What to do in Madison this week: Cafe Coda reopens, a labyrinth closes, and more

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How Lovely Are Thy Branches, through Feb. 28, Olbrich Park Beach: Artist Lillian Sizemore created a labyrinth in Olbrich Park from our discarded Christmas trees. Walking a labyrinth is not like wandering through a corn maze; it's always been a meditative or even religious experience. Here, not only the structure of the labyrinth is significant but its setting with the lake and isthmus skyline in view. Sizemore suggests that the experience of walking the temporary piece can help connect visitors to “the flow of your own life.” It's free and open to walk the labyrinth during park hours through February 28. Volunteers are also sought to help dismantle the installation, noon-4 p.m. on March 5 and noon-3 p.m., March 6; find out more on Facebook.

Lift Every Voice, through Feb. 28, online:Madison Ballet has been working to bring ballet to diverse audiences throughout the pandemic, through free outdoor performances and even film. Its film series Lift Every Voice returns for a second season, featuring brand-new contemporary dance from choreographers of color; featured this year are Meet by Yaqi Wu, Love Dream by Yu-Jhe Sun, Love Suites by Morgan Williams, and Away/Return by Jacob Ashley EL. The films are available to view on demand for free through Feb. 28; register for a link at madisonballet.org.

The Big Share, Tuesday, March 1, online: Dane County has a remarkably deep-rooted and diverse nonprofit sector, and those community organizations proved to be an ever more important part of our societal safety net during the pandemic. Help the nonprofit members of Community Shares of Wisconsin continue helping us all by making a donation during The Big Share, an annual online fundraiser day. Find more info on participants and how to donate at thebigshare.org; for events through the day, keep an eye on Community Shares' Facebook page. A kickoff event takes place at 6 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 28, featuring drag queen bingo hosted by Bianca Lynn Breeze and Cass Marie Domino; register here for the Zoom link. And for a finale, the Tony Castañeda Latin Jazz Band plays a concert at 8 p.m. on March 1 at Dark Horse ArtBar (also livestreamed).

We The Vision, Tuesday, March 1, Union South-Marquee, 6 p.m.: The Black Voice is a news, culture and opinion publication featuring and elevating black voices at UW-Madison. Originally founded in 1971 as a print publication (after the Black Student Strike of 1969), The Black Voice was revived online in 2014. The new documentary We The Vision celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of The Black Voice by highlighting students and alumni for whom participation in the organization was instrumental. The premiere screening of the film will be followed by discussion. The screening was postponed due to the ice storm on Feb. 22; it will now take place at 6 p.m. on March 1.

Rear wheel removal and re-install class, Tuesday, March 1, UW Helen C. White Hall, 6 p.m.: If a rear wheel flat on your bike has ever led to it hibernating for a season, this University Bicycle Resource Center class is for you. India Viola (local bicycling advocate and We Are All Mechanics co-founder) will demonstrate the basics of getting that wheel off and, more importantly, getting it back on correctly. The UBRC can be found in the Helen C. White garage; bring your bike to get hands-on with the process. Past classes can be found on YouTube. This class was moved to March 1 due to the ice storm on Feb. 22.

Laura Anne Bird, Tuesday, March 1, Mystery to Me, 7 p.m.: Join local author Laura Anna Bird for a discussion about Crossing the Pressure Line, the author’s first middle-grade book. Grappling with the death of her Grandpa Anthony, 12-year-old Clare Burch travels from Chicago to the north woods of Wisconsin for the summer. Though her summer dreams included swim team and her best friends, Clare chooses to follow her grandfather’s wishes. Clara’s summer in Alwyn helps her deal with the grief and blame she feels surrounding her grandfather’s death. The event can also be live streamed; find a link at mysterytomebooks.com.

Cafe Coda reopening week, March 1-6, Cafe Coda, 7 p.m. unless noted: Following a break since December to try and avoid the worst of the omicron variant surge of the pandemic, Cafe Coda returns to action with a busy week of concerts. Fat Tuesday is marked with a March 1 concert by Panchromatic Steel, a Madison group mixing the distinctive sound of the Trinidadian steel drum with jazz; the evening (co-hosted by BlueStem Jazz) also features performances by Handphibians offshoot the Saideira Pagode Crew. On March 2, help celebrate the birthday of founder Hanah Jon Taylor as he plays with his Artet. March 3 features swing by The Dalton Gang, a smaller ensemble pulled from the ranks of Ladies Must Swing led by tenor sax player June Dalton. March 4 brings a trio featuring vocalist Dee Alexander with John McLean and Emma Dayhuff. March 5 includes a pair of shows by the Tim Whalen Nonet (7 and 9 p.m.) and the return of the late night jam (11 p.m.). The week wraps up March 6 with Night of the Improvisor featuring the Tony Barba Trio with guest Jason Kutz. Looking forward, March 12 brings the return of Cool School for young players (10 a.m.). Find more info and tickets at cafecoda.club.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Tuesday, March 1, Overture Hall, 7:30 p.m.: This program gets to the heart of the company, a treasure of American dance, as it celebrates a decade of leadership from artistic director Robert Battle. Unfold, a duet from Battle, will be joined by Ailey's masterpiece, Revelations. Other pieces on the program include For Four, which "captures the pent-up energy of a world cooped up during the pandemic, set to a Wynton Marsalis score." Relatable.

