It’s the Lunar New Year, so if your Gregorian New Year plans didn’t work out, you have another shot.
It’s a great time to visit your favorite AAPI-owned business this week and think about a visit to the Minnesota Orchestra for their line-up of Asian and Asian-American composers and musicians. Other events to consider this week are a groovy colorful show at Rosalux, theater openings at the Jungle and Chanhassen, new music by the McKnight Composer fellows at Icehouse, and Steve Kenny’s new slot at kj’s hideaway.
Lunar New Year with the Minnesota Orchestra
Welcome the Year of the Tiger at the Minnesota Orchestra’s Lunar New Year Celebration. Chinese composer and pipa player, Gao Hong, will be performing in the world premiere of a new work commissioned by the orchestra, called “Guangxi Impression.” In another world premiere, the orchestra will play an arranged version of Vietnamese composer, performer, and artist Trinh Cong Son’s “Circle of Unity,” written in 1968 during the Vietnam War. Finnish composer Jaakko Kuusisto was commissioned to create the new orchestral version. Other guests on the program are husband and wife team Zhengang Xie, who plays a Chinese bowed instrument called the jing hu, and Mei Hu, who plays a lute-style instrument called the yue qin. Assistant concertmaster Rui Du will play the solo in the 1959 piece, “The Butterfly Lovers” by Chen Gang and He Zhanhao. 8 p.m. Friday at Orchestra Hall ($27-67). More information here.
Designer Organisms: Laura Stack and Pile Up: Mary Gibney, An Exhibition of Exuberant Paintings
Nonplused cats, headless bodies, and abstract paintings inspired by nature’s most bizarre creatures and flora fill the galleries at Rosalux, 315 W 48th St., Minneapolis, this weekend in color-rich dual exhibitions featuring Laura Stack and Mary Gibney. In “Designer Organisms,” Stack transforms shapes and texture found in nature into an abstract synthetic aesthetic. Meanwhile, Gibney unleashes a phosphorescence with her series of conglomerated objects, paintings, drawings and small head sculptures. The opening reception takes place 7 p.m.-10 p.m. Saturday at Rosalux, with the exhibition running through Feb. 27 (free). More information here.
“Redwood” at Jungle Theatre
The premise for Brooklyn-based playwright Brittany K. Allen’s play, “Redwood,” harkens an inverted and deconstructed version of the 1967 film, “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.” Like the movie, “Redwood” tells the story of an interracial couple confronted with tensions that arise from family members. But Kramer’s piece takes these even further, addressing trauma that goes back to past generations and what it means to grapple with the wrongs of one’s ancestors. H. Adam Harris makes his directorial debut at the Jungle, 2951 Lyndale Ave. S., Minneapolis, for the show. It runs Feb. 5 – March 13 at the Jungle (Tuesdays-Thursdays are $40), Fridays and Saturdays are $50 and Sundays are $45. The Jungle has switched to a “pay as you are” ticketing model, similar to Theater Mu. Pay as you are pricing asks those who routinely pay $45 for theater tickets to pay that amount; it is the actual fair market value of the ticket. If an audience member needs to pay less, they can choose to pay less. Those who can pay more than the market price are welcome to do so, and their generosity will help cover the cost of someone else’s ticket as well.
“Footloose” at Chanhassen
Take yourself back to the 1980s at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres’ musical production of “Footloose,” opening this weekend. Adapted from the 1984 film starring Kevin Bacon about a Chicago teen who moves to a small town that has banned dancing, the musical features hit songs from the film and high energy dance numbers. This Friday will be Chanhassen’s, 501 W 78th St., Chanhassen, first opening night since the theater was shutdown in March of 2020. When they started things up again in the summer of 2021, they brought back the shuttered production of “The Music Man.” “Footloose” runs Feb. 4 – Sept. 24 ($60-96). More information here.
An evening with McKnight Composer Fellows Ashley DuBose, Ritika Ganguly, George Maurer and Mary Prescott
The most recent cohort of McKnight Composer Fellows will share their experimentations and explorations in an event put on by the American Composers Forum and The Great Northern.
The artists include Ashley DuBose, whose vocal talent hit the big leagues when she was a Top 32 contestant on NBC’s “The Voice.” She’s put out two albums, and recently dazzled with her singles like “I No Mind” and “Michelangelo.” Also performing is Ritika Ganguly, a composer and singer who brings in Bengali and contemporary Indian musical forms together in boundary-pushing compositions, world-trekking bicyclist and pianist George Maurer, and Thai-American interdisciplinary artist, composer and pianist Mary Prescott. They’ll each share about 20 minutes of work at the performance (5 p.m. Doors, 7 p.m. Show) Sunday at Icehouse MPLS, 2528 Nicollet Ave. S., Minneapolis ($5 advance, $10 day of show). More information here.
Steve Kenny Quartet with Phil Hey Quartet
It’s just awful news that the Black Dog Café in Lowertown is permanently closed. We hope the artists that regularly performed at the beloved spot all find new venues and places to perform. We have heard that the Steve Kenny Quartet is moving his Saturday Night Jazz series to kj’s hideaway, 408 St. Peter St., St. Paul, the space that was once The Artists’ Quarter and then Vieux Carre. Jazz Trumpeter and composer, Kenny will be curating jazz at the new spot each Saturday. First up is the Phil Hey Quartet. 7:30 p.m. at kj’s hideaway ($15). More information here.
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