In the heart of midwinter, every year since 1886, our city cuts loose for the “coolest celebration on earth,” the St. Paul Winter Carnival. It’s the oldest winter festival in the nation and a fantastically, even ridiculously varied civic celebratory mish-mash: there are curling and snow plow competitions, as befits the season, as well as ice carving and a popular “medallion hunt” through the city, sponsored every year by the “Pioneer Press.” There’s a drag show and a cat show, geo-caching and ice skating; a marathon and even a special outdoor yoga class.

Our annual wintertime festival even comes complete with its own vaguely Teutonic legend and accompanying traditions — involving a certain King Boreas (ruler of the North Winds) and his icy queen Aurora and a full royal court, who vie for control of our fair city’s clime and culture with the god of fire, Vulcan, and his mischievous Krewe.

There are loads of activities for kids,  of course— parades  and “coronations,” with lots of pomp and fanfare; although, sadly, because of our inordinately mild winter, our family’s favorite of these traditional events, the snow sculpture competition, has been cancelled this year for lack of the white stuff. Grown-ups will flock to the already-sold-out, third annual Beer Dabbler. There will, of course, be an abundance of live music in and around Rice Park, as well as dance and spoken word and various other performances.

The festivities and amenities (notably, food trucks) are most densely concentrated in Lowertown and downtown — particularly in and around Rice Park and in the vicinity of the Farmer’s Market. Even so, for the 10 days of the Winter Carnival you’ll find related happenings all over town. A calendar of events is available on the festival website, though, honestly, it’s kind of difficult to parse, especially if you’re looking for something specific. So, I’ve done a bit of poking around to point you toward the arts highlights of this year’s carnival:

Black Dog Coffee and Wine Bar (the “official warming house” for the carnival), every year hosts the “Winter Carnival Annual Art Show,” a juried exhibition of work by local visual artists. Before you leave, be sure to head next door, to the AZ Gallery, where you’ll find the charming “ Elementary and Middle School Art Show,” which features work by St. Paul elementary and middle-school students. Both art shows will be on view throughout the Winter Carnival, Jan. 26 – Feb. 5, at 308 Prince St., St Paul, Minn. Admission is free and open to the public.

If you’re a music lover, you won’t want to miss this year’s Deepwinter Bonfire, held at McNally Smith College of Music and the History Theatre. The college has an impressive line-up of improvisational music, spoken word and hip-hop dance, VJs and DJs; headlining the show is Coloring Time, a flexible roster of musicians, including Aby Wolf, Chastity Brown, Peter Pisano (Peter Wolf Crier), Michelle Kinney (Jelloslave), Kristoff Krane, Crescent Moon, Casey O’Brien (Face Candy), No Bird Sing, John Keston and others. Deepwinter Bonfire will be held Jan. 28 at the McNally Smith College of Music and the History Theatre, 19 E. Exchange St. East, St. Paul, Minn., 55101 and www.mcnallysmith.edu. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., with Improvestra performing at 6, Galactic Soul Arkestra at 8 and Coloring Time (with special guests) at 9 p.m. Dancers, DJs and VJs will perform throughout in the McNally Smith atrium, with food and drinks available. Admission is $5 (free with a student ID).

Poetry in Motion Dance Company will offer two full-length presentations of a new work, “The Ascent” —  it’s the first opportunity to see the production locally (although audiences saw a sneak peek at the Cowles Center opening in Minneapolis this fall); the show’s premiere staging was this November in Poland. Poetry in Motion Dance Company will perform “The Ascent” on the Winter Carnival’s Rice Park stage, Saturday, Jan. 28 at 10 a.m. and Sunday, Jan. 29 at 1 p.m. with a shorter version to be performed on Feb. 4 at 1:30 p.m., 109 Fourth St. West, St. Paul, Minn.

The Euro Dance Party at the Germanic-American Institute sounds like a hoot. Shake your moneymaker to Euro-pop tunes all afternoon and evening on the grounds of the Germanic-American Institute. The institute’s all-ages “Winterfest” will include live music from Dale Dahmen and the Beats, authentic German Karneval Narren, family friendly activities, Glühwein, beer, brats and a variety of other German delicacies. In the evening, the dance party will head inside, down to the Ratskeller; you can warm up throughout the afternoon in the Winterfest Tent or around the bonfire. The Euro Dance Party happens Jan. 28 from 3 p.m. to midnight on the grounds of the Germanic-American Institute, 301 Summit Ave., St. Paul, Minn. Admission is free. The St. Paul Winter Carnival will feature events all over the city from Jan. 26 through Feb. 5. For detailed information on all this year’s events, visit the website: http://www.winter-carnival.com/.