This Week in Geek (8/5/19‒8/11/19)

Welcome to This Week in Geek, your guide to events of interest to the Minnesota geek community for the week of Monday, August 5, to Sunday, August 11.

Minnesota Fringe Festival

What: Theater & Comedy
When: Friday, July 27–Sunday, August 11
Where: Various Venues

The Minnesota Fringe Festival is 11 days packed with plays, all 60 minutes or less, held at a variety of spaces throughout the Twin Cities. The variety of great shows from local performers and writers means you should be able to find something to scratch your geeky itch. Click here for the full listing of this year’s shows.

Monday Night Game Night

What: Gaming
When: Monday, August 5, at 5:00 p.m.
Where: Level Up Games (South St. Paul)

While it may be tough diving back into the workweek (at least for those of us with Monday-to-Friday jobs), this event seeks to add fun and levity to Mondays with games. This is your chance to game with your fellows in a fun environment, either bringing your own or borrowing from the store’s library. Decompress and make some new meeple-friendly pals.

Twin Cities Monday Night Backgammon

What: Gaming
When: Monday, August 5, at 6:00 p.m.
Where: Minneapolis Richfield American Legion

Enjoy a night of backgammon with two tournaments. Entry to this event is $5, and this is a great chance for both pros and newcomers to learn this classic game of strategy.

Creative Night

What: Arts, Community
When: Monday, August 5, at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Event Horizon at the Waterbury Building

This event invites participants to let their creativity shine with drawing, painting, crafting, or whatever their hearts desire at Creative Night, a weekly event put on by Crafty Geek and the Geek Partnership Society.Meet at the Waterbury Building at 6:30 and carpool or walk to see creativity in action.

Surly Cinema: Clueless

What: Movies, Food & Drink
When: Monday, August 5, at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Surly Brewing Co.

Surly Cinema will be lighting up Minneapolis nights with beer, food, and most importantly, free movies in the Beer Garden. Attendees are encouraged to bring a towel or lawn chair, and enjoy this summer’s theme of blockbusters. This week’s showing is Clueless, a classic comedy of the ’90s, or a horrifying document of Paul Rudd’s immortal visage.

Northern Fire Dynamic

What: Arts
When: Monday, August 5, at 8:00 p.m.
Where: Powderhorn Park

Watch Minneapolis fire troupe Northern Fire Dynamic perform the choreography they’ve created for this year’s Burning Man. This performance is free, but donations are encouraged.

Terror Tuesday: Critters

What: Movies
When: Tuesday, August 6, at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Alamo Drafthouse Twin Cities

Terror Tuesday, a horror-screening series at the Alamo Drafthouse Twin Cities, seeks to liven up weeknights with blood-pumping terror. Tickets are $5, and as always, the Alamo Drafthouse has a variety of food and drink available to enjoy with the film. This week’s screening is Critters, a schlock-fest full of fun practical effects and murderous little beasties. Tickets are $5.

Surly Pizza Upstairs Game Night

What: Games, Food & Drink
When: Wednesday, August 7, starting at 4:00 p.m.
Where: Surly Brewing Co.

From 4:00 to 11:00 p.m., head to Surly for board games and a slice. Get a pitcher of beer, a pizza, an appetizer or salad, and dessert for $40; available games include Settlers of Catan, Cards Against Humanity, Battleship, and more.

Books & Bars: There There

What: Books, Food & Drink
When: Wednesday, August 7, at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Dual Citizen Brewing

Books & Bars is an “open public book club show” hosted and moderated by Minnesota Public Radio senior producer Jeff Kamin that provides attendees with “a unique atmosphere for a lively discussion of interesting authors, fun people, good food, and social lubrication.” The book being read and discussed this month is There There, the first novel by Tommy Orange. The book explores the world that indigenous people inhabit in the United States, and was a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer.

Mystic Dawn/Amtgard

What: Gaming, Sports & Fitness
When: Wednesday, August 7, at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Oak Grove Park

Amtgard, a global organization focused on the sport of medieval-fantasy combat, will be hosting a gathering in Oak Grove Park. Participants can take part in glorious quests, battle, and more, all with the use of foam weapons for the sake of safety. Garb is encouraged, but not required, and loaner weapons are available. This is a free-to-play event, but long-term players are expected to support the organization with $6 or $10 dues.

Trivia Against Humanity Wednesdays

What: Trivia
When: Wednesday, August 7, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Modist Brewing Co.

This regular event at Modist, hosted by Sam Spadino and Bacon, represents the convergence of two geeky favorites: a brewery that geeks out for innovative beer, and absurd trivia. Trivia Against Humanity has other weekly events as well; see the Trivia Against Humanity Facebook page for additional events.

Cat Video Festival

What: Arts, Meetup
When: Thursday, August 8, at 6:00 p.m.
Where: CHS Field

Celebrate the funny little weirdos who act as the main reason for the internet to exist! See the best videos, listen to music, watch fireworks, and celebrate felines with other cat and cat-video lovers. Doors open at 6:00 p.m., but the film reel will start around 8:00. This year’s festival will include a tribute to Grumpy Cat, who died earlier this year.

