Storm the tower

A most metal video shoot and more Isthmus Picks for Jan. 20-27

The current Public Health Madison and Dane County face covering requirement is in effect through Feb. 1, and many venues and businesses continue to maintain individual requirements for proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test for entry. Also, the fast spread of the Omicron variant has resulted in events once again being canceled or postponed. Before heading out for any in-person event, it is recommended to confirm it is still taking place, and check for any attendance guidelines on the relevant business websites or social media accounts.

Note: Picks that have been postponed this week include: Winter Festival of Poetry (Jan. 23); find full details in the calendar incarnations.

Not Homeless Enough, Thursday, Jan. 20, online, 6 p.m.: Diane Nilan is the founder of HEAR US Inc., an Illinois organization working to raise awareness of homelessness experienced by youth and families. One part of the group's advocacy is through films made by Nilan; one of her latest, Not Homeless Enough, is a short film featuring four Dane County families. Madison Public Library and Doubled Up Workgroup host a screening of the film, followed by a discussion by Nilan with state Sen. Melissa Agard. Register here.

Fair Maps for All: Frontline Communities Speak Out, Thursday, Jan. 20, online, 6 p.m.: Gerrymandered electoral maps often target frontline communities — groups disproportionately affected by climate change, often made up of people of color. During this webinar sponsored by the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, the Fair Maps Coalition, and partner organizations, speakers from around the state will participate in a panel discussion about how gerrymandering has affected their communities by creating obstacles to involvement in the political process. Find more information and registration here.

Abel Contemporary Gallery exhibits, through Feb. 20, 524 E Main St, Stoughton: Stoughton's Abel Contemporary Gallery continues its run of interesting and challenging local art with exhibits from Tom Jaszczak and Helen Hawley as well as a group show called Beautiful Fiction. Jaszczak's ceramics explore muted pastels and minimalist, monochromatic color schemes. Hawley's thoughtful work is an installation using paper, canvas, clay, and other everyday materials to create “lake sediment.” Artist talks from Hawley and Jaszczak will take place virtually on Facebook Live at 5 p.m. on Jan. 20 and Feb. 3, respectively. The shows run through Feb. 20 and can also be viewed at abelcontemporary.com.

The Realistic Joneses, Jan. 20-29, Bartell Theatre: Madison Theatre Guild continues its 75th season with The Realistic Joneses. John and Pony Jones move in next door to Bob and Jennifer Jones, with whom they share the same last name but no relation. The four Joneses’ lives begin to entangle when they begin sharing truths in this wacky, honest and intimate play. The play, written by Will Eno, opened on Broadway in 2014. Showtimes: 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 20-22 and 26-28; and 2 p.m., Jan. 23 and 29. Find tickets at bartelltheatre.org.

Christmas tree donations sought, through Jan. 29, Olbrich Park: The city of Madison's second and final Christmas tree curbside collection round began Jan. 18. However, there's also an option to give your tree friend a second life as part of a BLINK! project from the Madison Arts Commission. Artist Lillian Sizemore is designing a labyrinth made from tree branches, to be constructed at Olbrich Park; How Lovely Are Thy Branches will be open to the public from Jan. 30 through February. Trees can be dropped off through Jan. 29; watch for signs near the Walter Street entrance/parking lot. Find more info here.

Rainforest Rhythms, Friday, Jan. 21, Olbrich Gardens, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.: This winter series at Olbrich highlighting cultures from around the world returns just in time for a scheduled day off for the Madison and Middleton school districts. Wisconsin Surma, a UW-Madison dance team mixing hip-hop, contemporary and classical Indian styles, will present a program for all ages in the Bolz Conservatory. Tickets go on sale about an hour before each performance.

I Hate Hamlet, Jan. 21-30, Cardinal Heights Upper Middle School, Sun Prairie: Do you find Shakespeare to be, well, hard? No worries! So do actors, apparently. Sun Prairie Civic Theatre is tackling Paul Rudnick's comedy I Hate Hamlet, about a television actor given the chance to play the plum role of Hamlet in Central Park...but he hates everything about it. Expect play-within-the-play comic parallels — how Shakespearean! All audience members must be masked per school district policy and the actors will wear clear masks. Shows at 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday; find tickets at sunprairiecivictheatre.com, or in-person at The Piano Gal Shop in downtown Sun Prairie or before the show.

