Category Archives: State Theatre

Peter Mayer in Concert — May 18

Crossings brings Minnesota musician Peter Mayer to Zumbrota's State Theatre at 8 pm on Saturday, May 18. Tickets are $20 in advance and $22 the day of the show. To purchase tickets, call Crossings at 507-732-7616. Doors open at 7 pm.

“He is unafraid of complicated topics and always strives to look beyond the easy sentiment…Peter does nothing less than address the very nature of our existence…Trust me, most songwriters can’t pull this off. Peter Mayer does.”
–Dale Connelly, Morning Show Host, Minnesota Public Radio

Peter Mayer’s songs have been compared to Shaker furniture – clean and light, yet hardly simple. His superb guitar skills make playing his music seem deceptively easy. Mayer’s songs are about interconnectedness and the human journey–about the beauty and the mystery of the world. But there’s plenty of humor, too, in songs like “Snuffleupagus” and “Fake Plant.”

Mayer, who once studied at seminary before pursuing a career in music, has toured full-time since 1995. Since then, he has gathered a dedicated following, selling out shows from Minnesota to Texas, New England to Colorado. He has nine CDs to his credit, and has sold over 50,000 of them independently.

Mayer is an artist of relevance and insight whose music is not to be missed. Peter Mayer

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.

The Great Gatsby — May 16

Join us a for a FREE evening of fun at the State Theatre on Thursday, May 16. The evening starts at 6:30 with a brief lecture by noted Fitzgerald scholar David Page on the significance of F. Scott Fitzgerald's life in Minnesota as it relates to his writing career. Then we will be screening the 1974 Academy Award winning film "The Great Gatsby" starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow.

Rated PG

Free Admission

Free Popcorn

This event is part of the concluding celebration of Zumbrota Reads. Copies of The Great Gatsby are available at the Zumbrota Public Library. For information on this community wide reading event, visit http://www.zumbrota.info/zumbrota-reads/

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.

Monroe Crossing — May 11

Crossings brings Monroe Crossing to Zumbrota's State Theatre on Saturday, May 11 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $18 in advance and $20 the day of the show. To purchase tickets, call Crossings at 507-732-7830. Doors open at 6:30 pm.

Monroe Crossing dazzles audiences with an electrifying blend of classic bluegrass, bluegrass gospel, and heartfelt originals. Audiences will delight in their airtight harmonies, razor sharp arrangements, and on-stage rapport.

The five-member band is back by popular demand after near sell-out crowds in 2011 and 2012. Based in Minnesota, the group plays an average of 125 shows a year at major venues and festivals, frequently for non-bluegrass audiences — and people often comment that they’d never really liked bluegrass music until they attended a Monroe Crossing concert!

Monroe Crossing is made up of five very distinct personalities with differing musical backgrounds and tastes, combining for a very unique ensemble sound. They are Derek Johnson: guitar, lead & harmony vocals; Lisa Fuglie: fiddle, mandolin, lead and harmony vocals; Matt Thompson: mandolin, fiddle, baritone vocals; Mark Anderson: bass and bass vocals; and David Robinson: banjo. Their paths crossed through the music of Bill Monroe so they like to say they had a “Monroe Crossing.”

Among many honors, Monroe Crossing showcased at the International Bluegrass Music Association Convention and was inducted into the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame. The only bluegrass band ever nominated as “Artist of the Year” by the Minnesota Music Academy (MMA), Monroe Crossing has won an MMA “Bluegrass Album of the Year” award.

Monroe Crossing has recorded 13 CDs and one DVD to date. Their lucky 13th CD, “The Road Has No End,” showcases both the band’s unique originality and its high regard for the classic bluegrass tradition.

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.

Monroe Crossing

Movie: Rear Window — May 10

Alfred Hitchcock is BACK! This 1954 classic thriller stars James Stewart as a photographer confined to a wheelchair while convalescing from an injury. To pass the time, he studies his neighbors from his apartment. When it appears that one of them has committed murder, Stewart's glamorous girlfriend, Grace Kelly, risks her life to find the evidence he needs.

Rated PG

Showtime 7 pm

Admission $5

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.

