January 2012 Northfield Entertainment Guide

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Š Northfield Entertainment Guide

Contents

Galleries �������������������������������������������������� 2 Theater ��������������������������������������������������� 3 Sports ������������������������������������������������������ 3 Happenings ����������������������������������������� 4-14 Just Curious: Susan Hvistendahl ��������������������18-19 Clubs, Classes & More �������������������� 23

your source for Northfield-area happenings since 2005

Vol. 1, Issue 1

January 2012

17 Bridge Square Northfield, MN 55057

December Gigs �������������������������������������� 17 Dining �������������������������������������������������� 24 Advertisers’ Index ���������������������������� 24 Historic Happenings ������������������20-22

507/663-7937

neg@northfieldguide.com Publisher: Rob Schanilec

By All Means Graphics Advertising: info@northfieldguide.com or 507/663-7937 Contributors: Felicia Crosby Susan Hvistendahl Locallygrownnorthfield.org Northfield.org Northfield Music Collective

On the Cover:

Online: at northfieldguide.com! A flippin’ cool digital edition, downloadable PDF, archives and content submission form.

Join Scott Richardson and many others and give Old Man Winter a piece of your mind at the Northfield Historical Society’s Annual Winter Scream, Saturday, Jan. 14, 12-2pm in Bridge Square. There’ll be a communal sing-a-long, an ice cream social and optional chili at the Rueb-n-Stein as well as a coloring contest for the kids.

Happy ­Birthday to the Best ­Burger in Town!

The Northfield ­Entertainment Guide congratulates the Rueb ‘N’ Stein on

years of great food, great service and for being a great downtown neighbor. Stop in and raise a glass to Joe and Jodi – here’s looking at you, kids!

January 2012

Check us out online at www.northfieldguide.com

Eclectic Goat – 418 Division St.

507/786-9595 • Tu/W 10-5, Th 10-7, F/Sa 10-5, Su 12-4 – More than 120 artists represented. “A shop where...ART RULES!”

The Flaten Art Museum/­ Dittmann Center

1520 St. Olaf Ave. • 507/646-3556 stolaf.edu/depts/art/ • M/Tu/W/F 10am-5pm, Th until 8, Sa/Su 2-5pm, closed through Jan. 6.

Apprentice Art Exhibit – Jan. 6-Feb. 12 – work by art apprentices who graduated in 2011 and were awarded apprenticeships to work on their portfolios for a year.

Northfield Arts Guild

304 Division St. • 507/645-8877 northfieldartsguild.org • M-F 10-5 Members’ Show – Through Jan. 7 – Guild member artists working in all media fill the gallery in this non-juried exhibition.

Here and Then – Through Jan. 7 – Mixed media paintings by Jill Ewald involve relationships between shape, form, color and texture in works that reference landscape and architectural space.

Surfacing – Jan. 11-Feb. 18 – Oil paintings by Paul Brokken and Carolyn Hartwell, functional sculptural ceramics

by Juliane Shibata. Opening Reception: Jan. 13, 7-9pm.

In the Members’ Room: One Stroke at a Time – Jan. 11-Feb. 17 – Joyce Francis exhibits her ink and watercolor paintings.

These works on paper are made using the Zentangle technique, a meditative art form that uses repeating patterns. Opening Reception: Jan. 13, 7-9pm.

Northfield Arts Guild at Allina Clinic

1440 Jefferson Rd. • M-T 7-8, F 7-7, Sa 9-3 Donna Jackson – Through Jan. 16 Fred Gustafson – Jan. 16-Feb. 27 – largescale plates influenced by traditional Chinese painting styles.

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Northfield Senior Center ­Gallery

1651 Jefferson Pkwy. • 507/664-3700 northfieldseniorcenter.org • M-F 7am8pm, Sat 7am-5pm, Sun 10am-5pm Quilters’ Art – Through Jan. 29 – local quilt-artists display wall hangings and few bed-size quilts.

Paradise Center for the Arts

321 Central Ave., Faribault • 507/3327372 • paradisecenterforthearts.org Tu/W/F/Sa 12-5pm, Th 12-8pm, Su/M closed.

Carlander Family Gallery: “It’s Greece to Me” – Jan. 13-Feb. 28 – Father James Cly Zotalis’ collection of pen/ink and watercolors of current sites in modern day Greece, reflect the people and places of the Greek mainland and surrounding islands. Opening Reception: Jan. 13, 5-7pm.

Vranesh Boardroom Gallery: “I’m Just Trying to Tell You that This is the Direction our Body is Going” – Jan. 13-Feb. 28 – Alex Lange’s performance work that attempts to use the body to close the distance between Alex and the sun.

The performance becomes a meditation on Alex’s spiritual experience.

Opening Reception: Jan. 13, 5-7pm.

Corey Lyn Cregor Memorial Gallery: Katie Sohlobohm – Jan. 13-Feb. 28 – Student work. Opening Reception: Jan. 13, 5-7pm.

Studio Elements

16 Bridge Square 507/786-9393 studioelements.net • Th 10am-8pm, F/Sa 10am-5pm, Su 12-4pm.

Fine art, unique gifts and fun junk.

swag – 423 Division St. • 507/663-8870

Tu-Sa, 10am-5pm Hand-made, one-of-a-kind funky local art.

© Northfield Entertainment Guide

Thursday, January 12

SPORTS

Wrestling – Raiders vs. Rochester Century, 5pm Raiders vs. Farmington, 8pm Hockey – Raiders Girls vs. Shakopee, 7:30pm

Here are the home games…

Monday, January 2

Basketball – St. Olaf Men’s vs. Gustavus Adolphus College, 7:30pm Tuesday, January 3

Friday, January 13

Basketball – Raiders Boys vs. Red Wing, 7:30pm Saturday, January 14

Nordic Ski – Raiders vs. Winona Senior, 3:30pm Gymnastics – Raiders Girls vs. New Prague, 6:30pm Hockey – Raiders Girls vs. Waseca, 7:30pm

Basketball – St. Olaf Women’s vs. College of St. Benedict, 3pm Swim & Dive – St. Olaf Intrasquad/Alumni Meet, 3pm

Wednesday, January 4

Sunday, January 15

Basketball – St. Olaf Men’s vs. Concordia College-Moorhead, 7:45pm

Hockey – St. Olaf Women’s vs. Lindenwood University, 2pm Monday, January 16

Thursday, January 5

Hockey – Raiders Boys vs. Farmington, 7:30pm

Hockey – Raiders Girls vs. Austin, 7:30pm Basketball – St. Olaf Women’s vs. College of St. Catherine, 7:30pm

Friday, January 6

Tuesday, January 17

Hockey – St. Olaf Men’s vs. St. Norbert College, 7:30pm

Wrestling – St. Olaf vs. Waldorf College, 7pm

Saturday, January 7

Wednesday, January 18

Swim & Dive – St. Olaf vs. Macalester College, Hamline, 1pm Hockey – St. Olaf Men’s vs. UW-Stevens Point, 7:30pm

Basketball – St. Olaf Men’s vs. St. Thomas, 7:30pm Friday, January 20

Tuesday, January 10

Nordic Ski – Raiders vs. TBA, 3:30pm Basketball – Raiders Boys vs. Farmington, 7:30pm Hockey – St. Olaf Women’s vs. Bethel University, 7:30pm

Gymnastics – Raiders Girls vs. Farmington, 6:30pm Basketball – Raiders Girls vs. New Prague, 7:30pm Hockey – Raiders Girls vs. Academy of Holy Angels, 7:30pm Wednesday, January 11

Basketball – St. Olaf Men’s vs. Augsburg College, 7:30pm

Theater

Saturday, January 21

Track & Field – Carleton Men’s College Triangular Hockey – Raiders Girls vs. Chanhassen/Chaska, 2pm St. Olaf Men’s vs. Bethel University, 7:30pm Basketball – Carleton Women’s vs. St. Olaf, 1pm Carleton Men’s vs. St. Olaf, 3pm Raiders Girls vs. Rochester Mayo, 7:30pm Tuesday, January 24

Basketball – Raiders Girls vs. Academy of Holy Angels, 7:30pm Hockey – Raiders Girls vs. New Prague, 7:30pm

High School One Act Plays

Thursday, January 26

Nakes and Alone

Wrestling – Raiders vs. Waterville, Elysian, Morristown, Shakopee, 5pm Hockey – Raiders Boys vs. Red Wing, 7:30pm

Jan. 27-28, Feb. 3-4; 7-10pm High School Auditorium

Jan. 20-21, 8pm Northfield Arts Guild Theater Not much more naked than standing on a stage alone, and Brendon Etter conjures that vulnerability in all its forms with “Naked and Alone.” Sixteen short plays – one person at a time – in sketches that run from monologues to dialogues with unheard characters, to stranger situations still. Provocative, with themes that span comedy to tragedy to the patently absurd, these short works are mostly actor-directed, with input from author Etter. Proceeds benefit the Arts Guild. Tickets ($10) and more information at 507/645-8877 or www.northfieldartsguild.org.

