September 6, 2012 - Penumbra Theatre is in a financial crisis. The acclaimed St. Paul African-American theater announced today that in order to stay afloat it had to cut a third of its budget, lay off six staff members, and suspend any productions for the upcoming theater season.
September 6, 2012 - MPR’s Cathy Wurzer talks with Lou Bellamy, artistic director of Penumbra Theatre, on the financial struggles affecting the organization. The nationally-acclaimed African-American Theater company will stage no shows this season and has laid off a third of its 16 full-time staff members.
September 26, 2012 - MPR’s Nikki Tundel profiles Pao Her, a Hmong photographer beginning a new visual arts tradition. The photography showcases the Hmong American experience through the eyes of someone who, as a child, often felt smothered by her Hmong culture.
October 2, 2012 - On this Daily Circuit program, MPR’s Kerri Miller talks with Native American author Louise Erdrich about her book “The Round House.” Erdrich describes the writing decisions and background to book.
November 15, 2012 - Minnesota author Louise Erdrich won a big literary prize last night. She was given the National Book Award for fiction for her newest novel, "Roundhouse." In an interview excerpt, Erdrich talks about the need for solitude as she develops her characters. Segment also includes hosts discussing listener email and feedback about various news items.
November 30, 2012 - MPR’s David Cazares profiles all-Black jazz group Mother of Masks, a group that blends spoken word, poetry and improvised music in a blues-based fountain of black creative consciousness.
December 17, 2012 - As part of the series "Art Heroes," MPR’s Marianne Combs profiles Jeanne Calvit, Interact Center for the Visual & Performing Arts founder and director, as well as numerous artists from Interact.
December 21, 2012 - MPR’s Nikki Tundel reports on the CrossRoads Panorama's production "Scrooge in tha Hood," a modern take on the classic tale "A Christmas Carol." Actors portray the struggling Scratchit family, a twist on Charles Dickens's Cratchit family.
December 27, 2012 - On this Daily Circuit segment, MPR’s Marianne Combs presents a collections of interviews from local Latino artists who share their views and creative experiences in Minnesota. Interviewees are Susana DeLeon, lawyer and director of an Aztec cultural troupe that performs traditional dances connected to the environment; recording artist Maria Isa; author Sandra Benitez; and photographer Xavier Tavera.
January 7, 2013 - St. Paul's Penumbra Theatre says it's ready to raise the curtain once again.