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TUESDAY 6.30
The Doctors of Comedy
Sisyphus Brewing
Now, I would not let a single one of my favorite comedians give me a vaccine. But getting your doc in front of a microphone? That tends to yield much better results, as proven during the fall 2025 debut of this one-night showcase. Doctors of Comedy is headlined by Dr. Jesse Jacobs, a practicing Twin Cities physician, and Dr. Steve Windels, a biologist turned comedian. Special guest comics Todd Skoda (an attorney) and Ateh Ekinde (a med school drop out) will also appear, and the evening is hosted by Nate Hood (“idiot with a master's degree”). The fall installment of this showcase sold out, so get those tickets in advance! 21+. $15. 7 p.m. 712 Ontario Ave. W., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Em Cassel
THURSDAY 7.2
CONvergence 2026: The Geek in the Machine
Hyatt Regency Minneapolis
For over two decades, CONvergence has hosted a multi-day geek summit in the summer, typically over the holiday weekend. This four-day party has all the amenities of a good CON, and thousands of folks will find plenty to see and do regardless of fandoms. Guests of honor this year include an R2-D2 puppeteer, a cartoon voice actor, and local rapper Nur-D. But these gatherings are really about the culture, which you can explore and engage with via cosplay contests, panel talks on all sorts of topics, dance parties, late-night room parties, video gaming, and the masquerade ball on Saturday night. $45-$75 day passes; $135 four-day badges. Registration hours: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thu.; 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fri.-Sat.; 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sun. 1300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis; find more info here. Through Sunday—Jessica Armbruster
FRIDAY 7.3
Taste of Minnesota
Downtown Minneapolis
When Taste of Minnesota rose from the grave in 2023, the free downtown Minneapolis fest brought big (if older) names like Third Eye Blind and by Big Boi, followed by Martina McBride and Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis ('24), and, last year, Ludacris and Joan Jett ('25). This year, depending on your level of cynicism, things are getting more local (nice!) and/or cheaper to book (boo!) with an all-Minnesota lineup featuring synth-poppers Poliça, punk vets Dillinger Four, and indie-folkers Bad Bad Hats on Friday, and, on Saturday, hip-hop standouts Brother Ali, Ant, Dessa, Nur-D, and Sophia Eris, plus rockers Gully Boys. You know the drill for the rest of the fest: fleets of food trucks, dance and aerialist performances, fireworks on the Fourth, and, almost certainly, a speech from the mayor about how back downtown truly is. Free. 4–10 p.m. Fri.; noon to 10 p.m. Sat. Nicollet Mall & Washington Avenue, Minneapolis; find more info here. Also Saturday—Jay Boller
Scream It Off Screen
Parkway Theater
This monthly event has gotten big, with most shows at the Parkway selling out quickly. But, thanks to the holiday weekend, it appears that tickets are still around for July’s installment. The rules are simple: Folks submit short videos, host Terry Sommer gets ’em up on screen, and the crowd screams at what sucks. Whichever creation gets the least amount of screams (and then, at the end, the most screams) wins a giant check for $101.01. You probably still have questions, this Racket story from Macie Rasmussen may have the answers, but my advice is to just check it out and roll with it. This is a show that revels in organized chaos. 18+. $18/$25 at the door. 7 p.m. 4814 Chicago Ave. S., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jessica Armbruster
Ladies of Soul, Vol. 4: Celebrating the Waiting to Exhale Soundtrack
Dakota
Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds was the greatest R&B auteur of the ’90s, and on the soundtrack to Waiting to Exhale, he most fully conveyed his vision of female pop. You get Whitney Houston with the most understated vocals of her career, Brandy keeping it light for the teens, Aretha Franklin keeping in step with the time, and then Mary J. Blige burning it all down. Solorah the Essence, Ashley Commodore, and Monique Blakey will handle vocal duties for this tribute, backed by a band including guitarist Deevo, Tommy Barbarella on keyboards, and a rhythm section of Tony Axtell and RAWTWHYLAH. You are gon’ cry at this one. $47.10 and up. 7 p.m. 1010 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis; find more info here.—Keith Harris
SATURDAY 7.4
