MPR News Arts Reporter Marianne Combs joins Steve Seel and Jill Riley to talk about four big news stories in the local arts scene, plus two new events you can check out this weekend.

In local arts headlines, we have:

Minnesota Orchestra lockout ends — After 15 months, the Minnesota Orchestra labor dispute has been settled. The question remains: Will Osmo Vänskä return?

Walker Art Center's chief curator takes new job — The Katonah Museum of Art, a small museum about an hour north of New York City, has hired Walker Art Center Chief Curator Darsie Alexander to be its next director. According to the KMA, Alexander will assume her new role March 1.

Guthrie Theater furloughs staff and makes repairs — With the building closed for repairs and maintenance, the Guthrie will furlough its non-union staff for one week in January.

Local actor gets Oscar nomination — Minneapolis actor Barkhad Abdi will be on the Oscar ballot in the category of best supporting actor for his work in the film, Captain Phillips.

And then there are these new arts events to note:

"Sacred" at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts — In this exhibition, simply titled "Sacred," curators have assembled art from every corner of the world that shares a sense of the sacred. Museum visitors can explore historical and contemporary expressions of the divine, the spiritual, the essential and the beloved while reflecting on the meaning of the word "sacred." There are allied events, such as the one on Saturday, when the Gorilla Yogis will lead a yoga session in the reception hall of the Target wing.

Revolver at the Ritz: 12 Experiments — This production explores the intersection of words and risk by getting authors on stage at the Ritz Theater in Minneapolis. This Saturday, Jan. 18, the Twin Cities' best writers, actors and playwrights will be joining Revolver, a Twin Cities-based literary arts and culture organization, for this live-action stage show.

Marianne Combs joins The Current's Morning Show for the Weekend Arts Roundup every Thursday at 8:30 a.m. Read about all the latest arts news at the State of the Arts blog at mprnews.org.