Friday, January 27

Basketball – Raiders Girls vs. Shakopee, 7:30pm Hockey – St. Olaf Men’s vs. University of St. Thomas, 7:30pm Saturday, January 28

Gymnastics – High School Girls Invitational, 10:30am Swim & Dive – Carleton vs. St. Olaf, 11am St. Olaf Invitational, 5pm Basketball – St. Olaf Women’s vs. St. Mary’s University, 1pm St. Olaf Men’s vs. St. Mary’s University, 3pm Hockey – St. Olaf Women’s vs. University of St. Thomas, 2pm Monday, January 30

Basketball – St. Olaf Men’s vs. Hamline University, 7:30pm Tuesday, January 31

Gymnastics – Raiders Girls vs. Chanhassen/Chaska, 6:30pm Basketball – Raiders Girls vs. Chanhassen, 7:30pm Hockey – Raiders Boys vs. Chanhassen, 7:30pm

January 2012

Check us out online at www.northfieldguide.com

HAPPE N I NG S SUNDAY, JANUARY 1 Politics and a Pint • 6pm

Contented Cow Join in on discussions concerning local issues at this “lightly moderated” open forum. For more information on topics, go to www.contentedcow.com.

Quiz Night • 8pm

Contented Cow Stop in anytime to sign up for this four-person team competition; prizes and the winning team may drink from the “Winners Mug” the week following their triumph!

MONDAY, JANUARY 2 Northern Roots Session • 7:30-9pm

The Contented Cow An informal weekly gathering of musicians to play acoustic music with roots in the north, particularly the Nordic countries. Participants and listeners of all ages and levels of experience are welcome.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 3 Acoustic Jam Session • 7:30-10pm

The Contented Cow Every Tuesday night show up with your unplugged instrument of choice and jam – or just show up and listen!

Mark Mraz • 8:30-11pm

The Tavern Lounge Forget about life for awhile with the piano man. From Billy Joel to Kermit the Frog – Mraz tickles the ivories and entertains requests from the audience.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 6 Joel Kachel • 5-8pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls This original singer-songwriter is sure to get your attention with his engaging stage presence and lively music.

Fred the Bear • 5-8pm

The Contented Cow

Michael Perry and the Long Beds Featuring Andy Dee 7:30pm

The Grand Event Center Mike will weave stories and humor (including material from the Clodhopper Monologues) throughout a lively concert of original songs, including those on his most recent album, Tiny Pilot (Ambledown Records). Andy Dee is of the Big Top Chautaugua Blue Canvas Orchestra. Tickets: $12 advance, $15 at the door. Available at www.sneezingcow.com and at Monkey See, Monkey Read.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4 Traditional Irish Music Session • 7-9pm

The Contented Cow A gathering of musicians and listeners in a relaxed, informal setting. Along with the music enjoy conversation, camaraderie and perhaps even a few Irish dance steps!

THURSDAY, JANUARY 5 Matt Arthur & the Bratlanders • 8pm-12am

The Contented Cow Matt Arthur and the Bratlanders play original foot-stompin’ protest songs, hollerin’ gospel blues, and classic covers from such American legends as Johnny Cash, Leadbelly, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Hank Williams.

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© Northfield Entertainment Guide

January 2012

Check us out online at www.northfieldguide.com

Top Shelf • 8-11pm

Happenings Friday, Jan. 6, continued Ben Aaron • 8-11:30pm

The Tavern Lounge Aaron has been playing guitar since he was ten. Finding his voice and picking up harmonica were the last steps in order to become a true folk musician. Influences include the folk revival, country blues and the new Americana music that is sweeping the nation.

Karaoke

Alluvion • 11pm-1am

The Contented Cow

The Contented Cow

SUNDAY, JANUARY 8

SATURDAY, JANUARY 7

Andrew Walesch • 2-5pm

AAUW Presentation: Women in ­Minnesota Politics – Unique ­Challenges • 10am

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls A great performer who sings Sinatra, Dean Martin and originals.

Politics and a Pint • 6pm

St. John’s Lutheran Church Rep. Sandy Wollschlager will present a video ­documentary she developed for Channel 2.

Hosted by Jo Kleber and Greta Anderson.

Contented Cow Join in on discussions concerning local issues at this “lightly moderated” open forum. For more information on topics, go to www.contentedcow.com.

Michael Loonan • 2-5pm

Quiz Night • 8pm Michael Loonan photo: Rod Wilson

Paradise Center for the Arts, Faribault Presented by Dr. Paul Niemesto. One-hour concert followed by social dance. Narration by folklorist John Berquist. Visual presentation on Minnesota immigrant life. And if you’ve got band music in your family history, bring stories and photos to share after the concert! Tickets: $15 adults, $8 students with ID.

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The Tavern Lounge Bluegrass, blues and ’60s hits. Acoustic guitar, five-string banjo and voice.

Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm Rueb ‘N’ Stein

Midnight Collision • 11pm-1am

Ameriikan Poijat Finnish Brass Band 7-9:30pm

Steve Howard “Hillbilly Music for the Soul” • 8-11:30pm

DJ Music

Rueb ‘N’ Stein • 9pm Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm Jesse James Lanes • 10pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls A professional piano player since 1984, Loonan’s repertoire includes popular standards, contemporary classics, jazz and classical. And he sings, too!

The Contented Cow A five-piece, south metro blues/jazz band influenced by Susan Tedeschi, Basia, Santana, Jonny Lang, Delbert McClinton and Otis Redding, just to name a few. Female and male leads lend a genderbalanced set for a fun, danceable evening.

Contented Cow Stop in anytime to sign up for this four-person team competition; prizes and the winning team may drink from the “Winners Mug” the week following their triumph!

MONDAY, JANUARY 9 Northern Roots Session • 7:30-9pm

The Contented Cow An informal weekly gathering of musicians to play acoustic music with roots in the north, particularly the Nordic countries. Participants and listeners of all ages and levels of experience are welcome.

© Northfield Entertainment Guide

TUESDAY, JANUARY 10 Acoustic Jam Session • 7:3010pm

The Contented Cow Every Tuesday night show up with your unplugged instrument of choice and jam – or just show up and listen!

Alison Rae • 10pm-12am

The Contented Cow St. Paul-based musician “whose voice and songs come at you with all the power and hype of a falling snowflake…her talent has instantly hushed a room.”

– Jim Walsh, MinnPost.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11

Thursday, January 12

Traditional Irish Music Session • 7-9pm

Ian Alexy • 8:30-11pm

The Contented Cow A gathering of musicians and listeners in a relaxed, informal setting. Along with the music enjoy conversation, camaraderie and perhaps even a few Irish dance steps!

The Tavern Lounge Singer/songwriter/guitarist Ian Alexy offers deft finger-picking, jazzy melodies and heart-warming tales of a well-traveled 20something-year-old.

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January 2012

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Matthew Griswold • 8-11:30pm

FRIDAY, JANUARY 13 Exhibit Opening Reception: James Zotalis, Alex Lange and Katie Suhlobohm • 5-7pm

The Tavern Lounge Acoustic/folk rock/pop.

Paradise Center for the Arts, Faribault “It’s Greece to Me� and “I’m Just Trying to Tell You that This is the Direction our Body is Going.� See galleries page.

The 8th Street Band • 9pm

Occasional Jazz • 5-7pm

Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm Jesse James Lanes • 10pm

The Contented Cow Mainstream classic jazz of Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington, Dave Brubeck and others in the same style. treVeld • 5-8pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls A group of string musicians who perform music that blends genres such as gypsy, swing, old time, celtic, bluegrass, blues, chamber and Nordic roots.