Madison Symphony Orchestra, Friday-Sunday, Jan. 21-23, Overture Hall: The MSO's January program features showcases for a pair of top-flight soloists. Violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins, making her debut with the orchestra, will be featured on the local premiere of Wynton Marsalis' 2015 Violin Concerto in D. The symphony's principal organist Greg Zelek will tackle Symphony No. 3 in C Minor by Camille Saint-Saëns (the Organ Symphony). Also on the program is the overture to Dmitry Kabalevsky's opera Colas Breugnon. Concerts take place at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 21; 8 p.m., Jan. 22; and 2:30 p.m., Jan. 23.

Lords of the Trident video shoot, Friday, Jan. 21, Liquid, 8 p.m.: If your bucket list includes “be in a music video,” you have another shot at glory coming up. Madison metal warriors Lords of the Trident are filming a video for “These Tower Walls,” from the forthcoming album The Offering. Plan your outfit to stand out in a crowd and get in the metal spirit by listening to the song (at the 2021 Mad with Power Festival) here. The band will play a set following filming. Admission is free ($10 for ages 18-20), but proof of vaccination and a facemask are required for entry.

Wurk: OCCUPATION, Fridays, through Jan. 28, Harmony Bar, 9 p.m.: Madison sextet Wurk mixes many genre flavorings into a jam rock stew. So it makes perfect sense that the group is hosting a residency featuring guests from a mix of styles. Still coming up is a night of funk-soul big bands on Jan. 21, featuring The Big Payback and Sneezy; and an evening of hip-hop/neo-soul on Jan. 28, with D'Funk and the Grease Monkeys and K.I.L.O. aka SkitL'z. Advance tickets are available at the Harmony.

Winter Presentation Series, Saturday, Jan. 22 & 29, Zoom, 10 a.m.: The annual class series hosted by Friends of Allen Centennial Garden once again takes place in the virtual world, on five Saturdays between Jan. 22 and Feb. 26. Class topics in January include “Indigenous Foodways,” led by Great Lakes Indigenous Law Center researcher Dan Cornelius on Jan 22; and “Growing Hope: The Local and Global Youth Garden Movement,” by Nathan Larson (UW Planning and Landscape Architecture Department) on Jan. 29. Classes are $10 each; find sign-up info at eventbrite.com/o/8596202129.

A Photographic Celebration: 60 Years of Peace Corps Service, through Jan 30, Capitol Rotunda: This exhibit coordinated by Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Wisconsin-Madison about life in the Peace Corps draws from some 60 years of photos from the yearly RPCV of Wisconsin International calendar. This weekend includes a half-day in-person question-fielding session at the Capitol, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Jan. 22, with current recruiters who can answer questions about volunteering. The Capitol is open 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.

Winter Fun & Outdoor Gear Demo, Saturday, Jan. 22, Lunney Lake Farm Park-Shelter #1, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.: Perhaps in normal times the last thing you want to do is be outside in winter...but you've just gotta get out of the house. Or maybe you love to ski but have never snowshoed. Dane County Parks and the Four Lakes Chapter of Sierra Club has some options to spark a new hobby, with ice fishing and winter camping demos, snowshoes to try out, and a scavenger hunt (eyes or camera only). If you are a skier curious about the trails at Lunney Lake Farm, ski permits are waived during the event, too. Find more details at danecountyparks.com.

Beer & Cheese Fest, Saturday, Jan. 22, Alliant Energy Center, noon-6 p.m.: Having been to a number of Beer & Cheese events over the years, we can attest to the breadth of beers and warmth of spirit at this mid-winter sampling celebration. Although no longer affiliated with Isthmus, the event will look and feel much the same, with 70-some breweries already signed on, along with a few cideries and at least one winery. And you'll likely discover a brewery you never knew existed. Piano Fondue dueling pianos will be playing, there will be Hammer-Schlagen, and in addition to the cheese samples, food carts will be vending onsite. VIP session starts at noon; general admission starts at 2 p.m. All attendees must be fully vaccinated. Find ticket and other info at beerandcheesefest.com and read Robin Shepard’s preview here.

Candlelight snowshoe/hike, Saturday, Jan. 22, Warner Park, 6-8 p.m.: One of the best remedies for cabin fever, or a more generalized feeling of the blahs, is to get out into nature. And a special way to see nature in winter is by candlelight, with a roaring bonfire at the journey's end. Madison Parks, Friends of Cherokee Marsh and Wild Warner are teaming up for this early evening adventure; since last week's picks post we've learned this annual event moved to Warner Park from its usual location at the marsh. For more info, see cityofmadison.com/parks.

