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MN Shortlist is your weekly curated roundup of recommended events from MPR News, highlighting standout performances, exhibits and gatherings around the region.

 is an award-winning podcast from KFAI that produces insightful audio documentaries that shed light on moments in Minnesota history and culture. Different producers from the state produce these in-depth reports — including some of Minnesota's preeminent audio journalists, including Peabody winner Katie Thornton and MPR News’ Melissa Olson. 

One of the latest episodes is “As American as Chinese Food,” produced by arts writer and critic Sheila Regan. It follows the evolution of Chinese cuisine in the Twin Cities–from chop suey houses to the chain restaurant Leeann Chin. Utilizing archival audio, music and new interviews, it's a fascinating look at a cuisine that is a cornerstone in American culture. You can listen wherever you get your podcasts. 

 — Have you ever wondered what happens to Tevye from “Fiddler on the Roof” after he and his family were forced to pack up their lives and leave their home in Anatevka? A new one-man show by Tom Dugan picks up where their story left off, presenting a possible answer as to where Tevye found himself next. 

 revisits the familial love established in Sholem Aleichem’s short stories, combining it with early 20th-century social movements. The play looks at American topics as experienced by Tevye and his family, including women’s rights and fair labor. Los Angeles-based playwright and actor Dugan has been touring this show, which has broken box office records, selling over 7,000 tickets last season. 

Catch the show at the Sheldon Theatre in Red Wing. It is especially timely as the nation reckons with similar issues identity and home. 

‘Medicine River’ with Mary Annette Pember

 — Cincinnati-based journalist Mary Annette Pember is celebrating the release of her new book 

“Medicine River” at Moon Palace Books

“Medicine River” explores the grim history of Native American boarding schools in the U.S. Pember’s incisive writing tells about the lasting impacts of the abuse perpetrated in these spaces and the way education was used to dismantle Native culture. 

Pember has long written about injustices faced by the Native community, with work featured in The Atlantic, The Guardian, ICT and more. She will be joined by Robert Pilot, who is a citizen of the Ho-Chunk Nation and the host of Native Roots Radio

 — Original scoring for movies is usually reserved for enterprises with big budgets, backed by large studios. 

 however, pairs musicians and filmmakers to develop original scores and short films in less than four months. The films are then screened, with the music played live by a 16-piece orchestra. 

Celebrating its ninth year, this edition of Film Score Fest will feature 24 short films. 

 features a 10-team poetry slam tournament where more than 50 participants from around the world compete for the champion title. Poets will descend on Open Book in Minneapolis April 25-26. 

“With the (likely permanent) closure of CUPSI (College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational)  and the longer-than-expected hiatus of many regional competitions, we wanted to create a space where college students and regional poets could compete and have a good ole’ tournament in this art form that we love,” organizers write. Teams include Queer Shenanigans, Macalester Poetry Slam, Ghosts of Moon City and Slam Free or Die. 

Metropolitan Ballet presents ‘Don Quixote’

 —Based on Miguel de Cervantes’ 17th-century novel “Don Quixote,” this ballet tells the famous story of one man’s dream to restore chivalry. And it tells the story in all its colorful and comedic glory, reminding the audience that both love and identity can be fickle delusions, regardless of whether you are a knight-in-shining-armor or just a man. 

The Fitzgerald Theater will be home to a fast-paced, mischievous and delightful night 

Twin Cities Independent Bookstore Passport 2025

 — Keep proof of where your books take you with your annual (and pocket-sized) 

Twin Cities Independent Bookstore Passport.

Published by Rain Taxi’s Twin Cities Literary Calendar, it offers the opportunity to get discounts and prizes when readers visit local bookstores. 

The passport (designed by local artist Kevin Cannon) is free and can be picked up at any participating store before Sunday, April 27. Until then, travel to Twin Cities area bookstores — where they will stamp your passport for rewards down the road. This is especially festive since Saturday is Independent Bookstore Day. 

 will take over the city’s many neighborhoods over the next three weekends. Find the crawl in Ward 2 April 25-27; Wards 5, 6, and 7 May 2-4; and Wards 1, 3 and 4 May 9-11. 

More than 550 artists (double that of past crawls) will participate at venues including Erta Ale Ethiopian Restaurant and Lowertown Lofts Artist Cooperative in Lowertown, Indigenous Roots Cultural Center and Urban Roots in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood and Springboard for the Arts in the Little Mekong Cultural District. Art crawlers can get a free ride pass through Metro Transit. 

Jacob Aloi

Author

Anika Besst

Alex V. Cipolle

MN Shortlist is your weekly curated roundup of recommended events from MPR News, highlighting standout performances, exhibits and gatherings around the region.


Courtesy of Film Score Fest

Sheila Regan standing and smiling in front of pink blossoms.

MN Shortlist: April 24-30

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