This Week in Geek (3/9/2020–3/15/2020)

Welcome to This Week in Geek, your guide to events of interest to the Minnesota geek community for the week of Monday, March 9, to Sunday, March 15.

Twin Cities Monday Night Backgammon

What: Gaming
When: Monday, March 9, at 5:30 p.m.
Where: Mainstreet Bar & Grill (Hopkins)

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 which has informed game design for centuries. It’s also a great chance to meet new folks.

Pundamonium: The St. Paul Pun Slam

What: Theater & Comedy
When: Monday, March 9, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Black Dog Cafe

Pundamonium is a pun slam, a contest of wordplay with 10 contestants, each given two minutes to make puns based on prompts they are given ahead of time. The audience acts as judge, and this process repeats throughout the night until a final pun-off. This night of groans and laughs is $10.

Pokémon GO Trainer Tuesdays at Parkway Pizza

What: Gaming, Food & Drink
When: Tuesday, March 10, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Parkway Pizza

A trainer strives to catch them all, and gain prowess and respect. This weekly event at Parkway Pizza is an opportunity to catch fun drink and food specials, meet other aspiring trainers, and square off against worthy opponents to win status and power. You can and will win, even if winning may just mean having a good time meeting other pocket-monster fans.

Books & Bars: The Fifth Season

What: Books, Food & Drink
When: Tuesday, March 10, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Moon Palace Books

Books & Bars is an “open public book club show” hosted and moderated by former 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 The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemison, a science-fantasy story about the end of the world, collapse of civilization, and one woman’s determination to rescue her daughter through it all. Next month’s book will be Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

Terror Tuesday: The Thing

What: Movies
When: Tuesday, March 10, at 8:30 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. This week’s screening is John Carpenter’s The Thing, where a research team discovers, and then is hunted by, an alien life-form buried in the Antarctic ice. Tickets are $6, and as always, the Alamo Drafthouse has a variety of food and drink available to enjoy with the film.

International Game Developers Association–Twin Cities: Global Game Jam 2020 Postmortems

What: Gaming
When: Wednesday, March 11, at 6:00 p.m.
Where: The Nerdery

The International Game Developers Association–Twin Cities chapter (IGDATC) will be hosting presentations from participants at this year’s Global Game Jam, a 48-hour game-making marathon. These local jammers will discuss their successes, failures, and what they learned along the way. If you’re a game maker, or someone curious about the development process, this free event is sure to provide some valuable insight.

TC Trek Trivia: O Captain My Captains

What: Trivia
When: Wednesday, March 11, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Driftwood Char Bar

Hosted by Master Trekkie, TC Trek Trivia consists of five rounds: General Trek (questions covering all things Star Trek); Identify the Image; Ships, Technology, and Cultures; Complete the Quote; and a “Wild Card” round. Questions for each of these five rounds are drawn from all Star Trek-television series and all 12 films. According to Master Trekkie himself, TC Trek Trivia is “all ages, no cover, food, drinks, and a whole lot of Trek!” This month’s theme is “O Captain My Captains.”

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo

What: Theater & Comedy
When: Wednesday, March 11, at 7:30 p.m.
Where: The Ordway

Experience the lighter side of dance with Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, or more affectionately known as the Trocks. This all-male dance troupe brings comedy to the ballet stage by mixing classical pieces and athleticism with slapstick foibles and well-timed exaggeration. Arrive early for a pre-show Super Drag Story Time featuring local Drag Kings and Queens. Tickets are $39–69, which includes all fees.

Spaceballs

What: Movies
When: Thursday, March 12, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Parkway Theater

Space pilot Lone Starr and his half-dog partner Barf must rescue Princess Vespa from the villainous Dark Helmet in Spaceballs, a Star Wars parody filled with Mel Brooks humor, iconic gags, and a top-notch comedy cast including John Candy, Bill Pullman, and Rick Moranis. May the Schwartz be with you.

Crafty Geek/Make It Sew

What: Arts, Meetup
When: Thursday, March 12, 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!”

Friday the 13th

What: Movies
When: Friday, March 13, at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Alamo Drafthouse

It’s Friday the 13th, and ya’ll know what that means—Camp Crystal Lake and its counselors are being terrorized by a brutal murderer. Celebrate this namesake night and the iconic horror film that started it all with a special screening at Alamo Drafthouse.

Tsuinishi Anime Club

What: Movies
When: Friday, March 13, 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.

Double Dare Challenge

What: Family, Gaming, Sports & Fitness
When: Saturday, March 14, and Sunday, March 15, at 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.; continuing weekends through April 11
Where: Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America

Live out a Nickelodeon dream at the Mall of America at the Double Dare Challenge, based on the popular TV-game show. Take on physical challenges, answer trivia, dive onto the obstacle course, and, best of all, get slimed. This recurring event is free and has weekend showtimes at 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. during their Spring Break season.

Weekly Comics Chat

What: Comics, Meetup
When: Saturday, March 14, at 3:00 p.m.
Where: Midtown Global Market

The Girls Only Comic Club hosts a Weekly Comics Chat on Saturday afternoons where there will be shared opinions, drinks, and fries for comics fans. Additional information about this event is posted on the Girls Only Comic Club’s Facebook group. Individuals interested in attending are encouraged to join.

Saturday Night Space Opera: Deep Space Mysteries

What: Gaming
When: Saturday, March 14, at 6:00 p.m.
Where: Source Comics & Games

Local sci-fi RPG night Saturday Night Space Opera returns with a double dose of Star Trek. Get your classic Trek on with Star Trek: The Roleplaying Game–The Drifting Ring. Or if modern Trek is more your style, beam aboard the Enterprise for a game of Star Trek Adventures: The Search for Spock-2. This is a free event, all rules will be taught, and no materials are required—just RSVP on the Facebook event to snag your spot.

Shieldmaiden Sunday

What: Gaming, Meetup
When: Sunday, March 15, 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!

The Dinkytown Uprising DVD Release Screening

What: Movies
When: Sunday, March 15, at 4:00 p.m.
Where: St. Anthony Main Theatre

Dinkytown residents and nearby students have a long history of fighting to preserve the eclectic Dinkytown neighborhood and resist commercial developments from large organization. In 1970, that culminated into an “unprecedented 40-day, 40-night continuous Dinkytown ‘Occupation’” protesting against the building of a national fast-food chain. The Dinkytown Uprising chronicles that protest through the stories of seven participants. The filmmaker, Al Milgrom, will be in attendance. Tickets are $12 for general admission, or $9 for students and MSP Film Society members.

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!