Scene apr 2018

APRIL 2018 - southernminnSCENE.com

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YOUR FREE GET-OUT SOURCE TO SOUTHERN MINNESOTA

6 14

Young Artists Making their Mark in Southern Minnesota Communities

Big Turn Music Fest

Little Red Wing Goes Big with Downtown Music Festival.

The Grand Center for Arts & Culture A gem among New Ulm’s artist community.

SHELDON

SPRING 2018

THEATRE

“Hilarious!”

- The New York Times

The Tony Awards meets Whose Line Is It Anyway?

BROADWAY’S NEXT H!T MUSICAL APRIL 14 7:30 PM

SHEMEKIA COPELAND MARCH 30, 7:30 PM CHILDREN’S THEATRE COMPANY

SEEDFOLKS APRIL 21, 3:00 PM

“A magnet for artists and audiences alike.”

– Rochester Post Bulletin

651-388-8700 I 443 W. 3rd Street I Red Wing, MN 2

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CONTENT APRIL 2018 / VOLUME 6 / ISSUE 3

Features:

6 Little Red Wing Goes Big with

Downtown Music Festival

Big Turn Music Fest goes off without a hitch.

10 Young Artists Make Their Mark

to the Communities

IF YOU CAN DREAM IT,

Artists don’t have to be a certain age to be great.

14 New Ulm’s Grand Center for Arts & Culture

WE CAN DO IT.

A gem among the artist community.

18 Pranking a Fool

One day a year, we get a free pass on malicious

behavior at the expense of others.

20 Mankato Symphony Orchestra

Turns Music Inside Out

Sit by the performing musicians on stage.

24 The TimeLine

SoMinn’s most comprehensive

calendar of things to be SCENE.

COLUMNS: 4 The Tigger SCENE

Minnesota Music Break.

16 Mollywood BLVD

All about Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.

26 Minnesota Music SCENE

Analyzing Dessa.

29 Trivia

DESIGN

30 Get Fit In SoMinn

DIGITAL

Small-town fitness.

32 Album Review

Justin Timberlake - Man of the Woods

34 Woldum TV

Defending the Kardashians to an imaginary hater.

33 The Bookworm Sez:

PRINT

• Berlin 1936 • Checkered • The Dead Moms Club: A Memoir

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| APRIL 2018

3

THE Tigger SCENE

TIGGER LUNNEY Tigger Lunney is a writer, talker, veteran of the music industry and Minnesota politics, and the overly opinionated dad of two overly opinionated kids.

Twitter @tiggerlunney.

Minnesota Music

I

BREAK

f you’ve ever been flipping through radio stations on a Sunday evening in Southern Minnesota, you might have gotten an unusual surprise as KOWZ 100.9 crossed your dial. Right around 7 p.m., the station that plays “hits from the 70s to today,” takes a timeout from Sheryl Crow, Bon Jovi, and Prince, for “Minnesota Music Break”: local-grown music like Soul Asylum, Semisonic, and, well, Prince.

If you’ve read any of my columns, you know I talk about local music a lot. Frankly, small bands pushing music in new directions is more interesting to me. Small bands getting bigger or small bands staying the same and not caring because they do it out of love. As someone who grew up in a small town myself, nothing was more exciting than getting to see bands play and discovering new music. (It was also a lot cheaper.)

I’m not a snob (although it’s my job to be picky, and I don’t believe that “successful” automatically means good). But watching local bands when I was sixteen opened my eyes to worlds I would never have found just listening to AC/DC and Led Zeppelin, and I’m thankful for it. It was a formative experience.

It’s exactly that experience that Minnesota Music Break, which just celebrated its one-year anniversary, is looking to convey to all listeners. KOWZ DJ Sarah Jane says, “I grew up in the metro, and when you live there, you get a lot more exposure to different local bands, artists, and venues. There are so many amazing artists from this state that aren’t played on Southern Minnesota radio – the Minnesota Music Break gives people who live outside the metro area a chance to hear it.”

Jane and Program Director and morning co-host Andy Gott are the masterminds behind the Minnesota Music Break, which features two or three songs from a Minnesota artist as well as background on the artist.

“It’s our hope to expose our listeners to a wide variety of music and showcase everything this state has to offer,” says Gott.

Since its inception, the feature has been a successful hit with listeners. According to Gott, “We’ve now been airing the show for a full year and the response has exceeded our expectations. We’re getting requests and suggestions from our listeners and that’s what It’s all about really. That’s why we’re putting it on the air. We love engaging with our listening audience.”

And while they feature artists statewide, they make a point of highlighting bands with strong roots in Southern Minnesota.

“We have featured Gear Daddies, Har Mar Superstar, and Owl

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City,” says Jane, naming just a few of the acts that come out of the region. “Gear Daddies were definitely a key band in the late 80s early 90s Twin Cities alternative rock scene and have way more to offer than just their song, ‘Zamboni.’ Har Mar Superstar is that unique pop/soul music with a twist. Slightly off the norm on some songs, while others are straight up pop. Owl City, also known as Adam Young, grew up in Owatonna. Just recently, he did an interview with us where he shared his favorite childhood memory about growing up in Owatonna, which you can find on our website KOWZFM.com.

Shameless plug!”

While KOWZ is best known for its traditional hit music format, Jane and Gott don’t mind pushing that envelope to highlight new and seminally important artists.

“Hippo Campus, Husker Du, and Cloud Cult are bands the typical KOWZ listener may not be familiar with,” says Jane.

Adds Gott, “It’s important to embrace all of the great music in this state, and by highlighting a different artist every week, I think we’re showing that there’s a lot more out there when it comes to Minnesota music than just Prince and Dylan. It’s fun to challenge the listeners and maybe let them hear something they haven’t heard before.”

Now, obviously, I think any chance for folks throughout KOWZ’s 100,000 watt broadcast range to get a chance to listen to Husker Du on the radio is a good thing. But are there plans to expand past the short format? What about a “Minnesota Music Hour?”

“Really, we’re open to anything,” says Gott. “Right now it’s just two to three songs per week, but if the situation arises, we would definitely expand it, if that’s where it leads. We recently got a sponsor for the show, Tone Music, which could help us expand the show into new directions.”

So kudos to Gott and Jane for giving local artists a spin. Kudos to Minnesota Music Break for making sure homegrown music gets all the exposure it possibly can. And very big kudos to the listeners who tune in, get to find something new and interesting they like, and maybe even learn something.

Sure, some of us are experts, but there’s so much good stuff around that the casual listener should know and love and take pride in. Great rock and roll doesn’t just come from the coasts, and sometimes it’s so good you don’t even realize it’s coming from next door.

“My mom recently texted me asking if I knew that Soul Asylum was from Minnesota,” Jane laughs. “Really?? You need to listen to my show more!” SMS

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Calling All SoMinn Photographers:

We’re looking to feature your photographs in the May edition of Southern minn

Scene We’re looking for shots of Southern Minnesota’s landscape, nature, cities, culture and people. If you have photos you’d like to submit, email editor@southernminnscene.com

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| APRIL 2018

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Bike Shop Concert.

STORY BY KIM HYATT editor@southernminnscene.com

W Big

Little Red Wing Goes

with Downtown Music Festival 6

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PHOTOS BY Bob Good Photography Studio hen Red Wing resident and frontman for the Double Down Daredevils, Tom Peschges, heard that there was going to be a music festival downtown in February, he was

skeptical.

“They do know we are in Minnesota, right?” he thought.

But now Tom is a believer in Big Turn Music Fest.

And who wouldn’t be after the event successfully drew in artists like Caroline Smith, Dave Simonett and Porcupine to play shows in Red Wing’s quaint downtown?

The festival went off without a hitch Feb. 16-17, featuring more than 100 bands and 18 venues. And that was in year one.

“The concept was so well thought out and so well organized that it ran smoothly and by all accounts it was a huge success,” he said. “It was exciting to be eating pizza and watching all these people walking by on the way to more music. The crowds for some of the bands were at capacity for their venues. It was like having a front row seat to the creative economy flexing its muscle.”

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It’s true; those behind Big Turn – founder Sam Brown, who was unavailable for comment on this story, and a small committee of creatives – say there were several years behind the scenes coordinating a hundred concerts within a couple blocks in unconventional venues, like a framework shop or comic book store.

But word on the snow-covered streets is that it all paid off.

Sam’s cousin, Adam Brown, served as the art director creating all the festival’s branding and marketing. He said Sam called him up - Patty Brown, Red Wing Chamber one day of Commerce executive director a few years ago and they sat down and started talking. “It changed from an idea to ‘Alright, let’s give it a whirl,’” he said.

“Let’s bring this festival mentality to Red Wing – it’s such a beautiful community with great people,” Adam

“A music festival is typically in a location in a field where people come to it. This was totally different in that people went to all the different venues. It was a unique model that hadn’t been used here before.”

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Downtown Red Wing show night. said. “What really differentiates it is the winter, and the winters get pretty long around here.

To really help buffer that and get spring kicked off … it manifested from that idea of being a different style of festival, wanting different venues to give an experience unlike any other.”

Festival organizers ramped up for Big Turn in January with a prefestival show at St. Paul’s Turf Club featuring three artists performing in Red Wing the following month: General B and The Wiz with TABAH and Lydia Liza.

Enthusiasm already surrounds Big Turn’s latest announcement: the second annual festival dates. Go ahead and Caroline Smith performs. mark calendars for Feb. 22-23, 2019.

So far in the weeks that have passed since downtown Red Wing revolved into a hub for regional music, incoming reviews suggest there will be some adjustments to next year’s venues, since some weren’t big enough for the crowd.

A big inaugural turnout isn’t necessarily a bad problem. Big Turn sold 2,200 wristbands for the two-day community event.

Patty Brown, Red Wing Chamber of Commerce executive director, said the city established very specific capacity numbers and a lot of venues were full with some lines forming outside.

“That speaks volumes right there,” she said. “It was very attrac-

Red Wing under the lights. tive right off the bat to have it in the dead of winter when our businesses could really use some help and make a really positive impact.”

The festival’s founder is her nephew, and she said Sam was thinking of putting on the festival for about four years before it came to fruition.

Sam has successfully created Midwest Music Fest, now going nine years strong in Winona. But it was so rocking that Midwest expanded to La Crosse in 2016. Though Sam is no longer heavily involved with Midwest, the city of Red Wing entrusted him to start a festival in his hometown because he clearly knows how to throw

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a good party.

Patty said Sam did a great job stating his mission early on that he wanted a walkable festival.

“He was very adamant about that. He wanted it to be very walkable for people to stroll the streets and not have to drive.”

Because of this, Patty said they implemented several non-traditional venues due to the fact that downtown doesn’t have enough lounges and bars to host all the bands. Instead, venues included an array of retail space, a bicycle shop, the YMCA, plus a few bars, a coffee shop, church, bookstore and library.

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TOP PHOTO: Frame Work Shop concert. ABOVE: Sheldon Theatre.

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“A music festival is typically in a location in a field where people come to it. This was totally different in that people went to all the different venues,” Patty said. “It was a unique model that hadn’t

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The BTMW founder Sam Brown.

been used here before.”

The chamber director said it was a great business booster for downtown Red Wing, “where they may be competing with a festival if it were at a different location.”

Along with an eclectic mix of venues were a variety of perform-

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ers. From hip-hop acts like Heiruspecs and Toki Wright, to rock headliner Porcupine, and indie artists like Smith and Simonett, there were plenty of big names on the lineup as well as many novice acts looking ahead to promising music careers.

Tom said the stage set-ups and sound techs were awesome and

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The BTMW crew.

his band saw the same professionalism at the other venues, which he was sure to check out after his band’s performance.

“The lineup offered something for every musical taste,” he said.

Brian Stewart was the festival’s onsite luthier – a fancy name for the guy who fixes guitars. A highlight for Brian was chatting with one of his favorite Minnesota artists, Jeremy Messersmith, who wanted Brian to take a look at his guitar before his show.

As owner of Tree Strings Guitar Shop in Red Wing, Brian said Big

Turn was a valuable addition to the city’s music scene. Overall, he felt it was a positive experience and next year looks promising for the festival’s return.

