The heat is on

The annual Earth Day conference considers climate and environmental justice, and more Isthmus Picks for April 22-29

by

Nelson Institute Earth Day Conference, Thursday-Friday, April 22-23: UW-Madison’s Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies is named after Gaylord Nelson, the man who started Earth Day, so it’s only logical that celebrating Earth Day is a big deal there. This year the theme is “Nature at Work: Inspiring Just Responses for an Unruly World” and two days of live and pre-recorded sessions (all presented online) will discuss the ways the natural world is indeed becoming more unruly. Keynote speaker marine biologist Ayana Johnson will discuss her book All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis and focus on the topic of environmental justice (live at 6:30 p.m. Thursday). A complete rundown of the packed schedule and registration information can be found at earthday.nelson.wisc.edu.

John Widdicombe Jazz Ensemble, Thursday, April 22, Otto’s Restaurant, 5 p.m.: Warmer weather means the return of music outdoors (but don't forget your face mask), and Otto’s Restaurant & Bar is getting an early start on its patio music in 2021. Thursdays feature jazz by bassist John Widdicombe (a longtime Piper Road Spring Band member) and a rotating cast of players, including keyboardist Larry Stout, saxophonist Richard Slayton, and drummer Ron Hansen on April 22. Otto's weekly schedule also includes Widdicombe and guitarist Cliff Frederiksen on Fridays, Glenn Davis and Westside Andy on Tuesdays and Gerri DiMaggio on Wednesdays. Reservations are required; call 608-274-4044.

Wisconsin Flute Festival, April 20-May 8: Madison Flute Club sponsors this annual event for flute players and listeners, with a mix of interactive workshops, talks and performances taking place on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays through May 8. Recitals this week include classical and jazz flautist Nancy Stagnitta (7 p.m., April 24), an educator at Interlochen Arts Academy and recent collaborator with keyboard legend Bob James. Buy tickets here ($45 adults; $35 students/seniors) for access to the festival. Scholarships are available, and if you miss something, never fear: Sessions will be recorded and available for later viewing.

Vulnerable Bodies reception, Thursday, April 22, 6 p.m.: Certainly the pandemic has proven that necessity is the mother of invention. With the Overture Center closed, the small James Watrous Gallery on the third floor is popping up with exhibits in more accessible locations. Its Vulnerable Bodies is located at Garver Feed Mill, where soaring ceilings and open spaces make viewing in person (with mask and social distancing) possible. The exhibit's theme is interpreted in varied ways in work ranging from small sculpture to large installations. Participating artists Demitra Copoulos, Erica Hess, J Myszka Lewis, Yevgeniya Kaganovich, Masako Onodera and Valaria Tatera, along with curator Jody Clowes, will be on hand for a Zoom reception and discussion of the exhibit. Join the discussion on Zoom here (meeting ID: 883 3271 9550, or by phone at 1-312-626-6799). The exhibit space is open Thursdays through Sundays through July 24, or by appointment: jclowes@wisconsinacademy.org.

Lift Every Voice, Thursday, April 22 & 29, 7 p.m.: This new series from Madison Ballet highlights works by company dancer Jacob Ashley, School of Madison Ballet director Rachelle Fochs, and South Chicago Dance Theatre executive artistic director Kia Smith — all choreographers of color. Each worked with dancers and local filmmakers Dave Alcorn, Jordan Biagomala and John Urban to create filmed versions of new choreography, premiering Thursdays at 7 p.m. (and remaining available for viewing through May 16 on the Madison Ballet YouTube channel). On April 22, Ethos of Force, choreographed by Chicago-based Kia S. Smith, premieres; “Mercy,” choreographed by Fochs, became available on April 15.

Ocean Vuong, Thursday, April 22, 7 p.m.: Despite having published several well-received volumes of poetry and scoring a MacArthur “Genius” grant, among other accolades, Ocean Vuong may be best known for a November 2020 internet flap known as “Metaphorgate.” Granted, unless you are hooked into online poetry buzz, this heated debate may have escaped your attention. Suffice it to say, Vuong’s Instagram opinings on metaphor were not welcomed in all quarters. Good news, Vuong will be reading from his 2019 novel On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, which deals in part with race, class, masculinity and family, and participating in a Q&A in this free livestreamed event from the Wisconsin Book Festival and the Wisconsin Union Theater. Register here.

The Guest Book, Friday, April 23, 7 p.m.: What can go wrong when attending an ex-fiancé’s wedding? Some options are explored in a new comedy by Madison-based actor and playwright Gina M. Gómez. The Guest Book was originally scheduled as part of Broom Street Theater’s 2020 season, but will make its debut as a livestreamed reading on the BST YouTube page. In other Broom Street news, the company is still fundraising for a new roof on its Willy Street homebase; find out how to donate at bstonline.org.

Bike Wash & Safety Checks, Saturday, April 24, Clark Court, 1-5 p.m.: If your bicycle could use a check-up ahead of any serious riding, grab your mask and bring it to Clark Court, just off the bike path by Brittingham Park. Madison Bikes, along with volunteers from BikEquity, Down With Bikes, Dream Bikes and Wheels for Winners, will give it a spring cleaning and also do basic safety checks and fixes. (And if you need a bike, talk to BikEquity volunteers.) Find more info on Facebook; if it’s rainy (or, heaven forbid, snowing), the event will take place on May 1.

Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice: Then and Now, Saturday, April 24, 6 p.m.: In 2021, the WNPJ marks three decades of activism for peace, equity and a more sustainable future. Help celebrate with a virtual potluck and fellowship, updates from member organizations, and music, spoken word and more by Skip Jones, Voices Against Violence Coalition and others. Find information on joining the Zoom event at wnpj.org, or watch the livestream on Facebook.

