What to do in Madison this weekend: Cage the Elephant, 'Tick, Tick…Boom!' and more Isthmus Picks

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Sessions at McPike, Aug. 8-11, McPike Park: This year’s August Sessions at McPike are happening on consecutive nights, making a mini-fest of sorts of these fundraiser concerts for local nonprofits. As usual there is a wide-ranging lineup of music from around the world. Zimbabwe’s Mokoomba headlines on Aug. 8, joined by Panchromatic Steel with Andy Narell. Kiki’s Righteous Session on Aug. 9 features folk rockers Great Lake Swimmers and ecletic Texas singer-guitarist Rosie Flores. Aug. 10 is anchored by blues heavyweights John Primer and Bernard Allison, and Aug. 11 features musical revolutionaries Sidi Wacho and Los Tangueros del Oeste (who also provide music for a Madison Tango Society milonga at 7 p.m. on Aug. 10 and play post-fest at 7 p.m. on Aug. 12 at North Street Cabaret). And that’s just the touring artists; a panoply of local favorites are also on the schedule, which can be found at sessionsatmcpike.org.

Katie Tastrom, Thursday, Aug. 8, A Room of One’s Own, 6 p.m.: In the new book A People’s Guide to Abolition and Disability Justice, writer and activist Katie Tastrom examines the concepts of prison and police abolition and disability justice, how they intersect, and how understanding the link between these theories is essential in making a more just world for those marginalized by the criminal justice system. Tastrom will discuss the book with Madison writer and abolitionist Lachrista Greco.

Cage the Elephant, Thursday, Aug. 8, Breese Stevens Field, 6:30 p.m.: Alt-rockers Cage the Elephant returned to the record racks in May with Neon Pill, the long-awaited follow up to 2019’s Social Cues (a Best Rock Album Grammy winner). As on that album, Neon Pill’s songs explore a range of rock styles, from funky guitar dancers (“Ball and Chain”) to pensive piano ballads (“Out Loud”) to good old straight ahead and Strokes-y rock (“Metaverse”). Along for the album tour is another veteran rock outfit, Young the Giant, plus a couple genre-mixing songwriters on the rise: Bakar and Vlad Holiday. Tickets at ticketmaster.com.

Madison Comedy Week, through Aug. 10, various venues: With more than 25 showcases, Madison Comedy Week offers the opportunity to really dive into the regional stand-up scene, and also enjoy some talented visitors as well. Still to come: LaughGPT, with comics including Dan Gantman and Brook Whitehead “judged by a panel of AI celebrities and characters” (9 p.m., Aug. 8, Bur Oak); a special edition of Comedy at the Cabaret featuring performers from around the country and Canada (7:30 p.m., Aug. 9, North Street Cabaret); and the annual Best of the Fest showcases (7:30 and 10 p.m., Aug. 9-10, Comedy on State). Find all the shows and tickets at madisoncomedyweek.com.

Celebrating Madison’s Sister Cities, through Aug. 11, Overture Center-Rotunda Gallery: Making this crazy world a little smaller and friendlier place are Madison’s many sister city programs. This robust program pairs Madison with not one but 10 sister cities across the globe. This exhibit features 40 images from Madisonians visiting these cities, with a few taken by residents of the cities themselves. So if you can’t hop a plane to Vilnius, Lithuania, at least make tracks to the Overture Center to view this collection of photographs.

Ben Levin Blues Band with Bob Stroger, Thursday, Aug. 8, North Street Cabaret, 7 p.m.: Ben Levin has earned quite a bit of acclaim in recent years, including Blues Music Award nominations in 2023 and 2024 as Pinetop Perkins Piano Player of the Year. The Ohio-based performer may be young, but he has a strong background in the playing styles of earlier piano legends. Levin has also built bridges to past generations by collaborating on recordings and for concerts with such artists as Chicago guitarist/bassist Bob Stroger, who played with Otis Rush, Sunnyland Slim and many others. Stroger joins Levin and Band for this Madison date. Tickets at eventbrite.com.

