What to do in Madison this week: Palm Ghosts, Özge Samanci and more Isthmus Picks

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Özge Samanci, Monday, July 15, A Room of One’s Own, 6 p.m.: The first graphic novel by Özge Samanci, Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey, was an autobiographical coming of age story. Samanci’s new graphic novel, Evil Eyes Sea, draws on her college years in Turkey, but this time for a fictional mystery. Set in the 1990s and Turkey’s male-dominated culture, the story follows two friends who witness a death that may or may not be an accident. They get tangled up with a corrupt politician and have to make what may be a life-altering decision. Samanci, an associate professor at Northwestern, discusses the novel with UW-Madison faculty member Nâlân Erbil.

Richard Kyte, Tuesday, July 16, Mystery To Me, 6 p.m.: As director of the D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership and an endowed professor of ethics at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Richard Kyte has published and lectured widely on topics related to justice, forgiveness, virtue and the meaning of life. In his new book, Finding Your Third Place: Building Happier Communities (and Making Great Friends Along the Way), Kyte identifies “First Place” as home and “Second Place” as work; “Third Place” is where people go to socialize and build friendships — and it is the most elusive of the three, even though he argues that “Third Places” are crucial to keeping communities vibrant. Seating for this free event is limited, and RSVPs are encouraged; it also will be livestreamed via Crowdcast; find links at mysterytomebooks.com.

Olbrich After Hours, Tuesdays, through July 30, Olbrich Gardens, 7 p.m.: The summer concert series at Olbrich Gardens is now called Olbrich After Hours, and features food carts, a bar, and more (along with the gardens being open later each Tuesday). This month’s lineup is stellar: July 16 features a collaboration by Searchlights and Chicago drum ensemble Ho Etsu Taiko, accompanying Cycropia Aerial Dance; July 23 is Madison electro-rockers The Earthlings; and July 30 is Kenosha-based singer-songwriter Ben Mulwana & the Village. Find more info at olbrich.org.

Adam Finchler + Caeli Carr-Potter, Tuesday, July 16, Communication, 7 p.m.: New York City-based multi-instrumentalist Adam Finchler has played in a variety of bands over the years; a few are Sea Urchin, the eponymous Finchler and AquaCloset. His solo material features wryly humorous storytelling, unpredictable song structures and genre blending experiments. Finchler is on tour with a new album, The Room, out July 12. Along on tour is Gen Ken Montgomery, a longtime NYC sound artist and frequent Finchler collaborator. The show also marks the debut on CD for Album 1 by Madison artist Caeli Carr-Potter, a recent master of fine arts graduate of UW-Madison. Tickets at communicationmadison.com.

Moulin Rouge: The Musical, through July 21, Overture Hall: If you can’t get to Paris to visit the original music hall, try this Broadway musical. Based on Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 film, Moulin Rouge: The Musical is set in the Belle Époque era at the turn of the 20th century, and a young composer falls in love with a dancer from the show. The boy-meets-girl plot is less crucial than the dancing and singing, with the original score and popular music contemporary to our own day. Shows at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays, July 9-21; tickets at overture.org.

Thank You, David Bordwell, Wednesdays, through July 24, UW Cinematheque, 7 p.m.: The UW’s cine-fan theater pays tribute to one of its own, film scholar David Bordwell, who passed away in March, with a series called “Thank You, David Bordwell.” All the Wednesday night screenings this summer will be 35mm prints of films from Bordwell’s own collection, now housed at the Wisconsin Center for Film & Theater Research. July 17 highlights Laura, the Otto Preminger murder mystery of 1944; and the series closes July 24 with Tiger on Beat, a Hong Kong buddy-cop film that Bordwell praised as “exciting, even exhilarating.” All films are at 7 p.m. at 4070 Vilas Hall.

Palm Ghosts, Wednesday, July 17, Gamma Ray, 8 p.m.: Nashville trio Palm Ghosts describes their sound as “an ’80s prom in a war zone,” which is funny but also catches the attitude. The sound of their recent recordings (they’ve been prolific lately) nails ’80s post-punk/goth/electropop/etc. but with a thoroughly modern sensibility and a strong sense of melody and catchy songcraft. Very appropriate Madison openers are new wave experimentalists Educational Davis and no wavers Mumbumper.

5-10-100: Women Artists Forward, through Aug. 4, Overture Center-James Watrous Gallery: The Women Artists Forward Fund was founded by Madison artists Brenda Baker and Bird Ross in 2019 as a way to directly assist artists in Dane County with unrestricted grants. The exhibit “5-10-100: Women Artists Forward,” on display at the Wisconsin Academy’s Watrous Gallery through Aug. 4, features work by the first 10 artists to receive the grants: Jennifer Angus, Adriana Barrios, Mary Bero, Yeonhee Cheong, Angelica Contreras, Lilada Gee, Dakota Mace, Katherine Steichen Rosing, Alice Traore and Babette Wainwright. Regular gallery hours are noon-6 p.m. Thursday-Friday and noon-5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.

Dane County Fair, July 18-21, Alliant Energy Center: It’s a good year for dog lovers at the Dane County Fair, with performances by the Canine Stars stunt dogs at 1, 3 and 5 p.m. each day. The Fair has also added a dog show for the first time, taking place on July 21. There’s plenty of other entertainment through the weekend, including a Madison Roller Derby exhibition (6 p.m., July 18), ’80s pop tribute band Totally Neon (7 p.m., July 19), a chance to interact with farm animals as part of the Dane County Farm Bureau’s Scavenger Hunt activity (11 a.m.-2 p.m., July 20), and a full day of stage activities hosted by La Movida radio (noon-10 p.m., July 21). Find much more info at danecountyfair.com.

Blooming Butterflies, July 18-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. Butterfly Action Day (10 a.m.-2 p.m., Aug. 2) will present booths highlighting ways to help threatened butterfly populations. More info at olbrich.org.

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