Bird & Nature Festival, Sunday, April 25, Warner Park rainbow shelter, noon-4 p.m.: Outdoor activities have been even more important than usual for many of us during the last year. A special opportunity to get closer to nature comes in the form of the annual Bird & Nature Festival, taking place as a self-guided tour featuring exhibits and live birds from the Jacksonport-based Open Door Bird Sanctuary. And for ongoing nature walk tips, keep an eye on the Madison Friends of Urban Nature Facebook group page. Although the group’s monthly guided walks have recently been necessarily limited in attendance due to public health restrictions, Madison FUN is offering suggestions for self-guided nature walks at those locations (now including a ninth spot, Pheasant Branch Conservatory in Middleton).

Kangwoo Jin, Sunday, April 25, 4 p.m.: The Salon Piano Series returns with a concert filmed at Luther Memorial Church (and featuring a piano restored by series hosts Farley’s House of Pianos). Music by Beethoven, Scarlatti and others will be performed by Kangwoo Jin, a performer in concerts and festivals around the world and a recent Collins Distinguished Fellowship doctoral student at UW-Madison. Jin is also a longtime educator and currently a faculty member at the UW-Madison Division of Continuing Studies. Find tickets ($10) here.

Lewiston/Clarkston, through April 25: This innovatively structured play (or rather, two linked plays with what would be, during an in-person performance, a communal audience dinner at intermission), is coming to us from Forward Theater. Filmed live at the Overture Center Playhouse stage, Lewiston/Clarkston is available on demand through April 25. Both plays deal in different ways with the legacies of 1800s explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on the contemporary American landscape. Find tickets here, and more info on Zoom links and food delivery partners at forwardtheater.com. Read Gwendolyn Rice's review here.

The Forward Together Forum, Tuesday, April 27, 1 p.m.: A recently launched discussion series from Africasong Communications, The Forward Together Forum features insights from national and Wisconsin leaders working to make the goals of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. a reality. The topic of Episode #5 is “Recovery, Renewal, and Reconciliation: Turning A Tragedy Into A Triumph,” with Dr. Jonathan Overby in conversation with Pardeep Singh Kaleka, executive director of the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee. Kaleka is coauthor (with Arno Michaelis and Robin Gaby Fisher) of The Gift of Our Wounds: A Sikh and a Former White Supremacist Find Forgiveness After Hate, recounting how the lives of Kaleka and Michaelis came together following the Oak Creek Sikh temple murders in 2012. Register here to join the Zoom webinar.

Ansel Norris & Greg Zelek, Tuesday, April 27, 7:30 p.m.: Trumpet and organ make a magical pairing in this closing of the Madison Symphony Orchestra's virtual season that makes good use of the big Klais concert organ in Overture Hall. Madison native and 2009 Bolz Young Artist Competition finalist Ansel Norris is the featured guest on trumpet. Greg Zelek has been the MSO's principal organist since 2017. Free; register here for the livestream (available to watch through May 31).

Roberto Torres Mata, Wednesday, April 28, 6:30 p.m.: UW-Madison master of fine arts recipient Roberto Torres Mata is the winner of the 2021 Russell and Paula Panczenko MFA Prize, which means he gets a big exhibition to himself in the Chazen. Untethered: Our Journey Beyond Borders displays the several media of Mata’s art practice: relief woodblock printing, wood carving and papermaking. The iconography evokes indigenous cultures of the Americas. It’s literally and figuratively a journey through the gallery. The Chazen is open for in-person viewing by reservation Tuesdays and Wednesdays, noon to 5 p.m.; Thursdays and Fridays, noon to 7 p.m. The Mata exhibit is up through May 14. In lieu of the traditional artist reception, the Chazen presents a Facebook Live “Our Kind of Happy Hour” social with Mata on April 28.

UW Press Wisconsin Poetry Series readings, Wednesday April 28, 7 p.m.: One more chance to get a poetry reading in before the end of April — that’s National Poetry Month (a designation perhaps unrelated to T.S. Eliot’s assertion that it is also the cruellest month). Poets John Brehm, Ambalila Hemsell (pictured), Sarah Kortemeier and Bruce Snider, all having published in the University of Wisconsin Press’s Wisconsin Poetry Series, will read from their work in this event from the Wisconsin Book Festival. What Hemsell writes of the earth, is also true of poetry: “How it surprises you/and how it is full of secrets.” Register here for the Crowdcast stream.

The Bodega, Thursday, April 29, 4-8 p.m.: It’s back! The fun “bodega” nights at Breese Stevens Field, featuring artists, portable gift shops, small-batch food entrepreneurs and food carts, returns for four dates this spring and summer. Woo-hoo! It’s outside and social distancing regulations will be in effect but, like, wow!? Favorites that will be back in 2021 and that you may encounter during the debut bodega include Grasshopper Goods, and many more vendors you may not know. Food stops may include Jakarta Cafe, Jolly Frog, Sabor Queretano and Pizza Brutta, and vendors are still being added.

The New Orleans Tribute, Thursday, April 29, Garver Feed Mill, 7 p.m.: Music is ramping up once again for the season on the Garver patio (including many BlueStem Jazz concerts), but you’ll want to keep an eye on the schedule ahead of time as attendance is still limited due to social distancing requirements. As of April 20 tickets were on sale for this concert featuring The New Orleans Tribute, led by trombonist Darren Sterud. Can’t get a ticket, or not ready to go out yet? A livestream will be available on YouTube and Facebook, with a $15 donation suggested.

We hope it’s handy for you to find the Picks in a single weekly post. The individual Picks can still be found in the usual places online: collected here, and sprinkled throughout all the events.