Isthmus: Jan 5-11, 2017

JANUARY 5–11, 2017

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VOL. 42 NO. 1

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MADISON, WISCONSIN

Ford tough

The no-frills east-side gym is a crucible for change

NICK BERARD

T:9.5"

T:11"

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ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

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■ CONTENTS

■ WHAT TO DO

4 SNAPSHOT

WAITING FOR THE SUN

Madison residents brace for years of darkness, but hope for light.

6-8 NEWS

ROAD BLOCK

New Wisconsin law significantly hampers volunteer voter registration drives.

MARCELLE RICHARDS

13 COVER STORY

ELISA WISEMAN

6 NEWS OUR FALL INTERN graduated in December from UW-Madison with a major in journalism and a double concentration in reporting and strategic communications. Returning home to the Washington, D.C., area, she continued to tie up loose ends on a news story about changes to Wisconsin’s registration program. Wiseman will soon be looking for a reporting job at a local daily newspaper, ideally on the East Coast. In her short time with us, she proved a talented, enterprising reporter and writer, and we wish her all the best.

WHILE DEALING WITH the effects of a recurrence of cancer, Marcelle Richards started training at Ford’s Gym, an old-school outfit on Madison’s east side. Richards built up her strength and nursed her body back to health, finding that her newfound power translated to life outside the gym as well. She also found an eclectic community at Ford’s, and writes about some of the gym denizens in this week’s cover story.

COURT BATTLE

Two local attorneys are running for an open Dane County Circuit Court seat.

9 TECH

CHEMICAL SCREENING

UW professors are turning smartphone screens into an advance warning for toxins.

10 OPINION

DOMESTIC SELLOUT

Paul Ryan rejects Buy American plan for water projects.

13 COVER STORY

HEAVY LIFTING

Transforming bodies and lives at Ford’s Gym.

22-23 FOOD & DRINK

CALIFORNIA DREAMING

Fresh and light fare that satisfies at Everly.

24 SPORTS

ALL I WANT FOR 2017 IS...

A sports writer’s wish list for the new year.

Love it or list it?

Friday, Jan. 6-Sunday, Jan. 8, Monona Terrace The 2017 Madison Home Expo features remodelers, builders and designers showcasing the latest in dream products, whether you want a freshen-up, a complete remodel or are looking to create a home from scratch. Big question: Have granite countertops finally gone the way of the dinosaur? For more info: homeshowcenter.com.

21, 26 ART

ART IN A BOX

iamb outraged

CSArt connects artists and patrons.

Friday, Jan. 6, Mother Fool’s Coffeehouse, 8 pm

27 MUSIC

OTHERWORLDLY HOLLY HENSCHEN

Alice and the Glass Lake leave an album behind after the young songwriter’s death.

21 ART, 27 MUSIC

28-29 SCREENS

HOLLY HENSCHEN met musician Alicia Lemke at a Son Volt show at the High Noon in 2013. Lemke, a Madison native living in Brooklyn at the time, and Henschen bonded over their common experiences of playing music and living in New York City. Henschen writes this week about Lemke’s first full-length album, which, sadly, was released a year after the singer’s death in 2015.

Henschen also writes about an exciting local effort to create community-supported art.

The Madtown Poetry Open Mic dedicates this first reading of the year to poets’ responses to the 2016 election. Open mic reader sign-up starts at 7:30 pm.

SATAN’S SCREENING ROOM

Madison comedians riff on bad cinema.

36 EMPHASIS

BUILDING POTENTIAL

GiGi’s Playhouse supports people with Down syndrome and their families.

Tuesday, Jan. 10, Esquire, 6:30 pm

IN EVERY ISSUE 8 8 10 11 11

MADISON MATRIX WEEK IN REVIEW THIS MODERN WORLD FEEDBACK OFF THE SQUARE

Listen without prejudice

30 37 38 38 39

ISTHMUS PICKS CLASSIFIEDS P.S. MUELLER CROSSWORD SAVAGE LOVE

PUBLISHER Jeff Haupt ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Craig Bartlett BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Mark Tauscher EDITOR Judith Davidoff

UW professor Katherine Cramer, author of The Politics of Resentment: Rural Consciousness in Wisconsin and the Rise of Scott Walker, gathered information for the book by dropping in on smalltown conversations. She will reflect on her conclusions about the importance of “Listening in a Time of Hate” at this forum hosted by Reach Out Wisconsin, a bipartisan group dedicated to bridging the political divide.

NEWS EDITOR Joe Tarr ASSOCIATE EDITOR Michana Buchman FEATURES EDITOR Linda Falkenstein ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Catherine Capellaro STAFF WRITERS Dylan Brogan, Allison Geyer EDITORIAL INTERN Elisa Wiseman CALENDAR EDITOR Bob Koch ART DIRECTOR Carolyn Fath STAFF ARTISTS Todd Hubler, David Michael Miller, Tommy Washbush CONTRIBUTORS John W. Barker, Kenneth Burns, Dave Cieslewicz, Nathan J. Comp, Aaron R. Conklin,

ISTHMUS is published weekly by Red Card Media, 100 State Street, Suite 301, Madison, WI 53703 • Edit@isthmus.com • Phone (608) 251-5627 • Fax (608) 251-2165 Periodicals postage paid at Madison, WI (ISSN 1081-4043) • POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 100 State Street, Suite 301, Madison, WI 53703 • © 2017 Red Card Media, LLC. All rights reserved.

Monday, Jan. 9, Fast Forward Skate Center, 4:30 pm

Mad Men Roller Derby team hosts a free tryout designed for fellas who are curious about getting involved with Men’s Roller Derby Association league action.

Protective gear and skates are provided, and skating experience is not required. RSVP to training. madmen@mensderbywi.com.

