Here is this week's critics' choice calendar. The Guide provides an extended listing of events in and around Madison.
Friday 5.2
NOTEWORTHY: Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof wins Pulitzer Prize for Drama, 1955.
See madbeerweek.com for times and locations. Through May 11
With more than 175 events over 10 days, suffice it to say that every beer aficionado will find something to love at this year's event, from beer dinners to brewery tours to movies about beer. We get woozy just thinking about it. (See Beer.)
UW Center for Journalism Ethics Conference
UW Union South, 8:30 am- 4 pm
This year's topic, "Surveillance, Security and Journalism Ethics," is fitting in a world of Wikileaks, Edward Snowden, drones and data mining. New York Times reporter Eric Lichtblau will give the keynote address on "Media Minefields: Journalism, National Security and the Right to Know."
See mmoca.org for locations. 5-9 pm
If, to quote Picasso, "the purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls," we should be squeaky clean following this gallery tour, with receptions, demonstrations and artists' talks at more than 65 locations.
International Festival of Urban Movement: Breakin' the Law
UW Union South Sett, 6:30 pm. Also Saturday, May 3, 6 pm
To cap off its five-day festival of movement, the UW Breakdance Club showcases some of the art form's latest, greatest moves at free performances on Friday and Saturday.
Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, 7 pm
Bringing together scientific lectures and classical music performances, the unique SoundWaves series presents "Heavy Metal: The Science & Music of Metal" in its final event of the academic year.
Overture Hall, 7:30 pm. Also Saturday (8 pm) and Sunday (2:30 pm), May 3 & 4
In a concert called "The Gerswhin Legacy," conductor John DeMain revisits the "Catfish Row Suite" from George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, which won him a Grammy when he worked for the Houston Grand Opera. The "legacy" part of the show features works by Bernstein, Arlen and Sondheim, with pianist Garrick Olsen and vocalists Karen Olivo, Ron Raines and Emily Birsan.
Brink Lounge, 7:30 pm. Also Thursday, May 1, 7:30 pm
Are We Delicious? Ensemble Theatre pairs six local actors with six local musicians to create a half-dozen mini-musicals about magical phenomena. (See Theater.)
Frequency, 9 pm
Milwaukee brothers David and Robert Perlick-Molinari formed this synth-pop act after they relocated to Brooklyn, N.Y. The band's name refers to Robert's stint as the Northwestern Symphony Orchestra's first-chair French horn. With Hollow & Akimbo and Dense City.
High Noon Saloon, 9:30 pm
This lo-fi pop act from Cleveland just released Here and Nowhere Else. If the single "I'm Not Part of Me" is any indication, it's a catchy collection that will appeal to fans of the Killers and Parakeet. With Protomartyr and Fire Retarded.
Saturday 5.3
NOTEWORTHY: U.S. loses its seat on U.N. Human Rights Commission for first time, 2001.
Madison Audubon Society Art Fair
Warner Park Community Recreation Center, 9:30 am-4:30 pm
This fundraiser is always a great way to start the season, with lots of outdoor sculpture and nature-oriented arts and crafts for sale. Do it for the birds.
Essen Haus, 11:30 am onward
Looking for a little gemütlichkeit? This spring counterpart to Oktoberfest has everything you could ask for in a festival: maypole dancing, music (by Jason Rowe and Copper Box), kids' activities and... beer! The event is a fundraiser for the Dane County Humane Society.
UW Memorial Union, noon-10 pm
The UW celebrates the end of the school year on Langdon Street with performances by national acts like Sky Ferreira (5:10 pm), G-Eazy (6:30), Waka Flocka Flame (7:40 pm) and Dillon Francis (8:55 pm). A stage on the Union Terrace will also feature notable regional performers. (See Music.)
High Noon Saloon, 4 pm
Don a fancy hat and celebrate the Kentucky Derby with this local group, which performs classic country and western swing tunes.
Brink Lounge, 7 pm
This fundraiser features performances by bluegrass outfit Don't Bite the Sun, the rockin' Shawndell Marks Band, ska group Supervillian Fire Drill and jazz musician Susan Hofer. (See Music.)
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, 7:30 pm
Forward Theater Company presents a staged reading of a new play by American Players Theatre's Jim DeVita. A working-class family and a well-heeled one face off when a secret is exposed.
First Baptist Church, 7:30 pm. Lecture and silent auction: 6:30 pm
In the 18th century, Vivaldi and Boccherini put some of their most beautiful melodies in their liturgical Glorias. The mixed-voice Festival Choir performs these sacred works with guest instrumentalists.
