Last week was a big arts week for Saint Paul, with the first three readings of the Almanac Literary Festival and the the Fall Art Crawl. We are pretty busy this week, too. There are more events in the Literary Festival and the second The Way We See It: A Fresh Look at Vision Loss, a groundbreaking anthology from Vision Loss Resources created with the help of the Almanac’s unique editor process.
This week’s Soul Sounds Open Mic will feature Downrange Telemetrics. They are poet Becca Barniskis and musician Nick Jaffe. Becca is the curator of The Dirty Hands Banfill-Locke 2014 Reading Series. Her chapbook of poems, Mimi and Xavier Star in a Museum That Fits Entirely in One’s Pocket, is also available both in vinyl LP and in digital formats as a collaboration with musician Nick Jaffe.
Featuring writers published in the 2015 Saint Paul Almanac reading their poems & stories in venues around the city. Events are free and open to all ages.
It was nice to be spoiled by the lovely sun and some warmth so late in the season, but last week’s chill and rain told me two things: one is that I have to go into some warm coffee shops and bookstores for the 2015 Saint Paul Almanac Literary Festival. The second is that we have to hope and pray for great weather for the Saint Paul Art Crawl this weekend!
A handful of dedicated young people have been pulling through the streets of Frogtown and Old Rondo for an entire summer. Have you seen it? The buzz around this brilliant idea has created as much dedication from its followers as it has from the folks who have been pedalling the bike that pulls it.
My Minnesota mind cannot help but wonder if we are going to be “punished” for the abundance of wonderful weather that has greeted the many wonderful activities in the Capital City. One look at the Almanac arts calendar that imposed pennance is not is sight.
Sunnie is a lyricist, choreographer, and performer. She focuses on women empowerment and building a voice for the next generation. She has performed at many places around the Twin Cities, including open mics, showcases, contests, banquets, and nonprofit speaking engagements.
I would like to call this moment in time a “breather”: a time for us to pause and smile after a very huge and successful book release party, a very busy weekend for Storymobile at both the Selby Avenue Jazz Fest and Seitu Jones’s Create: A Community Table, and so many things that have been going on in Saint Paul over the past several weeks.
On Thursday, September 18, Soul Sounds Open Mic will host Melvin Giles, community activist and the man navigating this summer’s Storymobile tour. Melvin makes no compromises in describing himself as a Peacemaker: he is known as “Peace Bubble Man.
Our neighbors are fabulous and brought that to Thursday’s book release party, as they do to everything Saint Paul. Even though the festiveness of the summer weather is escaping, our warmth and energy were enough to make it a great gathering.
Soul Sounds Open Mic marks this important date in global history by presenting a space for “Hard Truths and Deep Loss,” a date to reflect on the events of 9/11, its impact, varying narratives, opinions, intersections, and elegies
Laresa Avent is a young artist who believes very much in community and the importance of education. Laresa is not just an artist, but she is also an activist and an educator.
Help us to SAVE OUR STORIES by supporting Saint Paul Almanac’s literary and visual artists, and filmmakers.
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