Best of MN: Arts

art

Don't be misled by Weinstein's modest quarters. The Twin Cities' top gallery specializes in photography and routinely mounts museum-quality shows of international artists including such historic figures as August Sander, Robert Mapplethorpe and Gordon Parks. Its contemporary stars include environmentalist Edward Burtynsky, romantics Vera Lutter and Robert Polidori, dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov, humorist Elliott Erwitt and the Twin Cities' own Alec Soth. Only savvy, well-connected galleries have access to such talent, and few have the resources and moxie to showcase it — as Weinstein does — at photo fairs in Paris, New York, Los Angeles and other hot spots. 908 W. 46th St., Mpls., 612-822-1722, or weinstein-gallery.com

For its 2015 centennial, Minneapolis' grandest museum threw a yearlong party with weekly surprises and glamorous shows. The fun continues in the museum's regular events and Third Thursday shindigs. In the galleries, visitors can settle in a comfy chair in the "Jane Austen Reading Room" and peruse books by or about the English author, or join friends in a whodunit mystery game, or even take a sock-darning class. Evening fun on the third Thursday of each month may involve sampling craft brews, playing with Legos, making DIY jewelry or posters, and grooving to music from 89.3 The Current. 2400 3rd Av. S., 1-888-642-2787,

artsmia.org

Under its "art is for everyone" umbrella, spunky Gamut Gallery showcases all sorts of smart, local talent. It welcomes everything from Japanese calligraphy to interactive murals, hyper-realistic drawings, sweet cartoons, handicrafts and experimental films. Always fresh and eclectic, it keeps a laserlike focus on building community through art. Sample the fun on a collaborative art-making evening when visitors try their hand at painting, drawing, cartooning and more. Expect the unexpected at this sweet start-up. 717 S. 10th St., Mpls., 612-367-4327, gamutgallerympls.com

theater

Benninghofen had a rather big year amid a distinguished career on Twin Cities stages. He is a meticulous physical performer, which he showed beautifully as Joxer Daly in Joe Dowling's production of "Juno and the Paycock" at the Guthrie. Last fall, he took on his first professional musical performance in the title role of Theater Latte Da's staging of "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street." He not only survived this auspicious singing debut, he hit it out of the park. He will reprise that role in early 2017 at the Pantages Theatre. Benninghofen always makes himself known with his energy and charismatic presence.

We could have just as easily chosen Joseph Haj at the Guthrie, but Rasmussen's advent at the Jungle Theater is in some ways more profound. Haj became the latest in a long list of artistic directors at a theater that has huge institutional power behind it. Rasmussen took over for Bain Boehlke, who was personally identified with the Jungle for 25 years as its founder. Rasmussen has a chance to make a deeply personal statement of her theatrical style at the beloved south Minneapolis theater. She will certainly diversify the repertoire with newer plays and look for a more diverse cast on stage.

jungletheater.com

Transatlantic is the perfect answer when folks wonder, "Do we need another small theater company in this town?" Isabel Nelson's troupe (it's more ensemble than any one person's vision) builds its theater from scratch and promises a strong flavor: storytelling with a shared sense of the outcome, and a physical style that is wholly the company's own. They don't produce a lot over the course of a year, but the work is always worth waiting for because it's an aesthetic we see only in a limited amount in the Twin Cities. transatlanticloveaffair.org

There probably is no finer interpreter of the work of August Wilson than Penumbra Theatre founder Lou Bellamy, who has been framing, interrogating and honoring African-American literature onstage for more than 40 years. A master storyteller who creates richly evocative stage pictures, Bellamy approaches scripts with an artistic eye, deep psychological inquiry and musicality. Bellamy's recent production of Amiri Baraka's "Dutchman" was an eruptive irrigation of what lurks in the souls of two characters. It was a reminder of his keen eye, his depth of knowledge, and his ability to meet great works at their level. penumbratheatre.org.

