Welcome to Event Horizon, your weekly roundup of the best events in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and beyond.
MONDAY 3.24
Joe Boyd
Cedar Cultural Center
Critics love to call large books “sprawling,” though I can’t say there’s any adjective that better fits And the Roots of Rhythm Remain, Joe Boyd’s wide-ranging history of… hm, how to categorize it exactly? In the old, not-quite-postcolonial-enough days we’d say “world music,” and the subtitle Boyd gives it is A Journey Through Global Music, but more specifically it’s about how music evolves within cultures and then adapts further as it sprawls across borders. Boyd showed he could write with White Bicycles: Making Music in the 1960s, a memoir about his days producing the likes of Pink Floyd, Fairport Convention, and Nick Drake, and his appetite for sounds here is ravenous. South Africa, Brazil, Argentina, Jamaica, Cuba—Boyd approaches each region he covers like a respectful and well-tutored tourist rather than an expert, which allows him to look in unexpected directions. His chapter on Indian music, for instance, starts with Ravi Shankar’s New York debut, backtracks to the migration of the Roma to Europe, and ends with the Gypsy Kings. This event promises “words and music,” and I can’t wait to hear ’em both. $20/$25. 7:30 p.m. 416 Cedar Ave., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Keith Harris
THURSDAY 3.27
GloRilla
Armory
There’s no shortage of tough-talking gals in rap these days, but unlike most of her peers the rapper born Gloria Hallelujah Woods doesn’t enter the arena booty-first. (No shame, I’m just sayin’.) Not that she’s any kind of prude—she holds down Memphis’s tradition of foul-mouthed self-expression on her 2024 album Glorious, her first proper album (whatever that means in 2025) with lines like, “He wanna see that pussy cream/I told him ‘Cash rules.’” She not only stands her ground, but she stands up for her girls when men mess with them. Rhymes like “I got hands for a ho/I get bands for a show/He want chance after chance, after chance, n****, no” may sum up her worldview, but when Kirk Franklin shows up to reveal her churchy side, she doesn’t sound full of shit. And when she gets hung up on a dude she knows she’s too good for, she’s not ashamed to get on her knees and… pray. (What did you think I was gonna say?) With Real Boston Richey + Queen Key. $78.65. 6:30 p.m. 500 S. Sixth St., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Keith Harris
Twins Season Opener
Twins.TV
Last fall, with commendable feistiness, sportswriting ace Aaron Gleeman pushed Twins owner Joe Pohlad on why his family, with its theoretically infinite wealth, refuses to invest in their sports franchise, writing: “This season was, maybe even more than Jim Pohlad’s original uttering of the phrase, a total system failure, presided over by a different front office and manager, but governed by the same billionaire family obsessed with saving a sliver of their unfathomable wealth. They have no one to blame for it but themselves, but unfortunately, it’s fans who are likely to suffer. Again.” Less than a month later, the Pohlads put the team up for sale! With no buyer yet in place, the Twins enter 2025 with surplus question marks, many of which we addressed with Gleeman on our cruelly titled podcast episode from last week, “Twins Preview for Dummies.” Well, dummy, the wait is over. Your Twins begin the year today at Busch Stadium against the St. Louis Cardinals. You may have noticed the location of this EH blurb is Twins.TV—that’s because you, the baseball-starved Twins fan, can finally watch every game online without blackout restrictions. The brand-new steamer can be accessed for $100 per year. In our estimation? Heckuva deal. For those determined to see the Twins at Target Field, the Home Opener arrives next Thursday against the Houston Astros. 3:15 p.m.; more info on Twins.TV here.—Jay Boller
FRIDAY 3.28
Pitch-A-Friend
Sociable Cider Werks
You love your single friend… we’ll call him Travis. Travis is funny, he’s smart, he has a good job that he likes, and he’s good with pets and people. But Travis is also super busy, not the greatest texter, and he’s somehow managed to pick the least flattering photos possible for his app-based dating profiles. (Also, his name is Travis.) He needs someone to vouch for him—maybe he even needs someone to really sell him Don Draper-style, someone who knows him well and can make a mean PowerPoint. Enter Pitch-A-Friend! This new series comes to Twin Cities bars and breweries, where friends of the single-and-looking create a three- to five-minute presentation on their pal’s best qualities and what they’re looking for in a potential partner. You can sign up in advance to pitch here, prepare and present at the event, then stick around for the singles mixer that follows the presentations. This is Travis’s time! Free. 6 p.m. 1500 Fillmore St. NE, Minneapolis; more info here.—Em Cassel
