News

This Week in Saint Paul: Monday, June 9–Sunday, June 15, 2014

I have been thinking about this week for some time. I have been wondering what I would say, what I would tell you about, and have been feeling overwhelmed. The summer is busy and is even more so this weekend with the Light Rail Transit Green Line Opening on June 14. With free rides from Lowertown to our neighbors in Minneapolis, there’s a lot to see, with activities, entertainment, and art at each stop. The Saint Paul Almanac will be at the Victoria Station with our Storymobile. Hopefully, we will see you there as well as a few other places this week.

This Week in Saint Paul: Monday, June 2–Sunday, June 8, 2014

June is a busy month for the Saint Paul Almanac. There are a lot of dates you should save: June 3, June 14, and June 27, to be specific. We have been telling Saint Paul’s story in many ways for many years. We still are looking for more stories, more voices, and new ways to collect them. On Tuesday, June 3, we will be celebrating at the Amsterdam with our new look. On June 14, we will show off our new Storymobile at the Victoria Green Line station for the Green Line Opening.

June 19, 2014 – Soul Sounds Open Mic with Too Black

TOO BLACK, a graduate of Ball State University, is a poet and spoken word artist from Muncie, IN. The name TOO BLACK developed from wanting to challenge the perceptions of blackness and humanity in general.  Influenced by a wide variety of artist and historical figures, from Malcolm X to George Carlin, TOO BLACK brings a versatile perspective to the stage.

Storymobile Brings People-Powered Storytelling to the Streets of Saint Paul

SAINT PAUL, MINN. (May 28, 2014) – June 14 marks the rollout of Saint Paul Almanac’s Storymobile. Storymobile is a moveable community engagement tool that makes it easy to share, display, collect, and generate the narratives that make Saint Paul the vibrant and diverse city that it is. Look for this multimedia, solar-powered roving art space throughout the summer. This “stories on wheels” is on a bicycle trailer with ready tools—iPads, microphones, amps, and keyboards, as well as good old paper and pencil—to share and record stories.

This Week in Saint Paul: Monday, May 26–Sunday, June 1, 2014

If you did not notice last week, festival season is upon us. As you make your way through these festivals, remember, you are not only making memories and stories, but you are also making history. Who knows what you will see this summer, and the Saint Paul Almanac will be doing its part to join the fun including taking time to roll out our new Storymobile at the opening of the light rail Green Line on Saturday, June 14!

2014 Saint Paul Almanac wins the Midwest Book Award for Travel; finalist in four other categories

Last Wednesday, May 14, The Saint Paul Almanac took home the top prize in the Travel category at the Midwest Book Awards. We were finalists in the categories of Culture, Midwest Regional Interests: Text, Reference, and, thanks to our awesome web man Nigel Parry, Publisher’s Website. The Almanac has won previous Midwest Book Awards for Travel (2012) and Culture (2013). This is the fruits of a great community, an Almanac family that is proving its value in a lot of different corners of the our Saint Paul world, and beyond. We are proud, not so much for the awards, but more for the unique and amazing work we do with a rare assembly of community members who continue to create something special.

This Week in Saint Paul: Monday, May 19–Sunday, May 25, 2014

Last Wednesday, May 14, The Saint Paul Almanac took home top prize in the Travel category at the Midwest Book Awards. We were finalists in the categories of Culture, Midwest Regional Interests: Text, Reference, and, thanks to our awesome web man Nigel Parry, Publisher’s Website. This is the work of a great community, an Almanac family that is proving its value in a lot of different corners of the our Saint Paul world, and beyond. We are proud, not so much for the awards, but more for the unique and amazing work we do with a rare assembly of community members who continue to create something special.

May 28, 2014: David Mura presents “E/Merging Voices of the Twin Cities on Race & Identity” at the Lowertown Reading Jam

Featuring performances by David Mura • Chantz Erolin • Nikko Sencer-Mura • Dorothy O’Berry • Malanda J. Simba • Dane Verrett • with emcee Robert Karimi. In recent years a whole new generation of poets, spoken-word artists, and rappers have appeared on the Twin Cities’ art scene. Their work explores the issues of race and identity and the changing demographics of our area. Some of the young writers on this bill come from the Voices Merging program of the University of Minnesota. Some are connected with the independent local hip-hop scene and the rap producer Julian Fairbanks.

This Week in Saint Paul: Monday, May 12–Sunday, May 18, 2014

Last week, some of us celebrated National Train Day and the first train to pull out of Union Depot since the early 1970s. I imagine a day when I can walk out my door, take a generous walk to the Light Rail, and wind up not far from my sister’s house in Chicago without having to set foot in a car or a plane. In a month, the Green Line will be able to take us close to many arts happenings around our city, whether along University Avenue, in Lowertown, in Downtown, or just a few blocks either direction of the tracks. We don’t need to wait for the train to enjoy the art now. The weather is great. Let’s get out!

This Week in Saint Paul: Monday, May 5–Sunday, May 11, 2014

Spring arrives slowly, but Saint Paul hasn’t slowed down. We had a busy Saint Paul Art Crawl two weekends ago, Cinco de Mayo on the West Side, and the Festival of Nations in Downtown this past weekend—and maybe some weather dampening the heels of our festiveness. The momentum and better weather will carry us into more opportunities to keep up the process of thawing and warming up, and art is the star we’re following in the brighter heavens. Here are a few ideas.

June 5, 2014 – Soul Sounds Open Mic presents Nature Poems

Now that summer has reached full throttle, let’s celebrate it! This is the space for natural poems. Tonight is a space for poems that celebrate the water, the wind, the earth, the universe, animals, plants, and everything in between. We all know that Minnesota summers come and go very swiftly, our poetry can make it last a bit longer.

May 29, 2014 – Soul Sounds Open Mic with Fres Thao

Fres Thao is an advocate for the Arts; believing Art is direct energy from the soul. As a Hip Hop pioneer of the Hmong American community, he has been an active lyricist, performer, producer and mentor since the early 90’s. Founding member of nationally dispersed Hip Hop group, Illegoaliens and Twin Cities based collective, Pupils of the Storm, Fres has released numerous albums, mixtapes and compilations including his recent full length album Mind Full Of. He was a recipient of the Minnesota State Arts Board Artist Initiative, accessing funds to create his “Mind Full Of” vinyl project; the first full length Hmong Hip Hop vinyl record album. He is in the process of writing an illustrated children’s poetry book.