Better man

Kind of like when he took the stage Sunday at Xcel Energy Center, Eddie Vedder apparently went all in when he took up the cause of the skin disease EB (epidermolysis bullosa). The Pearl Jam frontman — whose wife, Jill Vedder, co-founded the EB Research Partnership (EBResearch.org) after a friend's son was born with the disease — used an off day Saturday to visit the University of Minnesota Children's Hospital, which is on the forefront of the research. He also gave ample stage time to the U's Dr. Jakub Tolar to talk about the cause. (He also met U president Eric Kaler and told concertgoers all about the Gophers football victory over Purdue.) Afterward, Vedder earned high praise from the mother of Charlie Knuth, the 7-year-old boy who was brought to the stage near the end of the concert and was among the many young EB victims to hang with band members. Vedder "totally believes that this is going to change the world, and so do I," said Tabitha Knuth, adding how excited Charlie was to "experience the adrenaline rush of a rock star." We'd say everyone's a rock star in this case.

CHRIS RIEMENSCHNEIDER

Totally Eclipsed

Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready showed his support of independent record stores when he wore an Eclipse Records T-shirt onstage Sunday. He spent time and money Saturday at the downtown St. Paul store. He gave owner Joe Furth tickets and backstage passes for the show. And McCready's wardrobe choice had an impact on the shop. "Monday morning, there was a line at the door when I opened," reported Eclipse manager Martin Devaney. He sold seven T-shirts — and a lot more — in the first hour.

CHRIS RIEMENSCHNEIDER

'Brownsville' in NYC

Twin Cities actor and playwright Sun Mee Chomet is receiving nice notices for her New York debut in "Brownsville Song (b-side for tray)" at Lincoln Center. The New York Times called the show "moving" and cited Chomet's "nuanced" performance. The one-act orbits the life and dreams of an 18-year-old killed before his gifts can be realized. Chomet plays his stepmother. "It's rare to have such a complex Asian-American woman to play," Chomet told I.W. "She's a onetime addict who left the family. Now, she's dried out and has returned. It's a rich role for an actor to dig into."

Rohan Preston

Brian Setzer has donated a replica version of his orange 1959 Gretsch guitar to the Smithsonian.

Berryman rising

Indie rockers from Nick Cave to the Hold Steady have been inspired by idiosyncratic poet John Berryman. Now the Pulitzer winner and former U of M prof who infamously leapt to his death in 1972 seems poised for a revival, with a collection of new books out this month and a centenary conference at the U this weekend. After Berryman's suicide, says poet and conference participant Peter Campion, "there was an attack on him, because of his alcoholism. But people are coming out of the woodwork, we're expecting standing room only."

KRISTIN TILLOTSON

Happy Days again?

Must be a good year for the Guthrie Theater. The company, which furloughed some staff members in January, now says it will pay them for that time. There was no word on how much money was dished out or how many people were affected. "A considerable number," was all that director Joe Dowling would say. Times were tough last winter, after a fiscal 2013 deficit. Was there a surplus in the preliminary results for fiscal 2014, which ended in August? We'll find out when the numbers are announced in December.

Graydon Royce

Rock this museum

A Minneapolis resident for more than a decade now, Brian Setzer has also now found a new home for his trademark guitar: the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. The Stray Cats leader donated a replica of his orange 1959 model Gretsch 6120 guitar to the museum last weekend. He had the replica built after the overworked original — custom-fitted with two Monopoly game dice drilled onto the volume knobs — became unusable. "Maybe in a hundred years people will look at my guitar and be inspired to play it and enjoy it the way I do," Setzer told the Smithsonian, which also has a John Coltrane sax and Prince's "yellow cloud" guitar.

C.R.

Mo Day rocks MOA

The Hard Rock Cafe, that institution known for music memorabilia and souvenir T-shirts, had its grand opening at the Mall of America Wednesday with a Minnesota institution, Morris Day & the Time. Day did his part, including the ceremonial smashing of a guitar and an entertaining 80-minute set. However, this Hard Rock ain't built for live music. With so many hard surfaces in the two-story room, it sounded like a high school gym. But there's alluring memorabilia, including a purple Prince trench coat, a photo of Elvis Presley in his underwear (briefs, for inquiring minds) and a skimpy Rihanna outfit. The highlight, though, might be in the restroom: The faucets have two dryer blowers. C-O-O-L.

Jon Bream