Sofia Hagström Møller, through April 3, UW Nancy Nicholas Hall-Mecklenburg Textile Gallery: Lineage is an exhibit by the Denmark-based textile artist Sofia Hagström Møller. Recent works that grew out of a 2020 residency at the Weaving Lab in the UW School of Human Ecology explore how Scandinavian design concepts have inspired or been inspired by works from cultures around the world, held in the school’s Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection. Hagström Møller will present a keynote lecture (5 p.m., March 2) and workshop (4 p.m., March 4), and attend a reception (4-6 p.m., March 3); find RSVP details at cdmc.wisc.edu.

The Mytilenian Debate, Feb. 24-March 13, Overture Center-Playhouse: Poet, award-winning author, and Forward Theater writer-in-residence Amy Quan Barry will present the first full production of her new play The Mytilenian Debate. Barry’s story examines questions of identity and familial expectations that arise between a Black woman struggling to start a family and her father, whose much younger girlfriend has become pregnant. While far less violent than the history that inspired its name — an ancient Greek Athenian Assembly action that ended in mass slaughter and enslavement of citizens of the city-state of Mytilene — Barry’s play tackles complex subjects. Performances at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, plus 2 p.m. on March 5 and 12.

Milk Carton Kids, Wednesday, March 2, Stoughton Opera House, 7:30 p.m.: Joey Ryan and Kenneth Pattengale (aka Milk Carton Kids) are at the trailhead of a tour that will run through August, so they should be rested and eager. Their latest album, The Only Ones, is a continuation of the precious but never pretentious folk music that has earned them three Grammy nominations since 2013. Their harmonies are heartbreaking and Pattengale plays the lead guitar with the same imagination and fearlessness as David Rawlins. Canadian folkie Kaia Kater supports.

Chastity Brown, Wednesday, March 2, The Bur Oak, 8 p.m.: This intimate near east side club will be an incredible environment to hear Chastity Brown's folk-soul music and storytelling. Based in Minneapolis but originally from Tennessee, Brown mixes personal experience with urgent political leanings. She's toured with Ani DiFranco and Andrea Gibson, and appeared at Bonnaroo; Chastity Brown won't be playing small clubs like this one much longer, so catch her while you can.

World Championship Cheese Contest, Thursday, March 3, online, 2 p.m.: You might, if you were writing about this event, be tempted to term it the big cheese of cheese. The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association will be announcing the top 20 cheeses in the world and winner of the title of world champion. In the beforeworld, the public was invited to cruise the cheese and sample. Sadly, things have not yet gotten back to sampling normal and so the announcement of the winners will be streamed live at WorldChampionCheese.org. Stock up on some Pleasant Ridge Reserve and Triscuits and carry on.

The Small Glories, Thursday, March 3, Stoughton Opera House, 7:30 p.m.: The Small Glories are the duo of Canadian natives Cara Luft (an acclaimed singer-songwriter and founding member of The Wailin' Jennys) and JD Edwards (who leads a long-running eponymous band). Both strong lead singers, each also blends on harmonies as if they've been singing together since birth -- though it's only been a few years since they combined forces for their blend of by turns celebratory and somber-hued traditional music. Opening is Madison's own Acoustic Charlies, the trio of Chuck Bayuk, Chuck Gates and Jeff Laramie.

A Piece of My Heart, March 3-11, UW Vilas Hall-Hemsley Theatre: University Theatre will perform the two-act A Piece of My Heart, written by UW-Madison alumna Shirley Lauro. The play tells the true stories of six women — five nurses and a country singer — who were sent to Vietnam during the war. The experiences of each woman before, during and after their respective tours are detailed. Sacrifice and human loss portrayed in the play characterize the period of history as harrowing and intense. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on March 3-5 and 8-11, and 2 p.m. on March 6. Tickets at artsticketing.wisc.edu.

Sam Weber, Thursday, March 3, The Bur Oak, 8 p.m.: A native of Canada now based in Los Angeles, Sam Weber had the songs for the just released album Get Free set to head to the studio when the pandemic landed. So he and partner Mallory Hauser (a multi-instrumentalist who performs solo as Mal) decided to go ahead and figure out how to make the record at home. The results are a singer-songwriter-folk album with a decidedly musically adventurous and poppy side. With Matthew Fowler.

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.