Arts for Martin: Gathering Community, Creating Art, Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. • 7pm

ARTech Join Northfield’s performing artists – from all disciplines, all ages and all levels, elementary to professional, for an evening of reflection on the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr. Music, dance, spoken word, poetry and visual art meld together into a performance that thoughtfully and intentionally speaks to the legacy Dr. King left us. Presented by Mary Easter, professor of Dance and the Performing Arts Emerita at Carleton. Free and open to the public. treVold

Exhibit Opening Reception: Surfacing and One Stroke at a Time • 7-9pm

Northfield Arts Guild See galleries page.

The Beguine Brothers • 8-11pm

Karaoke

Mark Mraz • 9:30pm

Froggy Bottoms Forget about life for awhile with the piano man. From Billy Joel to Kermit the Frog – Mraz tickles the ivories and entertains requests from the audience.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 14 ­Winter Scream II • 12-2pm

Bridge Square A day to declare our independence from winter. Activities include communal sing, ice cream social, coloring contest and chili.

Tim Patrick and his Blue Eyes Band • 2-5pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls Always a crowd pleaser with great American standards made famous by Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Tony Bennett, Nat King Cole and more.

New Moon Trio • 5-8pm

The Contented Cow Here’s a taste of 100 years of popular tunes, random requests and spontaneous harmonies featuring Ross Currier on bass, Lance Heisler on drums and Justin London on guitar.

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The Contented Cow Billed as an old-time country and western revue with smatterings of the Urban Hillbilly Quintet, among others.

The Rueb ‘n’ Stein

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Comedy Night • 7-9pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls Three fantastic and hilarious comedians. One of the comedians was recently featured on the David Letterman show and is regularly on Comedy Central. Tickets: $20 in advance and space is limited.

There will be a small number of tickets available at the door for $25. Ages: 21+. Price includes light appetizers from Mill Street Tavern.

Spruce Top Review 8-11pm

The Contented Cow Eclectic repertoire of urban folk that may be familiar and obscure.

Interpretations of folks like John Prine, Steve Earle, Bob Dylan and the Beatles, traditional and contemporary Irish music and more.

Relativity • 8-11:30pm

The Tavern Lounge This trio plays music from popular artists such as Missy Higgins and the Avett Brothers as well as many classic rock tunes by bands like Fleetwood Mac and John Mellencamp to such varied artists as the Indigo Girls, Damien Rice and Sarah McLachlan. Sit back and enjoy power harmonies by twin sisters Linda Wilson and Sandy Jensen (who also adds mandolin, harmonica and percussion) and solid guitar and bluesy vocals by Toby Jensen.

DJ Music

Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm Rueb ‘N’ Stein Whiskey Trick • 9:30pm

The Contented Cow

SUNDAY, JANUARY 15 Tim Patrick and his Blue Eyes Band • 1-4pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls Always a crowd pleaser with great American standards made famous by Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Tony Bennett, Nat King Cole and more.

Politics and a Pint • 6pm

Contented Cow Join in on discussions concerning local issues at this “lightly moderated” open forum. For more information on topics, go to www.contentedcow.com.

Quiz Night • 8pm

Contented Cow Stop in anytime to sign up for this four-person team competition; prizes and the winning team may drink from the “Winners Mug” the week following their triumph!

MONDAY, JANUARY 16 Martin Luther King, Jr. Community ­Celebration • 7pm

Northfield High School Auditorium Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin will emcee.

Keynote speaker, attorney John Fossum, will give a history and overview of international criminal law. There will be entertainment, refreshments and the Northfield Human Rights Award will be given. Free and open to the public, ASL interpreted.

Northern Roots Session • 7:30-9pm

Froggy Bottoms Country cover acoustic duo: Lisa Rowland (vocals) and Jim Brophy (guitar) making their debut performance.

January 2012

Dirty Petrov and the Gentilionaires • 11pm-1am

The Contented Cow An informal weekly gathering of musicians to play acoustic music with roots in the north, particularly the Nordic countries. Participants and listeners of all ages and levels of experience are welcome.

Check us out online at www.northfieldguide.com

The Butch Thompson Trio • 7:30pm

TUESDAY, JANUARY 17 Acoustic Jam Session • 7:30-10pm

The Contented Cow Every Tuesday night show up with your unplugged instrument of choice and jam – or just show up and listen!

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18 Poet Ed Bok Lee Reading • 3:30pm

Viking Theater, St. Olaf Poet Ed Bok Lee will read from his new collection “Whorled.” A question-and-answer session and book signing will follow.

Traditional Irish Music Session • 7-9pm

The Contented Cow A gathering of musicians and listeners in a relaxed, informal setting. Along with the music enjoy conversation, camaraderie and perhaps even a few Irish dance steps.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 19 Barb Piper • 5-7pm

The Contented Cow Modern folk, vocals/guitar with influences from Hoagy Carmichael, The Beatles and Bonnie Raitt to Susan Tedeschi, Brandi Carlile and Indigo Girls. Contributes her talents to Area 51, fronts the blues/rock band, Top Shelf, and performs with a Faribault musical theater group at Paradise Center for the Arts.

Talk/Booksigning: Dear Folks • 6-7pm

Northfield Historical Society Local author, Don Peterson, will share on growing up in Northfield in the 1930s and ’40s and his experiences during the Korean War. His book is titled, “Dear Folks – a Compilation of Letters Written by a Solder to His Family at Home During the Korean War.”

10 NEG@northfieldguide.com

Shattuck-Saint Mary’s, Faribault A Minnesota musical treasure and Prairie Home Companion favorite, Butch Thompson is one of the world’s top jazz and ragtime performers! www.butchthompson.com. Tickets: $15 adults, $9 students.

The Counterfactuals • 8-11pm

The Contented Cow Jason Decker (guitar), Dan Groll (vocals, songwriter, guitar and drums) are both philosophy professors at Carleton. A counterfactual is a conditional sentence of the form “If it had been that p, it would have been that q.” Very philosophical – but unfortunately, nothing to do with the name of the band. Dan had a band in Chicago of the same name, and so asked if he could keep it for this one. They said “no.”

Influences include Elvis Costello, The Beach Boys, Willie Nelson, The Walkmen, The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, M. Ward, Slayer and Sergie Rachmaninoff.

Mark Mraz • 8:30-11pm

The Tavern Lounge Forget about life for awhile with the piano man. From Billy Joel to Kermit the Frog – Mraz tickles the ivories and entertains requests from the audience.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 20 Tim Brown • 5-8pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls A full-time high school English teacher who performs songs from the ’60s and ’70s including James Taylor, Cat Stevens, Jim Croce and Simon & Garfunkel, plus originals.

© Northfield Entertainment Guide

The Mad Ripple • 5pm-1am

The Contented Cow The Mad Ripple is the nom de guerre of longtime Minneapolis writer and music lover Jim Walsh.

He brings their traveling road show to the Cow for a two-night stand (also Jan. 21). These shows will be recorded and released on Mad Ripple Records later this year.

Karaoke

Rueb ‘N’ Stein • 9pm Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm Jesse James Lanes • 10pm SATURDAY, JANUARY 21 Joel Kachel • 2-5pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls This original singer/songwriter is sure to get your attention with his engaging stage presence and lively music.

Sasha Mercedes • 8-11:30pm

The Tavern Lounge A chick-singer, guitarist and songwriter from the shores of Lake Superior. Her songs are filled with honesty and substance and sung with passion. Topics like brothels, one-night stands and transvestites are not taboo for this edgy yet charming northern gal. She has traveled from coast to coast and abroad, performing and drawing inspiration for the material in her brilliantly crafted compositions, and has shared the stage with Dar Williams, Tracy Bonham, Guy Davis, Pete Seeger and others.

The Mad Ripple • 5-8pm

The Contented Cow See Jan. 20 description.

Comedian Jim Wiggins: The Last Hippie • 8-10:30pm

Jim Wiggins

Paradise Center for the Arts, Faribault Has appeared on The Tonight Show and is a regular on Last Comic Standing. Tickets: $17 members, $22 nonmembers.

Theater: Nakes and Alone • 8pm

Northfield Arts Guild Theater See theater page.