FIND MORE ISTHMUS PICKS ON PAGE 30

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

Ruth Conniff, Michael Cummins, Marc Eisen, Erik Gunn, Mike Ivey, Bob Jacobson, Seth Jovaag, Stu Levitan, Bill Lueders, Liz Merfeld, Andy Moore, Bruce Murphy, Kyle Nabilcy, Kate Newton, Joel Patenaude, Jenny Peek, Michael Popke, Steven Potter, Adam Powell, Katie Reiser, Jay Rath, Gwendolyn Rice, Dean Robbins, Robin Shepard, Sandy Tabachnick, Denise Thornton, Candice Wagener, Tom Whitcomb, Rosemary Zurlo-Cuva ADVERTISING PRODUCTION MANAGER Todd Hubler ADVERTISING MANAGER Chad Hopper ADVERTISING ASSISTANT Laura Miller ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES Lindsey Bushart, Peggy Elath, Lauren Isely WEB ANALYST Jeri Casper CIRCULATION MANAGER Tim Henrekin MARKETING DIRECTOR Chris Winterhack EVENT DIRECTORS Kathleen Andreoni, Courtney Lovas CONTROLLER Halle Mulford OFFICE MANAGER Julie Butler SYSTEMS MANAGER Thom Jones ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Carla Dawkins

Men on wheels

3

n SNAPSHOT

Into darkness

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

BY ERICA KRUG n PHOTO BY LAURA ZASTROW

4

The sun breaks through the clouds just as it is setting on Dec. 21, the shortest day of the year.

From Olbrich Park on Madison’s east side, the sky above the isthmus glows orange and pink while the sun sinks below Lake Monona, and the crowd gathering to celebrate the winter solstice turns its attention to a pile of year-old Christmas trees about to be ignited.

Ted McManus, a long-time east-side resident, asks the crowd to repeat after him. “We have fallen into darkness,” says McManus. “We have fallen into darkness,” the crowd repeats.

“For years it has been dark here,” McManus continues. “For years it has been dark here,” responds the crowd. “But now the dark has spread to swallow our whole land,” McManus says with the crowd echoing. “This is the longest, darkest night,” says McManus. “This night may last for years.”

McManus also offers some words of hope: “We each carry a small flame. Alone our flame can flicker out. Together, we can join our flames into a blazing torch. For years we have lit this solstice fire and the sun has returned.

It will return again.... In dark days we need more light.”

“In dark days we need more light,” the crowd repeats.

And then the fire is lit, sending sparks into the darkening skies.

Throughout the ages, people have celebrated the solstice; in winter welcoming the return of the sun and in summer basking in the longest day. The biannual solstice celebration at Olbrich Park, presented by the Friends of Starkweather Creek, the Schenk-AtwoodStarkweather-Yahara Neighborhood Association and local businesses, began in the summer of 2002 as a way to honor the Starkweather Creek watershed, says Lou Host-Jablonski, one of the organizers. “Back in the day, the creek was a drainage ditch with shopping carts and tires floating in it,” says Host-Jablonski, who credits the Friends of Starkweather Creek with restoring the creek to a more natural state.

Betty Chewning, one of the bonfire founders, says the idea for the celebration was to “draw attention to our place, but show that it’s part of a bigger picture.”

As the solstice event became more popular, Host-Jablonski says it became important for people to interact with the fire in a meaningful way. In the early days people would show up to the park with yard waste or grocery bags full of personal items like bank statements. “It’s common solstice practice to bring something

to burn,” says John Steines, another organizer. “But we wanted to keep it all natural.”

Chewning came up with the idea for “wish agents,” volunteers who hand out paper and pencils for people to write down wishes to throw into the fire. There are no rules about what to write down, but it’s popular to jot down three wishes — something to banish, something you are grateful for and something to hope for.

Standing close to the fire, Kevin Williams openly shares his hope for the future: “I wrote ‘Trump go away.’” The sentiment is common among this crowd.

Cindy McCallum says that she has been coming to the fire for nine years. As far as her feelings about 2017, she says there are a lot of unknowns but that it’s important to stay open and connected. “The more we are aware of our fear, the less we are ruled by it.”

Polly Sackett says that when she attended the fire five years ago, she had a feeling that she wanted to get rid of; after burning a phrase on a piece of paper in that fire, she felt some huge shifts in her life.

On this night she says she writes the same words again. Sackett unfolds her paper. It reads: “Keep going.” n

Amount of daylight in Madison on Dec. 21: 8 HOURS, 59 MINUTES, 43 SECONDS Difference in daylight on Dec. 21, compared to Dec. 20: ONE SECOND SHORTER Extra daylight on Dec. 22, compared to Dec. 21: THREE SECONDS Daylight calculated for June 21, 2017: 15 HOURS, 22 MINUTES, 17 SECONDS Size of pile of trees before ignited: 6 FEET HIGH BY 8 FEET WIDE

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n NEWS

The end of voter registration drives As registration goes digital, some will face more hurdles to vote

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

BY ELISA WISEMAN

6

Molly McGrath knows a way to get people excited about voting. “Let’s make registering to vote a party,” says McGrath, a voting rights advocate formerly with VoteRiders.

She tested her theory in March while working with Associated Students of Madison to register students. They hosted an evening event at UW-Madison with free pizza and a DJ spinning records. Off to the side were several tables where volunteers registered people to vote and handed out pamphlets on voter ID laws and instructions for firsttime voters. In three hours, they registered around 800 UW students.

“When you take out the annoying logistics part of it, there’s a lot of excitement...a lot of energy,” says McGrath.

But Wisconsin has now made these types of drives much more difficult to organize. A new law signed by Gov. Scott Walker in March limits ways that volunteers can help people register. The state will soon be emphasizing an online voter registration system, which will require people to already have approved state IDs. Critics fear the law will make it impossible to go door-to-door to register voters or set up registration tables in high schools, college campuses or at events like the Farmers’ Market. This could leave thousands of low-income people, students, transients and people of color unable to vote, they fear.

A group of 15 organizations, including the League of Women Voters of the United States, the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign and Project Vote, complained about the proposed changes to its sponsor, Sen. Devin LeMahieu (ROostburg), before they were enacted. In a Feb. 9 letter, they argued the proposal “likely violates third-party registration groups’ First Amendment right to help voters register.”

“No other state that has passed online voter registration has tied its passage to such severely restrictive measures on other methods of voter registration,” they wrote. “The interaction of these laws — the elimination of the registration deputies and the documentary proof of residency requirement — spells the effective end of voter registrations drives.”

In proposing the changes, LeMahieu argued that they would modernize and simplify the registration process.

“Senate Bill 295 will create online voter registration, clean up our voter rolls and make a number of other important reforms to modernize Wisconsin’s elections,” he wrote in a March

DAVID MICHAEL MILLER

statement, after Walker signed the bill into law.

“In addition to making it easier to register, moving to an online system will also cut costs and curb potential for registration errors and fraud.”