“I think it was great,” he said. “It was done very well considering it was the first time anything like this had been done here. The turnout was really good, better than they had expected.”

To learn more about Big Turn Music Fest, check out www.bigturnmusicfest.com. SMS

Porcupine performes.

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“I think it was great. It was done very well considering it was the first time anything like this had been done here. The turnout was really good, better than they had expected.” - Brian Stewart

Red Wing PD approved.

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Anne France.

“I will always enjoy art and design because I love bringing something I see in my mind to life on the computer screen. It really makes it worth the effort.” -Anne France

BY KELSEY O’HARA editor@southernminnscene.com

A

rtists don’t have to be a certain age to be great.

They just need the dedication and motivation to fine tune their craft whether it’s in theater, visual arts or written word. It takes specific qualities to make be able to push the boundaries of their pieces and create something entirely new.

Some of the most motivated members of the art communities in Southern Minnesota are the youngest. Students, from elementary to high school, balance school, extra-curriculars, sports and a personal life with their craft. Here, we highlight three high school students making a mark on their communities through unique projects and artistic visions.

The Experimenter

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Anne France was always interested in the

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materials she could find in her dad’s garage. It made her use the resources she had to create a new visual project that stepped outside watercolor or pen.

“I always think we should try as many materials as we can because we don’t know the result until it’s done,” she said.

France, senior at Northfield High School, recently won several Minnesota Scholastic Art awards for her pieces that used resin, a sticky flammable substance often used for liquid plastic. She found the material in her dad’s garage and blended it with paints to create a marble-esque base and layered images on top.

She created two pieces from the resin. Those two pieces and her general portfolio landed her three gold keys, two silver keys and two honorable mentions in the art awards, but she also garnered additional funding for a future in the arts.

“I’m really interested in pursuing graphic design at the University of Minnesota instead of a traditional arts degree,” France said. “With these awards, my chances for scholarships increase.”

Along with resin and paint, France picked up digital media programs during her sophomore year through an “introduction to design” class. She said she was always drawn to the clean, structured-style graphic design brings and their different computer programs.

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Wyatt Thompson’s drawings.

She experimented with apps on her phone to make collages and moved up to computer programs in the Adobe Suite.

Her graphic work can be found pinned to the boards around the high school as she makes flyers, posters, postcards, t-shirts and other designs for events and organizations on campus.

She’s even submitted a design to a Google competition “Doodle 4 Google” where students redesign the Google logo based on “what inspires you” and submits the design for judging.

“It’s important for young artists to take advantage of the opportunities the community offers, even if that’s as something as large as designing a logo for Google or creating a flyer for a local event,” France said.

Although many of her recent projects involve paint or pencil, France tries to incorporate her graphic style into her projects through bold colors, lines and experimentation with concept.

France used masking in a school project where they needed to make a pattern. The masking effect creted an ombré background with contrasted figures in the forefront.

“I will always enjoy art and design because I love bringing something I see in my mind to life on the computer screen,” France said. “It really makes it worth the effort.”

The Doodler Wyatt Thompson,

senior at Faribault High School, finds more comfort between the pages of his sketchbook than on the computer screen.

“I find myself drawing more in my free time than for class …

It’s more of a release for my thoughts and daydreams,” he said.

Thompson recently created a series of sketches under the theme of emotion for an academic course. Each sketch brings to a life a specific emotion, and when they are lined together, they bring a cohesive feel of the range of emotions we feel throughout our lifetime.

The project allowed Thompson to express his thoughts on how people manifest their emotions into physical actions, and according to Thompson, the point to art is highlighting our selfexpression through different formats.

“Art is definitely built on self-expression and how you put your own character into your work,” he said. “That’s why art is so varied in materials, format, and style. We all have something

different we want to say with our work.”

Along with his sketches, Thompson is extremely active in the theater community at his school where he is currently working on a production of “Cinderella.” Thompson said he wasn’t participating in theater until his later years in school, but he enjoys the artistic elements of working on set and the collaborative thinking with other crew members.

Along with young artists at his school, self-expression and creativity are a large component in Thompson’s household.

Although no one in his family is traditionally artistic, his parents and brother always encouraged creative thinking and problem solving, even through drawing and coloring as a child.

Thompson hopes his art experiences in high school and practice in creative thinking translates well into college since he is intending to study physics.

“It’s hard to be successful in any field with only one mindset.

With creative problem solving, you adapt to new situations better and see new possibilities to solving problems that were outside your realm before,” he said.

Lauren Jacobson.

Despite

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the deviation in “art studies” in college, he still expects plenty of doodles to appear in his notebooks throughout the next few years.

The Multitasker Lauren Jacobson

Although isn’t set on her future after school, only being a sophomore at Faribault High School, she is currently working on several different projects that expand outside her academic life.

Jacobson is a multi-tasker with obligations including student council, theater committee, a handful of art courses and her favorite hobby, reviewing books for publishers.

She initially started by reviewing books she read on websites like Goodreads and Tumblr, and she now receives advance reader copies from publishers to post reviews on several platforms. The reviews often incorporate original photos she takes and edits.

“I love photography, so I often took pictures of books I was reading, anticipating or enjoyed.

Once I started working with publishers, I dedicated more time to crafting reviews, editing photos and posting them online,” she said.

Much like France, Jacobson relies heavily

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Anne France with some of her work.

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“Art is definitely built on self-expression and how you put your own character into your work. That’s why art is so varied in materials, format, and style. We all have something different we want to say with our work.” -Wyatt Thompson

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on digital design programs like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator to manipulate photos in an imaginative way. Several of the photos feature natural backgrounds that strongly contrast the books featured, and Jacobson said she finds inspiration from nature, especially at the Minnesota Zoo. Along with her bookish hobby, Jacobson dabbles in ceramics and sculpture. Her newfound love for clay came as a surprise after she tried to quit the introductory course the first week of class.

“I hated it,” she said. “I really was going to quit after the first week of class, but something made me decide to stick it out. I’m really happy I did because now I love sculpting and working with my hands.”

As Jacobson approaches her junior year, she is considering pursuing arts as a future career, but

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right now, she wants to wrap up some projects and continue her digital work and photo editing online.

“I have always had a strong support system at home for my art. Both my grandparents and parents encouraged me to pursue it through any format I could,” Jacobson said. “Now whenever I finish an art project, I swell up with pride at seeing the final outcome and the accomplishment of finishing something you put your mind to.”

Both Jacobson and Thompson work together on the high school’s theater committee, and Thompson said Jacobson has a strong future in any field she chooses to go in due to her determination.

“I really hope she tries to go on to be an executive officer in the group because it’s rare to find a student as motivated and talented as she is,” he said.

Although this is a small sample of the young artists in the Southern Minnesota region, these three artists represent qualities all great artists need to succeed in their work, whether in the art studio, on the stage or through the computer screen. SMS

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“I have always had a strong support system at home for my art. Both my grandparents and parents encouraged me to pursue it through any format I could. Now whenever I finish an art project, I swell up with pride at seeing the final outcome and the accomplishment of finishing something you put your mind to.” -Lauren Jacobson

an evening with Leo

Kottke May 5, 2018

Chatfield Center for the arts

405 Main St S | 507.884.7676

chatfieldarts.org

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also presenting

April 7 • Monroe Crossing April 21 • Beach Boys Tribute May 19 • Greg Brown

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Located in New Ulm, the Grand Center for the Arts hosts 10 art galleries per year and offers artist studios for rent. (Submitted photo)

L

BY ANNA VANGSNESS editor@southernminnscene.com

in New Ulm is a gem among the artist community

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ocated at 210 N. Minnesota Street in the heart of downtown, The Grand Center for Arts and Culture (GCAC) in New Ulm is living up to its mission of helping to support artists by offering the programming and tools necessary to explore, develop and nurture their gifts.

Executive Director Anne Makepeace, of St. Peter, has been a pivotal part of ushering The Grand to the next level since her family became owners of the three-story historical brick building in 2001. Her great-great-great-grandfather once operated the Grand Hotel, but it wasn’t until 1993 that Makepeace first set her sights on the infrastructure.

“I was asked what I wanted to do in the future and I said that I wanted to buy the building and renovate it,” Makepeace recalled. “I wanted to find a public purpose for it. I knew a lot of artists and musicians in the area and the art and music thing just kept coming back to us. It made sense, because New Ulm

didn’t have anything like it.”

With help from family members, Makepeace purchased what is now the The Grand, and the first thing she did was apply for nonprofit status. She then held public meetings and assembled volunteers to serve on the board.

“We held a public meeting in the fall of 2009 and shared what we might want to do with it and all kinds of people said ‘Yes,’” she said.

The 11 people that serve on the GCAC Board meet monthly with Makepeace and help with programming, finances and fundraising efforts. Megan Rolloff has been on the board since its inauguration in 2009.

“I knew that if I wanted to be involved in the arts within the area, I would have to put the work in first,” Rolloff said. “Anne had a lot of great things already figured out, and it just seemed like a great organization to help start.”

Shortly after that first meeting, Makepeace and her husband renovated the first floor and opened The Kabaret in 2010, which is home to live music on Fridays and Saturdays. In 2017, the other half of the first floor re-opened as a gift shop.

“We started booking out with music at the Kabaret and got things going through fundraising and renovation,” Makepeace said. “We weren’t using the full building until four years ago.”

What some may not know is that The Grand has more to offer than what’s at the ground floor.

The second and third floors house a large art gallery hosting 10 shows a year, 10 artist studios

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Pushing Chain performs at the Kabaret, located inside the Grand Center for the Arts. (Submitted photo) available for rent, and a music studio. The Grand uses ‘art’ as a broad term and spaces can be used for writing, graphic design, healing and the more traditional art forms.

In addition, as an arts and cultural organization, The Grand has participated in history theatre and has hosted cultural events on site.

“We’re a full-fledged art center,” Makepeace said proudly.

“We are trying to cover everything from lessons and studio space to art education, photography, dance and live entertainment.”

Though it’s taken time to introduce the community to what they have to offer, Makepeace said she feels like she’s been making headway over the past few years.

“When the Kabaret first opened, a lot of people came to us out of curiosity and now I think they understand that they can find not only incredible music from all over the state and region here, but art, dance and photography classes,” she said. “We have artists that show their work in our gallery that are popular all over the country. New Ulm has a lot of talented people that we’re trying to help find a home for, so they can meet up and share their creativity.”

Wanting to broaden The Grand’s reach even more, Makepeace has been busy brainstorming a use for the 3,000-square-foot basement. It’s her goal to take the nonprofit to the next level and train someone to eventually take her place as executive director. Her early thought is to open the large area up for a maker space, where artists would pay a set fee each month and have access to all the materials and equipment that they may need for their craft.

“What we really want to do is use more of that space for art related activities,” she said. “That’s the next level … getting more people to use the space.”

Optimistic for the future of The Grand, Rolloff said she has seen the visual arts grow in New Ulm, especially when it comes to gallery showings.

“It’s hard to get off the ground, but we just had an artist meet-up and it was great to see so many people show up that were excited about continuing to build a community of artists in the area,” she said. “A few years ago that may not have been the case, but Anne has done a good job at getting our name out there.”

The Grand Center for Arts offers art education and classes throughout the year. For a calendar of events, visit thegrandnewulm.com. (Submitted photo)

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Like many arts nonprofits, The Grand relies heavily on volunteers, donations, fundraisers, rented studio space and grants to remain successful. A wall in the back has a list of individuals who have pledged $500 or more, and businesses can sponsor a night of music for the same cost.

Individuals can also become members of The Grand for a yearly cost beginning at $25, which includes discounted tickets to shows and the gift shop.

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“The biggest thing people should know is that we are an organization that can’t run by itself,” Rolloff said. “We need artists and for people to come out and see what we have to offer. If it’s just a few people on the board running it, there’s no point. It needs to be adopted by the community and the surrounding communities as a group effort to make it work.”

