What to do in Madison this week: Journey + Toto, Jason Kirk and more Isthmus Picks

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Journey + Toto, Monday, Feb. 26, Kohl Center, 7:30 p.m.: For music fans of a certain age, arena rock shows don’t get much bigger than this. Journey is on its 50th anniversary tour, and although the band has been without Steve Perry since 1998, longtime vocalist Arnel Pineda sounds about as close to Perry as you can get. Meanwhile, Toto’s history is nearly as long as Journey’s, and the revamped lineup includes vocalist Joseph Williams, who first joined Toto in the mid-'80s. Between both groups, only two original members remain (Journey guitarist Neal Schon and Toto guitarist Steve Lukather), but they’re backed by seasoned players who uphold the bands’ legacies. What’s more, “Don’t Stop Believin’” and “Africa” each have more than 1 billion streams on Spotify, proving this stuff really is timeless. Tickets at uwbadgers.evenue.net.

Amy Pease, Tuesday, Feb. 27, Mystery to Me, 6 p.m.: This state has no shortage of authors writing about life (and death) in northern Wisconsin. One of the newest voices is Amy Pease, whose gripping debut novel, Northwoods, is earning high praise from none other than William Kent Krueger. The story revolves around the murder of a teenage boy in a small resort town, a missing teenage girl and the scarred military veteran-turned-sheriff’s deputy on the case — all set against the backdrop of America’s opioid epidemic. Pease, a nurse practitioner who lives in the Madison area and is a nationally recognized HIV specialist, will celebrate the book’s publication day in conversation with fellow local author Cayce Osborne, whose debut psychological thriller, I Know What You Did, was one our favorite reads of last year. Seating is limited and RSVPs are encouraged, but the event also will be livestreamed on Crowdcast; find links at mysterytomebooks.com. Note: Rescheduled from January.

The Show-Off, Tuesday, Feb. 27, Arts + Literature Lab, 7 p.m.: Falconbridge Players is back with another quirky, winning play reading with a backstory as interesting as its front story. The Show-Off, by one George Kelly, actually won the voting for the 1924 Pulitzer Prize for Drama but scheming by Columbia University (administrator of the Prizes) resulted in a different play being named. The show-off of the title is Aubrey Piper, a self-important young fellow whose reception into his fiancee’s family is both comic and bumpy. Free, but RSVP at falconbridgeplayers.org.

Leslie Jamison, Tuesday, Feb. 27, Central Library, 7 p.m.: Leslie Jamison, who’s been lauded for both her novels and essays, weighs in with her first memoir, Splinters. It’s about family relationships — with parents, children, her spouse — and the role of women in society. It’s all quite complex, and revelations are rendered with exquisite prose. This reading is part of the Wisconsin Book Festival.

Yoga, Diversity and Empowerment, Wednesday, Feb. 28, UW Memorial Union-Tripp Commons, 7 p.m.: No two people are alike; why should physical and mental wellness needs all conform to one ideal? Wellness advocate Jessamyn Stanley is working to change institutionalized definitions of fitness with books like Every Body Yoga: Let Go of Fear, Get On the Mat, Love Your Body and instruction through virtual yoga studio The Underbelly (which Stanley co-founded). Stanley will discuss inclusive wellness approaches and more during this WUD Distinguished Lecture Series talk.

The Thin Place, Feb. 29-March 10, American Players Theatre-Touchstone: Two Crows, a small theater company in Spring Green drawing talent from nearby American Players Theatre, is back for its first shows since the pandemic shutdown in 2020. The Thin Place is about spiritualism — Linda, a medium, and Hilda, a woman who has suffered a loss. The play interrogates the “thin place” between this world and whatever may lie beyond. Playwright Lucas Hnath won an Obie award in 2016; his works never stick with the merely situational. Shows at 7 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 6 p.m. on March 2, 1 and 6 p.m. on March 3 and 9, and 1 p.m. on March 10. Tickets at twocrowstheatrecompany.org.

Jason Kirk, Thursday, Feb. 29, Northstreet, 7 p.m.: Sports journalist and podcaster Jason Kirk is reading from his debut novel, Hell is a World Without You, a coming-of-age story about a teenager from an evangelical religious background encountering the secular world of the early 2000s. Also appearing are podcasters Mason Mennenga (A People’s Theology and The BlackSheep Podcast) and Matt Brown (Think Eternity). A pop-up bookstore from Lake City Books will also be onsite for the event. This is a new format for Northstreet. Let’s see how it works out.

The Drive to Sing, Thursday, Feb. 29, Pinney Library, 7 p.m.: The COVID-19 pandemic presented an existential difficulty for choral groups: how to safely gather to perform or even practice in a world beset by a virus transmitted by breathing? The Wisconsin Chamber Choir was one group that found a way via technology, performing socially distanced concerts like “Car Carols” in December 2020. The new documentary The Drive to Sing features WCC and other choral groups from around the country that managed to make music together during difficult times. Choir members will participate in a Q&A following this free screening.

Torch Song, through March 2, Bartell Theatre: StageQ tackles this two-act version of the Harvey Fierstein classic Torch Song Trilogy. It’s about Arnold Beckoff, a torch-singing Jewish drag queen in New York City in the 1970s and '80s. While times have changed since the play was written, drag queens have perhaps never been more of a hot-button topic. Shows are 7:30 p.m.Thursday-Saturday (2 p.m. only on March 2) and 2 p.m, Sunday, Feb. 25. Tickets at bartelltheatre.org.

The Beaches, Thursday, Feb. 29, Majestic, 8 p.m.: Pop-rock from Toronto dispensed with lots of power and a decidedly feminist twist, The Beaches have placed eight number one singles on Canadian alternative radio, including the addictive ska beat underpinning “Blame Brett.” The group’s fans include Avril Lavigne, The Rolling Stones and the Foo Fighters — all bands for whom they’ve opened for. Sold out in January, but check for last minute tickets at ticketmaster.com.

Doed Koecks, through March 2, Broom Street Theater: From a mysterious diary found in the basement of a small town Wisconsin library, to the 17th century practice of “sin eating” (baking sins into cakes and eating them to take them off the slate of the deceased), this Broom Street Theater production by the playwright Coleman is intriguing. As depicted in Doed Koecks, the revival of sin eating ends up creating a global megachurch. All shows at 8 p.m., Thursday-Saturday; advance tickets at eventbrite.com.

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