What he didn’t mention, however, is that only those with a Wisconsin driver’s license or Department of Transportation ID that also lists their current address will be eligible to register online. For instance, students from Milwaukee who go to UWMadison for college would not be able to use the online system unless they updated their address through the DMV and got a new ID. When contacted for comment, a legislative aide for LeMahieu said the senator is “not interested in participating in this story.”

The new law also eliminates a program of “special registration deputies,” trained volunteers who could help residents navigate the complicated registration process. Typically, a deputy could verify the voter’s documentary proof of residency (a requirement as of 2014) at a registration drive. Now that verification must be done by county or municipal clerks. Voters can still register by mail, but they’ll have to include photocopies of evidentiary documents with their forms.

Reid Magney, spokesperson for the Wisconsin Elections Commission, doubts elimination of the special registration deputy program will affect registration numbers, adding that people will still be able to register on Election Day. “Clerks receive and review proof of residency documents all the time,” he says. “I don’t have figures, but [registration deputies] make up a relatively small percentage of voter registrations.”

However, critics say these deputies were registering people who have a difficult time navigating the system: low-income people, transients and people of color, many of whom have limited internet access or lack official IDs. Paul Malischke, one of over 1,000 special registration deputies in Madison alone, has been

helping out at these registration events for 10 years — he’s gone to libraries, high schools, and senior centers to register voters. He says the new law is particularly “egregious.”

“It makes it a lot easier for a certain demographic to be registered versus another,” Malischke says.

Wisconsin League of Women Voters, which has held registration drives around the state for decades, shares Malischke’s concern. Andrea Kaminski, the group’s executive director, applauds the use of online voter registration, but says it should have been offered as another option.

“All they’ve done is made it easier for those people who have a Wisconsin driver’s license or state ID and who want to register and who are still living at the residence that the DMV has for them,” she says. “They could have offered online voter registration as a wonderful new tool that makes registration easier for many voters. They could have offered that without cutting back on other options.”

In his March statement, LeMahieu claimed that registration drives are still possible, writing that the law “empowers everyone to go out into their

“ [The law] makes it a lot easier for a certain demographic to be registered versus another.”

— Paul Malischke, a longtime special registration deputy.

communities with a smartphone or tablet and help citizens register to vote.”

But critics say that while drives aren’t explicitly banned, the state has imposed restrictions that would render them ineffective. Most organizations can’t afford the resources they’d need to keep doing them.

For the League to continue its registration drives, Kaminski says, volunteers will need to have internet access and a photocopier handy wherever they do the drives. “So if you’re trying to do a doorto-door registration drive and you find someone without [the right] ID, you’re going to have to pull a Xerox machine out of your back pocket,” she says.

It isn’t just the poor and disenfranchised who will be affected by the new rules, Kaminski says. “I know the League of Women Voters of Dane County went out to Epic and they found something like 30 percent of the employees had out-of-state driver’s licenses,” says Kaminski. “So there you have people who are quite capable of doing things online, but they just wouldn’t be allowed to.”

Kaminski says her group will do what it can to help people register, perhaps only holding drives in places where WiFi is available and asking people to bring their residency documents with them.

McGrath sees the law as another in a series designed to suppress voting of select groups in Wisconsin. An estimated 300,000 people in the state were unable to vote in the 2016 presidential election because of the state’s new voter ID requirement, McGrath says. She fears that number will grow as registration drives are curtailed.

“What I saw on Election Day was flat-out disenfranchisement,” she says.

“I saw people all day who didn’t have an ID and didn’t know the law because the state didn’t spend much money to inform people — to think it could get any worse in Wisconsin is incredibly unsettling.... There’s no doubt in my mind that there are people who are elected officials with the intent to suppress voters in Wisconsin.”

Malischke, who has helped register UW-Madison students, says that at typical events, he might see up to 100 outof-state students wanting to register.

With all the extra barriers, says McGrath, it just means there’s a bigger need to fight for access and get people informed. “It’s the end of clipboard, inthe-field grassroots organizations and access,” she says. “To think of how many people [Malischke] has registered alone on campus and off, to think of all those voters who are going to have that much more difficulty voting...it’s hard to ignore that. n

FAT BIKE RACE

Marilyn Townsend (left) and Jill Karofsky will face off in April 4 election.

Townsend v. Karofsky Two well-known lawyers battle for seat on Circuit Court

BY ALLISON GEYER

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JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

Two longtime Madison-area attorneys, both with more than two decades of legal experience and progressive reputations, are seeking election to the Dane County Circuit Court.

Marilyn Townsend, a labor and employment attorney and municipal court judge in the village of Shorewood Hills, will face Jill Karofsky, executive director of the Office of Crime Victim Services for the state Department of Justice and a former Dane County prosecutor, in the spring election on April 4. The candidates are vying for the seat formerly occupied by Judge David Flanagan, who retired last year. Gov. Scott Walker appointed former Assistant Attorney General Clayton Kawski to the seat in July as Flanagan’s replacement. A spokesperson for Kawski confirmed to Isthmus that he is not seeking election.

Townsend and Karofsky both describe themselves as advocates for victims’ rights and support alternatives to incarceration and jail diversion programs like youth restorative justice, drug court and veterans court. Both were born and raised in Wisconsin, both teach at UW-Madison Law School and both also enjoy support from prominent local progressives.

Though similar in judicial philosophy and liberal appeal, the candidates’ main difference is in their experience. Townsend says her background sets her apart, not only from her opponent, but also from the majority of Dane County judges.

“We have 17 judges in Dane County, and many of them are former prosecutors and former Justice Department attorneys,” Townsend says. “No one has my background of representing individuals who have challenged governments, large companies, large institutions. I would bring that perspective to the bench.”

But Karofsky says there’s a reason many Circuit Court judges have similar

backgrounds — being a prosecutor and a DOJ employee is excellent preparation to serve on the bench. “The courts need people who have that knowledge,” she says. “[Townsend’s] argument is similar to [the arguments of ] Donald Trump — being different for the sake of being different.”

Karofsky touts her work expanding access to justice for marginalized individuals — people of color, victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. She was Wisconsin’s first Violence Against Women Resource Prosecutor and serves on a number of boards, including the Governor’s Council on Domestic Abuse, the Attorney General’s Sexual Assault Response Team, and Wisconsin’s Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Board. She also emphasizes her experience handling more than 10,000 criminal cases, saying “these are the exact same cases” she would hear as a judge.

“The criminal justice system is extremely complicated,” she says. “We need someone who understands how the system works.”

