What to do in Madison this week: Step Afrika, Winter Carnival and more Isthmus Picks

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Arts

She Carried Us: Legacies of Labor, Love and Liberation, Feb. 2-27, Madison College Gallery; reception Feb. 5, 5:30-8 p.m.: If you haven’t been to an exhibit at Madison College’s art gallery, it’s worth checking out. Just inside the Wright Street entrance (where there is also a visitor parking area), the gallery is full of thoughtfully curated works in a variety of rotating exhibits. This is an annual exhibit in honor of longtime academic advisor Dzigbodi Akyea; the theme for 2026 is “She Carried Us: Legacies of Labor, Love and Liberation.” The name says it all; the works honor Black women as a crucial component of our communities. The exhibit supports the Dzigbodi Akyea Scholarship for Black students pursuing a liberal arts program at Madison College. There will be an opening reception Feb. 5. from 5:30-8 p.m.

Orchid Escape, through March 8, Olbrich Gardens, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.: After the recent stretch of frigid temperatures, many may be thinking of escaping to somewhere warm. A retreat right here in town is Olbrich Gardens' Bolz Conservatory, with the annual “Orchid Escape” display opening on Jan. 31. Along with a multitude of beautiful orchids, this year’s event includes a focus on insects that are part of the plants' ecosystem. Tickets for timed entry are required, and available at olbrich.org.

Amy Pease + Annelise Ryan, Tuesday, Feb. 3, Mystery to Me, 6 p.m.: A pair of Madison-area mystery writers team up to discuss the latest books in each of their series, both of which are set in Wisconsin. Amy Pease’s Wildwood, the sequel to 2024’s atmospheric Northwoods, follows a mother-son law enforcement team as they confront buried secrets in the dark underbelly of a small and tight-knit resort community. Annelise Ryan’s Monster in the Moonlight, the fourth title in her “Monster Hunter Mystery Series,” is narrated by a quirky Door County-based cryptozoologist tracking down a killer werewolf-like creature. This is a free event, but RSVPs are encouraged at mysterytomebooks.com, where you can also find a livestream link.

Arts and Literature Laboratory exhibits, through Feb. 20, ALL: The gallery spaces at ALL are chock-a-block full with its first 2026 exhibitions. A Roundhouse Studios exhibit showcases the artists working at these Commercial Avenue studios, a project spearheaded by none other than ALL. It’s a wide-ranging visual feast, with prints, paintings, fiber arts and installations; 25 + artists are represented. “Diastole and Systole: The Pulse of Life,” a collab from Madison artists Richie Morales (paintings) and Beth Racette (acrylic ink paintings, sculpture and installation) looks at the opposing forces in our work and highlights the need for balance and harmony. And Madison’s Randall Berndt is publishing a retrospective book of his work, Stories: Words & Images.

Step Afrika, Wednesday, Feb. 4, Overture Hall, 7 p.m.: Two art forms come together in Step Afrika's “The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence,” as the program of African and African American step dance aligns with the work of Jacob Lawrence, a Black painter. His 1940-41 set of narrative paintings, now called the Migration Series, focuses on African Americans moving North from the South early in the 20th century. The dance program here draws from Lawrence’s images and even his color palette. Movement, storytelling and percussion will rouse you from your winter stupor. Tickets at overture.org.

Winter Carnival, Feb. 5-7, UW Memorial Union area: If you can’t escape winter, you might as well go with the snow. The Wisconsin Union’s long-running Winter Carnival is a chance to do just that, with the Memorial Union and its frozen backyard, Lake Mendota, becoming a choose-your-own-adventure zone. There’s learn-to-skate sessions and themed skate nights; a pancake breakfast, hot chocolate stops and chili cook-off; rail jam and the ice-pulley kayak challenge; ice fishing and ice climbing; and more. The weekend wouldn’t be complete without Lady Liberty — towering, iconic, and very inflatable — watching over the lake like she owns the place. Find the updated schedule at union.wisc.edu.

A Love Letter, Feb. 5-15, Art House 360, Verona: Theatre LILA collaborates with the contemporary and hip-hop-inflected Madison dance company Barrio Dance for an experimental dance-theater production. It’s about love — but, like love itself, it takes unexpected turns and leads the audience into new places. Theatre LILA’s Jessica Lanius calls A Love Letter “immersive” and says that the new venue ART House 360, 401 W. Main Street in Verona, enhances that connection. Shows are at 7 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday; tickets at theatrelila.com.

Faisal Abdu’Allah, through Feb. 20, BioPharmaceutical Technology Center Gallery, Fitchburg: UW-Madison professor Faisal Abdu’Allah creates art in a variety of media — printmaking, photography, barbering — but no matter the form it is always thought-provoking. His collection for the Promega Art Showcase, “Family Ties,” explores the connections of ancestry and chosen groups; as described by the gallery, “the artist explores the passage of time, unpacked masculinity, mythology and racial perception.” Regular gallery hours are 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday. Find more info at promega-artshow.com.

Ironbound, through Feb. 15, Overture Center-Playhouse: Forward Theater Company presents the Wisconsin premiere of a play centered on a timely topic: the experience of an immigrant in America. Ironbound, by Martyna Majok, tells the story of a couple decades in the life of a woman from Eastern Europe who lands on the East Coast in the late 20th and early 21st century looking for a better life, and love, in a new country. How will her life plans change over the years while fighting for a secure existence? Performances at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, plus 2 p.m. on Feb. 7 and 14. Tickets at overture.org.

Li Chiao-Ping Dance, Feb. 5-7, Margaret H'Doubler Performance Space, Lathrop Hall: The multidisciplinary, mixed-media dance theater work Here Lies the Truth comes to an end with these performances on the UW campus after having premiered at the Overture Center in 2022 and been performed across the country in the time since. The piece tries to get at whatever “the truth” may be in terms of “race, power, access, equity and positionality.” This collaboration from choreographer Li Chiao-Ping, composer Tim Russell, dramaturg Cláudia Tatinge Nascimento, and visual artist Douglas Rosenberg includes theater, live music, spoken word and film, incorporating documentary footage from the 2020 George Floyd protests. Performances at 8 p.m. Feb. 5-6 and at 2:30 p.m. Feb. 7; a talkback is scheduled after Thursday night’s performance. Tickets at artsticketing.wisc.edu.

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