Hot Dog Eating Contest & Super Party Extravaganza
Meteor
Meteor’s parking lot hot-dog eating contest is so much more than just a hot-dog eating contest. I mean, it is a hot-dog eating contest in the classic sense—you can eat a lot of hot dogs, very quickly, and win free dogs at Meteor for a year—but then there are the other associated events. Last year I had the honor of judging Meteor’s more interpretive hot-dog eating contest, which asks: Who can eat a single hot dog the best? If you’re not entirely sure what to expect, it’s OK, neither were we. Free your mind and let the creative hot-dog consumption wash over you. This year, Meteor is debuting a third contest they’re calling “bike bite” which, as we understand it, will involve riding a bicycle past a dangling hot dog and trying to take a bite. Free. Noon to 6 p.m. 2027 N. Second St., Minneapolis; find more info here and preorder your drink tickets here.—Em Cassel
4th in the Park
Langford Park
St. Paul’s long-running 4th in the Park event packs in as much classic Fourth-of-Julyness as it can. If you live a very different life than I do, wake up early for the four- or two-mile races that open the event. For the rest of us, the 4th in the Park parade (which the event website touts as “a real, old-fashioned, small town slice of Americana”) starts at a more sensible hour (11 a.m.) and can be enjoyed while sitting down. After the parade, food trucks, bandstand entertainment, various sport tournaments, and kids’ activities abound in the park. Free. 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. 2180 Knapp St., St. Paul; find more info here.—Clare O’Connor
World Cup Street Fair
Utepils Brewing
Open wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiide for some soccerrrrrrrrrrrrr! As the 2026 FIFA World Cup heats up, families might be in need of places where the kids can participate in sport-specific activities and games, parents can relax creekside with adult beverages, and everyone can watch the matches on massive indoor and outdoor screens. With its World Cup Street Fair, Utepils, one of our favorite family-friendly breweries, checks those boxes the way Vinícius Júnior boots goals—effectively! There’ll also be live music, food trucks, and artisan vendors at this all-ages party celebrating the beautiful game. If you’re feeling as charitable as Kylian Mbappé is explosive, bring along some canned goods for the food drive. Free. 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. 225 N. Thomas Ave., Minneapolis; find more info here.—Jay Boller
Red, White, and Boom: Minneapolis
The Mighty Mississippi
Hide your pets, crack open an American lager, and put your noise-canceling headphones on the kiddos: Red, White, and Boom is back (and so are your neighborhood backyard pyros). This year, the big show in Minneapolis is also a day of fun, with morning yoga, a dozen or so food trucks, a bar trivia session, live music, ballroom dancing, and aerial performances in Water Works Park, with the big exploding sky show of patriotism capping off the night. Find more details about parking and viewing spots online. Events start around 10 a.m.; fireworks are at 10 p.m. West side of the Mississippi River, at Water Works and the Stone Arch Bridge, Minneapolis.—Jessica Armbruster
Red, White, and Boom: St. Paul
Cathedral Hill Park
Or perhaps you’d prefer to view your holiday pyrotechnics from a hill in St. Paul? For the first time in 10 years, you’ll be able to do that too, as the Rotary Club of St. Paul has raised the funds this year to bring it back. You’ll find food trucks along Dayton Avenue. and a free concert inside the Cathedral of St. Paul featuring A Prairie Home Companion’s Pat Donohue, Richard Kriehn, and Solomon J. Parham. At 10 p.m. tune your radios to WDGY (740 AM/92.1 FM) for a soundtrack synchronized to the show; other prime viewing spots include North Cathedral Park, Summit/Triangle Park, and the front lawn of Saint Paul College. Free. 6 p.m.; fireworks at dusk. 215 Summit Ave., St. Paul; find more info here.—Jessica Armbruster
SUNDAY 7.5
Revellion Fest
Flying V’s