Mary Jane Alm and the Tex Pistols– April 27

Crossings brings Mary Jane Alm and the Tex Pistols to Zumbrota's State Theatre on Saturday, April 27 for a 7:30 pm performance of "Now & Then." Tickets are $28 in advance and $30 the day of the show. To purchase tickets, call 507-732-7616. Doors open at 6:30. A new CD of 19 songs will be available at the show.

"The Mary Jane Alm Band's music was superb, with polished instrumentals and solid vocal harmony added to a voice so solid it could make a lot of well known pop singers envious." "Alm was recently voted best female vocalist in the Twin Cities by two different entertainment magazines. After listening to her sing, one could wonder why they bothered to count the votes."
Rochester Post-Bulletin

Throughout the last 20 years, Mary Jane Alm has mesmerized audiences with her expressive voice, authentic songwriting and charming stage presence. Alm is one of the Twin Cities' best loved singer/songwriters and a recent inductee into the Mid-America Music Hall Of Fame. With her band, she takes audiences on a journey through time, performing songs that made her a household name in the Midwest, as well as previously unreleased songs spanning three decades. For the first time her critically acclaimed 1986 album “Prisoner Of The Heart” will be released digitally re-mastered on CD, along with 10 unreleased recordings from the last two decades. The new CD of 19 original recordings called “Now & Then” will be available at the show.

The “Now & Then” show will feature songs from Linda Ronstadt, Pat Benatar, The Pretenders, Bonnie Raitt and many more favorites, along with signature Alm originals. A multimedia video featuring clips from the 80's to the present will fill the screen behind the band.

Riding shotgun on the journey is The Tex Pistols Band, aka the Mary Jane Alm Band! Recently featured on the PBS TV show MN Originals, The Pistols combine rock, Americana, and country with awesome musicianship, killer vocals, and clever writing. It’s a fresh sound, with a healthy dose of good humor. Band members have shared the stage with the likes of: Lynard Skynard, The Beach Boys, Prince, Reba McEntire, The Judds, and many more.

The Mary Jane Alm Band includes Boyd Lee on acoustic guitar and vocals, Gordy Johnson on bass, Dik Shopteau on bass, Scooter Nelson on percussion and vocals and Brian Peters on guitar and pedal steel.

Alm is currently teaching music theory and vocal techniques at The Institute of Production and Recording in downtown Minneapolis.

“I think the reason I have been able to have such a long career in this crazy business is that I have always been open to doing anything as long as it involves music and is done with class and involves great players and singers,” Alm said.

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.

Mary Jane Alm

The Tex Pistols Band

Backstage Sale — April 25 and 26

Thursday, 1–5pm

Friday, 9–5pm

Enjoy a little treasure hunting this Thursday and Friday! You get your own backstage pass into the mysteries of the State Theatre. Among the treasures we have for sale are Red Wing pottery coping tiles that were removed when the roof was replaced last fall, two historic upright pianos, multiple cinema projectors of varying ages, theatre seats, CDs, theatre concessions (candy, pop, water) and freshly popped popcorn!

This is a joint venture with the Zumbrota Historical Society, so don't forget to cross the parking lot and peruse the treasures at the History Center.

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota. Please enter through the back of the building.

Crossings’ 12th Annual Poet-Artist Collaboration — April 19

Celebrate National Poetry Month! Come to the Gala Reception for Crossings' 12th Annual Poet-Artist Collaboration on Friday, April 19. The evening begins at 6:30 at Crossings at Carnegie, 320 East Ave, Zumbrota. There you can meet the artists and poets and enjoy refreshments. Then join the party as it moves down the block to the State Theatre at 7:30 for a poetry reading and slideshow of the accompanying artwork.

Some 150 poets and artists participated in this year’s event by entering up to three poems each, or submitting artistic work samples. Jurors winnowed nearly 300 poems down to just 26. Other jurors halved the artistic pool to match the number of poems. For this exhibit, each selected artist then chose one selected poem from which to create an artwork. Poems and the work they inspired are displayed together.

“The response this year was almost overwhelming, and we’re gratified to see so many talented people participating in our event. Poet-Artist Collaboration holds a special place in our hearts and never fails to produce lovely and surprising results as art and poetry intertwine,” said Crossings owner Marie Marvin.

The public is invited and admission is free.