Townsend says her three terms as a municipal court judge have prepared her well to serve on the Circuit Court. Though municipal court judges typically deal with civil cases, traffic violations and misdemeanors, Townsend says as a Circuit Court judge she would work with many of the same statutes, as well as constitutional issues.

“I’m very sensitive to the rights of individuals,” she says. “It’s important that a judge serve as an arbiter of fairness and a check on the power of the prosecution.”

Campaign finance reports filed with the state Government Accountability Board show that Karofsky’s campaign has raised nearly $46,000, including a $38,000 contribution from Karofsky herself, and has paid about $10,700 to campaign manager Melissa Mulliken, a longtime political consultant.

Townsend has put $9,000 into her campaign and has received one donation of $100. She spent $6,000 on miscellaneous expenses. n

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7

■ MADISON MATRIX

■ WEEK IN REVIEW MONDAY, DEC. 26

BIG CITY

A team including UW-Madison urologist Brian Le is developing a new kind of penile implant to help men with erectile problems regain sexual function.

The first bionic penis could come to market in five to 10 years.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says he’s open to a bill to allow concealed weapons in public college and university classrooms, provided the measure gets public support. A group of UWMadison students are planning to bring dildos to campus for a “cocks not glocks” protest.

WINNING

Madison College’s soon-to-be-former downtown campus could one day be the home for a group of 10 nonprofits, including the Children’s Theater of Madison, Sierra Club and Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters.

■ Urban Milwaukee

LOSING

Four months after the Common Council rejected the idea, Mayor Paul Soglin reintroduces a proposal meant to stop homeless people from sleeping on downtown sidewalks during the day.

SMALL TOWN

reports that the state Department of Natural Resources has quietly scrubbed language from its website stating the scientific consensus that human activities are the primary cause of climate change. Now, the website says the cause is up for debate (it isn’t).

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 28 ■ A state Department

of Transportation study shows that implementing tolls on Wisconsin’s interstate highways could generate $372 million a year after covering operating costs. Tolls could be the answer to Wisconsin’s transportation funding woes, but it would require a change to state and federal law.

THURSDAY, DEC. 29

TUESDAY, JAN. 3

■ A private plane carrying

■ Wisconsin Supreme Court

six people crashes into Lake Erie near Cleveland.

The passengers, including 19-year-old UW-Madison student Megan Casey, are presumed dead.

FRIDAY, DEC. 30 ■ The state Group Insurance

Board votes 7-2 to reconsider a decision to allow coverage of gender identity services — including hormone treatments, gender reassignment surgery and counseling — for transgender state employees. The coverage could disappear if certain legal developments occur.

Chief Justice Patience Roggensack swears in the largest GOP majority in the State Assembly since Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower was president. Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) pledges to run a tight ship.

■ Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein holds a rally in Madison to announce the launch of a new voter advocacy effort in the state, but only a handful of people show up to the news conference — many of them reporters.

Help Bodhi Beat Cancer Three-year-old Bodhi will spend part of the holiday season getting chemotherapy to treat his leukemia.

You can help Madison-area kids like Bodhi by supporting UW’s campaign to end childhood cancer.

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

Here at UW-Madison, our physicians are performing cutting-edge research that is saving the lives of children who otherwise may not have survived.

8

Visit uwhealth.org/supportlocalkids and learn how your holiday gift will support groundbreaking childhood cancer research and family-centered patient care.

Fighting cancer so kids won’t have to CH-46892-16

■ TECH

Virtual canaries

BY PETER JURICH

Imagine an app on your phone that can sense whether there is carbon monoxide in a room.

If the display doesn’t change, you’re safe. But if the screen changes, “maybe it’s time to get out of the room,” says Manos Mavrikakis.

Mavrikakis is a chemical engineering professor at the UW-Madison who has co-developed a new way of detecting potentially dangerous chemicals using liquid crystals, the same material used in a smartphone touchscreen.

A chemical sensor is “a device that will create some sort of measurable, microscopic, perceivable output in response to the presence of a targeted chemical,” says Nicholas Abbott, the second half of the team. “It could be to provide an alarm to somebody if they’re wearing it.”

The sensors they’re creating are cheaper than what is typical today, largely due to the materials they’re using.

“We’ve done that by creating surfaces that drive the liquid crystal to change orientation when particular chemical species bind to the surface,” says Abbott, an Australian native who has been with the university

since 1998. “What makes our system cheap is it’s a material that undergoes a change in optical appearance upon binding of chemicals to a surface, so the cost of the components is very low.”

Mavrikakis, who has been employed at the UW since 1999, has developed a computer program that determines the best components used to detect a specific chemical.

“We quickly screen on the computer which would be the ideal surface — the ideal liquid crystal — for a given chemical you’d like to detect as opposed to running all sorts of experiments pretty much in the dark,” he says. “So in addition to developing technologies that are cheaper than the alternatives, we are making the process of discovering those new technologies cheaper than it used to be.”

Abbott says that with Mavrikakis’ program, they can now “expand the range of things that we can detect using liquid crystals.”

People who work in hospital or factory settings are often exposed to chemicals for which the long-term effects are not known.

The team says using their device could pro-

RENEE MEILLER

UW scientists are working on turning smartphones into toxin sensors

Manos Mavrikakis (le ) and Nicholas Abbo have found that liquid crystals used in smart screens can react to chemicals in the atmosphere.

vide some research benefits in this regard.

It could also, for example, be used to measure the freshness of meat.

“To be able to assess those risks, you have to have measurement tools, and those measurement tools don’t exist at the moment,” Abbott says.

They hope to create small, lightweight, badge-type devices that people can wear in a work setting, or even sensors light enough for unmanned aerial vehicles.

“Coming up with lightweight sensors that don’t intrude on somebody’s work —

that’s the sort of thing we want to realize,” Abbott says.

“There are so many chemicals that you want to analyze in everyday life or in professional activities — in chemical plants or hospitals or you name it — and you need to detect small quantities of these chemicals,” says Mavrikakis.

Mavrikakis says this is an example of research done at the university that has practical value and can improve the quality of life. “It’s not pie in the sky, but something very relevant.” ■

Community involvement is a

core value for Festival Foods. We want to do our part to enhance the communities we serve, including:

FestFoods.com/community

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

• Festival Foods Fireworks • Festival Foods Turkey Trot • Local Parades • Brat Barn • Charity Fundraising

9

n OPINION

How Paul Ryan sold out Buy American plan The speaker balks at Baldwin’s proposal for federal water projects

BY BRUCE MURPHY Bruce Murphy is the editor of UrbanMilwaukee.com.

