Spring Ale Fest

In case you missed last month's craft-beer festivals, here comes another for your drinking pleasure. The Spring Ale Fest makes its debut at the Ritz Theater on Saturday. What's so different about this one, you ask? Besides the funky location, the fest is dedicated to the newest craft breweries on the market (some aren't even open yet). The roster includes Lucid, Harriet, Dangerous Man, Staples Mill, Lucette, Badger Hill, plus a few veteran small guys such as Flat Earth, Brau Brothers and Barley John's. There will be a total of 30 beers on hand. The all-you-can-sample affair will also feature food trucks (Nate Dogs, Gastrotruck) and live music. Two sessions: Noon-4 p.m. and 5-9 p.m. Sat. 345 13th Av. NE., Mpls. $30 advance/$40 door. 1-888-506-1276. www.springalefest.com. -Tom Horgen

April Showers Bring Bitch Flowers

What better way to spend Easter eve than with notorious Minneapolis drag queen Bitch Flowers and her troupe of burlesque beauties, energetic dancers, rocker studs and fellow female impersonators? Catch over-the-top drag performances by Bitch Flowers, Krystal Kleer, Camille Collins and Victoria DeVille; burlesque from the bawdy Foxy Tann; live music from the hunky-dory Harley Wood; and dance performances from Sole to Soul Dance Conversion. Top it off with a dance party with DJ Jake Rudh, and this night will have you doing double duty in the confessional in the morning. (7:30 p.m. Sat. $10-$15. 18 & older. Varsity Theater, 1308 SE. 4th St., Mpls. www.varsitytheater.org.) -Jahna Peloquin

Super Super Tuesday!

Some big names in the national and local literary scene are congregating for a reading to help launch a new short-fiction contest. Courtesy of local literary arts magazine Paper Darts, the event will feature readings by locals Dessa, John Jodzio and Dylan Hicks, plus Los Angeles novelist Amelia Gray ("AM/PM," "Museum of the Weird") and Lindsay Hunter, a writer and co-founder of Chicago reading series "Quickies." The event takes place in conjunction with the release of Gray's latest novel, "Threats," as well as Paper Darts' new $500 short-fiction contest (which Gray is judging). (7-9 p.m. Tue. Free. Nomad World Pub, 501 Cedar Av. S., Mpls. www.paperdarts.org.) -Jahna Peloquin