June 20, 2013

Minneapolis lights up with arts and entertainment Saturday night

WHAT: The Secret City festivals Sunset Party Finale offers a chance to see and hear some of the festivals many fascinating sights and sounds. In addition to MIMMI, a glowing, new art installation floating over the Convention Center plaza, the event features a bike ballet, a MIMMI dance party, youth choir, and strolling musicians. Mayor R.T. Rybak will participate in some events, and he and the artists will be available for interviews.

WHEN: Saturday, June 22. Activities on the plaza begin at 6 p.m. The Sunset Party Finale runs from 9:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

WHERE: Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza, 1301 Second Ave. S.

MORE: The first annual Secret City festival is a free event that features art, music, and entertainment in downtown Minneapolis and along the Midtown Greenway.

Free performances and events will take place in downtown Minneapolis from 6 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. at the Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza, the Sculpture Garden/Basilica of Saint Mary area, and along Hennepin Avenue, between 5^th and 9^th streets. In addition, the Midtown Greenway bike path will feature artists and other activities during its annual event, The Greenway Glow, from 6 p.m. to midnight.

For a complete listing of events, visit www.minneapolis.org/secretcity.

Secret City is both the public celebration of MIMMI (the Minneapolis Interactive Macro Mood Installation), a new art work installed in the Convention Center Plaza, and it signals the start of Made Here, the new Hennepin Cultural District pop up art activities along Hennepin Avenue.

People are encouraged to bike and walk the paths between the various sites and make their own art with participatory mosaic art and video projections. Heres a sampling of whats happening at each of the hubs of activity that night:

Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza

6 p.m. 10:30 p.m., 1301 Second Ave. S.

At the Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza, a new art installation, MIMMI (Minneapolis Interactive Macro-Mood Installation), will be glowing over the city. Other activities include ping pong tables, a bicycle ballet choreographed by Leah Nelson/Nubia, music, hands-on art making, dancing and other multiple ongoing performances. MIMMI is a large cloud-like sculpture that hovers over the plaza, designed to change color, shape and climatic behavior depending on the collective mood of the citys residents. Dont miss the Sunset Party on the solstice evening at 9:30 p.m. with JD Steele and the MacPhail Community Choir, Mayor R.T. Rybak and a variety of performers under the glow of MIMMI.

Minneapolis Sculpture Garden/The Basilica of Saint Mary
6:15 p.m. 10 p.m.; Mini golf until midnight

At the Basilica of Saint Mary, Aztec dancers will perform on the plaza, and the building will be open for tours. Adjacent to the Basilica, at the I-94 underpass, see a performance by The BodyCartography Project and installations by artists from The Soap Factory. Mini golf will be open at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden until midnight.

Hennepin Avenue between 5^th and 9^th streets
6 p.m. 10 p.m. (10 Thousand Sounds begins at 4 p.m.)

On Hennepin Avenue, there will be free performances at Brave New Workshop and a chance to see artists rehearsing for the upcoming 20^th anniversary of the Minnesota Fringe Festival inside Block E. Block E will also feature the Made Here installation projects. On electronic billboards, Clear Channel Outdoor will be hosting animations created by faculty and students of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Also on that night, City Pages will launch its first annual 10 Thousand Sounds, a ticketed event featuring local bands that runs from 4 p.m. 10 p.m. at 8^th and Hennepin.

Midtown Greenway between Uptown and the Mississippi River
6 p.m. Midnight

The Greenway Glow, an illuminated arts and night bike ride event sponsored by the Midtown Greenway Coalition, will feature more than 40 art installations and performances. The Glow will include a giant LED catapult, a lantern parade over the Sabo Bridge and live music, theater, and dance.

The Secret City Festival is organized by the City of Minneapolis in partnership with many arts and culture organizations throughout the city. For more information on the Secret City festival, visit the website at www.minneapolis.org/secretcity.

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