Joe Meyer • 8-11:30pm

The Tavern Lounge Priceless • 9pm Northfield Citizens Online’s 20th Birthday Bash • 8pm

The Grand Event Center The online community – supported by area journalists, technical experts and you the public – has been delivering fast, eventpacked Northfield stories for a couple of decades now, so its time to CELEBRATE! Performance by Matt Arthur & the Bratlanders, contests, prizes, great food and more.

The Rueb ‘n’ Stein DJ Music

Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm

Theater: Nakes and Alone • 8pm

Northfield Arts Guild Theater See theater page.

January 2012

Check us out online at www.northfieldguide.com

11

SUNDAY, JANUARY 22

THURSDAY, JANUARY 26

Daniel Switch • 1-4pm

Zorongo Flamenco Dance Theatre 7:30pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls An acoustic artist with great guitar ballads.

Faculty Recital: Violinist Andrea Een, Pianists John Jensen and Christopher Brunelle • 3:15pm

Urness Recital Hall, St. Olaf Celebrate Andrea Een’s 35 years of teaching at St. Olaf with the music of Bartok (Rumanian Dances), Bloch (Poem Mystique, Sonata No. 2) and Prokofiev (Sonata No. 2 in D major).

Politics and a Pint • 6pm

Contented Cow Join in on discussions concerning local issues at this “lightly moderated” open forum. For more information on topics, go to www.contentedcow.com.

Quiz Night • 8pm

Contented Cow Stop in anytime to sign up for this four-person team competition; prizes and the winning team may drink from the “Winners Mug” the week following their triumph!

MONDAY, JANUARY 23 Northern Roots Session • 7:30-9pm

The Contented Cow An informal weekly gathering of musicians to play acoustic music with roots in the north, particularly the Nordic countries. Participants and listeners of all ages and levels of experience are welcome.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24 Acoustic Jam Session • 7:30-10pm

The Contented Cow Every Tuesday night show up with your unplugged instrument of choice and jam – or just show up and listen!

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25 Metamorphomarathon • 9am

Buntrock Commons Crossroads, St. Olaf A day-long, out-loud, 15-book marathon reading of Ovid’s Metamorphoses. In conjunction with Classics 129, The Neverending Myth, and the college’s annual theme, Transformations.

Traditional Irish Music Session 7-9pm

The Contented Cow A gathering of musicians and listeners in a relaxed, informal setting.

Along with the music enjoy conversation, camaraderie and perhaps even a few Irish dance steps.

Lyric Theater: Transformations • 8pm

Urness Recital Hall, St. Olaf A collection of poems based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, which Anne Sexton used to paint a disturbing emotional journey of her deeply troubled life. Conrad Susa wrote the demanding score in 1972. Also Jan. 26-27.

Alison Rae • 10pm-1am

The Contented Cow St. Paul-based musician “whose voice and songs come at you with all the power and hype of a falling snowflake…her talent has instantly hushed a room.” – Jim Walsh, MinnPost.

12 NEG@northfieldguide.com

Shattuck-Saint Mary’s, Faribault Experience the power and passion of flamenco…a dance form that stirs the blood and lets the spirit soar! www.zorongo.com.

Tickets: $15 adults, $9 students.

Lyric Theater: Transformations • 8pm

Urness Recital Hall, St. Olaf See Jan. 25 description.

Marv Gohman • 8:30-11pm

The Tavern Lounge

Out of the Great North Woods of suburban Minneapolis/St. Paul comes a swaggering, foot-stompin’, heart-pumpin’ minstrel, laying waste to any instrument that comes within ten fingers of his sweaty reach. Furious fiddle and madcap mandolin struggle to punch holes in steel guitars. Wailing harp winds up breathing hard. Has opened for notable artists including Jonny Lang, Glen Frey, Maria Muldaur, Colin Rae, Sammy Kershaw, John Michael Montgomery, Delbert McClinton, Tanya Tucker, Glen Campbell, Los Lobos, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, 38 Special, Proclaimers, Al Green and Taj Mahal; Jammed with Lowen and Navarro; and sung with Arlo Guthrie and Pete Seeger.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 27 Theater: One Act Plays • 7-10pm

Northfield High School Auditorium See theater page.

Lyric Theater: Transformations • 8pm

Urness Recital Hall, St. Olaf See Jan. 25 description.

Kinda Kinky • 8pm-12am

The Contented Cow A Minneapolis-based Kinks tribute band. “...you can get a regular Kinks fix in the Twin Cities: The new tribute band Kinda Kinky.… hit all the standards with extra oomp. (“Lola,” “You Really Got Me”) and dug into gritty, rowdy nuggets (“Long Tall Shorty,” “Sitting on My Sofa”), showed elegance on “Come Dancing” and peaked with the lesser-known ‘80s gem, “Better Things.”

- StarTribune, Nov. 6, 2011. Band members are Dave Randall (vocals, guitar), Dandy (guitar, vocals), Lynn Zecca (bass, vocals) and Steve Kent (drums, vocals).

Mike Pattinson • 8-11:30pm

The Tavern Lounge Karaoke

Rueb ‘N’ Stein • 9pm Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm Jesse James Lanes • 10pm

© Northfield Entertainment Guide

Jeff Ray • 8-11:30pm

Whiskey Trick • 9:30pm

Froggy Bottoms Country cover acoustic duo: Lisa Rowland (vocals) and Jim Brophy (guitar).

SATURDAY, JANUARY 28 The Average Janes • 2-5pm

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls Back by popular demand. They sing a wide variety of music from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and today, and a little country without the twang.

January Thaw • 7pm

Paradise Center for the Arts, ­Faribault Dance off the winter blues with an evening filled with unbelievable music from The ParAverage Janes adise Central Band. This year it’s a rockin’ Motown Review. Tickets: $15 members, $19 nonmembers, $8 children under 12.

Theater: One Act Plays • 7-10pm

DJ Music

Castle Rock and Roll • 9pm Rueb ‘N’ Stein Fristad Jazz Combo • 11:30pm-1am

The Contented Cow

SUNDAY, JANUARY 29 Prairie’s Edge Human Society’s Annual Pancake Breakfast 8:30am-12pm

Northfield Eagles Club All proceeds benefit the animals at Prairies’s Edge Humane Society. Tickets: $6.

Northfield High School Auditorium See theater page.

The RCAs • 8-11pm

The Tavern Lounge Mighty fine guitar and harp. Ray walks a thin line between blues and folk, one minute strutting a slide-guitar ballad on the resonator guitar, the next minute blasting off into a one-man-band train ride. “Ray has a quality that could only come by blending the birthplaces of Bob Dylan and the blues.”

– Des Moines Register.

Andrew Walesch • 2-5pm

The Contented Cow The Rice County All-Stars are Aaron Hagenson, Peter Lynn, Terry VanDeWalker and Aaron Anderson – that would be a dose of Last Known Whereabouts, a dash of Deputies, a smidgen of Big Wu and Mr. Sticky to taste – the All-Stars.

Cannon River Winery, Cannon Falls A great performer who sings Sinatra, Dean Martin and originals.

Politics and a Pint • 6pm

Andrew Walesch

Contented Cow Join in on discussions concerning local issues at this “lightly moderated” open forum. For more information on topics, go to www.contentedcow.com.

Quiz Night • 8pm

Contented Cow Stop in anytime to sign up for this four-person team competition; prizes and the winning team may drink from the “Winners Mug” the week following their triumph!

MONDAY, JANUARY 30 Northern Roots Session • 7:30-9pm

The Contented Cow An informal weekly gathering of musicians to play acoustic music with roots in the north, particularly the Nordic countries. Participants and listeners of all ages and levels of experience are welcome.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 31 High School Music Ensembles • 7:30-10pm

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The Contented Cow Every Tuesday night show up with your unplugged instrument of choice and jam – or just show up and listen!

