Dan Chouinard's Cafe Europa Returns to the Fitzgerald Theater

Nov 26, 2012

Minnesota Public Radio presents Dan Chouinard's Cafe Europa at the Fitzgerald Theater on Saturday, Jan. 26. The show is described as a travelogue for solo bicyclist with accordion that draws on Chouinard's leisurely European adventures. Cafe Europa features stories from his latest jaunt in search of Minnesota's World War II stories from Naples to Normandy. The show will deploy a platoon of Chouinard's favorite musician friends, including Maria Jette, Bradley Greenwald, Prudence Johnson, the Rose Ensemble and a string quartet, plus actors Joseph Scrimshaw and Eric Ringham. Former MPR News' host Gary Eichten lends his voice as the legendary WWII journalist Ernie Pyle.

WHEN: Saturday, January 26, 2013, 8 p.m.

WHERE: Fitzgerald Theater, 10 E. Exchange Street, St. Paul

TICKETS: $32; For tickets, call the MPR Box Office at (651) 290-1200. MPR members receive a discount.

ABOUT DAN CHOUINARD
Pianist, accordionist and writer Dan Chouinard is a Twin Cities native who plays, tours and records regularly with a long and varied list of musicians and writers. In addition to performances with the likes of Prudence Johnson, Maria Jette, Peter Ostroushko, Kevin Kling and the Rose Ensemble, he also creates special programs that blend history, memoir and music, often for Minnesota Public Radio and the Minnesota Historical Society. He turns up frequently at the Fitzgerald Theater, most recently with Steerage Song, a musical documentary about steamship-era immigration to the U.S., co-written with playwright Peter Rothstein. Two previous shows, Cafe Europa (2005, 2008) and Mambo Italiano (2006) were aired on TPT and broadcast statewide on MPR. Whenever he can he travels the world by bicycle with tent and accordion, looking for music and a good story.