Photo by Ingrid Alm for Lunchboxx.org

Shannon Blowtorch

Shannon Blowtorch is the kind of person that if something is in front of her, she's going to learn how to use it. That's what happened to her back when she was the entertainment director at Pi Bar. There, she just started teaching herself how to use the DJ equipment that was in the space.

After Pi's brief lifespan (2007-2008), Blowtorch began DJ-ing around town, and was so successful that she does it full time now. This week she's got two events. The first is BOMP or Bust!, a dance party that started in Bedlam's old space, and moved around quite a few times before settling at Ground Zero. The second is at Hell's Kitchen's Grown & Sexy: A Way Gay St. Paddy's Day, a happening catering to the LGBTQ community.

We talked with the Blowtorch, the mastermind of some of the best parties in town, to find out about the upcoming events and what she's been up to lately. 
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Noah Wolfe Photography

For City Pages' 2013 Best Ofs, we're taking a trip back in time to the Roaring 20s, an era filled with flirtatious flappers, dapper gentlemen, gin mills, and juice joints. This year, our annual Best of the Twin Cities party takes on a decidedly Gatsby-like vibe to celebrate our biggest issue in style.

See also: Vote in our 2013 Best of the Twin Cities Readers' Poll

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The hype surrounding New Year's Eve almost never comes close to what actually happens that night. Sure, sometimes there's a cinematic moment with confetti and a kiss that ranks on your top 10 list, but more often than not someone spills a drink on you and you're left waiting for a cab in the cold. That's the beauty of the night: There's no rhyme or reason to what's going to happen.

The Twin Cities hosted a slew of parties and events around town, from slick club parties to bar get-togethers. While there's a lot to be said for hanging out at home with family or friends and watching the ball drop, getting out into the city means that anything can happen. Despite best efforts to plot out the evening between friends and numerous parties, sometimes you just can't plan for what actually happens.

Related stories:

New Year's Eve Midnight in Morocco at Epic: Photobooth
New Year's Eve at the Triple Rock

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Photo by Farrington Starnes

A temporary placard outside the new Bedlam Lowertown

Bedlam Theatre has had a big year, and they're celebrating in style on New Year's Eve at their Minneapolis digs. In 2012, Bedlam collaborated with over 1,000 artists and participants, with performances in more than 30 venues. This fall, they moved into their new home in St. Paul while simultaneously maintaining their Minneapolis-based Community Design Workshop space in the Ivy Arts Building. They presented 10-Fest with Mixed Blood on the West Bank, and co-produced 2012: The Musical with New Native Theatre at In the Heart of the Beast. They are also working with the Native American-Somali Friendship Committee, Kaoog, and New Native Theatre on the Native-American-Somali Friendship Play Project premiering this spring.
Related articles:
Bedlam's 10 Fest Returns to the West Bank
 
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Patrick Kelley Worldwide Photography

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Patrick Kelley Worldwide Photography

I AM MPLS! 2012 participants pose at a photoshoot

Fashion stylist Sarah Edwards was inspired to create I AM MPLS!, an annual variety show, because of the amazing talent that Minneapolis has to offer.

"I started the event because it was overwhelming how many cool things were always happening in the cities," she says. "There are all these difference subcultures. My mind was a little blown, and I was curious what would happen if all these people were in the same room at the same time."

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This Saturday, folks will be able to get a little sneak peak of Public Functionary, a new gallery space in northeast Minneapolis that plans to open in January 2013 with the help of a KickStarter campaign.

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Tony Nelson

Dave Ryan has been on the air at KDWB for two decades, and his fan base has grown exponentially since those first days at the station. Booty Cruise, one of KDWB's most popular summer events, brings women from all over the state to Stillwater. There, they have the chance to meet their radio idols Ryan, Falen, Steve-O, Crisco, and psychic Gary Spivey.

We braved the waters of the St. Croix River to ask revelers about their favorite parts of the Dave Ryan Show, and how long they've been listening.

See also:
Dave Ryan hits a milestone
Overheard at Booty Cruise 2012

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Tatiana Craine

A peek at the infamous second floor of the Booty Cruise boat.

"You'll never see any of these crazy bitches ever again," says KDWB's Dave Ryan to all the ladies on board the Booty Cruise. Boy, did the ladies take Dave's words to heart as they let the gossip flow as freely as the liquor from the boat's multiple bars.

Hundreds of women from around the state were more than ready to have a few drinks, dance with their friends, and maybe even get a little frisky with the male strippers on the boat's infamous second floor. We took the best tidbits of conversation from the night and compiled them here for any ladies who missed out on the cruise and all the menfolk banned from the ship. Be warned, some of these women have mouths like sailors.

See also:
Dave Ryan hits a milestone

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Kendra Sundvall

Bill Murray's appearance may have been a hoax, but any excuse for a party

See also:
Bill Murray Mobile Dance Party slideshow
Bill Murray Mobile Dance Party: Will it feature Bill Murray?

Let's get this out of the way: Bill Murray, object of our love, star of 60-some Hollywood movies and TV series, did not show at Tuesday night's Bill Murray Mobile Dance Party.

Or, if he did, he did not make it known. Who knows, he might've bicycled beside us in disguise, Venkman himself incognito on a bright blue Schwinn Traveler III with handlebar streamers and a hamburger bell. Maybe he had Wayfarers on, despite the late-summer-evening dark. Maybe he smoked a thin cigarette and spouted witty remarks to the cyclists around him. But he was quiet about it. He did not fly into Gold Medal Park on angelic wings amidst a burst of heavenly light, like many hoped and--after a few shots of whiskey--sadly imagined. Bummer, dude. We still love you, Bill Murray. And the party went on anyway.

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