Critics’ picks: The 10 best things to do and see in the Twin Cities this week

The veteran New York vocalist is probably best known for her 1980s hit duets with James Ingram, “Baby, Come to Me” and “How Do You Keep the Music Playing.” However, she also was a first-call background singer, contributing to records by a who’s who including Paul Simon, Cat Stevens, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, Roberta Flack, Joe Cocker, James Brown and Luther Vandross. In this century, Austin turned to jazz vocalizing, grabbing a Grammy for “Avant Gershwin” in 2008. Last year, her elegant and knowing “For Ella 2” (as in Fitzgerald) featuring a 40-piece big band earned a Grammy nomination. She won’t have a large big band with her but she brings a honeyed voice and a special way with the Great American Songbook. (7 p.m. Fri. & Sat., the Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $108.50 and up, dakotacooks.com)

JON BREAM

They played two star-crossed dreamers on screen in 2007’s swooning movie “Once,” for which they also won best song at the Oscars with “Falling Slowly.” That turned into a brief romantic relationship off-screen. That, in turn, made things complicated. Irish folk-rocker Glen Hansard and Czech-Icelandic pianist/singer Markéta Irglová are finally back making music together as the Swell Season and touring for their first album in 16 years, “Forward,” issued just last week and featuring more oceanic ballads and heartwarming duets. If this one’s as lovely as their 2009 set here, bring a tissue. (8 p.m. Wed., Orpheum Theatre, 910 Hennepin Av. S., $65-$190, ticketmaster.com)

CHRIS RIEMENSCHNEIDER

If you’re pining for some outdoor music this weekend and the Minnesota Yacht Club with Hozier, Green Day and others isn’t your jam, perhaps check out this country comer. Just four years after writing his first song, the Pennsylvania native is making a name for himself in country music. Zeiders’ power ballad “Pretty Little Poison,” the title track of his 2023 album, went to No. 1, leading to an opening slot on a big tour with Jelly Roll. Now the gritty voiced, long-haired Zeiders — who grew up wanting to be a pro lacrosse player until an injury derailed him — is headlining his own gigs, showing he’s equal parts Nickelback rocker and romantic crooner. (7:30 p.m. Fri., Ledge Amphitheater, 1700 Parkway Drive, Waite Park, Minn., $59-$185, tickemaster.com)

J.B.

As young cellists converge upon Northfield each summer for the International Cello Institute, Twin Cities audiences benefit with a weekly recital series that features outstanding soloists. This year’s St. Paul concert series opens with the Minnesota Orchestra’s longtime principal cellist, Anthony Ross, and pianist Timothy Lovelace performing a program of 20th-century works by Sergei Rachmaninoff, Nikolai Myaskovsky, Leonard Bernstein and Samuel Barber. Ensuing weeks offer concerts by the Colorado Cello Quartet and Brannon Cho. (7:30 p.m. Wed., Sundin Music Hall, 1531 Hewitt Av., St. Paul, $45, students free, internationalcelloinstitute.com)

ROB HUBBARD

Bringing fresh works by Minnesota-based composers to local ears is the focus of the Vanguard New Music Series. For three years, the series has been presenting concerts at a former Lutheran church in St. Paul’s Hamline-Midway neighborhood in collaboration with the 20-year-old Twin Cities new music group RenegadeEnsemble. This week, it will present this adventurous brass quintet premiering new works by Michael Maiorana and Isaac Mayhew, as well as offering recent pieces by Nora Farley, Klo Vivienne Garoute, Michael Gaydeski and Samantha Hogan. (7 p.m. Thu., Zion Community Commons, 1697 Lafond Av., St. Paul, $15, renegadeensemble.org)

R.H.

When wealthy 83-year-old heiress Elisabeth Congdon and her night nurse Velma Pietila were violently murdered in Duluth’s Glensheen mansion in 1977, it was no laughing matter. However, ever since the story about a bungled burglary that led to the killings opened as a campy musical in 2015, it has become a wickedly funny one. For the 10th anniversary of the Jeffrey Hatcher-Chan Poling dark comedy, director Ron Peluso is back and so is the original cast, including Jen Maren as femme fatale Marjorie, Dane Stauffer as her chump husband, Roger, and Wendy Lehr as the twerking attorney. Peluso says his goal always has been to treat the victims “with grace and respect.” With the double murder-mystery still unsolved, he has often wondered if the person of interest, who Peluso was told is still out there, has seen the show. Ends July 27. (History Theatre, 30 E. 10th St., St. Paul. $30-$89. 651-292-4323, historytheatre.com)

ARTHI SUBRAMANIAM

Emerging companies Amez Dance, Analog Dance Works and Ruby Josephine Dance Theater team up for this contemporary work that explores the connection between science and the human experience. From psychology to biology to plant agency and astrophysics, choreographers Nieya Amezquita, Brenna Mosser and Ruby Josephine Smith investigate a different aspect of scientific inquiry and its reverberations on the human condition. (7 p.m. Fri. & Sat., 2 p.m. Sun., Southern Theater, 1420 Washington Av. S., Mpls. $25, southerntheater.org)

SHEILA REGAN

In honor of Soo Visual Arts Center’s founder Suzy Greenberg, the art gallery hosts an exhibition featuring work by Master of Fine Arts graduates from the University of Minnesota and the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Juried by Trina Fernandez and Prerna, the show includes works by more than 15 artists. Opening reception on Sat., 6-9 p.m. Exhibition runs July 20-Aug. 24. (10 a.m.-5 p.m. Thu..-Fri., 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat.-Sun., 2909 Bryant Av. S. #101, Mpls., free, soovac.org or 612-871-2263)

ALICIA ELER

In Saudi Arabia-born, Minnesota-based artist Hend Al-Mansour’s new mixed-media installation, she blends portraiture with traditional motifs and architectural elements, emphasizing a focus on community involvement. Al-Mansour also will debut a new animation. July 10-Oct. 26. (10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue., Wed., Fri.-Sun., 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thu., Minneapolis Institute of Art, 2400 3rd Av. S., Mpls., free, new.artsmia.org or 612-870-3000).

A.E.

This annual celebration honors the rich history of St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood and has grown to become the largest African American-sponsored festival in Minnesota. DJs Dime and Digie will spin and mix tracks to get the crowd moving. There also will be local and national acts and a variety of food vendors. (11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sat., 271 Mackubin St., St. Paul. rondodays.net)

MELISSA WALKER