What might be Duluth’s first screenwriting competition is one month away. “Unfinished Work: A Screenwriting Contest” will present some of the region’s finest screenwriters showing off a portion of their newest work. The event is on Saturday, Aug. 3, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at Zeitgeist Teatro. Admission is free.
Bart Sutter in the apple trees.
“Lake Superior is God.” Bart Sutter wrote that declaration in his 1998 book Cold Comfort, a collection of essays about “life at the top of the map.” The work was well received by readers, culminating in a Minnesota Book Award for creative nonfiction, and Sutter’s permanent status as a northern force.
Run, Smelt, Run! Parade photo via Magic Smelt Puppet Troupe Facebook page.
Dressing up as a silver fish in late spring could become weird again. After eleven years of marches normalizing smelt fashion on the Lake Superior boardwalk, the annual Run, Smelt, Run! Parade could be making its final march on May 26.
Local and worldwide authors attended the celebration of the Nemadji Review. The 13th issue is titled “The 13th Floor.”
Tina Higgins Wussow, one of many local luminaries, read during the event.
Congratulations to my colleague, Mark Stanfield, on the forthcoming world premiere of his play, Two of Us. It will be performed Sept. 13-21 at the Watford Palace Theatre in England, with a transfer to Home Manchester, and then a national tour in 2025. The play dramatizes a last conversation between Paul McCartney and John Lennon.
More information about the play can be found at the Watford Palace Theatre site.
Before I start to talk about Luke Moravec and Bill Siemering, who visited the University of Minnesota Duluth on Zoom Wednesday afternoon, I want to talk a little bit about why I love radio so much.
Take a peek into the future with this week’s quiz, which previews anticipated events and openings of 2024.
The next PDD quiz will review headlines from Jan. 2024; it comes your way on Jan. 28. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Jan. 25.
I’ve searched high and low, but I cannot seem to locate any information about the Heart concert on March 5, 1980 at the Duluth Arena.
I was there with five friends but can’t seem to locate anything about it.
Christmas gives me the blues. I miss the magic of childhood Christmases spent with my siblings, and I miss the magic of Christmas mornings I spent with my young children. I miss family and friends who have passed away, and the special Christmas traditions we had. Because nothing stays the same, nostalgia can be heart-wrenching.
So, I’m weaving some new traditions into some old ones.
The Nutcracker of the Past
When I was in my twenties, my mother-in-law took me to my first ballet, along with my two sisters-in-law. It was December, so of course, we went to The Nutcracker. I loved it. For two hours enchanting music, graceful dancing, sparkling costumes, and magical sets swept me away to another world. Attending The Nutcracker with my mother-in-law became a tradition for a handful of years.
This year I took my twelve-year-old granddaughter, Clara, to see The Nutcracker, her first ballet. My mother-in-law would be happy to know I’m reviving her tradition. If life were A Christmas Carol, my mother-in-law would have been Fred, the ever-cheerful nephew of Ebenezer Scrooge. She knew how to keep the spirit of Christmas in her heart all year long and how to rise above characters like Scrooge.
I want to take a second to talk about an event some friends of mine are putting together. It’s being done entirely on volunteer energy (except for some food provided by UMD catering), it includes music and writing and community discussion, and I’ve never been so excited for an event that I think will make me sad.
All photos by Erik Poffenberger
Most Duluthians can say they have taken the Duluth Haunted Ship tour, but how many have been on the other side? Every year this haunted attraction reaches out to invite volunteers to participate in the spooking instead of being spooked. I was able to get behind the scenes, uncover the creepiness and see how organizers of this historically haunted attraction keep things afloat (get it?) throughout the season.
The Twin Cities Book Festival was held on Saturday, Oct. 14. The event “offers bibliophiles all the joys of in-person browsing, meeting writers and publishers, and activities for readers age 1 to 101,” according to its website.
This week’s quiz previews area Halloween hijinks. For even more spooky events, check out the Halloween category on the PDD event calendar.
A current events PDD quiz comes your way on Oct. 29. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Oct. 26.
Hey all, this is my festival; I run it with my partner Marin. We used to host a film series called Midnight Movies at 7 at the Zinema and this will very much be in the same vein. We’ll be giving away prizes, have special guests, and eat a ton of junk food.
Please make sure to follow us on Facebook; we’ll be revealing the lineup in the months ahead as we get ready.
There was an entire bookcase of books about Sherlock Holmes at Friends of the Library Book Sale at the Superior Public Library. I took home two full shelves.
