October 13, 2010 - Staff at Minneapolis-based Coffee House Press are celebrating today after one of its titles "I Hotel" was nominated for a National Book Award for Fiction. The book by Karen Tei Yamashita tells the story of the Asian-American community in northern California in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Coffee House founder and publisher Allan Kornblum, who signed the author about 20 years ago, says the nomination is a huge honor. This is really a thrill to have this form of recognition for a writer who we've stuck with and who has stuck with us, to watch her talent to continue to grow and see this form of recognition for really her magnum opus.
October 12, 2010 - MPR’s Euan Kerr interviews Darryl Holter, a developer living in Los Angeles, who has returned to Minneapolis to stage a CD release concert at Palmer's Bar for his recording "West Bank Gone." Holter lived in the neighborhood in the late 1960's. At the time it was a musical hotspot attracting international attention.
August 5, 2010 - John Kander, half of the Kander and Ebb team which wrote the musicals "Cabaret," and "Chicago," is in Minnesota working on a new show. He says it's possibly his most important theatrical piece. "The Scottsboro Boys," which opens tomorrow night at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, tells the story of a pivotal civil rights case.
April 12, 2010 - This is National Library Week, and one of the people out talking about the importance of libraries is Neil Gaiman. He's the award-winning author of "Coraline", "The Graveyard Book", several film scripts, and the Sandman comic book. Gaiman, who lives just outside the Twin Cities metro, is serving as honorary chair for the event. He told Euan Kerr he knows through personal experience libraries are more vital now than ever.
April 8, 2010 - The Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis will present the world premier of a theatrical adaptation of a novel by Minnesota author Louise Erdrich. The critically acclaimed novel - "The Master Butcher's Singing Club" - follows people living in a small town in North Dakota between the two world wars. Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Marsha Borman wrote the script for the production, which will be directed by Francesca Zumbello. Guthrie Artistic Director Joe Dowling says he expects a lavish production. Marsha Norman has done a beautiful job in not just creating the characters from the book and creating thems on the stage, but also giving the narrative a very strong through line. There will be music in it of course, because it is "The Master Butcher's Singing Club." There will be songs, various different songs, both German and some American songs. Dowling says Erdrich, who lives in Minneapolis, has been very involved in the project. The play will open the Guthrie's 2010-2011 season in September.
April 7, 2010 - The Guthrie Theater will open it's next season with a world premier adaptation of Louise Erdrich's bestselling novel "The Master Butcher's Singing Club. Critically acclaimed when it came out in 2003, Erdrich's novel "The Master Butcher's Singing Club" is the saga of people living in a small North Dakota town between the two world wars. The Guthrie production will bring together an all-star creative team. The script is by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Marsha Norman. The play will be directed by the internationally acclaimed Francesca Zambello. She directed the Guthrie's musical adaptation of "Little House on the Prairie." In a statement released by the Guthrie Artistic Director Joe Dowling said "To have the opportunity to produce a new play based on a novel by a significant Minnesota author like Louise Erdrich is particularly gratifying." The production will open in September.
February 17, 2010 - MPR’s Euan Kerr reports on the play "Black Pearl Sings." Kerr talks with director Lou Bellamy and actors from play.
December 4, 2009 - Director Jason Reitman seems to have a thing about writers with Minnesota connections. He had a huge hit with "Juno" written by Diablo Cody. Now he's getting a lot of buzz for "Up in the Air," which is based on Minnesota native Walter Kirn novel. The movie opens this weekend. Reitman came into the Minnesota Public Radio studios recently to talk with Euan Kerr about his career, and how he decided against being a director.
November 10, 2009 - MPR’s Euan Kerr talks with Minneapolis rhythm and blues legend Willie Murphy about his double CD release “Autobiographical Notes.” Murphy also shares his thoughts on American music.
November 6, 2009 - Bemidji based writer Kent Nerburn sometimes struggles to categorize what he creates. He writes fictional narratives based on the real stories of people he has met on reservations in Minnesota and the Dakotas. Euan Kerr reports Nerburn latest book, "The Wolf at Twilight," explores the sad legacy of the Indian Boarding schools.