For more information visit thegrandnewulm.com. SMS

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| APRIL 2018

15

Mollywood Blvd

You Can’t Break The

D

MOLLY PENNY Molly Penny is a local radio personality and MSU Mankato alum. It was her love of pop culture that got her interested in doing a morning show gig for KOWZ 100.9. She is now Music and Promotions Director at KOWZ & KRUE Radio in Owatonna and can be heard on various airwaves in Southern Minnesota, including Hot 96.7 in Mankato. She resides in Mankato with her movie buff husband and YouTube obsessed children. Need to contact her?

Shoot her an e-mail mollyp@kowzonline.com or catch her on Twitter at @mollyhoodUSA.

People’s Stride

wayne “The Rock” Johnson has an appeal among a wide audience.

From his days in the WWF/WWE to his film career, he has been a mainstay in pop culture for the past two decades.

It was a back injury that originally kept him from the NFL, but that didn’t stop him from making his mark on the world of sports and entertainment.

He earned People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” title in 2016, so there is no doubt his looks add to his overall appeal, but he is truly the people’s champ. He seems kind of like the nice jock who stuck up for the nerds in high school. Hardly anyone has anything bad to say about the guy. When he mentioned a possible run for president, no one was mad about it. I imagine him finishing press conferences with the “people’s elbow.”

Some have criticized the depth of his acting chops, but IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW WELL HE ACTS. He gets the ratings.

That being said, while he would likely be classified more as an entertainer, his recent HBO series “Ballers” and impressive film and production catalogue prove that he intends to earn his place in Hollywood.

His latest project, the classic game-tomodern day movie adaptation, “Rampage,” opens in theatres April 20.

In it, Johnson plays a Primatologist, Davis Okoye, which is totally believ-

able; I mean, don’t all doctors who study apes look like bodybuilders? Anyway, Okoye shares an unshakable bond with an extraordinary and intelligent silverback gorilla named George. But, as to be expected, an experiment goes vastly awry and George transforms into a raging monster. Then other monsters are also uncovered.

And it becomes every other movie starring Dwayne Jonson, wherein he needs to halt a global catastrophe.

I am sure the film will perform well, as most of his tend to do.

Seriously, if you

have a big budget film and want to break even, make sure you cast this guy. Recently Johnson

starred in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017). With an audience score of 76 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, it is no surprise that the reboot of Jumanji, which was originally released in 1994 starring Robin Williams, did quite well in the Box Office. The latest installment is definitely geared toward the modern audience. Instead of a board game, high school students get sucked into a video game, and Johnson gives one of his best acting performances as a teenage boy. It grossed around $400 million in its extended theatre run.

He has always had a knack for making people laugh, from his time in the wrestling ring, with his unforgettably animated facial expressions and ridiculous catch phrases, to his most recent crack at a comedy, Baywatch (2017). The film was critically panned, earning an abysmal 19 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. In response to one critic’s review, Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock on Twitter) came out swinging, tweeting : “Bold move from this critic who watched #Baywatch w/ other critics who laughed their a** off, but then decide to trash it publicly.”

He was executive producer to the film, so it was clearly a touchy subject but hey, with his Twitter skills, maybe he could be president after all.

The Fast & Furious franchise made a wise move when they added him to their roster as Special Agent Hobbs for “Fast Five” (2011). Vin Diesel is the trademark actor in the Fast & Furious franchise, but adding “The Rock” made sense, and helped revive a franchise that was already exhausted after four films. In the final scenes of the most recent installment, “F8: Fate of the Furious,” Hobbs reveals he has retired, leading some to wonder if he will return for “Fast 9,” expected to be released in April 2019. I don’t see why not. Retired doesn’t mean we have seen the last of Hobbs … kind of like “one last ride” meant, actually, let’s milk this for three more movies.

What we do know is he will star in another spinoff, titled “Hobbs & Shaw,” with a release date of July 2019, so it appears that he is keeping that cash cow rolling, regardless.

Other notable films starring “The Rock” (other than his appearance in the video for Wyclef’s 2000 hit “It Doesn’t Matter” – yeah, that happened), include “The Mummy Returns” (2001)”The Scorpion King” (2002), “The Game Plan” (2007), where he starred alongside his daughter, “Get Smart “(2008), “The Tooth Fairy” (2010), “Faster” (2010), “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” (2012), “Pain & Gain” (2013), “Hercules” (2014), “San Andrea”s (2015), “Central Intelligence” (2016) and “Disney’s Moana” (2016) where he voiced the character Maui.

Add Producer to his repertoire, the multi-faceted Johnson also lent producing credits to several of his recent films, including “Jumaniji: Welcome to the Jungle,” the aforementioned “Baywatch,” and his HBO series “Ballers,” but that is just the beginning.

It has been announced he will be executive producing the upcoming television series “The Titan Games,” in which he will also star, as well as producing sequels to San Andreas and Jumanji.

There were rumors that he would star in DC’s upcoming film “Shazam,” but they were dispelled last summer when it was confirmed that Johnson would be starring in a standalone film about Shazam’s antagonist, “Black Adam,” which he will also be producing, slated for a July 2019 release.

So … can you smell what the Rock is cooking?! SMS Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.

Photo from www.magster.com

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By RAIN DICKE-MICHELS editor@southernminnscene.com

O

nce a year, we get a free pass on malicious behavior at the expense of our loved ones.

Whether it dates back to our transition out of the Gregorian calendar or to the Roman end-of-winter celebration, the history around April Fools’ Day remains shrouded in mystery. However, that doesn’t stop the trickster from rising up to partake in this annual world renowned activity of expending some pent up, childish energy.

As it goes, pranksters do all they can to be unique and elusive, but I’ve never found it funny when an April Fools’ joke goes too far. I have, though, been a fan of

harmless, yet slightly inconveniencing fun since I was young.

So, without further-adieu, I have compiled a short list of low-risk April Fools’ ideas for you to either use, or work off of:

1. Bugs:

In Chapman University’s 2016 Survey on American Fears, 25 percent of respondents said they were afraid of insects and/or spiders. Personally, I’m often startled by insects when they show up unexpectedly, but my step-dad hates bugs with the kind of passion that might drive a person to burn their house down. Anything involving insects is a solid route to take.

They’re small and can be placed anywhere that might get a rise out of the victim. Freeze them in ice cubes,

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LOC OW ALLY OPE NED & RAT ED!

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slip them under bed sheets, hide them in cabinets. When I was young, my sister and I found a very real looking rubber cockroach and placed it strategically in our step-dad’s basement shower, for which he probably never trusted us again.

2. Plastic wrap: For every left-over being saved

by plastic wrap, there’s an equally brilliant prank to be had.

Plastic wrap can be stretched across a doorway at eye level, tape it on either side, then wait for the magic. Another idea is to seal shampoo/conditioner bottles by securing the plastic wrap at the mouth of the bottle and then replacing the cap. Will they figure it out or will they give up on washing their hair entirely?

3. Solid Liquids:

If you don’t mind planning ahead, solid liquid pranks are fun to play on kids especially. You can make jello in their juice cups with a straw and watch their mind work to wrap itself around that. Another idea is to pour their cereal the night before and freeze it. You could say that it took so long for them to come to the table, their milk froze. They might even believe you.

4. Airhorns: These can be affixed behind a door or attached to the underside of an office chair. If you do this, take a video, because you’ll want to watch it again and again.

5. Money:

Everyone likes money. You can superglue a quarter to the ground and stick around to see how many folks struggle to pick up. Or you could take the corner of a $20 bill and leave it sticking out from underneath a laptop, book, or an oven mitt on the counter; they will definitely be disappointed to not have found a hole twenty bucks.

6. Candy Combos:

Fill a bowl with skittles, M’n’Ms, and Reese’s Pieces, then leave it in the kitchen or in the breakroom at work. I wonder how many people will grab a handful and just throw the whole lot in their mouth at once?

7. Sugary Swap Out:

Maybe you bring a box of donuts to share at work. Maybe you replaced the kryptonite with a tray of veggies and dip. Maybe you tell everyone that there’s a donut box in the breakroom for them to share. And

maybe they won’t speak to you for a few days. Another twist on this one is to make your family ice cream sundaes and use cold mashed potatoes and gravy instead.

8. Balloons:

Whether you fill up their bathroom, bedroom, vehicle, or office, balloons take up a lot of space and the victim will have to deal with it.

9. Jell-O:

You can put really any small necessity into Jell-O. Car keys. Glasses. A stapler.

10. The Text Test: I love this one. Choose

some of your contacts (or all of them) and send out this text “Hey, I lost my phone. Can you call it?” Do you realize how funny this will be? Just wait and see how many of your friends and family might actually ring your phone. It may surprise you and will determine how many of them are oblivious to the irony.

When April Fool’s day rolls around, people think their pranks should be elaborate, but I encourage a long game. If you can, fill your kids, parents, significant others’ day with a plethora of minor inconveniences. By the end, they may question the truth of their entire reality.

Will ice come out of the ice machine? Or will it have been replaced with jelly beans? Perhaps they open the fridge to find googly eyes staring at them from every container. Or maybe the furniture all turns up slightly out of place.

Regardless of what you decide to do with your April Fools’ Day, be safe but have fun.

And who knows?

You might take it one step further and use these pranks all-year round, just to shake things up.

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| APRIL 2018

19

Turns Music Inside Out

BY GRACE WEBB editor@southernminnscene.com

T

he Mankato Symphony Orchestra has been dazzling Southern Minnesota since 1950. With annual programs that cover everything from classical composers to cabaret-style jazz to even rock and roll, there is something for every music lover.

And now, for the first time, the Mankato Symphony Orchestra is taking musical immersion to a new level by offering a limited number of attendees the chance to sit onstage among the musicians during the performance.

Audience members will have the chance to read sheet music over performers’ shoulders, get an up-close look at how Grammy-award winning conductor Kenneth Freed guides his orchestra and even ask questions between musical pieces.

“It’s the opportunity to stop and have a conversation about what’s going on,” Freed said. “It’s much more interactive [than a regular concert]. It’s the next in the line of crazy new ideas for our audience.”

The orchestra’s upcoming concert, “Igniting Spring: An Inside Out Concert,” features music by Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Antonin Dvorak, along with world-famous cellist Silver Ainomäe — but the most attention-grabbing feature is the seating arrangement.

This “inside out” opportunity came through a $10,000 “Challenge America” grant from the National Endowment for the Arts — the third grant that MSO has managed to

snag in recent years. The Challenge America category specifically features NEA support for projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations, such as music lovers in rural areas.

According to Freed, the Southern Minnesota area already has a passionate fan base when it comes to orchestral music, but the MSO is always looking for ways to expand and reach more people.

“We’ll go wherever people will have us,” he said, pointing out that musicians from the orchestra have performed at libraries, Native American reservations and other locations. “It’s all about expanding the reach of great music.”

When it comes to this specific concert, Freed admits he isn’t quite sure how it’s going to play out, but he and his musicians are excited to try something new. He’s still figuring out what ground rules to implement — such as when concert goers will be able to speak up —and he already switched pieces from what the orchestra planned to perform to something more “familiar.”

“We didn’t want to push too hard, since we were adding a new element,” he explained. “We want it to still be fun, with something our musicians know and can easily play [despite distractions].”

In addition, concertgoers will receive earplugs in case they’re seated next to the especially loud instruments, though Freed said he’s wavering on whether to hand out batons as well. After all, he said, “there’s only one conductor.”

“It’s going to be a lot of fun, because it breaks down that third wall,” he said. “As musicians, we’re used to feeling vibrations from the music … but this offers our

Conductor Kenneth Freed.

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Bridging Creativity

“We’re honored to receive this incredible gift from the National Endowment for the Arts. The arts are all around us, enhancing our lives in subtle and obvious ways. Our hope and mission are to bring meaningful musical experiences directly into the lives of children and individuals in Southern Minnesota.” -MSO Interim Executive Director Kimberly McGuire

GALLERY

AUDITIONS THEATER Purple Door Youth Theater Nov 26 | 5-7 pm

audience a more intimate relationship with sounds.”

The April concert is part of a long stream of innovations that the MSO has come up with throughout the years, as its members strive to stay fresh and engage their audience.

