Friday, October 26
Rocking for Rights
WHAT: MN Musicians Vote No!
WHERE: Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis
WHEN: 7 p.m.
The biggest musical names playing this two-night rally against the marriage amendment might be Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum, Har Mar Superstar, and Dillinger Four. But the biggest draw is Vikings punter Chris Kluwe, who will perform with his hard-rock band Tripping Icarus. Learn more at triplerocksocialclub.com.
Friday, October 26
Animal Instincts
WHAT: The BodyCartography Project’s Super Nature
WHERE: Walker Art Center, Minneapolis
WHEN: 8 p.m.
The avant-garde BodyCartography Project debuts its highly anticipated dance, commissioned by the Walker, about the similarities of animals and humans. Local dancers Justin Jones and Emily Johnson join the troupe onstage while former members of the Lyon Opera Ballet, acclaimed for their contemporary take on classical works, lend some European gravitas. Learn more at walkerart.org.
Saturday, October 27
The Movie That Isn’t
WHAT: Mekong Hotel
WHERE: Walker Cinema, Minneapolis
WHEN: 3 and 7:30 p.m.
Experimental director Apichatpong Weerasethakul returns with his first feature-length film since winning the Palme d’Or prize at Cannes in 2010, and it’s a doozy. If it were just a film about making a film, which it is, that’d be one thing. But the director blurs the line between the characters’ script in progress and his own until subject and medium meld and your primary concern shifts to the alien ghosts lurking on the periphery. Learn more at walkerart.org.
Saturday, October 27
Girl with Uke
WHAT: Katy Vernon’s CD release party
WHERE: Wild Tymes, St. Paul
WHEN: 8 p.m.
Katy Vernon, a folk-pop singer with a supple voice that aches like wildflowers in the fall, has assembled a showcase of similarly charismatic acts to celebrate the release of her new album Before I Forget, including Dan Israel and The Mad Ripple. Born in London, transplanted to Minneapolis, Vernon makes original acoustic music (accented by her ukulele playing) that transcends the DIY aesthetic and crosses into real pop. Learn more at wildtymes.net.
Sunday, October 28
Chinese Invasion
WHAT: China’s Terracotta Warriors
WHERE: Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis
WHEN: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The thousands of terracotta sculptures of ancient warriors discovered some 40 years ago in northern China, buried with the country’s first emperor, are among the world’s best-known cultural treasures, one of those must-sees, like the Dead Sea Scrolls. And since few people will ever travel to see them in China, 10 of them are traveling to you, along with many more objects excavated from the emperor’s tomb. Learn more at artsmia.org.
Sunday, October 28
Evening Songs
WHAT: Cantus’ When Twilight Falls
WHERE: St. Bartholomew Catholic Church, Wayzata
WHEN: 3 p.m.
The celebrated men’s choir performs songs for the end of the day, when people take stock, the future is pondered, and rest beckons; an ideal cap to the weekend. Learn more at cantussings.org