Cat Tour 2019: Whittier Edition

What: Community, Educational
When: Thursday, August 8, at 6:00 p.m.
Where: Meet at the Whittier Recreation Center (Minneapolis)

The Cat Video Festival isn’t the only cat-tastic event happening on Thursday! Wedge Live hosted its highly successful cat tour in the Wedge neighborhood earlier this summer, and now it’s time for a trip through Whittier to meet its feline residents.

Crafty Geek/Make It Sew

What: Arts, Meetup
When: Thursday, August 8, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Event Horizon at the Waterbury Building

The Geek Partnership Society’s Crafty Geek club and its sub-club Make It Sew meet Thursday evenings at the Waterbury Building and invite you to “bring your crafty stuff to do” or to “hang out and work with the crafty stuff we have here!”

Irish Fair of Minnesota

What: Music, Food & Drink, Community
When: Friday, August 9, at 3:00 p.m. to Sunday, August 11, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Harriet Island

Come to the largest free Irish Fair in the United States for a weekend of music, culture, food, drink, and more. Hear music from a variety of acts, shop for crafts, attend dance workshops, check out the Irish dog parade, and more. See the fair’s website for details.

Carcassonne Tournament

What: Gaming
When: Friday, August 9, at 6:00 p.m.; tournament at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Level Up Games (Hastings)

Learn to play Carcassone with the great crew from Over Knight Games, and then, if you’re feeling confident, jump into a tournament of the game starting at 7:00 p.m. for a $5 entry fee. Carcassone is a beloved classic of the strategy genre, and should present some interesting challenges for board-game geeks!

Friday Night Magic

What: Gaming
When: Friday, August 9, at 6:00 p.m.
Where: Mischief Toy Store

Mischief Toy Store in St. Paul invites you to experience some magic with them this Friday night for this Magic: The Gathering draft event. Entry is $15, and all players will receive prizes, including a “fancy promo card.” This weekly event is limited to 24 players and typically lasts until about 9:00 p.m. All skill levels are welcome. Mischief Toy Store hosts other events throughout the week, which are listed on Meetup and Facebook (check out the full calendar on the event page linked above).

Read the Book/See the Movie

What: Movies, Books
When: Friday, August 9, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: TBD (see posting for more information)

This monthly club looks at films and their literary inspirations. Each meeting begins with a bit of social time, then at 7:30 p.m. the movie screening itself begins. Per the event listing, email club organizers for further information.

Tsuinishi Anime Club

What: Movies
When: Friday, August 9, at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Event Horizon at the Waterbury Building

Anime Twin Cities has joined forces with the Geek Partnership Society “to bring a little bit of fun to you on the second and fourth Fridays of each month with this cosponsored anime club.” The group will show various anime movies and series.

TARDIS Tour

What: Meetup
When: Saturday, August 10, from 9:15 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Where: Various locations

Did you know you can find the TARDIS all over the Twin Cities? This tour aims to spend a whole day visiting every example, hitting up 11 locations throughout the Twin Cities metro and two out in Farmington and Jordan, Minnesota. You can either reserve a spot in the rented van, drive on your own, or carpool. Click here for the event description and full schedule, and click here to sign up for a van spot. Cosplay encouraged.

NerdinOut Con

What: Convention
When: Saturday, August 10‒Sunday, August 11
Where: Graham Arenas Park (Rochester)

This new convention returns to Rochester for its second year. See other comics fans, special guests, vendors, and more! This year’s guests include actors, wrestlers, and more. One-day, two-day, and VIP tickets are available.

AfreakCON

What: Conventions, Books, Arts, Gaming
When: Saturday, August 10‒Sunday, August 11
Where: Pillsbury House Theater

AfreakCON is a convention featuring discussions, panels, workshops, gaming, cosplay-dance parties, and more, all focused on bringing people of color and allies with a passion for science fiction and fantasy together. Expect thoughtful discussions about the intersections between genre fiction and reality. Tickets are $15 for the weekend. There is also a convention afterparty on Sunday night at Pimento Jamaican Kitchen, which requires separate admission.

Weekly Comics Chat

What: Meetup, Comics
When: Saturday, August 10, at 3:00 p.m.
Where: Minneapolis Central Library

New or neck deep into comics? It doesn’t matter! Share what comics you’ve read this week, get plenty of recommendations, have a drink, share fries, sit back, and have a great time. Additional information about this event is posted on the Girls Only Comic Club’s Facebook group. Individuals interested in attending are encouraged to join.

Shieldmaiden Sunday

What: Gaming, Meetup
When: Sunday, August 11, at 12:00 p.m.
Where: Source Comics & Games

Shieldmaiden Sundays are a dedicated space for female nerds and geeks at Source Comics & Games. This is a recurring weekly event providing a space for women to play games, chat about comics, cosplay, or just enjoy the company of other geeks. See the calendar for more events!

So, which of these events will you be attending? What events would you like to see featured in the future? Let us know in the comments section below or contact us via email. And don’t forget to add your events to the Twin Cities Geek Community Calendar!