King of johns

This week, Minneapolis' Varsity Theater was awarded the honor of housing America's Best Bathroom, courtesy of Cintas, a restroom-supply company. The design and installation of the wondrous washroom, featuring gilded mirrors, coed sinks and foot-operated faucets, were overseen by Varsity owner Jason McLean, no stranger to creating fantastic atmospheres in which to heed nature's call. In July, Vita.mn dubbed three McLean-designed latories — at the Varsity, the Loring Pasta Bar and the Kitty Kat Club — the top three in town. And habitués of his now-defunct first hangout, the boho Loring Bar, will never forget its humbler but still arty one-stallers — particularly the women's-side photo of then-employee/actress Manao DeMuth clad suggestively in a motorcycle jacket and not much else. Another memorable feature of that room was the peephole cut into the wall from the adjacent men's room. "I put some opaque factory-glass in there and frosted it over, but people kept scraping it off," McLean told I.W. "It was a daily thing. And there was definitely more scraping going on from the men's side."

KRISTIN TILLOTSON

Well armed

I.W. knows why John Legend, who wore a tuxedo and T-shirt during his concert at the State Theatre on Tuesday, has the body of a superhero. The big guns, buff chest and small waist are achieved through pinpoint workout at the gym. While his fans were entering the sold-out theater Tuesday, Legend was upstairs at the downtown Minneapolis YMCA, toning, lifting and pumping. He had a bodyguard but didn't really need him. The respectful patrons at the Y gave him his space, partly because they were consumed with their own regimens. Some recognized his face but couldn't quite place it. "I knew he looked familiar but I wasn't sure if it was from Facebook or a dance concert," dancer Jim Lieberthal told I.W. "He's really buff." Indeed, as concertgoers learned later when the R&B star tossed off his tuxedo jacket and revealed guns that don't come from pounding the piano.

Rohan Preston

Come together

It's almost "Minnesota Beatle Project" time again, and we've got another fun album cover to prove it. Volume 5 of Vega Productions' popular charity CD/LP series will officially arrive Dec. 3 bearing an Adam Turman-created portrait of four Minnesota icons crossing what looks like the Stone Arch Bridge, Abbey Road-style: The Hamm's Beer bear, Paul Bunyan (shoeless, no less), the Pillsbury Doughboy and the Minnesota State Fair's gopher mascot, Fairchild. As usual, the lineup of musicians who recorded Beatles covers for the album is also a diverse bunch, ranging from '60s vets Gary Burger (of the Monks) and Sonny Knight to the Suburbs, Dosh, Cactus Blossoms, Actual Wolf, Zoo Animal and this year's local Grammy winners the Okee Dokee Brothers. Physical copies of "Vol. 5" will be available in area Target stores and indie record shops. All proceeds from the album sales will once again go into Vega Productions' ongoing funding efforts for music-education programs around the state — such as the one at Duluth's Denfeld High School that produced this year's closing track.

Chris Riemenschneider

Clark

The darndest things

Children Theatre Company's new laugh-inducing treatment of "Cinderella" contains lots of pop-culture references aimed at adults. Like when Dorcas criticizes weak-armed sister Pearl by saying "Nice throw, Christian Ponder." Or like using Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" at a pivotal moment at the prince's ball. At least some kids might figure out those references. But when one of the characters alludes to a cheery Cinderella on the morning after the ball as Kelly Ripa, the 4-year-old behind I.W. asked his mom: "Who's Keh-wee Whippah?"

Jon Bream

Joy library crowd

Amy Tan spoke at the Central Library in downtown Minneapolis last week, on tour for her new novel, "The Valley of Amazement," her first in eight years. "The best thing about finishing it is people no longer ask when's your book going to come out," Tan told the audience — one of the biggest so far for the Talk of the Stacks series. "The worst thing is, they ask why it took so long."

LAURIE HERTZEL

A breathtaking moment

Before he put his guitar heroics on full display Wednesday night at sold-out First Avenue, Gary Clark Jr. stopped by 89.3 the Current for a four-song set and an interview with DJ Jill Riley. She asked about his tête-a-tête with President Obama (they talked blues) and his singing face to face with Mick Jagger at a Rolling Stones concert this year. "Did he have great breath?" Riley inquired. "I don't remember," Clark responded. "I think I was worried about mine." (The interview will be broadcast at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday on 89.3 FM.)

J.B.