The 51 participating poets and artists come from around Minnesota, including Rochester, Minneapolis, Northfield, Wabasha and elsewhere; two are from Wisconsin.

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota. For more information visit http://www.crossingsatcarnegie.com

Pictured Above: "Li Bai," pastel by Mike Schad from the 2013 Collaboration

Gravitone, The Musical — April 14

We are proud to bring you "What's The Matter With Captain Gravitone?" featuring the music of String Theory on Sunday, April 14, at 2 p.m. We have been selected as one of six venues for this original production funded in part by the Prairie Lakes Regional Arts Council.

General Idiocy and Siren Seductress Leather Alice are teaming up to make the world "more stupider." It's up to Captain Gravitone to use his super powers to make people pick the best choices, save the world and gather the courage to ask his long time love, Emma, out on a date. Featuring the music of String Theory http://elihoehn.com/stringtheory/ and poetry of John Rezmerski, it's a family-friendly comic-book farce that will have you laughing and dancing.

Advance tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for children 12 and under and are available at Crossings and Wild Ginger in Zumbrota. You may also purchase them online at http://gravitone.wix.com/gravitone. Doors open at 1:15 p.m. Tickets at the door are $7 for adults, $5 for children under 12 and ZAAC members.

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.

(Above) Captain Gravitone dukes it out with the evil General Idiocy. It's up to Gravitone to stop Idiocy's plan to make the world "more stupider."

Photo by: Wayne Schmidt photography

Movie: Les Miserables — April 13

Winner of three Academy Awards, this 2012 film stars Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried in the proclaimed adaptation of Victor Hugo's classic novel. Set in 19th-century revolutionary France, Jean Valjean is a burly French peasant imprisoned for stealing a loaf of bread. Released after serving 19 years, he is then hunted for decades by the ruthless policeman Javert for breaking his parole to start a better life. Valjean's new path crosses that of Fantine, a poor factory worker. His decision to care for her daughter Cosette changes their lives forever.

Rated PG-13. Showtime is 7 pm. Doors open at 6:15.

Admission $5.

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.

Michael Perry & The Long Beds — April 12

Crossings brings Michael Perry and the Long Beds to Zumbrota's State Theatre at 7:30 on Friday, April 12. Tickets are $18 in advance, $20 the day of the show. To purchase tickets call 732-7616. Doors open at 6:30.

Appearing onstage with his band the Long Beds, Michael Perry will weave stories and humor (including material from The Clodhopper Monologues) throughout a lively concert of original songs, including those on his albums and a couple of tunes fresh out of the pen.

The music of the Long Beds has been called everything from country folk to roughneck folk and folk-twang to good old Americana. The band prefers the description given by an audience member after a benefit concert in Perry’s old high school gym: “You sound just like Gordon Lightfoot… only zippier!”

Perry's songs are a direct reflection of his life growing up in small town Wisconsin. Ranging from straight-up twang to churchly harmonies and populated by characters drawn straight from rural and small town America, they launch from places like the overpass outside Perry’s beloved hometown of New Auburn, Wisconsin (population currently 562), a gospel service in a granary, and the kitchen floor of a woman about to drop a world of hurt on her drunken husband. “I was raised by farmers and preachers and tough country women, and I suppose my songs reflect that,” says Perry. “Then again, certain wisdoms are available only from whistlers, frauds, and sinners, so I try to slide them a line or two as well.”

Band members include backup vocalists and musicians Billy Krause on guitar and banjo, Chuck Roll on bass guitar and autoharp, and Christopher Ramey on guitar and keyboard, and special guests.

Perry is the author of bestselling memoirs "Population 485: Meeting Your Neighbors One Siren at a Time," "Truck: A Love Story," "Coop: A Year of Poultry, Pigs and Parenting," and "Visiting Tom: A Man, A Highway, and the Road To Roughneck Grace," as well as the essay collection "Off Main Street." He will give a lecture the day after the concert entitled Writing from the Middle of Nowhere. Perry will discuss his book and magazine writing techniques, how to survive the freelance life and the publishing world, and most importantly, how "the middle of nowhere" can be the most powerful writing element of all. The lecture is $35 and takes place at Crossings on Saturday, April 13, from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Read more about it here!

The State Theatre is located at 96 East 4th Street in Zumbrota.