Anime Detour
Hyatt Regency
For over 20 years, Anime Detour has been celebrating all things manga and anime with a three-day bonanza offering a little bit of everything. There will be an artist alley and merch mart, where you can check out makers and more, as well as dealer rooms (not as sketchy as it sounds!) where you can shop hard-to-find items from Japan. Screening rooms will be marathoning popular and rare TV shows and movies 24-7, and a themed escape room will be up and running late into the night. Guests of honor include voice actors, translators, and other folks working in the industry, and panel talks range from sharing fan theory jams to learning how to make things for cosplay. Other fun to be had includes dance sessions, cosplay contests, and all-night room parties. $75; $25-$45 kids. 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fri.-Sat.; 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sun. 1300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis; find more info at animedetour.com. Through Sunday—Jessica Armbruster
Liza Treyger
Sisyphus Brewing
You might recognize this Ukrainian comic from film (Judd Apatow's Pete Davidson-based dramedy The King Of Staten Island) or Netflix (2018’s raunchy standup showcase series The Degenerates and her brand-new hourlong special Night Owl) or the wide world of podcasting (her longrunning recap show, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast). No matter the medium, Treyger delivers laughs onstage with the battle-hardened precision of a Comedy Cellar regular, which she is. The New Yorker’s material touches on sex, immigrant parents, and food, the latter of which she explored in great detail via this recent Grub Street diary. $22. 8 & 10 p.m. Fri.-Sat. 712 Ontario Ave. W. #100, Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jay Boller
Black Dance Improvisation Festival
Mixed Blood Theatre
The Twin Cities has a pretty amazing dance scene. But unless you’re familiar with our troupes and talents, you might not have a clue where to start. That’s why these collaborative events are so great: You get a sampling of performances from a variety of people at an accessible ticket price. This weekend, Mixed Blood, Pillsbury House + Theatre, and Leslie Parker Dance Project are coming together to co-present the Black Dance Improvisation Festival, where performers will present new solo works and works-in-progress. The lineup includes poet/TU Dance’s Heaven Sha'Rae, writer/musician/youth activist Khary Jackson, plus Monet Slade, Taylor West, and Andrea Potter, with Queen Drea providing tunes. Free to $25 (pay-as-able sliding scale pricing). 7:30 p.m. Fri.; 8 p.m. Sat. 1501 S. Fourth St., Minneapolis; find tickets here. Also Saturday—Jessica Armbruster
SATURDAY 3.29
Jeffrey Lewis
Pilllar Forum
Lewis is the kind of Lower East Side weirdo they don’t make anymore. A comic book artist and not-quite-folk singer who just exudes pre-gentrification downtown Manhattanness, he turns 50 this year, and he always seems to be releasing a new collection of comically depressed (or depressedly comic) new songs. Highlights on his latest album, The EVEN MORE Freewheelin’ Jeffrey Lewis, include an ode to his favorite drug (Tylenol PM), “Movie Date” (about how his sweetie always falls asleep before the film ends), a song that imagines the late poet/songwriter David Berman going on a crime spree with the writer Amy Rose Spiegel (don’t ask me to explain), and the new classic “Sometimes Life Hits You” (“And you say ‘Ow! Fuck! That hurts!’”). If I was a yell-requests kind of guy (ugh, what kind of life would that be?), I’d be calling out for "Do You Know Who I Am?! I'm %$&*?in' Snooki!!," recorded a decade ago with his spiritual godfather, the original anti-folkie Peter Stampfel. I’m not sure if it’s even online anywhere anymore. $15/$20. 7 p.m. 2300 Central Ave. NE, Minneapolis; find more info here.—Keith Harris
Gay Bouquet Makers’ Market
Queermunity
When Queermunity opened last November in the space next to Magers & Quinn, its leaders promised lots of fun events would be popping up. Part community center, part business, the organization offers LGBTQ+ resources, as well as libations (coffee, wine, and beer), and fresh eats (salads, soups, and sammies). There’s also room to host plenty of happenings, including this weekend’s super-gay makers’ market. Fifteen local queer artists will be on hand, sharing items including zines, pins, candles, pottery, and more. Free activities will abound; set up a seed tape to get your spring garden started and make a bingo card of goals to hit. Free. Noon to 6 p.m. 3036 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis.—Jessica Armbruster