What artistic director Jack Reuler has done at Mixed Blood is commendable. In the past couple of seasons, the firehouse theater has been transformed into a restaurant for a Mu Performing Arts show and a strip club for a new Katori Hall play. This spring, it became a Latin nightclub for an engaging anthology of shorts called "DJ Latinidad." Above all, the attitude of the folks at Mixed Blood — who will do whatever it takes to deliver the audience into the world of its plays — makes things a little unpredictable and a lot exciting. 1501 S. 4th St., Mpls., 612-338-6131, mixedblood.com

Chatterjea is unashamedly political. She taps into social justice issues with fierce passion and empathy. Her dancers don't simply move, but channel a raw intensity that they seem to suck up from the earth beneath them. We see a complex range of emotions in their faces but also in their bodies, from their cores to their fingers and toes. As a choreographer, Chatterjea's distinctive vocabulary draws on the classical Indian dance form Odissi with yoga technique and the martial art form Chhau. It's an intricate style that she employs to stir raw fury, anguish and hope as a call to action.

Under the leadership of power couple Toni Pierce-Sands and Uri Sands, TU Dance boasts some of the best dancers in the Twin Cities, who display both athletic prowess and a clarity of form. Somehow, the individuality of each member of the diverse company always shines through in the work. Whether they are bringing to life one of choreographer Uri Sands' eloquent pieces, or working with the many world-renowned guest choreographers TU brings in to funnel new ideas and challenges, TU Dance is reliably crowd-pleasing and emotionally riveting. tudance.org

For someone with such a distinctive punk look, Dustin Maxwell has an amazing ability to blend in, to become an integral part of an ensemble. In works such as Christopher Schlichting's "Stripe Tease" and Morgan Thorson's "Still Life," Maxwell brought a special energy to group dynamics, while moving cohesively with the other dancers. Maxwell also shines as a solo performer. His unusually angular physique creates captivating lines, and his nuanced, subtle understanding of movement results in meticulous, enthralling execution.

movies

The Twin Cities hosts more cinematic cavalcades than you can shake a tub of popcorn at. But April's Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival offers the finest collection of must-see discoveries this side of Sundance. It's among the nation's largest film showcases, with more than 300 features and shorts this year — a collection of much-anticipated films and surprises. It offers 2½ glorious weeks of independent and international gems beyond the focus of the multiplex, attended by the filmmakers themselves and a film-loving crowd. Ends April 23 at St. Anthony Main Theatre, Mpls.,

The luxurious Showplace Icon remains the best location in town for ultra-crystal-clear movie viewing and listening. No other auditorium comes near its level of precise projector focus, flawless lighting and superb surround sound. It also allows customers to reserve specific seats when they buy their tickets, though the screens look fine from whatever angle you see them. The beer and cocktail lounge on the second floor offers drinks that can be carried into the upstairs VIP seats. The best feature, however, is what it doesn't permit: restricting toddlers from being brought into movies for grownups. We like kids, but there's a time and a place, you know? 1625 West End Blvd., St. Louis Park; showplaceicon.com

The smallest movie theater in town is also the best-curated display case for amazing movies, the kind of "you've got to see this" fare that can't be enjoyed elsewhere. In recent months it has presented a newly restored print of a 1958 Czech wowzer that turned Jules Verne fantasies into a trippy cocktail of live action and vintage animation, with steampunk submarines, bicycle zeppelins and bizarre squid battles. And a legendary documentary about how Los Angeles is celebrated and misrepresented in movies. And side-by-side series of films by Hitchcock, John Hughes and Charlie Kaufman. It's a labor of love by a wildly knowledgeable staff, done more for love of the art than profit. 3258 Minnehaha Av. S., Mpls., trylon.org

music

Last year's stirring twofer concert with Alabama Shakes and Father John Misty introduced music lovers to a large, flat patch of land along Minneapolis' underutilized riverfront called Hall's Island, which isn't really an island and isn't all that special, except: a) It offers a gorgeous view of the downtown skyline, and b) it isn't a parking lot. Hall's Island will again play host to a stellar live band, Wilco, on Aug. 20 (tickets at first-avenue.com), and the neighboring Boom Island will serve as temporary home for the popular Rock the Garden concert on June 19. Both sites are easy to get to via public transit or bike, and there are plenty of pre- and post-show hangouts nearby to make it a rocking night out.