January 2012

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January Gigs The 8th Street Band ���������������������������������������������13 – Rueb-N-Stein Ben Aaron ��������������������������������������������������������������������������� 6 – Tavern Acoustic Jam Session �������������������������������������������������Tuesdays – Cow Ian Alexy ��������������������������������������������������������������������������� 12 – Tavern Alluvion �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������7 – Cow Ameriikan Poijat Finnish Brass Band ������������������������7 – Paradise Center for the Arts The Average Janes ����������������������������������� 28 – Cannon River Winery The Beguine Brothers ����������������������������������������������������������13 – Cow Tim Brown ���������������������������������������������� 20 – Cannon River Winery The Butch Thompson Trio ������������������������ 19 – Shattuck-St.Mary’s The Counterfactuals ������������������������������������������������������������19 – Cow Dirty Petrov and the Gentilionaires �����������������������������������14 – Cow Fred the Bear ���������������������������������������������������������������������������6 – Cow Fristad Jazz Combo ��������������������������������������������������������������28 – Cow Marv Gohman ������������������������������������������������������������������ 26 – Tavern Matthew Griswold ����������������������������������������������������������� 13 – Tavern Steve Howard ���������������������������������������������������������������������� 7 – Tavern Joel Kachel ������������������������������������������� 6, 21 – Cannon River Winery Kinda Kinky ��������������������������������������������������������������������������27 – Cow Michael Loonan ��������������������������������������� 7 – Cannon River Winery The Mad Ripple ��������������������������������������������������������������20, 21 – Cow Matt Arthur & the Bratlanders ���������������������������������������������5 – Cow Sasha Mercedes ����������������������������������������������������������������� 20 – Tavern

Joe Meyer �������������������������������������������������������������������������� 21 – Tavern Michael Perry and the Long Beds �������6 – The Grand Event Center Midnight Collision �����������������������������������������������������������������6 – Cow Mark Mraz �������������������5 – Cow, 13 – Froggy Bottoms, 19 – Tavern New Moon Trio ��������������������������������������������������������������������14 – Cow Northern Roots Session ������������������������������������������� Mondays – Cow Occasional Jazz ���������������������������������������������������������������������13 – Cow Mike Pattinson ����������������������������������������������������������������� 27 – Tavern Barb Piper �����������������������������������������������������������������������������19 – Cow Priceless �����������������������������������������������������������������21 – Rueb-N-Stein Alison Rae �����������������������������������������������������������������������11, 25 – Cow Jeff Ray ������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 28 – Tavern The RCAs ������������������������������������������������������������������������������28 – Cow Relativity ��������������������������������������������������������������������������� 14 – Tavern Spruce Top Review ���������������������������������������������������������������14 – Cow Daniel Switch ������������������������������������������ 22 – Cannon River Winery Tim Patrick and his Blue Eyes Band �������������������������� 14, 15 – Cannon River Winery Top Shelf ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������7 – Cow Traditional Irish Music Session ��������������������������Wednesdays – Cow treVeld ����������������������������������������������������� 13 – Cannon River Winery Andrew Walesch ��������������������������������� 8, 29 – Cannon River Winery Whiskey Trick ��������������������������������������������� 14, 27 – Froggy Bottoms Zorongo Flamenco Dance Theatre ���������� 26 – Shattuck - St. Marys

Coming Next Month – Mark Your Calendars!

Feb. 10-12, 16-18: Theater: Noises Off Paradise Center for the Arts, Faribault • paradisecenterforthearts.org Feb. 11: AAUW Speaker Lequetta Diggs Diggs was involved in first successful sit-in at Kansas drugstore in 1958, contributing to desegregation of lunch counters.

Kildahl Park Point, 10am • aauwnorthfield.wordpress.com Feb. 16: Civil War Program Northfield Historical Society • northfieldhistory.org Feb. 17: Northfield Winter Stomp Northfield Armory Feb. 17-19, 24-26: Theater: Arsenic and Old Lace Northfield Arts Guild Theater • northfieldartsguild.org Feb. 25: Pines and Vines: Second Annual Wall of Wine & Beer Tasting Event Paradise Center for the Arts, Faribault • paradisecenterforthearts.org Cannon River Winery Music Series • cannonriverwinery.com Michael Loonan – Feb. 11, 2-5pm • The DitchLilies – Feb. 12, 1-4pm Tony Williams – Feb. 19, 1-4pm • treVold – Feb. 25, 5-8pm Keep us posted • info@northfieldguide.com • 507/663-7937

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© Northfield Entertainment Guide

January 2012

Check us out online at www.northfieldguide.com

15

Just Curious about

Susan Hvistendahl

By Felicia Crosby Many of us know the talented Susan Hvistendahl best from her “Historic Happenings” column right here in the Northfield Entertainment Guide. We love what Susan’s uncovered about Northfield’s history, and we decided to do a little uncovering ourselves, about Susan and a little of what makes her tick. Here she is on history, baseball, interviewing Dr. Ruth and Yogi Berra’s advice on marriage.

From South Dakota to St. Olaf, the East Coast and now Northfield: where is home?

Even while living for 30 years in New York, I think the Midwest was “home” because most of my family and friends were here.

My daughter, Laurel, is an attorney in San Francisco but I am not tempted to move west because I consider Northfield home now. But San Francisco is a great place to visit.

Professorial parents: My father, Jake, was head of journalism at Iowa State University in Ames and my mother, Marion, taught English at Grand View College in Des Moines. They both taught before that at South Dakota State in Brookings, where we lived throughout my youth.

Which came first: the passion for history or the love of writing?

I was co-editor of my high school paper so love of writing came first. I discovered a passion for local history when I wrote a story in 1987 about the discovery of old trunks in a hayloft in Peekskill, N.Y., which had belonged to a man who had served in Congress with Lincoln. It was a treasure trove of letters (including presidents Lincoln and Filmore, Gov. Samuel Tilden and Horace Greeley), old maps and postcards. Several stories resulted and I made copies of everything for the local library.

That fueled my interest in preserving local history.

Today had just quoted her on the front page saying, “Ruth to Retirees, Use It or Lose It!” and she was promoting a new book and a board game, “Dr. Ruth’s Game of Good Sex,” with great, bubbly good humor, as always.

Writing about baseball – and lunch with Yogi Berra: I interviewed Roger Kahn (whose book The Boys of Summer is considered a baseball classic) and later on he hired me to do research for several books, including The Era, 1947-1957, Games We Used to Play, The Head Game and Pete Rose: My Story written

by Roger with Pete Rose. I talked with many ballplayers, including Hall of Famers Pee Wee Reese, Warren Spahn, Roy Campanella, Don Drysdale, Yogi Berra and Bruce Sutter. Roger and I had lunch with Yogi in New Jersey to talk about his experiences with pitchers for The Head Game. Yogi was a wonderful conversationalist but did not come up with any “Yogi-isms.” He did advise me not to marry a ballplayer, however. (I was already married then) What history should remember about Pete Rose: I met Pete Rose at a book signing and we talked about his mother – he signed the book I helped research (yes, I paid for the privilege). I think he should be remembered the way he signed that book, Pete Rose, Hit King.

And no use keeping him out of the Hall of Fame, since Ty Cobb was no angel (sliding into bases with sharpened cleats to maim the opponent) and he’s a member.

How did you find yourself in so many cobwebby, research-rich cubbies?

I have noticed that the archives of St. Olaf, Carleton and the Northfield Historical Society are all in the lowest possible floor of the buildings. But they are kept pretty free of cobwebs.

Writing The Lyceum: The book I wrote for the Northfield Historical Society last year came from my “Historic Happenings” column in NEG of May 2009 about Northfield’s oldest building, the Lyceum at 109 E. 4th St. The Lyceum was built in 1857 and started as a debating society, first library and reading room for the settlers. NHS hired me to expand on that story for the Northfield History Series of books and I spent a year

On having Dr. Ruth as a neighbor: I interviewed the merry munchkin of sex therapy prior to a benefit talk she gave in 1986 for the Lake Oscawana Civic Association in Putnam Valley, N.Y. Her family had a lake cottage near where I lived. USA

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© Northfield Entertainment Guide

on further research, with access to the minutes of Lyceum meetings and letters of founders John and Ann North from that period.

How did we get so lucky to get you in the Entertainment Guide?

Publisher Rob Schanilec and I cooked up the idea of a column about historic happenings at Froggy Bottoms early in 2007 because he was (and is) a strong supporter of local history as well as chronicler of the monthly entertainment scene. My first column in February of 2007 was about how Northfielders found fun in frigid days gone by.

January 2012

Is there a career with the ukulele ahead…….?

My fellow Tuesday night acoustic jam players at the Cow would laugh at that idea, but I have had fun learning more than the three chords I knew on uke when I was a camp counselor many years ago. I picked uke up again last February to escape the winter doldrums and it worked.