SUNDAY 3.30
Trans Day of Visibility Celebration
Can Can Wonderland
It’s always important to show up and stick up for your trans friends, and that’s especially true now, as our deranged chief executive unleashes a torrent of orders targeting trans people and appears poised to ramp up attacks in the future. Ahead of the Trans Day of Visibility on March 31, swing by this Tigerrs-hosted celebration at Can Can Wonderland, where they’ll have crafts, performances by Manuela Rodriguez and beats by BIG FAKE & DJ Joey Z, tarot and balloons (what a combo!) by Jay Apollo, and more. $16. 3 to 6 p.m. 755 Prior Ave. N., Suite 004, St. Paul; more info here.—Em Cassel
Music of Taylor Swift & More for Kids
First Avenue
Over the weekend, while babysitting my 5-year-old nephew, I threw him one of my trademark, journalistically accelerated hardball Qs: Who’s more famous, Bluey or Taylor Swift? Without hesitation, he said Ms. Swift. That’s more or less reason enough to load up the ol’ family SUV and visit First Avenue for a day of live, kiddo-friendly covers of the “Shake it Off” hitmaker’s songs. (Litigiously paranoid copy on First Ave’s website refers to Swift as “the artist named above.”) Formed in 2014, the roving Rock and Roll Playhouse series covers the Beatles, Chappell Roan, Tom Petty, the Grateful Dead, Blink-182, Prince (lord his lawyers would hate that!), Bowie, and others with an emphasis on not-too-blaring family fun. (A giant parachute makes regular appearances at these shows.) North Dakota native Brianna Helbling and her band, Bri & the Antiheroes, have been commissioned to lead this Swift-centric Minneapolis gig. If nothing else, it’s a good excuse to introduce your little ones early to Minnesota’s greatest rock club. For more on what young people think about Taylor Swift, revisit Keith Harris’s award-winning conversation with his teenage niece. $18 (free for kids under 1). 11 a.m. 701 N. First Ave., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jay Boller
ONGOING
East Lake Skate and Sauna
East Lake Street
Winter this year? Pretty weak! Also short. While some years we have snow through March, in 2025 it’s pretty dang springlike out there right now. So for folks who feel we missed out this season there’s this free little pop-up fest offering wintertime activities. First of all, we got a skating rink. But not the kind that can melt; this thing is made out of the synthetic stuff. While waxy fake rinks are usually a bummer, we’re approaching 75 degrees in Minnesota on Friday, so just glad this thing will survive it. Bring your own skates or rent some for free. Second, there’s a sauna at this thing. Hourlong sessions in Urban Wing’s wood-fired sauna are free, but you gotta RSVP. If you missed the Art Shanties on Lake Harriet—or just want a repeat—at least one has set up shop here, and related entertainment and activities here include free yoga sessions (2 p.m. Sat.), Queer Puppet Clash performances (2-4 p.m. Sat.), and a dance party hosted by Pollinator Frenzy (2 p.m. Sun.). 4-8 p.m. Thu.-Fri.; noon to 8 p.m. Sat.-Sun. 2800 E. Lake St. (the former U.S. Bank property), Minneapolis; find more info here. Through March —Jessica Armbruster
“A Thousand Nesting Dolls”
The Museum of Russian Art
Did you know that the largest collection of Russian nesting dolls in the U.S. is located right off the Diamond Lake entrance to I-35W? Now that you know, how do you feel about that? The Museum of Russian Art will begin presenting its Matryoshka dolls (to use the proper Russian term) to the public; they’ll be on display until March 9. And since it’s likely been a while since you popped in at TMORA (I myself am always overdue for a visit), while you’re there, be sure to take in Alexander Viazmensky’s watercolors of Russian mushrooms, a recently opened exhibit. 5500 Stevens Ave., Minneapolis; find more info here. Through April 6—Keith Harris
Ukrainian Lenten Fish Fry
Ukrainian American Community Center
Even passive news consumers might’ve noticed the diplomatic (word used very lightly) tantrum thrown inside the White House last week. Thankfully, delicious options for Ukrainian solidarity do exist right here in Minnesota. Consider this Lenten fish fry, which benefits both the UACC and the Cheremosh Ukrainian Dance Ensemble. We’re talking generous plates of fried fish, coleslaw, French fries, and—crucially—varenyky (aka perogies). Beer and wine are available via the cash bar; ambiently positive geopolitical vibes are available for all diners. Also, gotta mention it: This animated fish chef is worth the price of admission. $15 adults; $10 kids. 4:30-7:30 p.m. 301 NE Main St., Minneapolis; find more info here. Fridays through April 11—Jay Boller
