Minneapolis Institute of Art - MIA @artsmia #travel #vacation Part 2

We went to Minneapolis Institute of Art - MIA twice. Yep you read that right.

Two Times = Two Posts

This is the second post. You can see the first one here.

Walker Art Center wins the award for best sculpture garden, but MIA wins the best award for an art museum. Hands down we enjoyed this one so much!

Cost: 

FREE

Some exhibits require tickets. We got to go to one of their special exhibits! I'll share that in this post.

Hours:

Monday: Closed
Tuesday: 10am – 5pm
Wednesday: 10am – 5pm
Thursday: 10am – 9pm
Friday: 10am – 9pm
Saturday: 10am – 5pm
Sunday: 11am – 5pm

A lot of museums are closed on Mondays in Minneapolis. Joslyn Art Museum here in Omaha, Nebraska is also closed on Mondays. Possibly it's a thing to be closed on Mondays. Just take note of that if you do travel places. I'd hate for you to get to a place thinking you're going to visit all kinds of museums, only to find out they are all closed.

Parking was a little tighter than the first time, but not awful.

We went to see their special exhibit on Native American Women Arts. Usually their special exhibits do cost money, but they had a special event. We became members, but it was all free.

Downside: We went to see Fort Snelling in the morning, Mall of America in the afternoon, and then the MIA. The little/tall boys were tired of walking. Who am I kidding? I was tired too. Right off the bat Isaak was complaining about his stomach hurting. I could tell Travis would hate us if he had to leave. He wanted to see it so much. What's a Mom to do? I didn't want him tossing his cookies on high end art! I sent him off to the bathroom, then had him sit in a room that was not part of the special exhibit. We took turns walking through the show.

Upside: I really wanted more time in this museum. In fact I could have gone three times! The exhibit was wonderful, so worth it. They had activities downstairs. Isaak participated in one of those.

I could wear these!

Stacking Fabrics:

It reminds me of the story Princess and the Pea. I just want to bounce on the top.

Super Powerful:

Mexican Doll:

I like that these paintings go off the canvas and tapestry! 

Something 3D. It felt much like bing in the South West among Cacti. 

This was Mica's favorite. He digs anything with space.

I saw something from this artist at another museum. In laid wood takes time!

Lots of masks!

This one has a lot of feeling attached to it!

Lit up pieces:

Certainly worth the extra tired feet.

Do you like Native American Art?
Disclaimer: This is not a paid review. I got no compensation, for writing this post. All opinions are my own. 

#returntoniobrara Play Review

It was really great to visit The Rose Theater again! I like when we can get out to see something that's for older children.

Right now they are showing Return to Niobrara. It's for ages 8 and up or 4th grade to 10th grande. Perfect for my 10 and 13 year olds.

I really can't see smaller kids understanding the true meaning of the play. Even Isaak asked me questions. They had some future tense happening at the same time as past tense. We thought it was really interesting, but for young kids it could be confusing. I know Mica was happy to have a play that was more advanced to go to.

The set design was fairly simple, yet the symbol changed throughout the play.

For this production they didn't have a live orchestra. BUT they had live instruments playing like flutes, and other similar instruments.

About Return to Niobrara: 

There was two stories that went on in one play. The two stories came together at times.

140 years ago, Steven's great-great grandfather Chief Standing Bear stood up in court and demanded that a federal Judge recognize that Indians are "persons" under the law.

Today, following an altercation where Steven is bullied at school on account of his long hair, Steven must follow in his grandfather's footsteps and speak out against his school's attempt to force him to cut his hair, and ultimately, to erase his identity.

 

Steven has dreams about his Grandfather. His dreams made him understand who he really is.

When Steven stands up for himself, it was difficult to know what part of the constitution the school was violating. His hair was a part of his culture. The school wanted him to cut his hair. Was the school breaking freedom of speech, or were they breaking freedom of religion? Steven was a Christian, but being a Native American is more than being a Christian. It was interesting to see how everything worked its way out.

In the end the school realized they were wrong. Steven learned so much about himself.

Our family loves Native American culture, so we of course got into this play a lot. The whole message was so important!

Show Dates:

The show is at The Rose Theater in Omaha, Nebraska from January 25 - February 10, 2019.

February 8 at 7 | February 9 at 2 and 5 | February 10 at 2

Members can receive 4 free tickets, non members pay $20 per ticket.

Call: 402.345.4849 for tickets.

Lobby doors open 45 minutes prior to the show starting. I certainly would get there early to get a seat.

Cast and Crew:

Steven/Bear Shield – Kenneth Ramos
Betsy/Prairie Flower/Bright Eyes – Nathalie Standingcloud
Tom/Thomas Henry Tibbles – Dan Chevalier
Principal McGovern/General Crook – Nils Haaland
Mom/Susette Primeau – Allison Hicks*
Dad/Chief Standing Bear – Albert (Abby) Ybarra*
Jack/A.J. Poppleton – Kevin Ehrhart
Bob/Genio Lambertson – Christopher Violett
Chorus 1 – Zach Kloppenborg
Chorus 2 – Kyle Summers
Musician – Michael Murphy
* The Actor appears through the courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

Artistic/Production Credits
Playwright – Mary Kathryn Nagle
Director – Roxanne Wach
Assistant Director – Meganne Horrocks
Scenic Designer – Kathy Voecks
Projection Designer – Brittany Merenda
Lighting & Sound Designer – Craig S. Moxon
Costume Designer – Sherri Geerdes
Hair & Makeup Designer – Erin Bragg
Production Stage Manager – Lisa Krabbenhoft
Director of Production – Erin M. Solemsaas
Technical Director – Greg Rishoi
Props Mistress – Devon Denn-Young
Assistant Projection Designer – Alex Pinchin
Scenic Charge Artist – Savannah Savick
Master Carpenter – Jackson Curtright
Lighting Apprentice – Elton Bradley
Scenic Apprentice/Run Crew – Austin Watson
Stage Management Apprentice – Kali Coates
Assistant Sound Designer – Christy Hernandez
Stitchers – Sherri Geerdes, Erin Bragg, Audio Helkuik, Jill Maenner
Ponca Consultants – Louis Headman and Randy Ross
Ponca Language Translation – Louis Headman
Fight Choreographer – Kevin Barratt
Special thanks to Allyson Currin, Louis Headman, Dwight Howe, Deirdre Lavrakas, Kim Peter Kovac, Randy Ross, Barbara Salvatore, Laurie Smith Camp, Steve Tamayo, Diana Vallier

The End of the Show:

They had a question and answer session. I liked that one of the main stars was there to answer questions. Then there was an autograph signing as well.

I'm really glad we were able to go! Everyone enjoyed it!

Disclaimer: I got tickets from The Rose Theater to help write this review. The Rose Theater did not tell me what to write. All opinions are my own. 

WW: Native American {Linky}

Mica decided he wanted to look like a Native American. He went into his room, colored feathers, cut them out and taped them right to his head. He thinks of Native Americans straight from the Thanksgiving stories and pictures. Mica's interest in Native Americans could come from the band Brulé; we saw them awhile back. They sure can dance and the flute player is amazing!

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