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17

Getting Down to Brass Tacks

Join Northfield’s very own Dr. Paul Niemesto and the Ameriikan Poijat Finnish Brass Band at the Paradise Center for the Arts on Jan. 7, at 7pm for a delightful evening of Finnish brass music. Started by Dr. Niemesto – the force of nature behind the Vintage Band Festival – in 1990 and internationally known, this septet weaves traditional and newer music, celebrating Finnish musical art with its own American accent. Tickets are $15 for adults and $8 for students with ID. For more information and tickets, go to www.paradisecenterforthearts.org or www.ameriikanpoijat.org. And enjoy. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.

A Night With Michael Perry and the Long Beds

Join best-selling author/humorist Michael Perry (Pop.485: Meeting Your Neighbors One Siren at a Time) and his band the Long Beds at the Grand, Jan. 6 at 7:30pm, for a lively evening of music, stories and laughs.

Appearing with special guest Andy Dee, Mike and the boys will weave tales – including material from the Clodhopper Monologues – between and around original songs. Tickets are $12 in advance; $15 at the door. For more information and reservations, go to www.sneezingcow.com or Monkey See Moneky Read Bookstore, 507/645-6700.

I Scream You Scream We All Scream On the Square

Ready to give Old Man Winter a message he won’t soon forget? Join the crowds at Winter Scream II on Saturday, Jan. 14 from noon to 2 on Bridge Square and let it all out. Put together by the good folks at the Northfield Historical Society, this second annual thumbs-down to winter includes a communal sing, an ice cream social, a chili option at the Rueb-N-Stein and a coloring contest for screamers age 2-10. Screamers of all ages are invited to submit lyrics for the Winter Scream anthem, sung to the Twisted Sisters’ “We’re Not Gonna Take It.” For more information on the coloring contest, the lyric contest, or all things scream-related, go to www.northfieldhistory.org. And get ready to give those lungs a work-out.

A Little Guffaw With Your Wine?

For an evening of laughter and light noshing, make sure to head to Comedy Night at Cannon River Winery, Jan. 14, from 7 to 9pm.

This guaranteed break from the winter blues showcases the talents of three comedians – one of whom is both a Comedy Central regular and a former guest on “David Letterman” – in the oaken atmosphere of the Winery, with appetizers provided by Mill Street Tavern. Price is $20 in advance and space is limited (there will be a limited number of seats at the door); please note that the event is for comedy connoisseurs 21 or older. For more information, call 507/263-7400 or go to www.cannonriverwinery.com.

Going it “Alone”

Not much more naked than standing on a stage alone, and Brendon Etter conjures that vulnerability in all its forms with “Naked and Alone” at the Northfield Arts Guild Theater, Jan. 20 and 21. Sixteen short plays – one person at a time – in sketches that run from monologues to dialogues with unheard characters, to stranger situations still. Provocative, with themes that span comedy to tragedy to the patently absurd, these short works are mostly actor-directed, with input from author Etter. With only two performances, at 8 each night, this Arts Guild fundraiser is guaranteed to sell quickly. For more information and tickets ($10), call 507/6458877 or go to www.northfieldartsguild.org.

Send us your shorts! (keep ‘em brief) Send to neg@northfieldguide.com by mid-month.

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© Northfield Entertainment Guide

Clubs, Classes and More…

Cannon River Woodcarving Club – 507/339-0336 Third Monday of the month, 7pm, Ivan Whillock Studio, ­Faribault Cub Scout Pack 300 – 612/490-4048, www.cubs300.org Glass Garden Beads Beading Class – 507/645-0301 First and third Mondays Just Food Co-op – 507/650-0106 – Mondays: Knitting Night, 7-9pm, 507/645-6331 – knit, chat, share ideas and get help.

MOMS Club – northfieldmomsclub@gmail.com – First Wednesday of each month, 10am, St. Peter’s Church. If you are a full-time or part-time stay-at-home mom, this club may be for you. MOMS Club is a local chapter of the International MOMS Club, an organization dedicated to providing support and a sense of community for stay-at-home moms.

Northfield Arts Guild – 507/645-8877 – Find classes for kids and adults at www.northfieldartsguild.org.

Northfield Buddhist Meditation Center – Children’s Circle Class (ages 3-9) – Sundays, 3-4pm – Children and their parents meditate, do yoga and learn about Buddhism in a fun, peaceful atmosphere of exploration. Everyone welcome.

Northfield Public Library – 507/645-6606 Closed Jan. 1 and 16.

First Steps Early Literacy Center, Mon, Fri and Sat, 10-2pm Patty Cake Infant Lapsit, Tue, 10-11am Toddler Rhyme Time, Wed, 10-11am Preschool Story & Craft Time, Thu, 10-11am Hot Read for Cold Nights, Jan. 9-March 2 – reading program for adults. Read books, earn Chamber dollars! Sign up at the upstairs reference desk.

Northfield Public Schools Community Services – 507/664-3649 Northfield Senior Center – www.northfieldseniorcenter.org

507/664-3700 – Programs for active older adults in a premier fitness facility with an indoor pool and certified fitness instructors. Bike club, hiking trips, ping pong, nutrition talks, art classes, writing classes, card groups, dining center, fitness classes and more.

Paradise Center for the Arts – 507/332-7372 Find art-related classes for kids and adults at ­ www.paradisecenterforthearts.org.

Black Boot Art Club, Jan. 23, 30, Feb. 6, 13; 3:30-5pm – Colored pencil, colored chalk, oil pastel, markers and crayons. Create landscapes, animals, people/portraits and all things interesting. $42 members, $54 nonmembers, ages second grade and up.

River Bend Nature Center, 507/332-7151 – classes and activities at www.rbnc.org.

Time Travel – History Tours of River Bend – Join a naturalist for a journey back in time to discover the history of the land.

Travel is by golf cart. Tours last 1.5 hours and can accommodate up to five people. Call to schedule. Donations welcome.

VFW – Sundowners Car Club – First Wednesday of each month, 7:30pm. Anyone who has an interest in street rods, customs, antiques, special interest or foreign is welcome to attend.

Got Content for the Next Northfield Entertainment Guide?

• Advertising • Happenings • Classes • Clubs • Galleries • Restaurants •

Contact us. We’re fun to work with.

507/663-7937 • info@northfieldguide.com January 2012

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19

HISTORIC

HAPPENINGS

NORTHFIELD STYLE

By Susan Hvistendahl

Whittemore Remembered: ­Carleton’s Poet Laureate

the Arts Award for lifelong contribution to American Letters and Award of Merit Medal from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Reviewing Against the Grain for the Minneapolis Star Tribune of Nov. 18, 2007, Keith Harrison (English professor and writer-inresidence at Carleton 1968-1996) noted that Whittemore is “one of a handful of poets in the language who can be outrageously funny and serious in the same poem.” It is “honest, but by God, you have to read closely because often it is very reticent, very nimble and tongue-in-cheek.” The memoir was written in third person, with Whittemore referring to himself as “R,” which Harrison wrote “allows him to reveal doubts about himself and the role of a poet.”

Northfielders reading Reed Whittemore’s memoir Against the Grain: The Literary Life of a Poet (Dryad Press, 2007) may have an irresistible urge to start with Chapter 7, “Out in Minnesota,” which tells of the years from 1947-66 when he taught at Carleton College. However, they will probably first read the foreword to the book, written by Garrison Keillor.

Keillor wrote, “Reed Whittemore owns the only sort of immortality that matters to a writer, which is to have written things that people remember years later.” For example, “There is the perfect imagist poem about the enormous silence that follows after a high school band finishes practicing on the football field in a small town.” (That small town would be Northfield.) Keillor says that what makes Whittemore “permanently readable and relevant is his wit and humor, which is the underground spring that keeps the gardens of American literature green.”

Keillor took a class from this “movie-star handsome poet and teacher” in Minneapolis in July of 1964 and fell under the spell of Whittemore’s poems.

Reed and Helen Whittemore on their wedding day, Oct. Photo courtesy Helen Whittemore 3, 1952.

The book jacket of Against the Grain summarizes some of Reed Whittemore’s achievements: author of 20 books of poetry, criticism, biography and literary journalism; consultant in poetry to the Library of Congress (now known as the U.S. Poet Laureate); nominee for the National Book Award for poetry for The Mother’s Breast and the Father’s House; founder of two respected literary magazines, Furioso while a student at Yale and the Carleton Miscellany during his 19-year career at Carleton; teacher at the University of Maryland; literary editor of the New Republic; biographer of poet William Carlos Williams; recipient of the National Council of

Photos of Reed Whittemore.

