Written by Mike Mullen
Etiquette at the family holiday table dictates you make more food than necessary, share generously and avoid arguing about politics, religion or money. Want to make a down payment on a peaceful meal? Try buttering up your loved ones with tickets to one of several affirming upcoming events at the Capri.
The 16th season of Legends @ the Capri continues on November 16 with The Tommy Barberella Jazz Ensemble, starring the former frontman for Prince’s New Power Generation. In “Sample This: A Tribute to Joe Sample, George Duke & Ramsey Lewis,” Barberella puts his piano chops on display channeling a few of his musical idols. Showtime is 7 p.m. on November 15 and a 3 p.m. matinee on Sunday the 16th. Tickets are $25 per individual pre-sale, $20 for groups of 10 or more, and $30 at the door.
Order Legends tickets at thecapri.org, or call Jordan Flaherty at 612-643-2040 or 763-260-4415.
This month’s First Thursday Films @ the Capri is Assembly, a documentary by Rashaad Newsome on the intersections of Black and queer artistry, technology, music and dance, and liberation. Following the screening, local musician M Jamison leads a discussion. Showtime is 7 p.m. November 6. Tickets are $5 at thecapri.org or at the door.
On November 8, the Capri presents Santino Fontana, a Tony-winning vocalist and star of stage and screen. Fontana, accompanied by Andrew Bourgoin, will perform a series of classics from Broadway, jazz standards and Disney hits. Showtime is 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $75 for VIP (includes reception with champagne toast and photo opportunities), $35 general admission and $25 for students, on sale at thecapri.org.
The PCYC Annual Children’s Gift Sale returns to the Capri on Saturday, December 13. Thousands of donations and hundreds of volunteers have made this event a success over its 60-year history. This year, about 600 North Minneapolis youth will shop for gifts for family members in the pop-up gift store in the Paradise at the Capri. Learn how you can contribute — donating gifts, time or money — at pcyc-mpls.org/support/gift-sale-2025/.
Two pieces of news for the Capri Best Buy Teen Tech Center, one monetary, the other lasting: First, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey stopped by to meet students and staff prior to the October mayoral forum hosted at the Capri. And second, congratulations to students Destiny Greene-Abdullah and J’eon Neal, who’ve been accepted to Jarvis Christian University, a historically Black college and university in Texas.
Get a three-for-one deal at the “Plug & Play Theater Showcase,” where a lineup of acts will employ narrative, multimedia, movement and music to enrich and entertain. That starts with an excerpt of Arthur “L.A.” Buckner’s Things You Can’t See, a piece based on years as a Black drummer at all-white weddings. Buckner’s performance is directed by James D. Gavins, who will then perform his own short play, Cicada, a bitingly humorous Afrofuturist story about a Black man’s search for reparations. Last but not least, Midwest James takes the stage, accompanied by friends, for an album release. Tickets $30, $25 for students, or two students for $30 at thecapri.org.
CoMingL returns to the Capri stage in December with its second annual “Black Co-MingL Nativity,” a festive re-imagining of the story of Christmas, again featuring actor Nubia Monks. Witness this acclaimed 10-piece local band put a soulful modern twist on the seasonal tale, recentering love as its theme. Showtime is 7 p.m. on Saturday, December 19, and 3 p.m. Sunday December 20. Tickets are $40 or $35 for students, and can be found through the capri.org site.
Youth in grades 5-8 are invited to attend Camp Capri Third Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, November 1, and again November 15, where talented teaching artists guide middle school scholars through the wonderful world of the arts, sparking all sorts of creative interests along the way. Camp Capri S3 is free, with lunch served. Registration required at thecapri.org.
The Capri is located at 2027 W. Broadway. For details and ticket info visit thecapri.org.