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

Going back to her days as a Wisconsin Assembly member from the Madison area, Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin has been known for her willingness to look for bipartisan solutions. As a congresswoman, Baldwin and Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, a Republican, jointly won an award from a technology association for their efforts to support a strong federal patent association.

In this same spirit, Baldwin introduced the “Made in America Water Infrastructure Act,” which requires that 100 percent American-made iron and steel is used in water infrastructure projects funded by the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, created to help ensure safe drinking water in America.

It’s a stance that’s hugely popular with American voters. One poll found 74 percent say federal projects should be built with American-made products. And it was hugely popular with senators: The proposal was added to the Water Resources Development Act that passed in September on a 95-3 vote.

The House, however, didn’t act on the bill before the election and then, when it was taken up in November, House Speaker Paul Ryan got cold feet. That seemed strange given that incoming Republican president Donald Trump was at the time doing a victory tour to cities like Milwaukee and Cincinnati, where he was espousing the philosophy behind Baldwin’s bill.

“My administration will follow two simple rules,” he declared. “Buy American and hire Americans, right? We’re going to do it.”

But as the Wall Street Journal reported, “lobbyists for several large foreign steelmakers [were] urging Mr. Ryan to keep

owned by Brazilian and Japanese companies.”

What happened next was reported by The Hill: “Sources familiar with the negotiations say Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) is actively pushing to strip the provision from the bill.”

The philosophy behind this was explained by Rep. Mark Sanford (R-South Carolina), a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that crafted the House’s version of the water resources bill: “Quotas in any form and in any sort DAVID MICHAEL MILLER ultimately hurt the consumer.

They’re a form of protectionism,” it out. Some of the firms are represented by he told the Wall Street Journal.

Squire Patton Boggs.”

But protectionism is exactly what candi When it comes to the Washington swamp date Trump promised. And Ryan represents that candidate Trump promised to drain, almost Wisconsin, which is the second-highest state no one employs more of its shadowy denizens in the percent of manufacturing workers, the than Squire Patton Boggs. Ranked as one of the very employees most likely to be helped by the 30 largest law firms in the world and the third- Buy American approach Trump has promised. largest lobbying firm in America, it lobbied for Not long after the lobbyists went to work, more than 100 clients in 2016, earning nearly $14 “the Buy America language disappeared,” as the million, according to OpenSecrets.org.

Cleveland Plain Dealer reported, and Ryan and Its lobbying arm is managed by former U.S. Republicans were hit with a storm of protests.

Sens. John Breaux and Trent Lott, and the law “Washington leadership is choosing China firm also employs former House Speaker John and Russia over Ohio, Pennsylvania and WisBoehner (though he’s not a registered lobby- consin,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). ist) and several former top Republican aides, “This was the first major test of whether Washas the Wall Street Journal reported. “Natasha ington establishment Republicans would Hammond, a lobbyist at the firm who worked in the former speaker’s office last year, has been among those...in touch with Mr. Ryan’s office THIS MODERN WORLD about the provision,” the publication reported.

“Ms. Hammond’s firm represents NLMK Inc., which is one of Russia’s largest steel companies, and California Steel Industries Inc., which is

live up to President-elect Trump’s promises to put American products and American workers first — they failed.”

Baldwin issued a press release declaring that “Ryan and House Republicans are embracing the status quo in Washington.”

Ryan and congressional leaders responded by restoring the bill’s older language, with a one-year Buy America provision, and axing the Baldwin-authored proposal making the provision a permanent part of the bill.

The House version then went back to the Senate, and Baldwin and Brown called on their colleagues to reinstate the language of the bill they had passed overwhelmingly.

But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refused.

In reaction, Baldwin issued a press release calling on Trump to “take a stand in support of American workers” and back the permanent “Buy American” provision. But nary a word of response was heard from the new president.

It’s possible a provision with a longer life might be passed at some point in the future.

But if it could be killed by lobbyists at the height of the hubbub over Trump’s victory and amid his tour touting the critical need for a Buy America policy, what chance has it after all the fervor fades? The provision won’t pass unless Trump teams up with Democrats and rogue Republicans and attempts an end run around GOP leaders like Ryan. n

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The Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the Waisman The Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the Waisman Center is looking for participants for a research study on the Center participants forona the research on the impactisoflooking health for wellness classes brain study and body. impact of health wellness classes on the brain and body.

go.wisc.edu/wellbeing (608) 263-0803

You guys do know you can be on the right side of history without bashing local law enforcement as frequently and viciously and gratuitously as possible, right (“Cheap Shots,” 12/22/2016)? The woman who was “brutalized” at East Towne was menacing people with a knife (and it’s unclear to me what her weight had to do with anything). The mentally ill man who was killed may have been “in the throes of crisis,” but he did have a pitchfork (those are heavy — why not mention that? How much did he weigh?), and cops were responding to calls from neighbors who were scared.

I get it — we’ve got serious, serious problems in this country. That the police are sometimes a source of some those problems is shameful and awful and needs to change. But it would be nice (fair, even) if you wouldn’t always contort yourself quite so vigorously to portray the Madison Police Department in the worst possible light. I submit that it wouldn’t do your liberal street cred any harm.

Elana Matthews (via email)

Share comments with Isthmus via email, edit@isthmus.com, and via Forum.isthmus.com, Facebook and Twitter, or write letters to Isthmus, 100 State St., Suite 301, Madison WI 53703.

All comments are subject to editing. The views expressed here are solely those of the contributors.

These opinions do not necessarily represent those of Isthmus Publishing Company.

OFF THE SQUARE

STUDY

regulators need to treat all customers fairly instead of looking for ways to justify raising rates for residential customers and lowering them for commercial and industrial customers.

Nancy Korda (via email)

go.wisc.edu/wellbeing (608) 263-0803

The statement by Dana Brueck quoted in “Report Card Gives Utility D+” (12/22/2016) —that Madison Gas and Electric’s goals are consistent with public input — is true in the sense that they are moving in the right direction. But MGE’s goals for using renewable resources and lowering greenhouse gases fall far short of what its customers have asked for and short of what is needed to reverse climate change.

Yes, MGE had a very extensive outreach process, but what it learned from customers is not reflected in its actions.

And now, under the continuing outreach (many different kinds of partnerships), MGE is picking and choosing who they listen to and is keeping the results confidential. I hope the new CEO will turn some of this corporate behavior in a new direction.

