Arabesque arias
James Sewell Ballet commissioned singer/keyboardist Linnea Mohn to create an ethereal score for Eve Schulte's "Yonder," part of their "Opera Moves" production. The piece looks at time and distance, and explores the liminal space between what is known and unknown. Also premiering is a new piece by Jennifer Hart and a remount of James Sewell's "Opera Moves," celebrating classic melodies from the opera canon set to movement. (7:30 p.m. Fri. & Sat., 1 p.m. Sat., 2 p.m. Sun., the Cowles Center, 528 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls., $36, 612-206-3600, thecowlescenter.org.)
Hip-hop and a caravan
The Ordway's "From the Ground Up: A Celebration of Hip Hop" festival kicks off with a special edition of "Rooted: Hip-Hop Choreographer's Evening," co-curated by the incomparable Maia Maiden. It features local hip-hop choreographers and dancers, as well as work by spoken word artists Tish Jones, Carnage the Executioner and Desdamona. The next night, musician Terence Blanchard teams up with visual artist Andrew Scott and choreographer Rennie Harris for an exploration of racism and gun violence, which was influenced, in part, by the police killing of Philando Castile. "Caravan: A Revolution on the Road" fuses jazz, R&B, blues, funk and soul, with African-American culture and aesthetics. ("Rooted": 7:30 p.m. Fri., $32-$42; "Caravan": 7:30 p.m. Sat., $5-$65, the Ordway, 345 Washington St., St. Paul, 651-224-4222, ordway.org.)
Surreal movement poetry
Maureen Fleming brings her hypnotic and visceral performance style, which draws on Butoh techniques, back to the O'Shaughnessy after last visiting in 2015. Moving geometric sculptures and projections by artist Christopher Odo provide the backdrop for Fleming's "Wildflowers, A Feminine Genesis," inspired by the poetry of late Romantic/early realist poet William Butler Yeats. With original music, the music of Philip Glass and the sounds of violin, uilleann pipes and piano, this interdisciplinary piece probes questions of immortality through the lens of Yeats' rich feminine imagery. (7:30 p.m. Sat., the O'Shaughnessy, 2004 Randolph Av., St. Paul, $24-$34, 651-690-6700, theoshaughnessy.com.)
Sheila Regan
