Post-Memorial Day, we here in Madison, Wis., launch into summer. To kick off this much-anticipated season, arts and entertainment editor Jessica Steinhoff (aided by a few of her friends, Joseph Engle, Scott Gordon and Brent Stewart) takes us on a tour of some of the prime gathering spots for summer revelers. Most are outdoors, as being outdoors is what we like most about this time of year, but there are also a few cool indoor spots that pack 'em in when the sun sets late in the evening.
These, of course, aren't all of the summer-lovely spots, but they represent a goodly portion of the downtown and near east and west attractions. They are also places you can just walk into - no membership required, as with some of the venues situated lakeside. Summer around here is all too short to waste time finding out where there's action. Let Steinhoff and her cohorts get you started.
Now if you really want to get outside for some summer fun, the festival circuit is for you. We covered that last week in our SummerTimes annual. The outdoor festival season continues with Festa Italia, the weekend extravaganza from the Italian Workmen's Club at McKee Farms Park. It starts on Friday and continues through Sunday. There are all sorts of festivals, fairs and other events outlined in SummerTimes.
While we present you with these kinds of season-long overviews, we also cover them as they come up in the weekly Guide, just to remind you. There's no excuse to have a dull summer, unless that's what you are after. Perhaps you just want to laze in a hammock and fall asleep over a book. Or just float in reverie on an air mattress on a lake. Madison can provide that too. Let's face it - in the summertime, we pretty much have it all.