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Whittemore was born in New Haven, Conn., on Sept. 11, 1919, and graduated from Yale University in 1941. He and his roommate, James Angleton, started a literary magazine called Furioso, which published poets such as Ezra Pound and Williams Carlos Williams.

At Yale, Whittemore began a friendship with English professor Arthur Mizener, which continued with correspondence through Whittemore’s service with the U.S. Army Air Force as a transportation and supply officer in England, North Africa and Italy during World War II. Whittemore’s first book of poetry, Heroes and Heroines, was published in 1946.

Mizener had become head of the English Department at Carleton College in January of 1946 and Whittemore, who had started graduate work in history at Princeton but was unsure of this path, accepted the invitation of his mentor and friend to come to Northfield. (Mizener left for Cornell University in 1951, the year his best-selling biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald, A Far Side of Paradise, was published.)

Whittemore wrote that his life in Minnesota began in 1947 when he and two other new teachers, Gene and Hans, boarded with banker John Nutting and his wife Elizabeth at the mansion two blocks from campus, now used as the home of Carleton presidents. (Carleton archivist Eric Hillemann identified Gene as music professor Gene Bailey and “big and noisy” Hans as Joseph Rysan, assistant professor of German and Russian.) Hans, noticing that Whittemore owned a car, “concluded that car and person had appeared in his life in order to take him to Dundas.”

Photos courtesy Carleton College Archives

Why Dundas? Dundas had two bars and Northfield was dry. Whittemore wrote: “If some dutiful social scientist were to have wandered through the Midwest in mid-20th

© Northfield Entertainment Guide

Discussing the debut of the Carleton Miscellany in 1960 are (l to r): Wayne Carver, Erling Larsen and Reed Whittemore.

Photo and image courtesy Carleton College Archives

friends “over a pool table after a chatty lunch.” One unnerving thing for this Easterner: “the endlessness of the plains” in every direction beyond the town’s borders.

Whittemore revived Furioso in the spring of 1947. Said Whittemore: “Furioso took arms against the academic world, the new criticism, the writing world, the advertising world, General Mac­ Arthur, and the production of H-bombs.” He kept the magazine going through the spring of 1953, a total of 29 issues. Its ending afforded Whittemore more time to write poems, essays and reviews for major literary magazines. century looking for a representatively dull seedy backcountry burg he’d have settled for Dundas on the spot.” Hans and Whittemore “settled on it” two or three times a week for a little vodka and bourbon. This would lead Mizener to say to Whittemore in the presence of “other lofty English teachers and the Dean of Men” at a Carleton Tea Room lunch, “What did you booze hounds do for the world down in Dundas last night?”

Early in 1952, Whittemore met Helen Lundeen, a Carleton student from Fergus Falls, at a student-faculty party. He wrote that she was 12 years younger, “more impulsive” and “thoroughly familied.”

They married in October, lived in a farmhouse on the edge of Northfield and spent summers at Lundeen family cottages on Otter Tail Lake. Three of their four children were born in Northfield, Cate, Ned and Jack. (Daisy was born in 1967 in Washington, D.C.)

Whittemore’s first class was Sophomore Lit on the second floor of Willis Hall. He described himself standing in front of “handsome and intelligent (mostly)” students who were “chatting and giggling,” and who stopped giggling and grabbed notebooks as soon as he started lecturing (and went overtime) about the French Revolution. Whittemore wrote, “First pedagogical lesson: a small class of intelligent gigglers is not a squad on a drill field.”

In January of 1960, a new literary magazine called the Carleton Miscellany was introduced. In the first issue, Whittemore wrote that the Miscellany would be “modeled in part” after Furioso, and the symbol of that magazine, “a sort of chimney sweep,” would be retained. Carleton English professors Wayne Carver and Erling Larsen worked as associate editors with Whittemore. (Carver told

The second lesson the new teacher learned was “adjusting his new pedagogy to conversational classes rather than 50 minute lectures” and eventually Whittemore “began even to think that yes he could be a teacher for a year or two without losing his mind.” Of course, he still had to face grading 300-word papers “and if there ever was a course designed to make clear how hard it is to be a teacher at all, Freshman Comp was (and is) it.”

Whittemore wrote that he began liking the Midwest. The town of Northfield had important items on his wish list: “The list favored easy access to life’s necessities, and Northfield’s main street had a food store, a drug store, a doctors’ building, a clothing store, and a sedately uncomfortable hotel. Just off the main street it also had an old-fashioned movie house that showed at least one Jesse James film a year.” He also enjoyed the “relatively relaxed life” with his

January 2012

The High School Band

by Reed Whittemore On warm days in September the high school band Is up with the birds and marches along our street, Boom boom, To a field where it goes boom boom until eight forty-five When it marches, as in the old rhyme, back, boom boom, To its study halls, leaving our street Empty except for the leaves that descend to no drum And lie still.

In September A great many high school bands beat a great many drums, And the silences after their partings are very deep.

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Courtesy Dryad Press

21

me that Carleton President Larry Gould was making plans to have such a literary magazine when Carver was recruited for the English Department in 1954 and Gould finally “got it off the ground” for Whittemore in 1960.)

idle for a whole year ($15,000 worth) was not a bad fate.” He told a Washington newspaper that he enjoyed the fascinating dinner-party conversations about politics and government.

Whittemore was welcomed The first issue of 112 pages had two warmly. The Washington Post stories, poetry by 18 poets, essays, wrote in October, “There’s a kook personal journals and other prose. loose in the Library of Congress.

It featured Whittemore’s Byronic He’s a lovely, lively, lilting, lyrical epic in five cantos, “The Odyssey fellow who bears the somber of a B**t,” which Whittemore had pedagogical title of ‘Poet-inread to great applause at a college Residence.’” Whittemore was said convocation in Skinner Memorial to have charmed a gathering with Chapel the preceding fall. The Mina poem about “the freshman neapolis Sunday Tribune reviewed Whittemore reading his poetry at a Skinner Memorila Chapel convocafire that is held every year on a Photo courtesy Carleton College Archives. bald spot on the top of the hill at tion at ­Carleton, Oct. 23, 1959. the first issue on Feb. 7, 1960: “There’s an element of mischief in Carleton College in Northfield, it which sparks the scholarship and taste shown in the selection of Minn.” To the delight of those present, the poem ended with a contents,” due to editor Whittemore’s “uncivil tongue” and ability rhyme of “gosh” and “frosh.” In other poems he read, Whittemore to “make his sentences and meters dance while thumbing a nose.” “impressed his audience with his sprightly sense of humor and The conclusion: “The magazine is lively, literate and knowing, and eye-wide observance of the hum-drum daily things that go on in deserves long life.” Robert Hatch, literary editor of The Nation, the world about him.” wrote, “I like your first issue; it’s good to be reassured that there are The Whittemores returned for one more year in Northfield, living some professors around with a mental age of less than 75.” in a college-owned house on Nevada Street. In 1966, they moved Before its demise in 1980, the Carleton Miscellany published 1,944 back to Washington, D.C., where Whittemore worked at the Naworks by 824 contributors, including 40 Carleton faculty and staff tional Institute of Public Affairs. He was a professor at the Uniand many prominent literary figures. The list can be seen at apps. versity of Maryland from 1967-84 and literary editor of the New carleton.edu/digitalcollections/miscellany. Carolyn Soule was man- Republic from 1969-73. aging editor from 1963-80. The last Miscellany of Winter, 1980, was Whittemore came back to Carleton to give a Ward Lucas lecture a “Ralph Ellison Festival.” Editor Keith Harrison wrote in this issue in 1969 and returned again in 1971 to receive an honorary degree that the magazine had to “bow to other needs of the College” in “a of doctor of letters. Former Carleton president Laurence Gould time of budgetary constraint.” He added, “The withering dialectic returned from Arizona to honor Whittemore, describing him as of money must have its say.” having “hammered from the tensions of his life both a literary life In the fall of 1964, Whittemore began a sabbatical from Carleton and life style that melds the music of driftwood with the lean dry as a consultant in poetry at the Library of Congress in Washington, agonies of skepticism.” He quoted Whittemore’s shortest poem, “It D.C. There were only a few obligations, including introducing is not clear where we go from here/ Or, for that matter, who we’re.” visiting poets, speaking to various groups and putting on a show Whittemore’s poem, “The High School Band,” was one of four used twice a year. Whittemore wrote, “To have been hired to be largely

by St. Olaf professor and composer Carolyn Jennings in her choral song cycle, “Sitting on the Porch,” which was premiered by the A Teacher Northfield Chorale in 1987. The work was commissioned by the

by Reed Whittemore Northfield Arts Guild under a grant from the Composers Commissioning Program. Jennings told me, “The poets were all Minneso“And gladly wolde he lerne, and gladly teche.” ((Chaucer)) tans or (like Whittemore) had spent significant time in Minnesota.