You might be asking yourself: What the hell is Flying V’s? Well, well, well—looks like somebody isn’t a Racket completist. If you were, you’d already know about the newish straight-edge/hardcore/nonprofit music venue, which recently relocated from northeast Minneapolis to Robbinsdale. Revellion Fest serves as a great opportunity to check the place out, with a killer slate of bands (the Staboteurs, Couch Potato Massacre, Bonefire, Mr. Rogers & the Make Believe Friends, the Ramone: A One Man Tribute, and Nemesissy) joining a comedian (Kimberly Ashlynne), PhD speaker (Cat Jenning), local vendors, and food trucks. “This is all about community-building, about reconnecting with the kind of art that’s a beacon of hope to marginalized people," Revellion Fest organizer Chris Gilde says via press release. “It’s time to feel our feelings, express what we think, and get involved in rebuilding the world we want to actually live in.” You’ve got your noble punk marching orders: It’s time to rock. $10. 2–8 p.m. 4130 Lakeview Ave. N., Robbinsdale; find more info here.—Jay Boller
ONGOING
“Illusive Objects”
Goldstein Museum of Design
Our human eyeballs are not the greatest in the animal kingdom. We can’t see at night like felines or for miles like eagles, and reptiles probably detect movement better. But we sure do love looking at stuff. And when the mood strikes, we especially love looking at stuff that tricks our eyes and our brains, whether it’s a Magic Eye poster, a cake disguised as a grilled steak, or a candle that looks like a bowl of cereal. The Goldstein’s latest show celebrates our appreciation of stuff that looks like other stuff with 50 or so examples from its permanent collection. Items include tricks of texture, like a Schiaparelli dress that looks like bark; tricks of the trade, such as fake designer handbags; and double-take tricks, like kitchenware designed to look like corn. 12 McNeal Hall, 1985 Buford Ave., St. Paul. Through July 2—Jessica Armbruster
“Cats and Dogs in Soviet Art: Workers, Teachers, Friends”
The Museum of Russian Art
Pet obsession is nothing new. Pre-internet, folks were just as into their animals, relying on them for comfort, amusement, and help with everyday work tasks. For this show at TMORA, there’ll be 40 paintings on display celebrating cats, dogs, and other animal companions, as well as a collection of porcelain cat and canine figurines. 5500 Stevens Ave., Minneapolis; find more info here. Through July 12—Jessica Armbruster
The Tempest
Various Locations
Last year, Classical Actors Ensemble kept it light with the raunchy (for its time) comedy All’s Well That Ends Well. This year they’re going darker with The Tempest, one of Shakespeare’s final works. You might know it as the one that gave us the (unfortunately timely) banger, "Hell is empty, and all the devils are here.” It’s one of the Bard’s more bonkers works, featuring a shipwreck (Shakespeare loved a shipwreck), a vengeful magician, an angry spirit creature, and a drunk butler and jester who team up with an enslaved islander in hopes of murdering their way to freedom (I know who I’m rooting for). This summer you can see it in the parks of the Twin Cities and surrounding ‘burbs. Find times and other locations here. Through July 12—Jessica Armbruster
Sunset Yoga in the Sculpture Garden
Walker Art Center
You don’t have to pay money or hit up YouTube for a good yoga practice this summer. Free classes and special events are happening all over town. One great example: This weekly evening yoga session, held right by the Okciyapi piece in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. Bring a mat and some water for this one-hour Vinyasa-style (pose focused) session led by the Twin Cities Yoga Cooperative. And if you’re really ambitious, you can do free yoga almost every day of the week, with train depot yoga (Mon., Wed., Sat.), Greenway yoga (Fri.), anti-fascist yoga (Sun.), and even cemetery yoga (Sat.). Free; donations accepted. 7:30 p.m. 725 Vineland Place, Minneapolis; find more info here. Through August 6—Jessica Armbruster
Skyline Mini Golf
Walker Art Center
Warmer weather means it’s putt-putt season in Minnesota. Yeah sure, you can play mini-golf year-round in the North Loop, but it’s just not as whimsical an experience when you drop a course into a dimly lit bar with a “hot young singles only” vibe. The Twin Cities’ only putt-putt in the sky is back at the Walker, featuring 10 quirky holes made by local artists. New this year is Indhaha Dayaxa–Eyes of the Moon by Ifrah Mansour, a Minneapolis-based Somali artist who you may have seen performing at the Minnesota State Fair, featured on TPT’s Minnesota Original, or exhibiting works at the Mia. Return holes this year include the hot dog one, the one where you race via color, the one with ping-pong paddles, and the pool-hall one. Bring sunscreen and enjoy those views of Loring Park, downtown Minneapolis, and the endless Hennepin-Lyndale traffic jam. $12. 725 Vineland Place, Minneapolis; reserve a time and find more info here. Through October 4—Jessica Armbruster