With technology getting easier and cheaper to use, there is more accessibility to the orchestra’s music, which is exactly what Freed wants. He pointed to recent collaborations with MSU-Mankato radio station KMSU, which offers live streaming of the orchestra’s performances, as one of its newer offerings.

Looking ahead, Freed said he hopes the orchestra is able to do even more live streaming, as well as start a summer music program for kids, so they can explore music more thoroughly at a younger age.

The challenge of actually achieving these goals, of course, is financing, which Freed admits is always a concern. While musicians can breathe a little more easily now that the federal budget still includes the National Endowment for the Arts, funding the orchestra — as beloved as it

is — calls for constant creativity. Luckily, the grant writers behind the MSO are good at their jobs — so good that the orchestra was the winner of the 2013 Eide Bailly Resourcefulness Award for outstanding efforts in creative fundraising.

The “Inside Out” concert will take place at 3 p.m. April 8 in the Verizon Center Grand Hall in Mankato. SMS

Nov 27 | 4-6 pm Sign up for a time online

Grace Webb can be reached at editor@southernminnscene.com

MUSIC

If you go What: “Igniting Spring: An Inside Out Concert” When: 3 p.m. April 8 Where: Verizon Center Grand Hall Website: www.mankatosymphony.com Phone number: 507-387-1008

THEATER

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Margot Weyhe

A Day in the Life of a Designer SPONSORED BY

The Design Element 1711 Premier Drive Mankato, MN 507.345.8708

T

hrough the years as an interior designer, one consistent thing I have heard countless times from people Is this: “You are so lucky to be a designer. That is my dream job!” I usually reply that I am lucky and I love the job and I genuinely do!

But while I love my job, I also generally tell people, it is not an easy job. There is a myth I need to dispel and as they say, “things are not always as they seem”. So to that end I thought I would take the time to share some of what goes into a typical day in my world as an interior designer.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

My day may start with a jobsite visit.

It’s my job to work with the general contractor to see that all the design details are being carried out and in the case of a new home build I may also need to deal with the electrical,

plumbing, painting, carpentry, cabinetry and flooring. If there are issues related to the design or products I am providing it is my job to work through them.

Margot is an interior designer and owner of The Design Element in the Mankato Design Center. She can assist with your design projects from planning to final product selections.

OK, so now time to get to the office and work on my other design projects, right? Well maybe not so fast. Most times after visiting a jobsite there are a few issues that have arisen, so more than likely I will need to tend to those first, and if I check my email or messages then more often than not there will be others that need my attention as well. Products may be backordered, damaged, the wrong color, or maybe they don’t fit or we’ve run short. You name it and it has probably happened once or twice. Some days I describe my job as that of a fire fighter as there never seems to be a shortage of fires to put out.

plumbing, cabinetry, furnishings, window treatments, wallpaper, accessories, and hardware to put together the best design I can. Each project is unique! On a new construction project, there are literally hundreds of decisions to be made and it can be hard to identify them all.

In addition to the actual design concept I need to know and understand a multitude of products, as well as keep abreast of new product offerings. Clients will expect us to have full product knowledge on all things in the process which can be daunting. We do our best - but there are times we do not have the answers and if that is the situation then it is time for me to do more research until I have the answer. Needless to say this process is very time consuming and can involve much thought, so I may just get a start on the research and have to come back to it another day.

I have to measure that adds another layer and obviously takes more time.

I may also need to draw to scale depending on the complexity.

When working with window treatments, wall covering and furnishings there is often engineering involved. A custom window treatment for instance will require many steps including an understanding of how it’s made and how it will be installed. I’ve had some fun drawing out and selling some pretty innovative window treatments and then remembered later (with a sigh) “oh yeah, now I have to engineer this thing”! I will need to calculate the number of widths, cut lengths and fullness for yardage, and then draw up an instruction sheet for the seamstress. She will need to know all the above in addition to things like fabric and content, pattern repeat, pin setting, where we want seams, rod specs……..and on it goes.

DESIGN AND PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE

PRICING (ENGINEERING AND MATH)

CLIENT MEETING

PROBLEM SOLVING

After getting through that I can finally take some time to do what I love - create design concepts and make selections for a project. Here I will work with a whole host of products such as flooring, lighting,

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People need to understand the cost so I will need to price the projects I have designed so that I am ready with the required budget. If I am calculating floor covering and have a floor plan the math is much easier. If

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I’ll finish my day with a new client meeting at their home. This initial meeting is the time for me to look at their space and at the same time ask a lot of questions so I can gain some insight into their needs not just design wise, but also how they live in their home. I will usually take photos,

make many notes and discuss budget.

Some projects that involve couples may be challenging if they are not of one mind with regard to the project.

In that case it’s my job to come up with a compromise that will satisfy them both. Having a happy client is number one priority in this job!

IN CONCLUSION

Since I am in a retail setting, managing employees and selling all the products, my typical day as a designer may vary from another interior designer. And be assured, there are a slew of other tasks that I did not even touch on! If you work for an architect your focus could be more towards drafting, or perhaps you only do finish selection? There are also those who specialize in kitchen and bath design, or commercial settings.

I hope this helps dispel what I see as a myth that being a designer is ‘all glamour and fun’ because even though it can be very fun and rewarding, it is also a lot of hard work.

Nonetheless, I have always wanted to be an interior designer and count myself fortunate to have the opportunity to do a job every day that I truly love!

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THE

St. Patrick’s Day Celebration Paradise Center for the Arts in Faribault – March 17 Before hitting the bars and potentially reaching a stage of incoherency, celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at a community event.

Willow Brae will perform. They are the duo of Andrea Stern, virtuosic Celtic harpist, and multi-instrumentalist Laura MacKenzie, on traditional wind-powered instruments and voice. Together they bring to life the airs, dance tunes and songs of the Irish and Scottish country sides, conveying the warm resonance of traditional music and song as well as the spark and excitement of quick-paced dance tunes. They are joined by a top-notch duo of dancers from Rince na Chroi Irish Dance. These snazzy step-dancers will captivate your heart with the joys of the season, through their jigs, reels and hornpipes, in a true celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. www.paradisecenterforthearts.org/purchase-tickets

Northwestern Singers - Celtic Celebration - 7:00 pm Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with music from Ireland performed by the Northwestern Singers, with special guest - the MacPhail Children’s Community Choir. For more information, go to www.northwesternsingers.com.

Rigoletto Mar 17, 22, 24, 27, 29, 31, 2018 7:30 pm | $25-$200 Ordway Center for the Performing Arts 345 Washington Street Saint Paul, MN 55102 This time-honored tale of seduction and bitter revenge is boldly imagined in this new production.

Man on a Mission Screening Pub 500 in Mankato – March 23 Here’s something a little different to try out.

Pub 500 in Mankato is hosting a 60s-inspired meal and then a participatory viewing of the locally-made film Man on a Mission at True Facade Pictures. Dress to impress; 1960s attire is encouraged.

Miles West, a Mankato Lawyer, is recruited by the government to rescue the daughter of a scientist being held by the East Germans in the 1965 Cold War Thriller film Man on a Mission. The movie, funded by the Mankato Rotary Club, was filmed in and around Mankato, using local actors and production crew.

Tickets are $40, which includes dinner, drink and the movie. Tickets are available at the Blue Earth County Historical Society or online: www.bechshistory. com.

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Sat Mar 17, 2018 A.C.T. Now Rochester Arts Classes - 10:00 am | $50 Rochester Repertory Theatre 103 Seventh Street NE Rochester, MN 55906 Quality arts education classes taught

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by area professionals who are trained, experienced, and active in their field.

Options available for ages 2-102. www.facebook.com/ACTNowRochester Kickin It Irish - 3:00 and 7:00 pm | $22.50-$42.50 Fitzgerald Theater 10 E Exchange St St. Paul, MN 55101 An evening of percussive toe taps & tunes! Kickin it Irish is a familyfriendly show for St. Patricks featuring jaw-dropping talent led by Dublin native, Cormac OSe, from the original company of Riverdance, and the OShea Irish Dancers, a lineup of 18 championship dancers from their acclaimed studio in St Paul.

Tommy Ryman and Mary Mack 7:30 pm | $20-$25 Sheldon Theatre 443 west third street Red Wing, MN 55066 Never Seen Anything Like [tommy] Beforeone-of-a-kind Fantastic Roseanne Barr Quirky Folk-humorist, Mary Mack, Joins The Disturbingly Adorable Last Comic Standing Semi-finalist, Tommy Ryman, For A Knock-out, Stand-up Comedy Double Bill.

St. Patrick’s Day Celebration 7:30 pm | $12-$21 Paradise Center for the Arts 321 Central Ave. Faribault, MN 55021 Willow Brae is the duo of Andrea Stern, virtuosic Celtic harpist, and multi-instrumentalist Laura MacKenzie, on traditional wind-powered instruments and voice.

The Memory of Water Mar 17, 22, 24, 2018 7:30 pm | $22 Rochester Repertory Theatre 103 Seventh Street NE Rochester, MN 55906 The Memory of Water, a comedy by Shelagh Stephenson. A touching and hugely entertaining comedy revolving around the lives of three sisters reunited on the eve of their mothers funeral.

Stand-Up Comedian Alycia Cooper - 8:00 pm | $16.89 Royal Comedy Theatre 809 Mainstreet Hopkins, MN 55343 Quickly on her way to the top of the comedy food chain, mainstream comedienne, Alycia Cooper, is a force to be reckoned with. Her take no prisoners stand up is a mix between Chris Rock, George Carlin, and Margaret Cho (three of her idols).

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Sun Mar 18, 2018 Northwestern Singers - Celtic Celebration - 2:00 pm Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with music from Ireland performed by the Northwestern Singers, with special guest - the MacPhail Children’s Community Choir. For more information, go to www.northwesternsingers.com.

Free Classic Movies Sundays Mar 18, Apr 8, 15, 2018 2:00 pm | Free State Theater 96 E 4th St Zumbrota, MN 55992 The State Theater in Zumbrota Announces Classic Movie Sundays. The full list of dates are movies for Classic Movie Sundays are: January 28: The Kennel Murder. February 4: Topper Returns. February 11: Loaded Pistols.

February 18: Angel and The Badman.

February 25: Life With Father. March 4: King of the Cowboys. March 11: The Old Corral. March 18: Our Town.

March 25: Judge Priest. April 8: Under California Stars. April 15: Beat the Devil. April 22: Riders of Destiny. April 29: Father’s Little Dividend.

Tue Mar 20, 2018 Pointillism Class Mar 20, 22, 2018 1:45 pm | $45-$50. $45 Members/$50 Members 125 Live Center for Active Adults 125 Elton Hills Dr NW Rochester, MN 55901 Learn how to achieve the look of works like George Surat! In class we will explore the realm of dot work with unconventional tools! Plus we will use the age old practice of gridding when drawing our still life on our 12 x 12 canvas. All supplies are included.

Registration is required by March 6th.

Wed Mar 21, 2018 Movie Night - Labyrinth - 7:30 pm | $5 Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 $5 for a great night at the movies!

Purchase tickets at concession stand - no advance ticket sales. To request your favorite flick for future showings, email info@austinareaarts.org. For more information, call 507-434-0934. *subject to change

Thu Mar 22, 2018 Appropriate By Branden JacobsJenkins - 7:00 pm | $15 Sheldon Theatre 443 west third street Red Wing, MN 55066

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Phoenix Theatre presents Appropriate

By Branden Jacobs-Jenkins an exceptionally brilliant piece of writing. Time Out Chicago. Phoenix Theatre, the Sheldons resident community theatre company, presents the 2015 Obie Award winning Best New American Play, Appropriate.

Man Alive, a comedy by John Dighton. Mar 22, 24, 2018 7:00 pm | $7 Schaeffer Academy 2700 Schaeffer Lane Rochester, MN 55906 Schaeffer Academy presents Man Alive, a comedy by John Dighton.

Chaos is unleashed when a department store dummy comes to life, and the department store owner gets turned into a dummy!

Fri Mar 23, 2018

Luncheon with Broadway!

