Arts briefs: Comedy 'The Foreigner' will take Lakeshore stage in White Bear Lake

The comedy "The Foreigner" opens this week at Lakeshore Players Theatre in White Bear Lake. The show runs from Feb. 26 to March 22.

Written by Larry Shue, it's the tale of a timid man brought to a Southern lodge who ends up suffering from mistaken identity.

Thursday's opener at 7:30 p.m. is a $12 preview, while Friday's performance features a post-show catered reception.

The play will be presented Fridays through Sundays. Show times are 7:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. on Sundays.

Other than the preview, tickets are $18-$23 and may be reserved in advance, with remaining seats sold at the door starting two hours before show time.

To purchase tickets in advance and select your own seats, go to LakeshorePlayers.com or call 651-429-5674.

Spring workshops on concrete sculpture and mosaic are coming up at the Phipps Center in Hudson, Wis. The teacher is Wouterina "Riana" de Raad.

The knowledge also works to create benches, fireplaces, walls, and arches that light up, without any welding.

The workshop will be Saturday, March 28, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and March 29 from 12:30-4:30 p.m.

A $235 fee includes the majority of materials and tools. Participants should request a list of required supplies.

Those taking the mosaic workshop will do tiling on indoor and outdoor objects. They will learn how to cut and break glass and ceramic tile, as well as what materials and adhesives to use for a subzero climate.

That workshop is Saturday, April 25, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and April 26, from 12:30-4:30 p.m.

De Raad's gardens have been featured on public TV as well as in Midwest Living, Minnesota Monthly and other magazines. Check out her work at www.concretemosaicsculpture.com.

For more information or to enroll, go to www.ThePhipps.org or call 715-386-2305.

Students at East Ridge High School in Woodbury are collaborating with the Center for Irish Music on a March 8 concert.

The event will take place at 3 p.m. on the Loft Stage at the school.

It's a new collaboration with the center, located in St. Paul. Experts will create a new student ensemble that includes harp, bodhrán, flute and fiddle. The ensemble will perform traditional Irish music.

Together, the groups will perform orchestrations of Irish traditional music originally prepared for the traditional Irish band Altan and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra in Dublin.

Tickets are $10 ($6 for seniors). Those 18 and under get in free.

Visit the orchestra's website at http://emsorch.org/

The Lake Elmo library is hosting a weekly series of stimulating discussions.

"Cafe Philo" — philosophy cafe — happens on Wednesday mornings at 10:15 at the library, 3537 Lake Elmo Av. N., Suite 130.

Upcoming topics:

Feb. 25: Is there an ideal population for Minnesota? The U. S.? The world? If not, why not? If so, what is it and why?

March 4: Is there a difference between a "secret" and a "lie"?

March 11: The 2014 Coca-Cola Super Bowl ad, "America the Beautiful"

Potential topics for future meetings:

• What is free will?

• England voted on legalizing genetic modification of human eggs. Good or bad?