Isthmus Picks (June 25-July 1)

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Isthmus Picks have long been a staple of our publication. At one point they were called Critics Choice, but the content has always been a curated list of the area's top entertainment. In recent weeks, we've been highlighting a wider range of community events (so far, still mostly happening online) in the Isthmus Picks section of the calendar. You can still find them collected here, and sprinkled throughout all the events. With our print publication still on pause, we thought it might also be handy to have our Picks in a single weekly post.

Marquette Bungalows Walking Tour, Thursday, June 25, from 1480 Spaight St., 6 pm: The Madison Trust for Historic Preservation's summer tour calendar kicks off in a popular and charming two-block area of 1920s bungalows grouped near Marquette Elementary School. These quaint Craftsman-style cottages are in good shape, lovingly kept up and/or restored by their owners, and represent a uniformity of style not often seen in Madison blocks. This guided tour full of historical and architectural info is actual and not a virtual walk; tickets must be purchased in advance and attendance will be capped to facilitate social distancing. Tickets are $10/adults, $5/students, and free for Madison Trust members. The bungalows tour repeats at 11 am on Aug. 1 and 6 pm on Aug. 27; for more tours, visit the Madison Trust website.

Wisconsin Wrights New Play Festival, Thursday-Saturday, June 25-27, 7 pm: Forward Theater is soldiering on during the COVID-19 crisis by hosting online readings of the three plays that won this year's Wisconsin Wrights playwriting competition. On Thursday: The Year Without Summer by Greer DuBois, a play set in an Italian villa in 1816; Friday's reading is Sapiens by Eric Schabla, an examination of human identity; and Saturday features The Mytilenian Debate by Quan Barry, about a successful heart surgeon whose much younger wife gets pregnant while his own daughter struggles with fertility. As always for a Forward Theater production, the directors and casts are top-notch. It's required watching for folks missing the experience of live theater. For streaming info, visit Forward's website.

Overture Galleries reception, Friday, June 26, 6-8 pm: Overture Center may still be closed, but its spring exhibitions in the three main galleries and Playhouse Gallery are available to view online. All four multi-artist exhibits examine the natural world, and the (mostly unfortunate) effect humankind is having on both the environment and our fellow creatures. RSVP here for a virtual reception on Zoom.

Social Justice Center Jubilee, Friday, June 26, 6 pm; Saturday, June 27, 2 pm: Now more than ever, communities need organizations like the 11 grassroots groups that make their home at the Social Justice Center on Willy Street. This two-day online affair celebrates community and raises funds for important work, including the free food pantry that opened in response to COVID-19. The center is partnering with Dane Arts, Tone Madison and Communication to present a kick-ass lineup of acts (and the artists will be paid). Expect musical contributions from Tippy, Labrador, Protege the Pro, DJ Hanna, Supa Friends and more. Visual art from aertime and rosemary pie.

Harmonious Wail, Friday, June 26, 7 pm: A consistent presence in the livestream scene, Harmonious Wail marks their 14th (!) consecutive Friday evening performance since the coronavirus pandemic first drew the curtain on in-person live music. Their latest single, "Sequim Marimba," should be on all streaming services soon, but until that happens the band has posted it on Soundcloud. Inspired by a road trip to Mexico, the song features guest performers Howard Levy on harmonica and Pauli Ryan on bongos.

T.E.L.E.T.H.O.N., Saturday, June 27, 5 pm: Forward Madison FC fan group The Flock are the hosts of this charity benefit livestream, via Twitch, featuring Madison players, soccer-obsessed comedians The Cooligans, The Athletic staff writers Pablo Maurer and Jeff Rueter, and other special guests. (The acronym stands for "Totally Excellent LGBTQIA+ Exhibition of Togetherness Helping Organizations Now.") As of now, USL League One match play is scheduled to begin July 18, provided local protocols for COVID-19 allow; Forward Madison FC's first home match could be July 25 vs. North Texas.

Cole Randolph, Saturday, June 27, noon: The Grace Presents classical concert series makes its virtual debut with a performance by Cole Randolph, playing solo cello works by J.S. Bach, George Crumb and Bright Sheng. Randolph, a 2020 graduate of UW-Madison, was a member of the School of Music's Symphony Orchestra and Perlman Piano Trio, and this fall will be an African American Orchestral Fellow for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. The concert will stream on YouTube; to participate in a post-concert Zoom meet and greet with Randolph, email togracepresents@gmail.com.

