When it's hovering around 70 degrees in Minnesota in November, one gets out and does things. This last week or so has been no exception...I have barely been home!
Thursday was the second Open Call of the year, "The Parchman Hour" at the Guthrie...which Matt, AJ and I pregamed at Freehouse.
The show closed this weekend, but it absolutely blew my mind - the fusion of digital effects, soul, gospel and popular music, and an unbelievably talented cast conveyed the message of the show so powerfully. The programming the Guthrie is putting on continues to leave me so excited for its future under new artistic director Joseph Haj!
On Friday, Jodester and I made a pilgrimage to the lovely Saint Genevieve in south Minneapolis - a beautiful little French café in the old Lynn on Bryant space. Their champagne list is comprehensive...so we built our own flights!
After running into multiple people we knew, including one of my favorite high school English teachers and the wife of a college friend of my father's, we settled in to savor the creamiest rosé...
...along with a perfect-size-to-split croque Madame and a butternut squash dish that I'm still fantasizing about.
Naturally, nothing pairs better with champagne than perfect French fries and bearnaise!
Having snacked ourselves silly and gotten completely champagne buzzed, we headed off to Orchestra Hall to hang with my bff Alan Page, who was narrating Copland's "Lincoln Portrait" that evening. The pre-show discussion featured Page and new associate conductor Roderick Cox, discussing the power of American music to influence perception and open social dialogues. It definitely got interesting...and sure feels topical in the light of this week's events!
The program, in addition to "Lincoln Portrait," also featured 22-year old violinist Esther Yoo making her Minnesota Orchestra debut on Bruch's violin concerto, and closed with Dvorak's stunning "New World Symphony." I can honestly say it's probably one of the most stirring programs I've ever seen there...superbly conducted by my silver-fox crush Osmo Vanska, and just incredibly moving and passionately performed. So grateful to live in a city with such a superlative symphony!
I had a sleepover in Lakeville with Papa Bear and Jodester, mostly so I could check out their new bathroom renovation...that floor ahhh!
After much deliberation, we headed to Glam Doll Donuts for a "light breakfast." Funny how a light breakfast gets so much heavier when one member of your group can't pick a flavor...cough...RICHARD. (My personal favorite is the blackberry Hennessy donut, closest to the camera in the photo above. Get it! You won't regret it.)
Then off to Lake of the Isles, for one of the most stunning fall walks ever!
Temps hovered around 65-70 degrees, the sun was shining, and it felt like everyone was smiling. If Minnesota was always like this, nobody would ever leave!
Sunday found me at a different lake...Harriet this time, to play with my favorite pup, Molly! Kelsie is kind enough to borrow her and share her with me whenever she likes...and we took her on her first 5k as we walked the whole lake!
Miss Molly was having none of it. She wanted more attention than she was getting, and crapped out, naturally, right around the halfway point. It took us almost two hours to get all the way around with a capricious, hyper and then exhausted pup!
So we rewarded ourselves with beer, naturally. First at Indeed, then down the block at Able! Molly was her cuddliest, most snuggly exhausted self.
And I, being a Molly fiend, was in heaven.
Nothing better than an Internet full of adorable puppies, right?!