MPR News Arts Reporter Marianne Combs joins Jade (in for Jill Riley) and Sean McPherson to talk about art that finds beauty in difficult places. "Some people might think I must gravitate towards darkness," Marianne says, "but some of the most beautiful things come out of difficulty and darkness, and so I guess this is talking about the kind of beauty that comes from difficult places."

Here's the rundown:

Pioneer Suite — Freshwater Theatre presents the world premiere of this musical by Keith Hovis . Pioneer Suite tells the tales of three women who lived in Minnesota in the late 1800s. Put together as one production, the stories spotlight 19th-century women and the difficult lives that they lived on the prairie, but Hovis has taken these lives and turned into beautiful music. Pioneer Suite is scheduled for various dates in October at Nimbus Theatre in Minneapolis.

Alex Kuno show at Rogue Buddha Gallery — One could describe Alex Kuno as a modern version of the Grimm Brothers. He's created an exhibit called "The Primal Forces of Nature," consisting of darkly satirical vignettes The Miscreants of Tiny Town, where the children are always in danger. In Kuno's latest series, monsters are stripping away the Tiny Town village and building their own structures on top of it. Marianne describes the artwork as complex architectural structures that suggest MC Escher, combined with wildly imaginative exotic beasts. Kuno's artwork is on exhibit at the Rogue Buddha Gallery in Minneapolis.

The Events — Staging at the Guthrie Theater's Proscenium Stage, this is a work by award-winning Scottish playwright David Grieg. It follows a community's search for understanding in the wake of a very violent act. Written as a a response to the 2011 Norway attacks, The Events delves into faith, politics, reason — and each night, it features music by local church choirs. The Events runs until Sunday, Nov. 1.

Marianne Combs joins The Current's Morning Show for the Weekend Arts Roundup every Thursday at 8:30 a.m. Read all the latest arts news from MPR News.