Nothingburger celebration will go down easy with State Fair spice

Summer is almost over, and Minnesota still is sleepwalking through the observance of our sesquicentennial, which as I have noted before, is a Latin word meaning "nothingburger." Luckily, Warren Nelson will be at the State Fair.

If anyone can breathe life into the dullest 150th birthday on record, it is a singer-songwriter-celebrator like Nelson. And he's getting 12 days to wake up the place.

The sesquicentennial, as we have seen throughout the year, has been a snooze. You can finally buy Nothingburger license plates, but there are just four months left in 2008. It hasn't been all for naught, however: During a sesquicentennial event in Detroit Lakes, there was a confirmed Carol Molnau sighting.

It's true.

But starting Thursday, and continuing through Labor Day, the party will pick up pace when Nelson presides over an entertaining musical pageant of Minnesota history at the State Fair. It's free, it's fun, it's in a big chautauqua tent that can seat 900, and, according to Nelson, "beer is available nearby."

"My home state just doesn't seem to know how to party," says Nelson, 61. "I've been embarrassed by the lack of support [for the sesquicentennial], " he said.

"And I want to celebrate the place I grew up in. Minnesotans have passion about their state. You can see I'm a Vikings fan by the number of Super Bowl rings I'm wearing."

Nelson still owns a house in his hometown of Fairmont, Minn. His father, Alvin, sold dairy equipment, so as a boy, Nelson visited many county fairs in southern Minnesota, and he has loved the Minnesota State Fair since he can remember.

Now, if he can just get us to love our state like they do in Cheesehead Land.

Called "Old Minnesota: Song of the North Star," Nelson's show offers a rich selection of Minnesota stories, from the beginnings of the state through the world wars up to modern times, with an orchestra, stunning audiovisuals and attention paid to the history of the fair, too. Mostly rollicking, the show also deals frankly with painful episodes in state history, including the wresting of the land from Native Americans and the war of 1862 that ended with the banishment of the Dakota Sioux and 38 hangings at Mankato on the Minnesota River.

Since 1986, Nelson has been the artistic director of the Big Top Chautauqua near Bayfield, Wis. In "Old Minnesota," he explores the Indian tragedy with a poignant song called "Little Crow's Flute" that reflects on the state seal -- which was reversed to show an Indian riding into the sunset, rather than the dawn, as was originally intended:

"Statehood will soon seal their fate," the song goes: "Beside the home river, they hung 38."

There's a whole lot more in the musical: Farming and iron mining, Dan Patch and war veterans and all the rest of the story of the 32nd state, warts and all.

"I wanted to celebrate Minnesota's history, its spirit, its troubles and its promise," says Nelson. "I think it's all in there: The spirit and the spit. It's been like pulling teeth to get this far, but here we go!"

Nelson first thought of creating a Minnesota musical in 2000. He started raising money for the project in 2002, but it was slow going. In 2003, he bought a $700 suit and spiffed up to go to the Legislature to drum up interest. Everyone said he had a great idea; no one had any funding. Undaunted, he put the show together and started performing it in 2004. Now, it might get the attention it deserves.

"I'm just a Minnesota boy who loves Minnesota and wants to wave its flag," Nelson says.

That's just what we needed. Finally, a party worth attending.

"Even at two hours, you can't tell the whole story," he says. "But my songs come from a Minnesota throat, and I think we have captured the state pretty good."

The State Fair Chautauqua tent will be located west of the Grandstand, just east of Heritage Square and north of the Skyride. Shows are at noon, 2, 4 and 6 p.m.

Admission is free.