House” at Rochester Repertory Theatre, a sweet evening of song and storytelling from James Rone and Alsa Bruno in Minneapolis, and “Act III: Who the Heck is Hoffman?” a posthumous exhibit of painter Frank Hoffman’s life’s work, curated by a St. Paul artist who acquired dozens of his artworks on Craigslist.