“Showboat” - 10:30 am | $15 Assisi Heights 1001 14th Street NW Rochester, MN 55901 We will focus on the musical theater from the 1900s thru the 1920s, including Showboat. The works of Jerome Kern, the Gershwins and Irving Berlin will be featured.

Man on a Mission Screening 6:00 pm | $40 True Facade Pictures 509 South Front Street Mankato, MN 56001 Join us for an engaging evening starting with a 60s inspired meal at Pub 500 and then a participatory viewing of the locally-made film Man on a Mission at True Facade Pictures. Dress to impress; 1960s attire encouraged.

Miles West, a Mankato Lawyer, is recruited by the government to rescue the daughter of a scientist being held by the East Germans in the 1965 Cold War Thriller film Man on a Mission.

Cinderella - presented by Children’s Dance Theatre Mar 23, 24, 2018 7:00 pm | $20-$22 Mayo Civic Center Presentation Hall 20 Civic Center Drive SE Rochester, MN 55904 Children’s Dance Theatre presents Cinderella by Charles Perrault. Join us for this magical adventure that lands Cinderella in the midst of the royal ball. This fully-staged theatrical production will showcase beautiful dancing, costumes, scenery and a bit of magic. Additional information at www.childrensdancetheatre.org.

Appropriate By Branden JacobsJenkins Mar 23, 24, 2018 7:30 pm

| $15 Sheldon Theatre 443 west third street Red Wing, MN 55066 Phoenix Theatre presents Appropriate

By Branden Jacobs-Jenkins an exceptionally brilliant piece of writing. Time Out Chicago. Phoenix Theatre, the Sheldons resident community theatre company, presents the 2015 Obie Award winning Best New American Play, Appropriate.

High 48’s (Bluegrass) - 7:30 pm | $12-$23 Paradise Center for the Arts 321 Central Ave. Faribault, MN 55021 The High 48s make music that combines the soulful sound of classic bluegrass with a modern attitude and a wide range of music influences. This band of songwriters perform their own material in addition to the festival favorites.

Sat Mar 24, 2018 Cinderella - presented by Children’s Dance Theatre Mar 24, 25, 2018 2:00 pm | $20-$22 Mayo Civic Center Presentation Hall 20 Civic Center Drive SE Rochester, MN 55904 Children’s Dance Theatre presents Cinderella by Charles Perrault. Join us for this magical adventure that lands Cinderella in the midst of the royal ball. This fully-staged theatrical production will showcase beautiful dancing, costumes, scenery and a bit of magic.

Rochester Community Band: “Spring Concert” - 7:00 pm | Free Byron Middle School Auditorium 601 4th Street NW Byron, MN 55920 The Rochester Community Band (RCB) will play a variety of music under the direction of Tony Boldt and Jonathon Knutson and performed by music lovers from all walks of life and all ages.

The musical selections include An American in Paris, Overture for Winds, American Folk Rhapsody and Down in the River.

Famous Argentinean Pianist Horacio Lavandera In Concert 7:30 pm | Free St. John the Evangelist 11 4th AVE SW Rochester, MN 55902 Pianist HORACIO LAVANDERA will play a concert.

Salute to Glen Campbell with Jeff Dayton - 7:30 pm | $28-$32. $28 in advance and $32 at the door State Theater 96 E 4th St Zumbrota, MN 55992

This show, filled with Glens hits, is led by his former right-hand man Jeff Dayton. Dayton calls on fellow alumni from the tours and together, they share the joys and fun, the stories behind the songs and an intimate reflection on the pain of losing an artist who was a great friend to us all.

Sun Mar 25, 2018 Appropriate By Branden JacobsJenkins - 3:00 pm | $15 Sheldon Theatre 443 west third street Red Wing, MN 55066 Phoenix Theatre presents Appropriate

By Branden Jacobs-Jenkins an exceptionally brilliant piece of writing. Time Out Chicago. Phoenix Theatre, the Sheldons resident community theatre company, presents the 2015 Obie Award winning Best New American Play, Appropriate.

Mon Mar 26, 2018 The Memory of Water - 2:00 pm | $22 Rochester Repertory Theatre 103 Seventh Street NE Rochester, MN 55906 The Memory of Water A comedy by Shelagh Stephenson A touching and hugely entertaining comedy revolving around the lives of three sisters reunited on the eve of their mothers funeral.

Wed Mar 28, 2018 Movie Night - Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark - 7:30 pm | $5 Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 $5 for a great night at the movies! Purchase tickets at concession stand - no advance ticket sales. To request your favorite flick for future showings, email info@austinareaarts.org. For more information, call 507-434-0934.

Thu Mar 29, 2018 Twelfth Night & As You Like It Mar 29-31, Apr 1, 2018 7:30 pm | $6 Rarig Center 330 21st Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455 ‘All the world’s a stage,’ declares Jacques in Shakespeare’s delightful pastoral comedy As You Like It, ‘and all the men and women merely players.’ Come play with us as Rosalind, Orlando, Celia, and the clown Touchstone journey into the Forest of Arden for adventures both romantic and ridiculous.

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Daughtry Treasure Island Casino in Welch – April 14 OK, Daughtry isn’t for everyone. But for those who prefer something a little more mainstream, a little lighter on the ears, the band brings something enjoyable to the table.

The pop rock band has four albums in the Billboard top ten and several Grammy nominations under its belt. Songs like “It’s Not Over,” “Waiting for Superman” and “Home” are well known, whether you want them to be or not. And the group continues to sell out fairly large venues.

So if you’re up for bopping to some catchy numbers, some tickets are still available. www1.ticketmaster.com/daughtry-welchminnesota-04-14-2018/event/0600538FC5D76C9 B?artistid=1097212&majorcatid=10001&minorc atid=1

Post-Holiday Extravaganza What’s Up Lounge in Mankato – April 14 Are you ready for some reunions? 1990s Mankato pop punk bands are taking back to the stage at What’s Up Lounge.

Marble and My Friend Stu will both play a special show at the Mankato venue that’s just as old as they are. Both bands made their name in Southern Minnesota in the 1990s, even touring outside the state. They were part of a DYI music scene in the Mankato area, delighting crowds with punk, pomp and circumstance.

According to the event’s Facebook page, 80 are already planning to attend and another 144 are interested. They aren’t fitting much more than that in the building, so if you’re interested, get ready to fight for your spot. www.facebook.com/events/173288263403349

Fri Mar 30, 2018 Due North - 6:30 pm | $7 The Upper East Side 213 Central Avenue Faribault, MN 55021 Due North will be performing at The Upper East Side on Friday, March 30th. Social hour begins at 6:30pm with the performance starting at 7:00 pm. Water and soda available, but feel free to BYOB for any adult beverages.

Shemekia Copeland - 7:30 pm | $33-$38 Sheldon Theatre 443 west third street Red Wing, MN 55066 A ball-of-fire vocalist with a voice thats part Memphis, part Chicago and all womandevastatingly powerful.

ArtRocks Open Jam Session 7:30 pm | Free Austin ArtWorks Center 300 North Main Street Austin, MN 55912 The house band sets up and hosts the event. Players bring their guitars, basses, horns, sticks, keyboards, washboards, etc, and singers and songwriters bring themselves, their words, and their voices.

Sat Mar 31, 2018 Harlem Globetrotters - 7:00 pm | $21-$131 Target Center 600 1st Ave North Minneapolis, MN 55403 The Original Harlem Globetrotters are preparing for their action packed 2017 World Tour! A star-studded roster will have fans on the edge of their seats to witness the ball handling wizardry, basketball artistry and one-of-a-kind family entertainment that thrills fans of all ages.

Wed Apr 4, 2018 Movie Night at the Paramount The Third Man - 7:30 pm | $5 Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 $5 for a great night at the movies! Purchase tickets at concession stand - no advance ticket sales. To request your

favorite flick for future showings, email info@austinareaarts.org. For more information, call 507-434-0934.

Thu Apr 5, 2018 Little Big Town - 7:30 pm | see website Target Center 600 1st Ave North Minneapolis, MN 55403 Support (Subject to Change): Kacey Musgraves Midland

Fri Apr 6, 2018 Liverpool Legends - 1:30 and 7:30 pm | $28-$33 Sheldon Theatre 443 west third street Red Wing, MN 55066 Phenomenal in every way It is pure magic! Jerry Bruckheimer With precise attention to every musical detail, costume changes, vintage instruments, and special effects, these four lads bring you The Complete Beatles Experience.

Bye Bye Birdie Apr 6, 7, 2018 7:00 pm | $4-$6. $4 for students and $6 for adults Triton High School 813 West Highway Street Dodge Center, MN 55927 Come enjoy a night of theater at Triton High School! The Tony Award-winning musical is the story of Conrad Birdie, a famous rock star of the 1950s, who comes to the small town of Sweet Apple to give a farewell concert before going into the army.

Banjo Hour with Captain Graviton - 7:30 pm | $15 in advance, $20 at the door Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 The Banjo Hour is a vaudeville-style variety show, mixing music, magic, comedy and the adventures of Captain Gravitone, super-hero of the new millennia.

Comedian Tommy Ryman - 7:30 pm | $12-$23 Paradise Center for the Arts 321 Central Ave. Faribault, MN 55021 Tommy Ryman grew up with a

new-age, folk-singing mother and a traditional, Lutheran insurance-agent father. This XY equation evidently equals: acclaimed comedian. Ryman has earned the title of Semifinalist on NBCs Last Comic Standing.

Fair Lady and Camelot. Frank McIlmail grew up in the shadow of Broadway in New York City.

Stand-Up Comedian Wendy Maybury Apr 6, 7, 2018 8:00 pm | $16.89 Royal Comedy Theatre 809 Mainstreet Hopkins, MN 55343 Wendy grew up all over the US as a military brat which means- she learned to make friends fast because in two weeks, we’re probably moving.

Wed Apr 11, 2018 Movie Night - The Stranger - 7:30 pm | $5 Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 $5 for a great night at the movies! Purchase tickets at concession stand - no advance ticket sales. To request your favorite flick for future showings, email info@austinareaarts.org. For more information, call 507-434-0934.

Thu Apr 12, 2018 2018 Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival Apr 12, 20, 2018 All Day | $14 Rochester Galaxy 14 Cine & IMAX 4340 Maine Ave SE Rochester, MN 55904 The 2018 Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF) brings bold, exciting and moving works by emerging and veteran filmmakers to the Twin Cities April 12-28, 2018, presenting 250+ new films representing over 70 countries.

Fri Apr 13, 2018 Luncheon with Broadway! “My Fair Lady and Camelot” - 10:30 am | $15 Assisi Heights 1001 14th Street NW Rochester, MN 55901 This session will feature the Rodgers and Hammerstein years, highlighting their famous musicals and their contributions to the musical theater, along with Lerner & Lowe and their plays My

A d d y o u r e v e n t f o r F R E E t o t h e T I M E L I N E c a l e n d a r . G O TO w w w. s o u t h ernminn . c o m / s c ene / c a len d a r & C l i c k + A d d a n E v ent

Matchbox Theatre presents “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” Apr 13, 14, 2018 7:00 pm | $6-$10 The Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 This will be your golden ticket to fun for the whole family. Join Charlie Bucket for his adventurous tour of Willy Wonka’s world-famous Chocolate Factory.

Mercy Me - 7:00 pm | $27-$77 Target Center 600 1st Ave North Minneapolis, MN 55403 Come and enjoy the performance Annie Apr 13, 19, 20, 2018 7:30 pm | $11-$17. Member: $15 | Non Member: $17 | Student: $11 Paradise Center for the Arts 321 Central Ave. Faribault, MN 55021 Directed by Shelly Wolfe Music, lyrics and screenplay by Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse, and Martin Charnin.

Leapin Lizards!

Stand-Up Comedian Jamie Blanchard Apr 13, 14, 2018 8:00 pm | $16.89 Royal Comedy Theatre 809 Mainstreet Hopkins, MN 55343 Jamie Blanchard is a truly funny comedian with great likability.