Like post-Katrina New Orleans, the city it so lovingly pays tribute to, downtown St. Paul's revived basement jazz space has made something positive out of the sad closing of the Artists' Quarter. Vieux Carre added some bold new flourishes to the beloved site while staying true to its character. The crew behind the Dakota Jazz Club took it over and not only brought back jazz, but a menu filled with New Orleans staples such as muffulettas, gumbo and sazeracs. Now Vieux is also the Twin Cities' nearest thing to an authentic Crescent City experience. 408 Saint Peter St., St. Paul; 651-291-2715; vieux-carre.com

Naturally, there's going to be a limited audience for a lo-fi femini-snarl punk group whose only instruments are bass, drums and a vintage telephone receiver (used for vocal effect). Kitten Forever is really testing those limits, though. The Minneapolis trio earned raves opening for hometown heroes Babes in Toyland on tour last fall and followed it up with one of this year's most riotously fun punk albums, "7 Hearts," a spastic, smarmy but smart blast of 15 songs in 30 minutes. Limited or not, Kitten Forever's audience is quickly becoming national. Local fans couldn't be prouder.

kittenforeverforever.com

In the Minnesota musical hierarchy, Prince rates higher than King. But the royal rocker has given his blessing to the newish trio featuring twin sisters Paris and Amber Strother, who relocated from Minneapolis to Los Angeles a few years ago. Prince not only presented King in concert last year at Paisley Park but, after the trio's impressive debut album, "We Are King," was released this winter, he attended both of King's performances in Minneapolis clubs. Their gauzy soulful sound — think Sade squared fronting a modern-day Soul II Soul — makes us want to claim King as Minnesota royalty.

After a five-year famine, Twin Cities hip-hop lovers were served a feast on the FM dial in the past year, starting with the all-retro Hot 102 and Vibe 105. Even Snoop Dogg can only take so much "Gin and Juice," though. Then along came Go 93.5 FM in January, a hip-hop offshoot of the similarly millennial-baiting rock station Go 96.3. The station has exceeded expectations with its relatively broad playlist, ranging from bigwigs Jay-Z, Drake and Kanye to cooler innovators Chance the Rapper and Big Sean to occasional hometown favorites Lizzo and Prof. More spins from the latter two categories would be nice, but there's still plenty for those of us who didn't stop listening to rap music when Tupac and Biggie died. GoMN.com

He doesn't have the kind of sonorous voice associated with radio announcers. He's never been to broadcasting school. He doesn't even have a made-up DJ name. But Chris Thile, the host in waiting for "A Prairie Home Companion," has all the tools to succeed Garrison Keillor. Mandolin master Thile is smart, clever, versatile, funny, adventurous, hip, youngish (35), theatrical and quick (with both his tongue and fingers). Not only has he earned a MacArthur "genius grant" and four Grammys, but he commands such widespread musical respect that he can just call Paul Simon and get him to play live on the radio in St. Paul.

Many local Instagram feeds have tried to do what @captureminnesota does — but few have found such staggering success. Using hashtags, it crowdsources photos from users and then features the best ones. With its 80,000 followers, it's a big deal to get your photo reposted (like winning the insta-lottery!). What's its secret? Easy: The account only posts stunning mobile photography. Many of the landmarks captured here will be familiar — the IDS Tower, Minnehaha Falls, the St. Paul Cathedral. But chances are the account, started by Stefan Cioanca, will give you a new perspective on where we live.

If you have an Internet connection, chances are you've heard Nora McInerny Purmort's story. The 140-character version: Husband Aaron was dying of cancer, she wrote a touching blog about their journey, now she's an impassioned (and really funny) voice for grieving in the digital age. Nowhere is her voice better captured than on Twitter. Her upcoming book, "It's Okay to Laugh (Crying Is Cool Too)," will be a deep dive into her charming perspective. But it's only on Twitter where she can absolutely floor you with a simple, matter-of-fact observation: "Missed Aaron like crazy all day. Now, our son is sleeping like his dad used to: holding my hand."