A bar band on steroids
Like Luke Bryan, the Zac Brown Band graduated from opening act to arena attraction to stadium headliner very quickly. Supporting his band's fourth studio album, "Jekyll & Hyde," Brown, a man of many hats, is a bona fide country star, but his repertoire embraces pop, R&B, classic rock, classic country, blues, Jimmy Buffett, James Taylor — you name it. In short, ZBB is a bar band on steroids. Don't be surprised if Zac and the boys throw in a Prince tribute.
Jon Bream
7 p.m. Sat. Target Field, Mpls., $49-$109, livenation.com
Twin Cities-bred pianist Bobby Lyle (above) and bassist Billy Peterson reunite for two nights of acoustic duets. Lyle had a No. 1 contemporary jazz record, "The Journey," and has been musical director for Anita Baker, Al Jarreau and Bette Midler. Peterson played with B.B. King and Bob Dylan and spent more than 20 years with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Steve Miller. But both may be at their best performing the straight-ahead, cerebral jazz that's perfect for this venue.
BRITT ROBSON
7 and 9 p.m. Tue.-Wed., Crooners Lounge, Fridley, $20-$50, croonersloungemn.com
Pop star Moby — nicknamed for the whale, since Herman Melville was his great-great-great-uncle — has written a memoir, "Porcelain," about rising to fame in the New York clubs of the 1980s and '90s. It has been praised by Dave Eggers ("one of the funniest and most accessible books you'll ever read about an erstwhile Christian/alcoholic vegan electronic music maker") and Salman Rushdie ("the writing is terrific"). Moby will read and sign copies in Minneapolis.
Laurie Hertzel
7 p.m. Mon., Magers & Quinn, Mpls. magersandquinn.com
Two exciting Twin Cities choreographers share the stage at Carleton College. Rosy Simas (pictured) performs her award-winning multimedia dance solo "We Wait in Darkness," about her Seneca family history. Deborah Jinza Thayer will present a work in progress called "All Hail the Queen," a humorous celebration of the vagina told through song and dance. Visual artist Amelia Biewald collaborated on the work, with six dancers and lyrics by Melissa Birch.
SHEILA REGAN
7:30 p.m. Tue., Weitz Center for Creativity, Carleton College, Northfield, free, tinyurl.com/hlfg4ec
Stephen Karam's plot-heavy comedy "Sons of the Prophet" — with a weary wackiness and a satirical edge — was a critical delight on Broadway in 2011. Jef Hall-Flavin directs the Twin Cities premiere with a cast that includes Sasha Andreev, Ricardo Beaird, Maxwell Collyard and Angela Timberman. In short, Karam's play is about brothers dealing with ailments, pressures from outsiders and family losses.
Graydon Royce
2 p.m. Sun. and next Sun., 7:30 p.m. Tue.-Sat. Ends June 5; Park Square, St. Paul; $27-$60, parksquaretheatre.org
The premise of Marcia Casey Cushmore's colorful ink and gouache drawings is simple and direct. They are about what she calls "the ultimate happiness of just being here, ALIVE!" She expresses that joy in abstractions inspired by poppy fields, spring flowers, old grapevines, sailing adventures and wave patterns left in beach sand in an exhibit called "Happy to Be Here."
Mary Abbe
Through June 10, Opening Night Gallery, Mpls., onframe-art.com
Robert Shaw, perhaps America's greatest choral director, would have turned 100 a couple of weeks ago. His work at NBC with the notoriously demanding Arturo Toscanini, and later at the Atlanta Symphony, continues to resonate. Minneapolis choir The Singers explores his half-century career for "Robert Shaw: A Centennial Celebration," from madrigals to pieces by Rachmaninoff, Debussy and Shaw himself.
terry blain
3 p.m. Sun., First Lutheran Church, Columbia Heights. $21-$33, singersmca.org
At the turn of the last century, when eugenics was the rage and black Americans had to prove their humanity, boxing provided an avenue for dignity and recognition. Members of the small, ambitious Sandbox Theatre have devised "Queens" around a fictitious fighter battling the odds. The production is staged in-the-round — complete with bleacher seats.
ROHAN PRESTON
7:30 p.m. Wed.-Sat., 2 p.m. Sun. Ends June 4. Park Square Theatre, St. Paul. $40-$60. parksquaretheatre.org
Valleyfair celebrates 40 years with a new all-extreme sports show and Flying Eagles ride. The throwback-inspired entertainment highlights special events that will happen throughout the summer at the 125-acre amusement park. There's also Planet Snoopy for those not yet tall enough for extreme action. Dinosaurs Alive is an interactive and educational experience with animatronic prehistoric animals and activities. To cool off, plunge into Soak City Water Park.
Melissa Walker
10 a.m. daily, Valleyfair, Shakopee, $52-$56, valleyfair.com.