The work was scored for mixed chorus and piano.”

He hated them all one by one but wanted to show them What was Important and Vital and by God if Whittemore took a two-week trip to the USSR in 1974, sponsored They thought they’d never have use for it he was by the U.S. State Department and the Moscow Writers Union Sorry as hell for them, that’s all, with their genteel and had a trip to Israel in 1983, sponsored by USAID. In 1988 he Mercantile Main Street Babbitt launched yet another literary magazine Delos, which contained Bourgeois-barbaric faces, they were beyond works translated from other languages.

Saving, clearly, quite out of reach, and so he G-rrr In the publisher’s Afterword in Against the Grain, Merrill Leffler Got up every morning and wrote that Whittemore had begun to notice problems with his G-rrr memory as he was completing the first draft of this memoir. SubseAte his breakfast and quently, Whittemore was diagnosed with dementia and, at age 92, G-rrr is now in a nursing home near Washington, D.C., where his wife Lumbered off to his eight o’clock still lives. Leffler e-mailed me that some of Whittemore’s memories Gladly to teach.

Courtesy Dryad Press are strong, “though which ones are unpredictable,” and that there

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are times when Whittemore has “strong glints of wit in a frail body.”

he touched while here. Marc Reigel (Carleton Class of 1967) of Owatonna, now living in Columbus, Ohio, had Whittemore for a freshman rhetoric course. He said, “Although I was an 18-year-old student at Carleton in 1963, I recall that Mr. Whittemore taught us as though we were peers in the writing process.” Reigel, who went on to earn an advanced degree in American Literature, taught high school English and later worked as an independent education consultant on grant writing, feels that the inspiration of Whittemore shaped, informed and supported his work.

Current Northfield residents who were present during Whittemore’s time at Carleton shared some memories with me about those days. George Soule, a fiction editor for the Carleton Miscellany after Whittemore’s departure, was a student of Reed Whittemore as well as a Carleton faculty member with him for a couple years. Soule said, “He was my teacher for Shakespeare’s histories and comedies in the mid-50s and he was brilliant. I still trade off his insights.”

Whittemore’s class “prepared me to read literature incisively better than any other course I took.” Bill Huyck, a classmate of “I often used the metaphor of the Whittemore’s wife, Helen, and long-time ‘pebble and the pond’ with my students: Carleton track, hockey and cross country throw a pebble in the pond and watch coach, remembered the Whittemores as the Whittemore teaching at Carleton, 1959. the ripples expand in concentric circles Photo courtesy Carleton College Archives beyond the splash point,” said Reigel. “center and motivators” of faculty social life, “friendly, informal, hospitable, gener“Nearly 50 years later, I can recall that a ous and inclusive.” Huyck said Whittemore “never seemed egotisti- ‘pebble in the pond’ at a small college in Minnesota, Reed Whitcal or self-centered” and was “a remarkably accomplished and temore, produced a ripple effect far beyond the initial ‘plink’ we modest fellow.” Wayne Carver, who started the Carleton Miscellany teenagers perceived.” with Whittemore and continued with it for 17 years, called WhitMy thanks to Eric Hillemann and Carol Thunem of the Carleton temore “the best editor I’ve ever seen.” Carver also said that with College Archives and to Merrill Leffler of Dryad Press for permission Whittemore’s Ivy League background, he had to make “strenuous to use Whittemore’s poems (see www.dryadpress.com for information efforts to become a Midwesterner.” on ordering Whittemore’s memoir Against the Grain: The Literary It was perhaps inevitable that Whittemore would leave Northfield Life of a Poet). to return to the East coast. But his influence still is felt in the lives

January 2012

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507/645-4026 • Sun-Thu 11am-8pm, Fri/Sat 11am-9pm – Whether seated in the main dining room, bar, or member’s lounge, beautiful panoramic views of the golf course provide a charming atmosphere. Lunch and dinner menus with a variety of cuisine to savor.

The Cheese Cave – 318 Central Ave., Suite 6,

The Ole Store Restaurant – 1011 St. Olaf

Faribault • www.cheesecave.net 507/334-3988 – Wed 10am-5:30pm, Thu-Sat 10am-8pm – A light menu of fresh salads and sandwiches, a couple gourmet pizzas and cheese plates to compliment whatever you are drinking. Wines, spirits and Summit beer on tap.

Ave. • 507/786-9400• www.olestorerestaurant.com – Mon-Sat 4-10pm, closed Sundays – Contemporary dining with neighborhood charm. Relax at a table with linens and fresh flowers or sit in our cozy lounge. A full menu including appetizers, rustic flatbread pizzas, salads, soups, entrees, steaks, fresh seafood, sandwiches and gourmet desserts. Reservations available.

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Dennison • 507/645-9992 • firesidelounge.net T-F 11am-close, Sa/Su 9am-close, closed Mon. A menu to satisfy all tastes, from burgers and sandwiches to steaks and shrimp dinners.

Friday night fish special, Saturday night prime rib special and Sat/Sun breakfast specials.

Froggy Bottoms River Pub

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307 S. Water St., 507/301-3611 • Sun 11am9pm, Mon/Tue 11am-11pm, Wed-Sat 11am-1am – Upper-class bar food including appetizers, salads, burgers and more. Open for lunch and dinner. Entrees starting at 5pm.

The HideAway – 421 Division St. • 507/664-

0400 Mon-Fri, 6am-10pm, Sat-Sun 7am10pm – Cozy bistro atmosphere serving unique appetizers and sandwiches. Coffee drinks, wine and beer specialties.

James Gang Coffeehouse & Eatery Page 6

2018 Jefferson Rd. • 507/663-6060 • Mon-Fri 6am-8pm, Sat-Sun 7am-5pm – Voted Best Coffeehouse in southern Minnesota. Fresh daily roasted coffee. Wraps, soups, sandwiches, salads, desserts, ice cream and non-espresso drinks. Free wireless internet and business catering available.

J. Grundy’s Rueb ‘N’ Stein

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503 Division St. • www.ruebnstein.com 507/645-6691 • 11am-close – Great burgers and famous Ruebens. Casual relaxing atmosphere. Huge selection of imported and domestic beers, fine spirits and wines. Game room, happy hour 3:30-6pm, Karaoke on Fridays at 9pm.

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Northfield Golf Club – 707 Prairie St.

Perkins Restaurant & Bakery – 1401

Riverview Drive • 507/645-4830 • Sun-Wed 5am-11pm, Thu-Sat 24 hrs – Breakfast all day. Favorites include buttermilk pancakes, three-egg omelettes and hearty scrambler dishes.

Also serving sandwiches and dinner entrees.

Weekday breakfast and lunch specials. Free wi-fi available.

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507/645-7886 • Mon-Sat 6am-9pm, Sun 10:30am-8pm – Family friendly dining in Northfield for 37 years. House specialties include broasted chicken, BBQ ribs and flamebroiled hamburgers.

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Hwy. 3 and 19 • 507/645-7226 • Open 24 hours/7 days a week – Fresh sandwiches, salads, flatbread, breakfast and more.

The Tavern of Northfield – 212 Division St.

507/663-0342 • www.tavernofnorthfield.com Sun-Thu 6:30am-10pm, Fri-Sat 6:30am11pm, lounge open daily 3pm-midnight.

Located in the historic Archer House since 1984, The Tavern offers casual dining with a wide variety of homemade menu items and specials daily featuring fresh fish on Fridays and prime rib on Saturdays. The Tavern Lounge sports a deck overlooking the Cannon River, appetizers and a full bar with live music Thur-Sat.

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