A cycle ride with a friend included St. Paul’s Midway industrial district. We were surprised by the vibrant murals scattered throughout the district, including this one. The stylized butterfly behind the girl honors missing and murdered indigenous women. Later, I learned we had stumbled upon the Midway Chroma Zone where local and national street artists… Continue reading Unexpected Art
Category: Create
Faces of a Declining Economy
Walked over to the Guthrie for Skeleton Crew, set in a Detroit factory break room during the 2008 recession. Four Black characters brought the struggle of vanishing blue-collar jobs to life.
Afterglow
Afterglow, back home from a Minnesota Orchestra concert.
A Tale of Two Concerts
Silenced my mobile device for a short Minnesota Orchestra concert: a brief contemporary piece celebrating Beethoven’s 250th birthday, followed by a brisk rendition of Tchaikovsky’s 2nd symphony. Afterwards, we cycled back home, only to learn Olly Alexander hadn’t pulled off a Eurovision win for the UK. He’s still a winner in my book.
Once More Unto the Breach
Kicked off my clinical trial participation with a hefty dose of testosterone. The tumor feeds on it, so the counterintuitive idea is to overload the tumor and cause it to shrink. That was the easy part of my day. Now I’m diving into the historical and political motivations of Shakespeare’s Henry V as preparation for… Continue reading Once More Unto the Breach
Shogun Night
We’re slowly making our way through Shogun (2024). Tonight we watched episode 7 (of 10) with Dwight fast-forwarding through the commercials. I appreciate the show’s high production values, how it sheds light on events leading to Japan’s Edo period (in fictionalized form), and how it resists the white savior trope.
Perspective
Bill Charlap Trio at the Dakota this evening. American Songbook, Gershwin, Sondheim, … . Perspective for earlier in the day when the focus was on being randomized into a clinical study.
Sunday Afternoon Concert
This afternoon, a relaxed chamber music concert highlighting members of the Minnesota Orchestra in smaller ensembles. The program was a mix of old and new, with a modern socially conscious American piece by Kevin Puts, Credo (new to us), sandwiched between works by Rossini and Brahms.
Kilohana (Best, Excellent)
Hula, a tradition that tells stories passed down for generations, was banned in the 19th century by missionaries who dismissed Hawaiian culture as heathen. Today, we watched Hawaiian hula performers who had participated in an annual international festival of performers from across Polynesia.
Butler’s Blues
Jonathan Butler, the world-class South African performer, was the artist. However, the sound quality was poor, so we left because sunk cost is a poor reason to stay. A relaxed nightcap on our balcony wound down a good day.