Our Home States, through Aug. 17, Broom Street Theater, 8 p.m.: Broom Street Theater is sending it back to the states with its ongoing short play festival Our Home States, now in its second year. Last year BST covered 12 Midwestern states. This year BST’s piling in the car and heading east to the New England and Atlantic states. The nine short plays cover the eastern seaboard from Maine (On the Beach by Arthur Boatin) to Pennsylvania (Hellbender: Live by Valerie Work). They also visit New York (Über by Ron G. Rosenfeld), New Jersey (The Jersey Who? by Andrew R. Heinze), New Hampshire (Swimming to Tuftonboro by Mitchell P. Ganem), Rhode Island (Same Jokes by Mark Sawtelle), Massachusetts (The Other Side of the Street by Laura Neill), Vermont (Like a Kite by Ron Fromstein), and Connecticut (Feeder by Julie Linden). Shows are at 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday.

Chicken for Linda! Thursday, Aug. 8, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, 8 p.m.: When a mother wants to make up for an unfair punishment, her daughter asks for a chicken dinner. But a strike means all the stores are closed; the search for a bird turns into an adventure that may also bring them closer together following a tragedy. Chicken for Linda! is a hand-painted animated film appropriate for all ages, and makes its Madison premiere at this Rooftop Cinema screening.

Blooming Butterflies, through Aug. 11, Olbrich Gardens, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.: While the outdoor gardens are the place to be in the summer, there’s good reason to head into the Bolz Conservancy as well. It is magical to see butterflies — up to 19 species — inhabiting the tropical dome. Sharp-eyed visitors may even witness a butterfly emerge from its chrysalis. The theme continues in the outdoor gardens with a kids pollinator scavenger hunt. More info at olbrich.org.

Covered Bridge Days, Aug. 9-11, Brodhead: Covered Bridge Days? The heck!? Where do you think you are, Indiana? Well, Brodhead, a placid town on the Sugar River, does have one covered bridge — a replica of an historic but long-gone bridge rebuilt on the Sugar River State Trail about two miles out of town. Bicycling to this fest could be a fun option. The celebration includes music by Cherry Pie (7:30 p.m. Friday) and Bella Cain (8 p.m. Saturday), a chicken barbecue (11:30 a.m. until sold out Sat.-Sun.), more food and beer, art festival (Saturday), tractor events, boat rides on the mill race, horse drawn wagon rides and more. Full schedule at brodheadchamber.com.

Sharon Kilfoy + TetraPAKMAN, through Aug. 9, Social Justice Center; reception Aug. 9, 5:30-8 p.m.: The Jackie Macaulay Gallery hosts paired exhibits considering the effects of climate change on our planet’s living creatures. TetraPAKMAN’s sculpture and other large-format works often focus on raising awareness of climate change, and this exhibit includes “The Climate Sheets,” wrapping around the gallery space and including records of the ever-raising level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Rising global temperatures contribute to a higher danger of wildfires; Sharon Kilfoy shows some concrete examples of what fire does with a collection of objects recovered following a 2016 fire at Williamson Street Art Center. The exhibit closes on Aug. 9, with a reception from 5:30-8 p.m.

Dane Dances, Fridays, through Aug. 30, Monona Terrace, 5:30-9:30 p.m.: August in Madison means it’s time to let loose and shake it at Dane Dances, an annual series of community dance parties celebrating 25 years in 2024. This year’s lineup should get everyone moving, including the return of international salsa star Luisito Rosario and disco party VO5 on Aug. 9. The following weeks mix R&B and Latin sounds, with The Funkee JBeez and Orquesta SalSoul del Mad on Aug. 16; Grupo Candela and the Eddie Butts Band on Aug. 23; and Aniba & the Sol Stars and Rebulu on Aug. 30. Each week begins with a dance lesson from DJ Francis Medrano at 5:30 p.m., and if it rains the party moves inside. Food and drink will be available at 5 p.m. from Kipp’s Kitchen, Lake Vista Cafe, La Taguara and Melly Mell’s Soul Food. More info at danedances.org.

William Villalongo, through Aug. 11, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art: Based in Brooklyn, New York, William Villalongo paints, collages and cuts paper to achieve his intricate images which draw on the history of and myths around Black Americans and “invite the viewer to engage with the complexities and precarity of Black existence” — hence the show’s title, “Myths and Migrations.”

Love’s Labour’s Lost, Aug. 9-18, Madison Country Day School: One of Shakespeare’s wordiest plays, in which language is not only the vehicle through which his characters come alive, but almost a character itself. Madison Shakespeare Company opts for a fast-paced adaptation of Love's Labour's Lost, set in our own time. King Ferdinand comes up with a strict self-improvement plan that does not allow for any contact with women. What could go wrong when the Princess of France and her ladies in waiting show up? Shows are at 6:30 p.m. on Friday and 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday outdoors at the Madison Country Day School amphitheater, 5606 River Road, Waunakee.