Robert Silbernagel, Saturday, June 27, 7 pm: There is a fascinating history of fur trading in Wisconsin and author Robert Silbernagel tells a slice of it in his new Wisconsin Historical Society Press book, The Cadottes: A Fur Trade Family on Lake Superior. Silbernagel, who studied journalism at UW-Madison and worked in newspapers in Colorado, focuses on the years 1760 to 1840 and on one family — the Ojibwe-French Canadian Michel Cadotte and his Ojibwe wife, Esquaysayway, who were traders on Madeline Island for nearly 40 years. Join a Facebook Live discussion with the author at 7 pm.

Midwest Log Rolling Championships, Voting open through June 27: Regardless of your actual log rolling experience, you may have felt, over the past few months, as if you are on top of a slippery log scrambling madly to stay upright and afloat. That's why this year's Midwest Log Rolling Championships are gonna be perfect for you! Taking place virtually, competitors can submit a 1-2 minute video to madisonlogrolling@gmail.com; the $10 registration benefits Huntington's Disease Society of America. Show 'em your best trick. If you can stand-up paddleboard, you can hula hoop on top of a log. (And yes, there will be prizes.) Not up for falling off a log? You can vote to help choose the winners at the Midwest Log Rolling Championships website through midnight, June 27.

Star Monster, Saturday, June 27, 8 pm: Liquid, Madison's home base for touring EDM performers, hosts a livestream featuring several producers from closer to home. This virtual dance party features Star Monster, who has been making some noise on Spotify with recent singles such as "Blaze" and "Milky Way." With WOLFBITER, Deerskin, LoDubb, escapeboard. Find the livestream and past videos on Twitch.

Christina Clancy, Monday, June 29, 7 pm: Christina Clancy’s debut novel, The Second Home, is getting a lot of buzz. In fact, it has been named Amazon’s “Book with Buzz” for June 2020. The American Booksellers Association also named it one of 10 outstanding summer/fall 2020 debut “Indies Introduce.” And there are more accolades. Clancy, who lives in Madison, grew up in Milwaukee. Her family has owned a cabin in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, since the 1890s and she visited there each summer as a child. The Second Home, published by St. Martin’s Press, follows three siblings just as they need to decide the fate of the family cabin after the death of their parents. Clancy will talk about the book via Crowdcast at this Wisconsin Book Festival event.

Justified Journey, Monday, June 29, 7 pm: Like most African Americans, the Rev. Dr. Alex Gee is a descendant of enslaved people. A new documentary from former WKOW anchor Greg Jeschke follows Gee, who is Black, to New Orleans and Mississippi, where he meets a white cousin, John Harkins, who helps untangle the black and white branches of this family tree. Gee, the host of the Black Like Me podcast and lead pastor at Fountain of Life Covenant Church in Madison, is full of insights about the experiences of Black Americans and the unequal outcomes for Black and white people. He is also genuinely moved by encounters with relatives and by seeing land held by his Black relatives and their impact on the local community. A premiere of Justified Journey and panel discussion by Gee, Harkins, Jeschke and UW professor Christy Clark-Pujara will take place via Zoom; RSVP here.

Entrepreneurons, Tuesday, June 30, 4 pm: The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation's Entrepreneurons series of panel discussions has taken a particularly timely tack during the coronavirus pandemic, and June's edition holds true to form. Pam Jahnke (The Mid-West Farm Report) will lead an exploration of what is working and what is not, as state producers try to adapt the food supply chain to current needs. Those weighing in include DATCP’s Angela James, Wisconsin Grocers' Association CEO Brandon Scholz, Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research Director John Lucey and others. RSVP at warf.org/entrepreneurons for a link to the livestream. Note: This event was rescheduled from June 10.

Contested Homes: Migrant Liberation Movement Suite, Tuesday, June 30, 7:30 pm: Although many of their in-person events got scrapped when the pandemic closed down the UW-Madison campus, spring interdisciplinary artists-in-residence Ben Barson and Gizelxanath Rodriguez still sparked creative collaboration while visiting Madison. The two musicians are co-founders of the Afro Yaqui Music Collective, and for this residency they and students created a free jazz opera incorporating spoken word, hip-hop, jazz and dance in a class called "Artivism: Intercultural Solidarity & Decolonizing Performance." Help dream a better future and tune in on Facebook from the comfort of your own home to see the collaboration between these groundbreaking artists and many promising local talents.

Star 67, Wednesday, July 1, Bowl-A-Vard Lanes, 6:30 pm: Bowl-A-Vard Lanes continues its outdoor summer Car Night series (vintage autos cruise in from 5-9 pm Wednesdays) with music by Madison band Star 67, which plays covers from the '90s and early '00s. Their stage energy drew former Isthmus editor Marc Eisen in from the sidewalk during a 2019 Wisco show, as recounted in his annual live music roundup: "Covers? Hell, I had never heard this music the first time around. But I loved how lead singer Madeline Westberg joyfully embraced the songs and made them come alive."