Sat Apr 14, 2018 Stained Glass Workshop for Kids - 12:30 pm | Free Blue Earth County Historical Society History Center 424 Warren Street Mankato, MN 56001 Join us for a Kid’s Stained Glass workshop at the Blue Earth County Historical Society! Visit the Museum and be inspired to create a panel for a stained glass installation in the Discovery Lab. Free Family Day - 1:00 pm | Free 125 Live Center for Active Adults 125 Elton Hills Dr NW Rochester, MN 55901

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Join us at 125 LIVE for Free Family Day, an intergenerational afternoon.

The Community is invited to participate in family fitness activities like yoga, zumba and dance parties as well as create art in our painting, drawing and pottery studios.

Broadways Next H!t Musical 7:30 pm | $30-$35 Sheldon Theatre 443 west third street Red Wing, MN 55066 The Tony Awards meets Whose Line Is It Anyway? Every song is fresh. Every scene is new. Every night is different.

It’s all improvised and it’s all funny.

Sun Apr 15, 2018 Matchbox Theatre presents “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” - 2:00 pm | $6-$10 The Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 This will be your golden ticket to fun for the whole family. Join Charlie Bucket for his adventurous tour of Willy Wonka’s world-famous Chocolate Factory.

Annie - 2:00 pm | $11-$17. Member: $15 | Non Member: $17 | Student: $11 Paradise Center for the Arts 321 Central Ave. Faribault, MN 55021 Directed by Shelly Wolfe Music, lyrics and screenplay by Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse, and Martin Charnin.

Leapin Lizards! The irrepressible comic strip heroine takes center stage in one of the world’s best-loved musicals.

Wed Apr 18, 2018 Movie Night - 7:30 pm | $5 Historic Paramount Theatre 125 4th Ave NE Austin, MN 55912 $5 for a great night at the movies! Purchase tickets at concession stand - no advance ticket sales. To request your favorite flick for future showings, email info@austinareaarts.org. For more information, call 507-434-0934.

Thu Apr 19, 2018 Avenue Q Apr 19, 20, 2018 7:00 pm | $16

Dessa w/ Monakr and Annie Mack Rochester Art Center – April 4 If you know Minnesota music, you probably know Dessa.

A singer, rapper, and writer, she has made a career of bucking genres and defying expectations — her resume as a musician includes performances at Lollapalooza and Glastonbury, co-compositions for 100-voice choir, performances with the Minnesota Orchestra, and a top-200 entry on the Billboard charts for her album Parts of Speech. She contributed to the #1 album The Hamilton Mixtape; her track, “Congratulations,” notched over 5 million streams.

And she’s in Rochester in April. www.mytownmymusic.com/event/dessa Frank W. Bridges Theatre, Riverland Community College 1900 8th Ave NW Austin, MN 55912 Timeless story of a recent college grad who moves into a shabby New York apartment on Avenue Q. He and his new friends struggle to find jobs, dates, and their ever-elusive purpose in life.

Fri Apr 20, 2018 Scenes from The Odyssey - 7:00 pm | $7-$17. Tickets available at the Guthrie Theater February 20, 2018 www.guthrietheater.org Guthrie Theater 818 South 2nd Street Minneapolis, MN 55415

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Scenes from The Odyssey By Homer Adapted and originally directed by Mary Zimmerman Adapted from the translation of The Odyssey by Robert Fitzgerald Directed by Joel Sass Presented in the Guthrie Theaters Dowling Studio Performance dates.

Stand-Up Comedian Miss Shannan Paul - 8:00 pm | $16.89 Royal Comedy Theatre 809 Mainstreet Hopkins, MN 55343 Miss Shannan is a nationally touring comedian, speaker, radio host and Twitter Goddess. She has appeared on Nick Moms Night Out, Laughs TV and can regularly be seen bringing her wit, whimsy and pop culture expertise to Twin Cities television on The Jason Show.

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MINNESOTA MUSIC SCENE

RIAN-Dicke MICHELS Rian-Dicke Michels, can be reached at editor@southernminnscene.com.

hat seems like a lifetime ago, I was longboarding the streets of my hometown with a group of people I barely knew, and I first heard of this month’s spotlight artist: Dessa, a 30-something, female, Minnesotan rapper amidst a largely male-based genre.

I was taken with her rhymes, the sound of her voice, and the sheer fact that she held her own as a woman in the industry. Once a philosophy student at the University of Minnesota, she fell hard into the art of prose and has since made it big as an internationally touring rapper, writer, and president of the Doomtree record label. While Dessa doesn’t consider herself much of a collaborative artist, her most recent album was produced with the help of her Doomtree family, and it has me wracked with excitement.

Born in Minneapolis as Margaret Wander in 1981, she had dreams of becoming a creative non-fiction writer. It was only at a poetry slam that she met the members of Doomtree and in a slow progression of events, she began devising lyrics for the group’s various projects. Fortunately for us, her deep love of the written word has propelled her through the last decade to becoming the person she is now.

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-Dessa

Fun Fact: Dessa is a Latin word meaning “wandering”, and seems to be a subtle play on her last name, which I find both profoundly clever and jubilantly hilarious.

After holing up in my office to actively engage in the album, then taking in the Current’s video “The Making of Chime,” I found myself in substantially greater appreciation for this Minnesotan artist. Chime as a whole has no real through-line or topic, but my takeaway is that it revolves around being a human, female person, just putting her heart and soul into the music. In the interview, Dessa makes a comment about life and how we aren’t compartmentalized into single themes at any given time, so why should the album be?

Chime reflects that, and although she wants to start a conversation with her songs, she still strives for them to feel native and genuine. The track Velodrome touches on free will, with musings on our behaviors and feelings — whether they are chosen by us or if that’s just how it is. Fire Drills dropped during a time that the #MeToo movement was all over media, but the song was being written long before current events shifted the politics around sexual assault. She stated that she didn’t intend it to swing that way, but the timing suggested she merge with that flow. The synchronicities with all that’s going on gives her a quote-ability, as one line rings, “We don’t say go out and be brave, Nah, we say be careful and stay safe.”

Over 70 Years of Pappas Family Ownership!

In an interview with HipHopDX, she revealed a moment when she asked herself why no one used altos as the main vocals, and decided to tweak the instrumentals to make way for her voice. Modern technology gives individuals access to every sound imaginable. The number of people making music from their computer has immensely grown, but Dessa maintains an air of originality, as she plays with gritty, then pop-y, then operatic. Where she once followed unspoken guidelines, her evolution demanded that she break the mold in order to develop herself. Her resulting style is pleasantly eclectic, with subtle hints of traditional stringed instruments, stacked onto strong electronic beats, sound samples from her travels around the world and so on.

What I really like about Chime is that Dessa doesn’t allow her rap to be put in a box with a label. As my own mother put it, “It would be an injustice to pigeon-hole her solely as a rap artist.”

Dessa’s entire career has been an exploration of the range to which she’s willing to reach, and that reach continues to expand, not only in vocals but in feel. She is exercising her access to a world of sound by dabbling in a little of everything, and the results remain authentic to her aspirations. I look forward avidly to what she’ll release next, but for now, Chime offers a little something for everyone. SMS

Minnesota Restaurant Association’s 2012 Restaurant of the Year

Superb Cuisine since 1854

The Hubbell House first opened as a stagecoach stop in 1854. Paul Pappas laid his eyes on the old limestone structure in 1946 and knew he had found the location of his dream restaurant. Thanks for voting us for Although times have changed, Early-American hospitality is still available in Mantorville.

BEST FINE DINING

502 North Main Street, Mantorville, MN | 507.635.2331

(25 Miles East on HWY 14, to Kasson Exit, then 2 miles North on HWY 57)

Reservations Recommended | www.hubbellhouserestaurant.com A d d y o u r e v e n t f o r F R E E t o t h e T I M E L I N E c a l e n d a r . G O TO w w w. s o u t h ernminn . c o m / s c ene / c a len d a r & C l i c k + A d d a n E v ent

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| APRIL 2018

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Submit your recipe for Southern Minn Girlfriends’

Let’s get 2018 cookbook Southern Minn

Girlfriends

Girlfriends Magazine is publishing a cookbook with the region’s best recipes – submitted by our readers – in advance of our 10th Anniversary “Let’s Get Cooking” show and expo on Oct. 18, 2018.

recipe categories: Apps, soups and salads // Main dishes // Desserts Submit as many recipes as you’d like. Our guest chef will select one recipe for inclusion in the cooking show and that individual will receive a $250 prize package! If we use one of your recipes in the cookbook, you’ll be eligible to purchase discounted tickets to Let’s Get Cooking.

Southern Minn

where local women

To submit your recipes, visit southernminngirlfriends.com and follow the recipe submission link.

Watch for more information on Let’s Get Cooking and for your chance to pre-order the cookbook at a discounted price.

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Girlfriends

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Save the Date

Marketplace April 21, 2018

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

1 2

It can take up to 20 years for a plastic shopping bag to disintegrate in the outdoors.

The minister who wrote the song “Amazing Grace” had once been a slave-ship captain.

6 7

Persians slept well: about 5600 years ago, they made beds from goatskins and plain old water.

The cells in your body die and reproduce on different time schedules but, taken as a whole, you are basically a brand-new person every 10 years or so.

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Thomas Edison once suggested that a record player be installed in the Statue of Liberty’s head, so she might speak. Edison, you might remember, was the inventor of the record player.

Scientifically speaking, running through the rain will keep you drier in the end, since you are hurrying to get out of the storm.

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A recent Facebook study suggests that couples are most likely to break up in springtime and in mid-December.

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In the original rules of baseball, the first team to score 21 runs won the game – but only as long as there were an equal number of innings.

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A Holstein’s spots are like a fingerprint. No two Holsteins have the exact complete same spots.

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Just under three percent of the Earth’s water is drinkable. Most of that is found in ice caps.

You generate just under five pounds of garbage each day. In a year, you and your fellow Americans generate more than 250 million tons of trash. (Recycle, folks!)

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Get fit in SoMinn

NICOLE SWEENEY Nicole Sweeney is a fitness freak who loves nothing more than coffee, laughter & sharing a good workout with anyone and everyone. If you think of any crazy fitness fads you think she should try hit her up on her Instagram account @sisufit or Twitter @APGnsweeney

Small-town “Putting the fun in fitness” – “Bringing the community together” – “Getting to know people”

T

racy Langeberg, Lynnea Daleiden and Loree Valek, of Fit On Main Studio in Lonsdale, pride themselves on bringing a new way to work out in the small Southern Minnesota town. When Tracy said “45 minutes can go so fast or so slow depending on how you use it,” the four of us all laughed a bit in agreement.

Nothing has ever been so true. I’ve always been a firm believer that you shouldn’t be stuck on an elliptical or treadmill for your workout if you don’t like it.

Why not try something new or join a group of people in having some fun.

When SouthernMinn Scene and Girlfriends Magazine was invited out to try a class at Fit On Main Studio, I did my research, of course. After reading a bit about the three masterminds behind the studio, I knew I couldn’t say no. These three women all have their own lives outside of the studio – full-time jobs, families to juggle, you name it – they are doing it. The studio, spreading health and fitness to the community they live in, is truly a passion that they have decided to dedicate their time outside of “life” to. They are each their own kind of superwoman.

Country Heat, PiYo (Pilates and yoga), Turbo Kick and POUND Rockout classes are four upbeat, ever-changing fitness classes that these three certified fitness instructors have brought to the Lonsdale area. I was fortunate enough to take POUND & to watch a Country Heat class. (Videos will be posted on both Facebook pages.) And now, I can’t wait to go back for the others.

The only thing I was encouraged to bring was a water bottle, which of course, I somehow managed to forget (and I definitely could have used). Fit On Main provided a mat for me to use, and a spare set of “drumsticks” that we were using for the workout. For those of you that aren’t familiar with POUND, it’s essentially a cardio drumming class. So, think bodyweight movements, a little bit of dance, drumming and really just jamming out – oh, and sweating – a fair amount of that too.

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Lynnea turned down the lights and created a disco-ish atmosphere with colored and flashing lights. The music was turned up loud (but not too loud) and sure enough, we jumped right into some basic movements where we waved the drum sticks in the air, banging on our yoga mat with them and dancing around. There was LOTS of energy and LOTS of laughter (mostly at our own selves).

