Today in the ArtZany Radio studio Paula Granquist features two Northfield Arts Guild events happening during the Defeat of Jesse James Days: First, Heather Lawrenz will join the show to preview the Riverfront Fine Arts Festival and then ArtZany will feature playwrights Bill McAuliffe and Graydon Royce, actor Steve Lawler and director Rachel Haider from the world premier production of the play The Great Northfield Bank Robbery: A Love Story.
Riverfront Fine Arts Festival
Saturday, September 7 & Sunday, Septmeber 8 from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm both days – Rain or Shine!
Fine Art, Family Friendly, Free Admission
Set along the idyllic Cannon River walkway, over 65 fine artists and craftspersons sell their work – ceramics, jewelry, paintings, fiber, wood and steel – there is something for everyone!
Please see RFAF Artist Page for more information on the 2019 exhibiting artists.
2019 RFAF Featured Guild Booths:
CREATING COMMUNITY CLUB ARTIST BOOTH
Support the artists of the Guild’s Creating Community Club! Throughout the weekend, participants will be on hand to talk about the work they have created over the past year, and are selling at the festival. Proceeds benefit the artists and the Creating Community Club program.
GUILD’S INSPIRATION STATION BOOTH
FREE art-making for all ages! From 10 am – 2 pm both days
Come visit the Guild’s Inspiration Station along the river and have fun creating!
Heather Lawrenz is the Visual Arts Manager at the Northfield Arts Guild and a member of the Northfield Arts and Culture Commission. She is a jewelry artist that creates unique and limited edition jewelry from her studio in Northfield. lawrenzjewelry.com
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The Great Northfield Bank Robbery: A Love Story
September 5, 6, and 7, 2019
Northfield Arts Guild Theater, 411 Third Street West
a World Premier
during Northfield’s Defeat of Jesse James Days
Directed by Rachel Haider
Performances:
Thursday, September 5, 2019 at 7:30pm
Friday, September 6, 2019 at 7:30pm
Saturday, September 7, 2019 at 7:30pm
In 1900, Jim and Cole Younger, brothers from Missouri, had spent nearly a quarter century in Stillwater penitentiary for the notorious raid on the First National Bank of Northfield. As a movement for their pardon grew, a young reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press took an interest in the Youngers’ cause. Alix J. Muller, already distinguished in her journalism career at the tender age of 22, followed her nose for news and went out to Stillwater to interview Jim Younger. Alix came back with more than just a good story. She and Jim Younger began a mutual appreciation. After the famous bank robbers and killers were released, the relationship between Alix and Jim turned into its own story — one that shocked the upper crust of St. Paul. The star-crossed romance between an ambitious young woman of high society and an ex-con more than twice her age is a story that seems like fiction — but it was once actual news.
In his 33 years as a reporter at the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Bill McAuliffe covered politics, crime, weather and other obsessions of the day. He is also an award-winning travel writer and has written a wide range of children’s non fiction books. He is a bicyclist, bread-baker, undiscovered guitarist and grandfather of four. He lives in Minneapolis.
Graydon Royce is a retired theater critic and fine arts writer with the Star Tribune. He won the 2016 Ivey Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Twin Cities theater community. He has been a fellow at both the O’Neill Critic’s Institute in New London, Conn., and the NEA Classical Music Fellowship at Columbia University. He is also a playwright and actor. He most recently performed in “Holiday Inn” at Chanhassen Dinner Theatre. Royce currently serves as director of artistic ministry at Diamond Lake Lutheran Church in south Minneapolis. He has four children and eight grandchildren.
Steve Lawler is a family practice physician and actor from Northfield. He has participated in all facets of the Northfield Arts Guild Theater program – as a volunteer, theater committee member, and actor. He has been in over two dozen Arts Guild shows including recent performances in Scenes from THE ODYSSEY by Homer, The Secret Garden, and The Pirates of Penzance.
Rachel Haider is a theater artist with an extensive resume that includes work with professional, community and educational theaters. She has taught in private and public schools and with numerous arts organizations. Rachel is the former Performing Arts Manager at the Guild and she directs/teaches/manages the Purple Door Youth Theater. Her most recent directing credits with the Guild include Mansfield Park, Les Misérables (which won Best Production in 2018) and The Wizard of Oz. In 2018 she was a Best of Southern MN Scene Winner for Best Director.