Majestic Theatre, 9 pm
These brothers from Kansas pride themselves on dance-centric live shows that fuse classic funk sounds with modern electronic jams. With Late Night Radio and Duenday.
Kiki's House of Righteous Music, 9 pm
Case worked as a street musician in San Francisco before forming the new wave band the Nerves. Now he's a solo artist with folk leanings.
Frequency, 9 pm
Fans of Joy Division and Crystal Castles will enjoy Trust's dark take on electronic music. "Are We Arc?" from the 2014 album Joyland is a good starting point. With Mozart's Sister.
High Noon Saloon, 9:30 pm
The drone-folk darling from Gowns may be one of the most blogged-about artists of the past three years. See what all the chatter is about as she performs songs from The Future's Void. With Downtown Boys and Chants.
Sunday 5.4
NOTEWORTHY: Mobster Al Capone begins serving prison sentence for tax evasion, 1932.
Concourse Hotel, 5-7:30 pm
Explore several corners of Madison's culinary landscape as more than 20 local restaurants share samples at this Madison Originals event.
High Noon Saloon, 8 pm
On 2002's Like the Exorcist but More Breakdancing, the Indiana alt-rock act showed their penchant for combining dark themes with pop sensibilities. They've since released four more solid studio albums. With Those Poor Bastards.
Majestic Theatre, 8 pm
Fans of Grey's Anatomy will recognize Fitzsimmons' songs "Passion Play" and "Please Don't Go" from some of the TV show's most dramatic moments. With Ben Sollee.
Monday 5.5
UW Vilas Hall-Mitchell Theatre, 7 pm
Rhodessa Jones, a UW artist-in-residence and co-director of San Francisco's acclaimed Cultural Odyssey performance troupe, presents spoken-word poetry with some of her students. Idris Ackamoor provides musical accompaniment.
Scott Weiland & the Wildabouts
Majestic Theatre, 8:30 pm
In 2013, national music magazines fussed over Weiland's falling out with his former band, Stone Temple Pilots. He's been recovering admirably from this PR nightmare since then, working quite a few STP favorites into performances with his new band, the Wildabouts.
Tuesday 5.6
NOTEWORTHY: Roger Bannister becomes first person to run a mile in less than four minutes, 1954.
High Noon Saloon, 6:30 pm
The husband-and-wife dub experimentalists are putting the finishing touches on a psychedelic album mixed by LCD Soundsystem's Matt Thornley. Hear a preview at this show. With Trin Tran.
Jeffrey Siegel's Keyboard Conversations
UW Humanities Building-Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
In "Mistresses & Masterpieces," the touring pianist presents pieces inspired by the pain and passion of love affairs. Expect masterworks by tuneful philanderers like Brahms, Schumann and Liszt.
Overture Center's Capitol Theater, 7:30 pm
Madison crowds can be shy when it comes to dancing, but this mesmerizing neo-soul group brought them out of their shells at the High Noon Saloon a few years ago. See what sorts of moves the group inspires with its first major-label record, More Than Just a Dream. With Night Terrors of 1927.
Wednesday 5.7
Sugar Maple Traditional Music Festival Kick-off
High Noon Saloon, 8 pm
Leadfoot and Boo Bradley will get toes tapping with bluegrass and jug-band tunes before New Orleans' Hokum High Rollers wow the crowd with their novel blend of punk attitude and pre-World War II ragtime. This event is warmup of sorts for the official fest, which takes place at Lake Farm County Park Aug. 1-2.
Inferno, 9 pm
The Detroit act's Born of the Motor has received excellent reviews in punk circles for its mature yet gritty psychobilly sound. With Against the Grain, Operation Stillborn and Roboman.
Mickey's Tavern, 10 pm
This performer has influenced folk artists like the Avett Brothers, as well as his former roommate Beck. With El Valiente.
Thursday 5.8
Barnes & Noble-West Towne, 7 pm
The celebrated poet and novelist discusses Revertigo: An Off-Kilter Memoir, which chronicles a case of vertigo that lasted 138 days.
Overture Center's Capitol Theater, 7 pm
This Chicago vocalist and cohost of public radio's Words & Music is considered one of the finest singers in modern jazz. She'll perform a selection of Stephen Sondheim works at this dinner concert.
High Noon Saloon, 8:30 pm
This San Diego blues-rock duo just released Gold Fever, inspired by California's Gold Rush. The excellent title track shows off their sweet-and-dirty vocals. With the Sharrows.
Edited by Eddie Valiant
