Midwest Log Rolling Championships and Drums on Parade
Balance and precision are at the heart of two types of performances in Madison this weekend: the Midwest Log Rolling Championships and Drums on Parade. The calendar also includes: Oregon Summer Fest; productions of Dickens in America, Hamlet, and Blitz XIII; performances by Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society; more live music from Less Than Jake, Moon Hooch, Mac DeMarco, Beat Club, Jeffery Broussard & The Creole Cowboys, The Uncluded with Hamell on Trial, Paul Otteson & Faux Faun, and Corbin Marsh Band; and, a talk by Leroy Butler.
Friday 6.28
NOTEWORTHY: Archduke of Austria assassinated, igniting World War I, 1914.
Kiser Fireman's Park, Oregon, through June 30
The southern burb celebrates itself, and why not? There'll be a softball tournament, music and a car show.
Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society
Stoughton Opera House, 7:30 pm. Also Saturday, June 29, Overture Center's Playhouse, 7:30 pm; & Sunday, June 30, Taliesin's Hillside Theater, Spring Green, 2:30 & 7:30 pm
The playful chamber ensemble kicks off the weekend with "Poker Face," a program as daring as Lady Gaga's song of the same name. The evening's works include Prokofiev's Five Melodies for Soprano and Piano (Op. 35), transcribed for a flute and piano, and Brahms' String Sextet in G Major, performed by a piano trio. Saturday's "Play the Hand You've Been Dealt" program features Beethoven's "Archduke" piano trio and works by Kattenburg and Korngold. Both programs will be repeated at Taliesin on Sunday.
Majestic Theatre, 9 pm
These Florida fun-seekers brought ska punk to the masses in the '90s, with radio hits like "History of a Boring Town" and a cut on the Good Burger soundtrack. Bust out the fedora and skank the night away to old favorites and new tunes, too. With the Sky We Scrape and the Moguls.
Frequency, 9 pm
With two saxophones and a drum kit but nary a DJ, this New York trio put a raw, jagged spin on house music. With Clean Sheet.
UW Memorial Union Terrace, 9:30 pm
The Canadian singer-songwriter marries filth and glam on his 2012 EP, Rock and Roll Night Club, which Pitchfork labeled an "unsettling brand of soft rock."
Saturday 6.29
NOTEWORTHY: Mikhail Baryshnikov defects from Soviet Union to Canada, 1974.
Midwest Log Rolling Championships
Wingra Park (at Wingra Boats), 11 am
What could be more fun than balancing precariously on a spinning wet log while trying your goll-darnedest to jettison your opponent into the water? Watching it, that's what. And you'll find ample opportunity for spectating at this benefit for the Huntington's Disease Society of America. There's also celebrity log rolling (1:30 pm), boom running (4:30 pm), food and music.
American Players Theatre in Spring Green, 3 pm. Also Tuesday, July 2, 7:30 pm
APT presents a one-man show, written by James DeVita and starring the great James Ridge. Ridge portrays Charles Dickens and several of the novelist's colorful characters.
Middleton High School's Breitenbach Stadium, 7 pm
The Drum Corps International Tour returns to Madison, featuring hometown favorites the Madison Scouts. Expect blaring brass and fabulous formations.
American Players Theatre in Spring Green, 8 pm
APT presents Shakespeare's masterpiece about the dithering Danish intellectual who yearns to be a man of action. Core company actor Matt Schwader essays the title role, that most difficult of theatrical challenges.
Bartell Theatre, 8 pm
Eight people pick titles out of a hat at 8 pm on Friday night, then write the plays to go with them over the next 24 hours. At 8 pm on Saturday, we get to see the results. Sometimes, panic is the mother of invention.
Frequency, 9 pm
No sound is off limits for this L.A. trio, who pluck electronic beats from the realms of house and hip-hop and luscious bass jams from the world of Afrobeat. With Tristen and the Living Statues.
Jeffery Broussard & The Creole Cowboys
UW Memorial Union Terrace, 9:30 pm
Broussard has helped pioneer the nouveau zydeco movement by introducing elements of R&B through his vocals and accordion playing.
High Noon Saloon, 9:30 pm
As the Uncluded, Aesop Rock pairs his fierce raps with Kimya Dawson's wee, wry vocals. Hamell on Trial's melodic rants will add another dimension to the show. (See Music.)
Mickey's Tavern, 10:30 pm
Rather than lamenting heartbreak and political corruption with panache, Otteson favors musical fables delivered gently. With Redhawks and Robbie Schiller.
Sunday 6.30
NOTEWORTHY: National Organization for Women founded, 1966.
St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church, 12:30 pm
The former Green Bay Packer was bumped from a speaking engagement at a Wisconsin church after tweeting congratulations to NBA player Jason Collins, who came out as gay. The more enlightened St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church in Madison promptly invited Butler for an anti-bullying talk. From 1:30 to 4:30 pm, Butler will sign memorabilia; proceeds go to anti-bullying efforts.
Frequency, 8:30 pm
In addition to performing original ballads about death, deception and drunkenness, this country-blues group play covers of some of Robert Johnson's finest tunes. With the Jacquets and Scott Wilcox.