And, yes, the J.D. Power scores do vary from year to year, but MGE’s score went down in 2015 and stayed down in 2016. We will be keeping an eye on the 2017 survey when it comes out in May. Since there was a new rate case in 2016 that did not correct the problems, we doubt that their score will improve.

As stated, the current Walker-appointed PSC commissioners’ decisions have primarily promoted the interests of utilities and shareholders but have also discouraged customers and the utilities from investing in renewable resources. Also, MGE and their

go.wisc.edu/wellbeing (608) 263-0803

Credibility gap

WELL-BEING Well-Being Study

PLEASE COME WITH AN OPEN MIND AND OPEN HEART

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■ COVER STORY

Ford

tough

THE NO-FRILLS EAST-SIDE GYM IS A CRUCIBLE FOR CHANGE THIS STORY COULD TAKE PLACE ANYWHERE.

BY MARCELLE RICHARDS ■ PHOTOGRAPHY BY NICK BERARD MARCELLE RICHARDS In October 2015, I broke my back. It was like a Trojan horse — the breast cancer from my first diagnosis had migrated undetected. A tumor inside my T8 vertebrae shattered it to pieces. I was in the worst pain of my life. I was rushed into surgery, and they packed a cage full of bone graft where my vertebrae used to be and took out a rib to get there.

My spine surgeon told me I was very lucky, and between a sliver of space between the pinch of his thumb and his index finger he emphasized: “You were this ➡

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

Anywhere can be a crucible for change. This version happens to take place at Ford’s Gym, 2114 Winnebago St., the former warehouse that became a popular no-frills, blue-collar gym.

“We attract a lot of different types of people — a very eclectic group,” says Ford Sheridan, 53, the gym’s namesake and owner.

I was drawn there because of the exposed brick walls, the hanging chains, the giant tires, and the atlas stones in the window. It was like I was window shopping for my life. Though I knew some of these tools were beyond my beginner’s abilities, they shone in my mind. My vision for freedom was a temple of iron and sweat. I wanted — needed — to get primal: to feel alive again in my body. I came here to feed my inner beast.

Everyone has a why — why are you here? In every physical journey, there is a deeper one. I asked a handful of people to share their stories because regardless of where we find our source of strength and community, we must find ways to meet ourselves first. We meet ourselves at Ford’s.

13

n COVER STORY

— continued from previous page

close to being paralyzed. I’ve seen people become paralyzed for life after 24 to 48 hours of this.”

One of the gifts of a brush with mortality is that it distills life, and one question guides me: “What makes me feel alive?”

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

CAROLYNNE SHURNA

14

, 62, repaired sewers for the city of Madison for 35 years.

She started lifting 40 years ago because she wasn’t strong enough for her job. She’s still working out into her retirement. “It gets me up in the morning,” Shurna says. “I’m kind of surprised at how I am keeping up my strength. It certainly improves my mood to do something physical.”

“It’s almost like another family,” Shurna says of Ford’s. “They tell you you’ll live longer if you go to church. This is sort of my church.”

Shurna recommends lifting for women because it improves strength in bones and muscle. Her father died at 93 of congestive heart failure, and she had her own cancer scare; both events spurred her to action: “I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for people as they age to keep going and have the social aspect. Ford’s is a great place to work out. It’s not just the lifting; it’s the camaraderie.” ➡

I was having a hard time being in my body; I had to rebuild and feel strong again as my body continues to change.

Last spring, I received clearance to start strength training, and I looked up David McKercher, whose company, Train 608, runs out of Ford’s. It was one of the best things I could have done for myself. He never treated me with kid gloves. As a result, I met a part of myself I hadn’t met before, something big, primal, fierce, hungry.

My initial intention in strength training was to keep my bones strong. He suggested we pick a defined goal. I knew I wanted to be outside — give me trees and rocks. He suggested a GoRuck Light event, which entails carrying a weighted rucksack and doing physical challenges in the elements over the course of four to six hours.

Since spring, I have been preparing with a variety of activities from traditional barbell lifts to “grindy” workouts involving pushing my friend “The Prowler,” a metal sled with a warning label: May cause respiratory distress. I completed the Pearl Harbor GoRuck memorial event in my birthplace of Honolulu on Dec. 10, just four days before my 34th birthday. I realize that beyond preparing for any one event, I have been training to be a warrior.

In our last session before I left for Hawaii, I thanked McKercher and said, “I feel like a new person.”

In those moments in which I feel like giving up, there is something that turns on inside and rises: How do you keep going when the going gets tough? How do you carry the weight of your world? How do you hold yourself accountable when no one is looking? When I am trudging across turf with a sandbag on my shoulder, I am grateful for the struggle. I almost lost my ability to do all of these things, and my journey at Ford’s touches all other parts of my life, too. I am getting strong to be strong in the world.

RICHARDS, working out with coach David McKercher: “ How do you keep going when the going gets tough? How do you hold yourself accountable when no one is looking?”

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

15

■ COVER STORY

PLAVCAN, sparring with her husband, Mark: “Most people can find plenty of reasons to quit things in their life. I wasn’t willing to accept that.”

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

SONYA PLAVCAN

16

, 49, owns Twisted Fitness with her coach and husband, Mark Plavcan. They lease space in Ford’s, where Sonya teaches and trains in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. She is a double gold medal world champion in that sport, the first person in Wisconsin to have that honor. She’s one of only two women in the U.S. to be awarded a black belt in the sport by her teacher.

In jiu-jitsu, with only four belts, the journey is supposed to be long: One learns patience with persistence. She has been tested by an ACL injury and a

diagnosis of congenital hip dysplasia, which caused bone-on-bone pain. Doctors said she needed a hip replacement and wouldn’t be able to return to the sport. “I could have taken that as a reason to quit, just like most people can find plenty of reasons to quit things in their life,” she says. “I wasn’t willing to accept that.” After being treated overseas with alternative therapies, she continues to compete.

Brazilian jiu-jitsu is a ground art that uses some judo; the name translates to “the gentle art.” Many call it “chess on a mat” because it’s so cerebral,

which is perhaps fitting for Plavcan, who used to be a chemical engineer. It’s heavy on strategy and playing off the other person’s mistakes in relation to your own “game.” As a small person, Plavcan has a different game than a bigger person. She’s learned to leverage her strengths in relation to her opponent.