Country Heat, a mixture of contemporary and country dance to the rhythm of country/pop music, was similar to POUND. I’ll let you guys watch the video for a little more insight on what it looks like.

As they prepare for their ribbon cutting/ open house ceremony on Saturday, March 10, they’re looking ahead to what is next on their list of to-dos to grow their business. Since their soft launch this past October, they have been consistently growing in numbers. Now, they are looking forward to holding events, bringing in more class times and a larger variety of classes and working with the surrounding companies of Lonsdale to generate some more excitement around the downtown area.

SO! Here we have it: My Fit On Main Studio reflection: What I liked: Lynnea (and Tracy and Loree as well) did a great job of showing alternative movements if something was too difficult. Lynnea often paused in between the songs to show us the different options we had for a particular portion of the workout, so that we didn’t feel like we HAD to do the most advanced option. Cause, of course, she’s the pro and expert and totally rocked the most advanced option like it was a piece of cake. Trust me, not the case.

What I learned: It’s been a minute since I’ve done anything musical. Now, you do NOT have to be musical to do any of these classes, but I can see how it might help you a bit. I was struggling because I took quite a few music lessons growing up and ended up focusing on the beat of the music too much and getting stuck in my head. It took a few songs to get out of my head and just workout, but once I did, it was a blast. The lesson here (for me): just let go and have fun!

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What I did not like: I blinked and the class was over. I couldn’t believe it when Lynnea announced that the class was finished. Now, I was sweaty, a bit tired and out of breath, but that didn’t mean I was ready for it to be over. You know what they say, time flies when you’re having fun.

My advice: Check out their Facebook page - www.facebook. com/FitOnMainStudio and look at the schedule for the week.

Shoot them a message or give them a call at the number below and set up a time to head on out there.

Next up: PiYo & Turbo Kick!! Can’t wait!

You guys know my usual request – let me know if you’re headed over for a class, have already tried it out or have done anything like this. I always love joining in on a fun workout like this and hearing other people’s fitness stories and experiences. SMS

Fit On Main Studio 120 N Main St. Lonsdale, MN 55046 507-838-5815

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| APRIL 2018

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ALBUM REVIEW

By Daniel G. Moir editor@southernminnscene.com

J

Justin Timberlake Man of the Woods

T relies on years of professional show business experience to deliver a heartfelt glimpse into his personal life on a fun and joyously funky release.

Album Grade: B

Despite the title, Man of the Woods is neither rustic nor gritty. It is a fun and deeply personal album by Justin Timberlake certain to please his ever-growing, and enthusiastic fan-base. Timberlake digs deep on his most personally revealing album, with a focus on family and life. Named for his son, Silas which means “of the forest” in Latin, Man of the Woods is an album that works both commercially and artistically.

Timberlake references his Southern heritage and Memphis origins throughout the album, but the clean show-business professionalism of the record has more in common with the later “Vegas”-era Elvis Presley than the his earlier “Sun Records” period. While he may not embody the raw street grittiness of Memphis, Timberlake makes up for it in stage-worn perfection and attention to detail.

The ironically titled “Filthy” opens the album in bombastic fashion and draws attention to the overall cleanness of the record. It is a funky song, but a crisp, efficient funk approach seemingly at odds with the grittier sound the song’s lyrics aspire to. To put it simply, this is from Michael Jackson’s school of funk as opposed to than the one attended by Prince. While it may feel “sanitized for your protection,” it is not to say that it’s not enjoyable. It’s just a propulsive, albeit predictable, start offering a promise of good, clean fun.

“Midnight Summer Jam” works better and evokes the exact moment suggested by its title. The groove is stronger and Timberlake’s vocals pop and slide throughout while the song structure delivers an unexpected break before restarting with a repetitious and engaging guitar line as a joyous harmonica adds color over the top.

The elation of this number is infectious and Timberlake and crew are fully aware of it, referencing his massive 2016 Pop Hit “Can’t Stop The Feeling!” this time exhorting “Please don’t stop the music” during the track’s raucous coda. This is a song that that brings a toe-tapping smile that continues Timberlake’s winning ways in crafting a hit single.

“Wave” bounces along with Calypso-lite guitar and a spritely keyboard line

reminiscent of the 1972 song “Popcorn” by Hot Butter. Light and frothy, this is just lightweight fun, but far from a throwaway. The levity of “Waves” sets up the darker tone of the dark moodiness found in “Supplies” that follows. Sequenced together, these two songs work well and give Man of the Woods cohesive balance.

“Say Something” is the album’s defining moment. Fellow Tennessean Chris Stapleton is featured on the track and helps to bring out deeper authenticity from Timberlake’s voice. This song is well crafted with introspective lyrics and tremendous harmonic interplay between the two vocalists. One can only hope that eventually these two talented singers will expand their collaboration to an entire album. Play this one loud. It will dig deep into your soul.

The biggest downside to Man of the Woods are the frequent and embarrassing interludes that populate the album. Of these, “Hers” is particularly cringe-worthy.

This unfortunate voice-over is about how donning a partner’s ripped shirt creates the sensation of somehow also belonging it’s owner as well. While the song it sets up, “Flannel” is a nice personal rumination on Timberlake’s show business origin; the further voice over at the end of the piece is equally treacly.

Production by Timberlake, Timbaland, The Neptunes, J-Roc, Eric Hudson, Rob Knox and Danja is immaculate throughout Man of the Woods and wisely never gets in the way or tries to be overly flashy or “cool.” Despite the large number of people involved, Man of the Woods hardly feels like an album created “by committee.” Instrumental ornamentation is uncluttered, direct and all serve to contribute a consistent style from beginning to end.

The album closes with the heartfelt “Young Man” dedicated and addressed to Timberlake’s son. The recording begins with the vocalist and his wife, Jessica Biel, coaxing Silas to say “dada” and peels away celebrity to reveal an honest singer sharing the universal joys of parenthood. A simple country-styled song, this love letter offers Timberlake’s life lessons learned and ends with the young man in question’s voice gently saying “I love you, Daddy.” This moment alone is enough to warm the coldest of hearts and offers a richly satisfying conclusion to the album.

Bottom Line: Personable, engaging and fun, Man of the Woods is a delight created by a consummate professional. SMS Daniel G. Moir has forgotten more about music than all the rest of us know combined. Reach him at editor@southernminnscene.com

PRESENT

2018 MN MUSIC SUMMIT AMPLIFYING OUR STORIES

Celebrating Minnesota music and learning from the industry's most fearless women's voices!

April 12-14, 2018 • St. Paul / Minneapolis Featuring keynote conversations at ST. CATHERINE UNIVERSITY LAURA VEIRS

PAVIELLE

Indie artist, author & podcaster Friday, 4/13 @ 12 PM

Rising R&B star & soul singer Saturday 4/14 @ 12 PM

LORI BARBERO

VENUS DEMARS

Drummer and founding member of Babes in Toyland Friday, 4/13 @ 1:15 PM

APRIL 12, 6-8PM

Transgender rock artist and activist Saturday, April 22 @ 1 PM

KICKOFF PARTY

Summit Brewing • 910 Montreal Cir, St. Paul Meet our keynote speaker Laura Veirs and mingle with local artists andindustry professionals over beer and eats!

APRIL 13-14

WORKSHOPS

The O’Shaughnessy • 2004 Randolph Ave., St. Paul Learn from musicians, media and film experts about professional, creative and wellness topics. Including guitar expo, youth workshops and one-on-one mentoring sessions!

CONCERTS

APRIL 13-14

April 13: Laura Veirs Release Show with Prairie Fire Lady Choir Indie songwriter Laura Veirs celebrates her new album with a special show featuring special MN guests and the presentation of the 2018 MN Music Champion Award! Hosted by The Current's Andrea Swensson. (The O'Shaughnessy, 2004 Randolph Ave., St. Paul) April 14: Grand Finale Party feat. Venus DeMars The Th 2018 MN Music Summit ends with an all-ages party featuring Minnesota music videos and performances by top pop and hip hop acts, including transgender rock goddess Venus DeMars!

INFO + TICKETS AVAILABLE AT : MNMUSICCOALITION.ORG

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BOOK REVIEWS The Bookworm Sez:

Berlin 1936

by Oliver Hilmes

The Bookworm Sez:

Checkered

by Cynthia Kadohata, illustrations by Maurizio Zorat

The Bookworm Sez:

The Dead Moms Club: A Memoir

by Kate Spencer

By Terri Schlichenmeyer You are not alone.

While you may be the only person in the room, you are one of many. Every word you’ve written was written before. Every place you’ve visited has been seen by other eyes. The things you experience have been done elsewhere. You’re not alone: in “Berlin 1936” by Oliver Hilmes, an entire city rushes to an end.

On the first day of the 1936 Berlin Olympics, composer Richard Strauss is impatient. He hates sports and he hates the tax that’s been enacted for this sporting event. For the hymn he writes on behalf of it, he demands 10,000 reichsmarks, and it rankles him that he ends up taking less.

Tom Wolfe has been to Berlin many times, and he couldn’t pass up a chance to see the Olympics there. Berlin is vibrant, friendly, and Berliners love the American novelist.

By Terri Schlichenmeyer What’s the best way to spend your allowance?

Candy or a juicy burger could sound good about now.

You might prefer buying a video game, a popular app, or even a new pair of kicks for yourself. Or maybe you’re a savings-account kind of kid, which truly describes Conor MacRae – although, in the new book “Checked” by Cynthia Kadohata, he’s into saving something more important.

All Conor MacRae ever wanted to do was to play hockey.

He officially started skating when he was six-anda-half, but he knew before then that he wanted to be like his dad, who was in the NHL for three weeks and the AHL for four years. That was a “million miles” ago, though; long before Dad quit hockey and became a cop, years before Conor’s mom died. Still, Conor’s dad understands what it means to Conor to play, and he

By Terri Schlichenmeyer It’s always good to belong somewhere.

You feel important when you’ve memorized the Organizational Bylines, or recited the pledge before meetings. You belong, and if you’ve got the funny hat, that’s great; better, if you know the Secret Handshake, too. Everybody loves to belong – but in “The Dead Moms Club” by Kate Spencer, here’s a fellowship you never want to join.

Kate Spencer’s mother is dead.

It happened years ago, after a difficult nine-monthslong wrestle with pancreatic cancer, pain, confusion, and chemo. Spencer was just 27 years old when her mother died, and it left her with a loss of both anchor and ability to know what next.

What do you say when new friends ask about your mom, and it’s only been a few weeks since she died?

Can you be the “cool girl” who’s awkwardly “chill

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He loves them… until a society matron whispers secrets in his ear.

On the second day of the Olympics, Toni Kellner is found dead in her apartment. She was not a social woman – in fact, she was not a woman at all, and Nazi-enforced edicts made her afraid to seek help for her bad heart. Berlin used to have a thriving gay community, but the Third Reich is über-aware of gay men and people like Toni now.

Joseph Goebbels can’t stop thinking about the trouble his wife put him in. Not only did she have an affair with a swindler some years ago, but something else recently came to light: the Nazi Minister of Propaganda’s wife was the child of a Jewish man.

Jesse Owens won gold. And again. And again. And again.

By the eighth day of the Olympics in Berlin, the city’s Roma and Sinti populations are taken from their apartments and moved to a sliver of land near a sanitation field. Most of them will die in concentration camps similar to the one being built just forty minutes away by local train.

And by the end of the Olympics, Hitler “is already determined to go to war.”

It may seem trite to say that “Berlin 1936” reads like a novel, but it does. It’s nonfiction that reads like a horror

novel, with a swirl of unaware and innocent victims, ruthless killers, and a stunning, invisible stream of ice just beneath its surface.

The compelling thing about that is that it’s not one large tale of the Nazis and the Games; instead, it’s as if author Oliver Hilmes starts with major historical figures and adds little Advent-calendar windows with real people inside: here’s the Roma child, snatched from her bed; there’s the terrified, ailing transvestite; here’s the American woman who kissed Hitler; there’s the Romanian Jew who owns a thriving nightclub; all in the middle of an international story that readers know is only the beginning...

How could you resist?

