Features
Sep 21 2026
Getting Started with Personal Self-Defense
Self-defense is a recurring hot topic. Maybe you have considered buying pepper spray, tasers, knives, or other tools. Maybe you want to attend martial arts classes. Or maybe you’re considering buying a firearm.
I have run the gamut myself. I’ve had a permit to carry for over 10 years. I’ve…
Sep 10 2026
A Conversation with Larry Houston, Filmation’s First Black Storyboard Artist and Director of X-Men Animation
Larry Houston, like most Black pioneers, may not be as widely recognized by name as he should be, but his work definitely is. If, like me, you grew up on The Tarzan/Lone Ranger Adventure Hour, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Flash Gordon, Blackstar, and a host of other cartoons from the ’80s and beyond,…
Sep 09 2026
“Pinocchio” Opens the Season at the Children’s Theatre Company
For the first show of its 2026–2027 season, the Children’s Theatre Company is bringing Pinocchio to the stage. Adapted by Greg Banks from the 1883 Carlo Collodi novel, Pinocchio tells the story of a living marionette puppet, carved from wood by the craftsman Geppetto, who goes on a series of…
Sep 02 2026
12 Tools to Make Knitting, Crochet, and Cross-Stitch More Accessible for You
I’m a member of a few online crafting communities, and there was a discussion the other day on a cross-stitch Discord regarding vision problems and magnifiers. As I scrolled through the conversation, I reflected that there is a lot of knowledge in these groups that could be really helpful for…
Jul 22 2026
Boiled in Lead, Minneapolis Punk-Folk Icons, Are Playing a Halloween Show at Crooners
Editor’s note: This show was originally scheduled for July 26. The headline and the information below have been updated to reflect the new date.
Legendary Celtic punk band Boiled in Lead—who released their 12th album, King of the Dogwoods, in March—are coming to the Crooners Supper Club stage…
Jul 13 2026
“The Oldest Profession” Shares the History of Sex Work at the Phoenix Theater on July 17
At 7:00 p.m. on July 17, 2026, Kaytlin Bailey brings The Oldest Profession to the Phoenix Theater in Minneapolis for one night only. This one-woman show, written and performed by Bailey, advertises itself as “a mad dash through 10,000 years of history from a sex worker’s perspective.” It’s been…
Jul 10 2026
Having Fun Isn’t Hard When You’ve Got a Minnesota Library Card!
Growing up, I was incredibly lucky to live just a few blocks away from my small local library. Though I was a frequent visitor throughout the year, summertime was my favorite because of one of the hidden gems of libraries: the summer reading program. Track my reading for a couple of months and then get a…
May 30 2026
A Sci-Fi Bar Crawl Through “Mass Effect: The Official Cocktail Book”
The Mass Effect video games are some of my favorite sci-fi content and one of my partner’s favorite video game series (we named our cat Tali!), so when we learned about Mass Effect: The Official Cocktail Book, we were pretty excited. There are a number of bars in the games that serve as backdrops…
May 13 2026
Theater Mu and Urban Growler Brewing Present a Night of Asian American Storytelling
On Thursday, May 14, Theater Mu and Urban Growler Brewing Company are teaming up to provide a one-night-only “unhinged and unfiltered” megaphone for the Asian American community during Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Month. Oops, We Have Opinions!…
Feb 19 2026
Celebrate Black History Month with VocalEssence at the University of Minnesota
Since 1991, choral arts organization VocalEssence has celebrated Black History Month with concerts and programming that celebrate Black contributions to arts and music in America under the banner of the VocalEssence Witness program. This year’s capstone concert, Witness: Symphony of …