After a year on hiatus, Walker Art center's long-running Summer Music & Movies festival returns to Loring Park this summer.
The free Monday-night events, which began in 1973, became one of the most popular summer outdoor series in the Twin Cities. Showcasing Twin Cities rockers such as Mark Mallman and Doomtree, and movie series saluting Hollywood stars or themes like U.S. politics or Westerns, it became a summertime tradition for generations. To the vocal disappointment of many, the program was dropped in 2010 as the art museum redirected its focus to gallery-related events. More than 2,200 people formed a Facebook group to protest the cancellation.
The new program, produced in association with radio station 89.3 The Current, will be smaller than before. The mini-palooza runs just four weeks (Aug. 1, 8, 15 and 22). The lineup of films and local bands will be unveiled in May.
The Walker did drop one tantalizing tidbit, however. The Aug. 22 finale will move from Loring Park to the grassy hillside beside the museum for a special one-night event featuring a silent film with a live band providing the soundtrack.
COLIN COVERT