Plavcan, who grew up a perfectionist, says the gentle art has been healing because “it rewards the ability to adapt, to not be rigid and to not take your mistakes as a mistake but as being an opportunity to change something.”

TORY MILLER

has been coming to Ford’s since March 2015. “My whole life I’ve been kind of overweight,” says Miller, 41, Madison’s best-known chef and owner of four area restaurants. “Growing up, I had a lot of issues that affect your body image from very early on.” He was a Korean American adoptee, and “bigger.” People who asked, “Are you a sumo?” didn’t understand all the ways that cut. “I would laugh it off, and that helped me develop my sense of humor,” he says. “At the same time, as a kid you just don’t know how to deal with that.”

As a lifelong lover of “food and eating and flavor,” Miller struggled with his body image and weight. He noticed his chef coat was getting too tight — and, feeling “heavy” at 212 pounds and 5’6”, he sought out McKercher as a coach (McKercher had worked at Sujeo, one of Miller’s restaurants).

Though he had felt that work and family would leave him him “zero time” for workouts, now the commitment to himself is paying off . He’s met his goal of slimming down to 180 pounds, and is becoming more athletic, deadlifting 300 pounds and challenging himself with cardio. “A trainer does hold you accountable, and you realize you’re making an investment in yourself,” says Miller.

He credits his new self-image to McKercher, the support of his wife, Kristine, and seeing his own reflection in his kids. When his son Miles was born, he says, “He had the big cheeks, and I was like, ‘I guess this is just how we look!’”

DAVID MCKERCHER, 33, is a strength and condi-

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

tioning coach who works with clients out of Ford’s; he’s among a few in-house trainers. McKercher’s company, Train 608, started in 2010 and moved to Ford’s in 2014.

To make his coaching dream happen, McKercher quit his full-time cooking job, “took out a scary loan” and traveled the country taking seminars, including Power Athlete HQ’s graduate-level academy.

He’d spent his younger years outside, playing hockey and riding dirt bikes. Later he discovered weight lifting, but it was CrossFit that showed him expansive possibilities beyond a trend of fitness club cultures that focus on appearances over substance.

“I was always more concerned with jumping and doing pull-ups and sprinting, and not with how my legs or biceps looked,” he says.

Hang out in Ford’s long enough, and you’re likely to overhear someone calling McKercher “muscle Jesus.” With his long hair and aptitude for lifting heavy, the name may fit, but he most prides himself on the mental “sharpness” that this work develops and requires.

“Breaking down physical barriers accelerates the process of breaking down some mental barriers,” he says. “Mental toughness is [a term] people throw around a lot, and, when you do go to a gym on a regular basis, the battle you take part in at the gym is huge for mental fortitude.” ➡

17

n COVER STORY

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

COLIN GILLIS

18

, 35, is a nursing student who used to struggle with his weight. He’d been weightlifting off and on since 2006, but after moving to Madison in 2010, he took a hiatus until joining Ford’s in 2012.

He started working out with Ford coach Sam Masino and taking McKercher’s metabolic conditioning class, a high-intensity class that may include kettlebells, sandbags, dumbbells, running, jumping, pushing, pulling and crawling. He became that guy going for a double-digit run even after class.

“When you get in better shape, so many activities you couldn’t do suddenly become possible. A year ago, coming into the gym, I felt like I was just trying to maintain a basic level of health and fitness. Now when I leave the gym, I’m not thinking, ‘Thank God that’s over,’ I’m thinking, ‘What other things can I do with my body?’” he says.

In November, he ran a half-marathon.

He’s in the best shape he’s been in since high school, maybe ever. The routine is important in

maintaining his mental and emotional health, and his blossoming in the gym has come after, earlier this year, getting his anxiety “under control” for the first time in his life. The work allows him to be “engaged with the world in a totally new way.”

Gratitude guides him, too, as he realizes the resources and time to make this journey possible are a privilege. “Ford’s has become a real sanctuary.

Kind of a safe harbor, a place where I feel at peace,” he says. “I think I carry that peacefulness out with me when I leave.” n

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FOOD & DRINK ■ SPORTS ■ ARTS ■ MUSIC ■ SCREENS

Art for the people A community-supported program connects artists with collectors

BY HOLLY HENSCHEN

launched by the Arts + Literature Laboratory, a nonprofit multimedia community art space on Winnebago Street. The organizers are following a model that’s been implemented in 60 cities across the United States and Canada, hoping to boost creatives’ incomes while building connections between local artists and collectors.

“Madison is primed for a program like this because community-supported agriculture is already a big part of our culture and identity,” says Max Puchalsky, an audio-visual artist who works with Simone Doing in the duo Simone and Max. Puchalsky and Doing sit on the Arts + Literature Laboratory’s curatorial board, which will host an CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

➡

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

Good things come in CSA boxes: fruits, veggies, meat and — soon — works of local art.

A new program called CSArt Madison is foraging for local artists to supply 60 works each for community-supported art shares.

CSArt will operate somewhat like communitysupported agriculture (CSA) programs. It is being

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■ FOOD & DRINK

Enlightened eating Healthy comfort food shines at Everly

BY ALLISON GEYER

It’s either madness or genius to open a California-inspired restaurant right before entering into a Wisconsin winter. Light, fresh, vegetable-centric cuisine can, of course, be fabulous — and eating it doesn’t make you hate yourself! — but there’s a reason Midwesterners love comfort food that warms the innards.

Everly, the newest venture from Food Fight Restaurant Group, has done Madison a favor by proving that these two concepts are not mutually exclusive. The chic, modern restaurant opened late this fall in the space that formerly housed Bluephies. I was never a big fan of Bluephies, which always struck me as an Applebee’s for people who wouldn’t be caught dead in an Applebee’s. By the mid-2010s, the place was overdue for a revamp.

Everly’s menu is a vegetarian’s dream come true — there’s an entire section devoted to vegetables, and they’re so good you can make a meal out of them. Cauliflower is both pickled and roasted (a shockingly nice preparation), flavored with garlic, lemon and a bit too much parsley.

Pan-roasted brussels sprouts come tossed with a luxurious gribiche, a type of French mayonnaise.

Carrots are charred (the best way to prepare a root vegetable) and topped with a tangy chimichurri. And what could be better than roasted squash, dressed with brown butter, hazelnuts, apples and watercress?