What the Constitution Means to Me, Jan. 22-23, Overture Center-Capitol Theater: Playwright Heidi Schreck participated in debate competitions about the U.S. Constitution as a teenager. That deep knowledge of the document's history and tenets — and how its judicial interpretation affects the lives of Americans, past and future — informs Schreck's play What the Constitution Means to Me. The work was a Tony nominee in 2019 and also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. The current tour features Cassie Beck (recently seen in the Amazon Prime reboot of I Know What You Did Last Summer) starring in the role originated by Schreck. Performances at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 22 and 3 p.m., Jan. 23; find tickets at overture.org.

Robert Finley, Saturday, Jan. 22, High Noon Saloon, 8 p.m.: Louisiana native Robert Finley's 2021 album, Sharecropper's Son, spent the summer riding high on the Billboard Blues Albums chart, a well-deserved placement for an excellent collection of new songs looking back on growing up in the South. The sound cooked up by producer/guitarist/co-songwriter Dan Auerbach is a heady mix of soul, country blues and gospel; it's topped perfectly by Finley's astounding vocals, which can turn on a dime from a gritty growl to a weathered falsetto. With I&R. Tickets at high-noon.com.

Nikole Hannah-Jones, Tuesday, Jan. 25, UW Memorial Union-Shannon Hall, 6:30 p.m.: A New York Times Magazine journalist and the Knight Chair of Race and Journalism at Howard University, Nikole Hannah-Jones was recently named one of the “100 Most Influential People of 2021” by Time magazine. She won a Pulitzer Prize in 2020 for The 1619 Project, an examination of the legacy of Black Americans which has caused many to reconsider our nation's history (and attracted right-wing attacks as well). At this year's MLK Symposium, presented by UW-Madison Student Affairs in collaboration with the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Educational Achievement, Hannah-Jones will discuss the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and its intersection with her work investigating injustice. A livestream option will be available; find registration information at go.wisc.edu/MLK22.

Indigenous Storytelling, Tuesday, Jan. 25, online, 7 p.m.: Storytelling was one of the first art forms across cultures. Before written language, stories were both history and fable. Native American storyteller and poet Michael Laughing Fox Charette, from the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, uses poetry, flute and drum to enhance his storytelling to place Indigenous teachings in a modern day context. This Wisconsin Historical Society webinar is free but advance registration is required by noon on Jan. 25. Register here.

The Brook & The Bluff, Wednesday, Jan. 26, High Noon Saloon, 8 p.m.: The Brook & The Bluff originated when lyricist and singer Joe Setting and guitarist Alec Bolton started playing music together in college. Now, along with John Canada and Fred Lankford, the Nashville-based quartet band is touring the country. After releasing a self-titled EP in 2018, the band’s first full length album, First Place, followed in 2019. Most recently, the quartet released Yard Sale, a stripped down, groovy, lyrically raw album. With Izzy Heltai. Tickets at high-noon.com.

Patty Griffin, Wednesday, Jan. 26, Barrymore, 8 p.m.: Seven-time Grammy Award nominee Patty Griffin has been making music for more than 15 years, debuting with Living With Ghosts in 1996. The singer-songwriter's newest, self-titled album debuted in the Top 5 of the Billboard Independent Albums chart (and picked up the Grammy for Best Folk Album, Griffin's second win). Guitar, lyrics and Griffin’s unique vocals are the stars of the album. Together, they produce an emotional and honest sound. Also performing is Americana artist Parker Millsap. Proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test required for entry; tickets at barrymorelive.com.

Imagination Center at Reindahl Park public meeting, Thursday, Jan. 27, Zoom, 6 p.m.: Madison Public Library is planning a new far east side outpost. But in keeping with the changing use of libraries over the years, the concept is much more expansive than a home for a media collection and meeting space. The initial scoping study in 2020 envisioned bringing the community center and social services aspects of the library system to the fore. Find out more about the project's progress so far at a public meeting hosted by MPL, the city's parks and engineering departments, and the architects and designers. RSVP here for the Zoom link. The meeting will also be available for viewing at Hawthorne and Lakeview libraries, for those without internet access.

Third Coast Percussion with Movement Art Is, Thursday, Jan. 27, UW Hamel Music Center, 7:30 p.m.: The collaborative work Metamorphosis combines street dance choreography (by Movement Art Is) and classical music (by Grammy-winning quartet Third Coast Percussion). Self-acceptance and human nature are just two of the topics the groups will delve into through music and sound during this Wisconsin Union Theater concert. Tickets at artsticketing.wisc.edu.

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.