Don’t even try. Instead, just take “Berlin 1936” to a corner and don’t count on coming out for a good, long time. Start this book, and you’ll want to just be left alone.

sacrifices to make it happen.

Conor worries about that. He knows the reason Jenny, Conor’s step-mom, divorced Conor’s dad: hockey took up too much time and money. New skates are $500, a stick is $250. There are travel expenses, lesson fees, tons of extras; just skate-sharpening has a price.

Even without Jenny or the cost of tuition for her college classes, money is really, really tight in the MacRae household.

Nonetheless, all Conor wants to do is play hockey.

And hang out with his Doberman, Sinbad.

Because Conor’s dad does shiftwork a lot, he’d gotten Sinbad for Conor for protection, and they’re as close as dog and boy could be. Sometimes, Conor feels as though he can mind-meld with his ninetypound sleek black pup, which sounds kind of weird but it makes Conor feel safer. Sinbad goes everywhere possible with Conor and his dad. Hockey might be Conor’s soul, but Sinbad is his heart.

And so, it was especially frightening when Conor – who’d taken over complete care of his dog, including financially – noticed that Sinbad’s leg was swollen.

He was terrified to hear the veterinarian’s diagnosis of cancer, although the disease is treatable.

But it wasn’t going to be cheap. Seven thousand

dollars – the cost of Sinbad’s chemo – would buy a lot of hockey sticks. With his talents and his reputation growing, will twelve-year-old Conor have to choose?

So is “Checked” a hockey book with a dog…. or a dog book with hockey?

That’s going to depend on the interest of the reader.

On one side, author Cynthia Kadohata unabashedly includes explanations, exercises, terms, and hockey plays in her story, which won’t mean nearly as much to non-fans as it will to kids who suit up. Indeed, this book is double-deep on the details, which lends an authentic tone but doesn’t go far at all in explanation.

On the other side, this story wouldn’t be anything without Conor’s love for his dog. It’s powerful, and it drives much of the tale, including the character development, in the end.

And so, hockey book or dog story? You decide.

Either way, for your twelve-to-fifteen-year-old “Checked” is a good way to spend some time.

with having a dead mom”? That, while you cry at the oddest things, bristle at others, and learn what to do about people who mean well but say the absolute worst thing they could ever say to someone whose mom is dead?

When your mom dies, you’ll struggle to tell people what happened – people you barely remember, people from your past that she kept contact with. It’s not easy “delivering Dead Mom News”; in fact, you’ll have to learn to make others feel less sad while you feel miserable, and you’ll have to do it while you still have to brush your teeth and eat meals. You can try to remember that there is no “new normal.”

And here’s the biggest thing you need to know: life doesn’t stop. People who loved your mother once, still do. You’ll find her “everywhere,” and there’s nothing you can do about it. You’ll feel “very, very angry that [you] do not have a mom… And that feeling will never, ever die.” You will panic when you forget parts of her.

You’re allowed to run from your grief once in awhile.

You’ll know what to say (and not say) to someone else who’s lost their mom. And you’ll find it “okay to laugh” again.

Is it too soon?

Maybe. In the past few months, a good number of humor books have been released with death as the subject; “The Dead Moms Club” is one of them.

Don’t, however, think that this is an LOL kinda book. While you might chuckle at some of author Kate Spencer’s observations, much of the humor falls flat in an awkward puddle, as if someone publicly drooled jokes onto the floor - perhaps because it tries too hard at deflecting. The grief feels too fresh here for that, and the anger so sharp. You might find yourself smiling one minute and sobbing the next, which isn’t exactly comforting.

What is comforting is Spencer’s advice on coping and forgiving others for their well-meaning bumbling; readers whose moms are still around will also find advice on how to help a friend who’s not so lucky. For that – forgivable clumsy humor aside – “The Dead Moms Club” may belong on your bookshelf.

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Berlin 1936 by Oliver Hilmes, translated from the German by Jefferson Chase c.2016, 2018, Other Press $25.95 / Higher in Canada 320 pages Terri Schlichenmeyer is a book reviewer based just across the river from SoMinn in LaCrosse, WI. She can be contacted at bookwormsez@gmail.com

Checked by Cynthia Kadohata, illustrations by Maurizio Zorat c.2018, Atheneum Books for Young Readers $16.99 / $22.99 in Canada 404 pages Terri Schlichenmeyer is a book reviewer based just across the river from SoMinn in LaCrosse, WI. She can be contacted at bookwormsez@gmail.com

The Dead Moms Club: A Memoir by by Kate Spencer c.2017, Seal Press $16.99 / $22.49 in Canada 267 pages Terri Schlichenmeyer is a book reviewer based just across the river from SoMinn in LaCrosse, WI. She can be contacted at bookwormsez@gmail.com

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WOLDUM TV

RACHEL WOLDUM Rachel Woldum is a former television snob who has embraced the medium as it has entered its Golden Age. Contact her at editor@southernminnscene.com

Interview,

A

R

with an Imaginary Person, Defending the Kardashians to a Hater

Hollywoodreporter.com achel, I’ll cut to the chase. There are rumors circulating that you’ve been overheard defending the Kardashians, even going so far as to say you “enjoy watching their show,” Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Can you speak to this?

Yes, most certainly. I’ll openly admit that I watch the Kardashians, I’m fascinated by them as people, and I would say that I admire them in many respects. No shame.

I’m shocked. When did this guilty pleasure start for you?

Oh it’s not a guilty pleasure. It’s just a pleasure. No guilt here. I’ll admit, I used to be a Kardashian hater myself. I thought they were shallow and fake and bad feminists. But after I actually watched a few episodes of their show, my mind was completely changed.

How so?

They’re actually very different than the idea of them I had in my head. For one, I always thought of them as bad role models, for whatever reason. But they embody a lot of characteristics I really admire…they’re super close as a family, for one. Sure, they bicker constantly, but at the end of the day, they actually want to spend time together. Now that I think of it, the No. 1 reason they fight is because they get sad that another member of their family is being too distant. They put family first, and are fiercely loyal to and protective of each other. As someone with three siblings, who I’m very close to, I can relate to this intimacy.

Okay, that’s all well and good, but what are they actually famous for? They don’t have any talents.

This is classic shade that I see get thrown at the Kardashians a lot.

Long before Kim’s infamous sex tape, the Kardashian name was introduced to the world during the OJ Simpson trial, when her father Robert Kardashian was part of OJ’s defense team. Neither a sex tape nor a notorious father are good reasons to be famous, but Kim and her sisters can’t exactly help this. They were little girls during the OJ trial, and could hardly control who their dad was or who his friends were. And Kim’s sex tape being released should be seen as the crime and violation of privacy that it is, rather than as a fame-hungry grasp at celebrity.

Can we really blame the the Kardashians for capitalizing on the fame that was thrust upon them? They’re not exactly using it for nefarious reasons — a reality show about their glam family life, makeup and clothing lines, and various social media apps are among their endeavors. No, they’re not saving lives, but few famous people are. I say they’re savvy businesswomen who know who their audience is, what their limits are, and how to monetize that.

Okay, I hear you on that, but then why the intense hatred for them?

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Well, despite the fact that the Kardashian/Jenner clan are now ubiquitous, with thousands if not millions of wannabes following and mimicking their every move, the Kardashians actually kind of defy a lot of cliches; they aren’t just one thing, and I think that has opened them up to a lot of criticism. They’ve been criticized as “bad feminists”, and poor examples of female empowerment — they spend an exorbitant amount on time on hair, clothes, and makeup, they’re overly sexualized and in fact often seem to promote their own sexual objectification, and they typically stay away from commenting on or getting involved in any overly politicized discussions, particularly those that might be controversial. In short, they seem to live in a glam bubble, void of social conscience.

But the right criticizes them just as much, ironically for some of the same reasons—that they sell sex, frequently dress and pose immodestly, and are bad examples for adolescent and teen girls—not so much bad feminist role models but bad moral role models. And it seems like the Kardashians are the go-to reference anytime we want to comment on how our society is shallow/has poor taste/ is too caught up in the wrong things/ignores real world problems, etc.

All of this seems like somewhat fair criticism. What’s your rebuttal?

OK, well, for one, I hate the automatic categorization that all endeavors having to do with appearance are shallow. To me, that’s textbook sexism. What are some stereotypical masculine interests … Sports? Cars? Electronic equipment? Are any of these interests inherently any more “noble” than skincare, haircare, fitness, or fashion? If you think it’s silly to spend vast amounts of time and money on lip kits and moisturizers, fine, but then it’s equally silly to spend vast amounts of time and money on jerseys and cable bundles for ESPN5 or what have you.

To that point, I think it’s also sad and incredibly unfair that society has built up unrealistic and largely unobtainable beauty standards for women, but then immediately criticizes them when they try to achieve them. Essentially, the message has been, “You’re only relevant if you are fit and beautiful, but you’re shallow if you actively do anything to become fit and beautiful.” If that’s not setting women up to fail, I don’t know what is. Obviously, this isn’t how everyone feels, but it does seem to be a pervasive attitude.

You make some fair points, but I’m still not convinced that there’s any reason to admire them. Why do you?

I admire them because they actually defy a lot of stereotypes.

Kourtney and Kim are both wives and mothers (they each have three children), in addition to being businesswomen and public figures. Kylie just had her first child, and Khloe has her first on the way. It’s like it never occurred to them that having children might be an obstacle; when it comes to motherhood and ambition, they’ve refused to accept the either/or narrative, and have instead demanded both/and. I also love how their family unit is basically run as a matriarchal society. Kris, Kourtney, Kim, Khloe, Kendall, and Kylie are the ones who call the shots, and they look almost

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solely to each other for support and advice. They all have or have had men in their lives, but the men seem very secondary in importance. On the one hand, they’re very traditional in their family values and gender roles, but on the other hand, they are fully in charge of their own brand, period.

They’re also trendsetters, plain and simple. For better or for worse, if you walk into a room of teenage girls, it’s going to be filled with baby imitations of Kardashians and Jenners. I recently saw a picture of Kim out on the town wearing velvet Adidas basketball shorts, a white men’s undershirt, and strappy stilettos. It takes confidence to dress like you just went from organizing your garage to a bachelorette party, and of course, she killed it. They also collectively sport a roving arsenal of colored wigs, fake piercings, glam athleisure, and ridiculous footwear; in short, they’re a lot more edgy sartorially than we give them credit for.

I can see how some of that would be inspiring, but at the end of the day they’re just not relatable. How is watching KUWTK anything more than just escapism?

Watching KUWTK IS escapism, I’ll be the first to admit it. Of course it’s entertaining to watch them jet set from Palm Springs to Dubai to New York like it’s nothing, and in private planes no less.

Or listen to them argue about imported marble countertops or who’s stealing whose look for whatever upcoming appearance or premier.

But they’ve also dealt with a lot of potentially tough issues that no amount of fame or money can entirely protect them from.

First, the divorce of Kris and Robert when the children were still relatively young. Then, their mom’s remarriage to Bruce (now Caitlyn Jenner) shortly after, which resulted in the addition of both half and step siblings. Then Robert’s death in 2003. And in the years following, they’ve had to cope with the severe substance abuse of their partners, mental health issues from their brother Rob, multiple miscarriages, and perhaps most famously, the very public transition of their father Bruce to Caitlyn. And their high profile relationships with people of color (Kim and Kanye, Rob and Black Chyna, Khloe and Lamar Odom/Tristan Thompson, Kylie and Tyga/Travis Scott, and Kris and Corey Gamble) means that they’ve frequently been a part of discussions regarding race and privilege.

Without a doubt, their lifestyles are wildly different than the average person’s, but they sure as heck have had a lot of very human experiences.

I can see you’re pretty firm in your convictions. In closing, what’s one of your favorite moments from Keeping Up With the Kardashians?

I could no sooner choose a favorite star in the heavens. But if I had to think of something on the spot, I’d say a) all the moments when the sisters gang up on (Kourtney’s ex) Scott Disick and make him squirm for whatever awful thing he’s done most recently, or b) when Kim admitted that her niece Dream peed all over her, and she didn’t wash it off, because she didn’t want to ruin her spray tan. Damn, Gina! SMS

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