King Lear, Aug. 9-Sept. 28, American Players Theatre, Spring Green: As usual, Shakespeare manages to fit right into the contemporary zeitgeist. The tale is of an elderly king who is not making the wisest choices any more. He seeks to divide his kingdom among his three daughters, giving the most money and land to the one who flatters him the most. Themes of familial love, devotion and betrayal run throughout, along with the lust for power, the quest for sincerity, and the difficulty of dealing with grandpa after the car keys get taken away. While King Lear has often been seen as depressing, it’s also one of the Bard’s most insightful works. As Lear says, “Who is it that can tell me who I am?” Shows this week at 8 p.m. on Aug. 9 and 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 15; tickets at americanplayers.org.

Patience, through Aug. 11, Bartell Theatre: The light comic operettas of Gilbert and Sullivan continue to inspire troupes that are devoted entirely to producing their works and their works alone. Such is the joyful task of the Madison Savoyards. This summer’s work is Patience, one of the duo’s most popular. It’s a satire on the English aesthetic movement of the 1870s and '80s and such poets as Swinburne and Dante Gabriel Rosetti. While the movement is long out of style, poetic affectation is always a worthy target and there is plenty of truth-telling amidst the frolic. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. See Dan Koehn’s Isthmus review. Tickets at bartelltheatre.org.

Tick, Tick…Boom! Aug. 9-11, Madison College-Mitby Theater: Jonathan Larson, the Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning composer of Rent, is also behind Tick, Tick... Boom!, a semi-autobiographical musical about, what else? Theater dreams in New York. The main character, Jon, is trying to make it on Broadway, but has doubts as he sees his friends succeed in other careers while encouraging him to follow a more secure career path. Capital City Theatre stages this tuneful glimpse into the genesis of a musical theater classic. Shows at 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 9-10 and 2 p.m., Aug. 11; find tickets at capitalcitytheatre.org.

DJ Summit 50, Aug. 9-10, Liquid, 9 p.m.: For electronic music fans, this one’s a no-brainer; for the EDM-curious, it’s an invaluable primer in the regional DJ scene. Liquid celebrates the 50th edition of its DJ Summit series with a weekend blowout featuring more than 60 performers from over the years (including Wifflin, who was at the first Summit in 2018). Find tickets and updates at facebook.com/liquidmadison.

The Stinkeyes album release, Saturday, Aug. 10, The Rigby, 8 p.m.: In their songs recorded so far on a pair of EPs and some singles, Madison trio The Stinkeyes often use a sassy wit to face off against injustice of various kinds. And sometimes they’re just flat-out funny and fun, like on “Casserole Gals,” a garage-prog anthem about potluck life that could become your new favorite song. Their full-length debut, Out of Spite / Out of Mind, should be a blast. The new album will be celebrated at this release party and available on CD and streaming. With Kule, Weird Place, Ask For Jane.

Madison Black Restaurant Week, various locations: This celebration of Black-owned food businesses features restaurants, food carts and other businesses based in Madison, Mount Horeb, Stoughton and Sun Prairie. The week culminates in the “Food Taste Jamboree” from 2-5 p.m. on Aug. 18, with vendors gathering in scenic Olin Park all selling $5 small plates. Details at madisonblackchamber.com.

Ride the Drive, Sunday, Aug. 11, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.: After a break of two years, Ride the Drive is back. The city shuts down a handful of downtown streets to traffic, giving bicyclists, rollerbladers and who knows, stilt walkers, the opportunity to enjoy traveling from Camp Randall to McPike Park without cars breathing down their necks. The route connects six parks which will feature all-ages activities. The roads that will be closed from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. are Regent Street from Randall Avenue to West Washington Avenue; Proudfit Street from West Wash to John Nolen Drive; John Nolen from Olin Avenue to East Wilson and Williamson streets; Williamson Street from John Nolen Drive to South Ingersoll; and South Ingersoll from Williamson to East Main Street. Park hubs are Brittingham Park, Edward Kleif Park, Law Park, McPike Park, Olin Park and R. Richard Wagner Park. More info at ridethedrive.com.

Find the individual Picks collected here, and as part of the full calendar of events.