I also loved&the shaved vegetable dish Daily Lunch Drink Specials — a colorful and crunchy mosaic of raw carTUESDAYS $1.75 RAILS rots, beets and radishes with blackberries, FREE POOLblue Mon & Thur 9pm-close almonds, cheese and fennel. The lemon vinaigrette nice,tobut could have used a Servingwas Food 2 am! bit more zip. A more substantial appetizer comes from the “things on toast” section of 119 W.the Main St. Madison • 608-256-2263 menu. Other local food critics have raved www.about thenewparadiselounge .comare the mushroom toast, and they correct — it’s rich, savory and decadent, if a little messy to eat. The whitefish toast is a bit more elegant, topped neatly with pickled cauliflower, thinly sliced radish, more of that tasty gribiche and again a liberal sprinkling of parsley. And the kitchen can prepare the toasts with gluten-free bread.

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Meat eaters, don’t worry — Everly does good things with animal protein, too. Beef tartare here is simple and delicious, lightly flavored with shallots, capers and parsley and topped with a rich egg yolk. Spread it on toasted bread and top with aioli; you’ll be glad you did.

The “big plates” section of the menu has fish, chicken, steak and pork dishes. The pan-roasted salmon came out crisp on the outside and moist within. The beurre monté (emulsified butter) was subtle, and a garnish of chilis added color and spice, but the lovely little filet was absolutely drowning in parsley.

Not a big deal, but dang — the folks in the kitchen aren’t holding back.

My favorite meal at Everly was, hands down, the brunch. A smoked salmon and avocado benedict felt luxurious and light all at once — I didn’t even miss the hollandaise.

Chilaquiles were genius, constructed with refried black beans and green salsa at the bottom of the bowl and homemade tortilla chips on top (no soggy bites!). The So-Cal grain bowl turned out to be a visually appealing but not particularly hearty breakfast of quinoa, toasted oats, cashews and sprouted lentils artfully arranged around a sunnyside-up egg. It was tasty, but the housemade hot sauce (which our server referred

CHRIS HYNES

to as “volcano sauce”) was thin and wimpy.

Also, be sure to order the granola, but get it to share — it’s like a bowl of delicious brown sugar candy, drizzled with sweet-tart berry reduction and topped with orange-scented whipped cream. It’s also available on the dessert menu, but in a smaller portion.

My main gripe — and this is really more of an aspirationally minded critique — is that Everly tends to play it safe with ingredients and flavors. There’s something to be said about keeping things within the realm of the somewhat familiar (especially when you’re trying to convince people that they should pay $12 for a neatly arranged bowl of squirrel food), but the downside to that approach is that nothing on the menu rises to the level of being truly innovative. Also, don’t bury perfectly good food under a layer of parsley!

Everly could be considered the latest local restaurant experimenting with trends sprouting up on the coasts (and on Instagram). It’s similar to Field Table (exotic grains!) and Graft (magnificent vegetables!), and even shares some characteristics with healthy fast-casual joints like Freshii and Native Foods. But it’s more than that; this lovely eatery has already gained a following — and it has plenty of room to grow. ■

EVERLY ■ 2701 Monroe St. ■ 608-416-5242 ■ Everlymadison.com 9 am-9 pm Sun., 11 am-9 pm Mon.-Wed., 11 am-10 pm Thurs.-Fri., 9 am-10 pm Sat. ■ $6-$19

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

Eats events

ll tell all tell all

ll-all

Man does not live by shaved vegetables alone.

Sometimes, there are also berries.

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Dinner and Drinks Monday, Jan. 9

Heritage Tavern, Wisconsin Brewing Company and J. Henry & Sons Bourbon of Dane team up for this fourcourse meal featuring lemongrass-dusted smoked sea trout, barrel-plank roasted pork belly and more. Tickets ($65) need to be reserved by calling 608-283-9500. At 131 E. Mifflin St., 5:30-8 pm.

Food waste documentary

Korean/Mexican pop-up

Tuesday, Jan. 10

Thursday, Jan. 12

A screening of the awardwinning documentary Just Eat It, in which filmmakers Jen Rustemeyer and Grant Baldwin investigate food use, politics and waste.

Suggested donation ($10) goes to the Madison Traffic Garden group. At High Noon Saloon, 5-8 pm.

Tortillas meet kimchi at this pop-up dinner hosted by Isthmus Cooks Cooperative. Mixologist Dave Biefer will also be crafting cocktails to “get you warm and toasty.” At Mezze, 414 W. Gilman St., 5 pm-midnight.

Seasonal glow Grog from the Weary Traveler

Smoke ’em if ya got ’em Rauchbock from the Great Dane “A bock beer is all about the malt,” says Great Dane brewer Michael Fay. This rauchbock combines the characteristic caramel sweetness of a bock with the smokiness of German beechwood-roasted malt. But the smoke is an accent to this well-made bock, a welcome addition to the beer’s sweetness.

There’s a depth to the caramel and bready tones that blends incredibly well with the level of smoke. This is especially evident in the finish (malty, with a fruity hint of dark cherry), making it a seductive and luscious beer with which to kick off 2017.

It pairs well with stews from goulash to hearty chili, and with soft and sweet

sugar and spices. The beverage is mulled for hours, reheated before serving and topped with a slice of orange.

The Swedish name, glögg, translates roughly to “glow,” which is the feeling the drink can induce after a cup or two. It even comes with a warning on the cocktail menu: “Please enjoy the grog in moderation.”

This hot cocktail is a perfect midday refresher, especially at the Weary Traveler, where the light from the stained glass window above the bar bathes the restaurant in a bright orange glow of its own.

— LEXY BRODT

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ROBIN SHEPARD

LAURA ZASTROW

Rising from the basement prep kitchen of the Weary Traveler, 1201 Williamson St., is an aroma akin to potpourri and nutmeg. That’s the scent of the bar’s seasonal grog, a drink closely resembling the Swedish glögg, German glühwein and English mulled wine. Its origins stretch back to Greek and Roman antiquity, when wine was first mulled with spices.

The Weary Traveler’s owner closely guards the secret recipe even from the bartenders (who prep already mixed and simmered ingredients). The grog includes the same basic elements of its Scandinavian and European brethren: rum, wine, tea,

cheeses like fontina. For a special treat, try it with Hook’s white cheddar made with black truffles.

Rauchbock is an early preview of many more bocks soon to come from the Great Dane. The pub will host its annual Bockfest on Feb. 11 at the Hilldale location. As in years past, the Great Dane will release more than a dozen different takes on the style for that event.

Great Dane rauchbock appears seasonally at this time of year. It sells for $6/pint, $8.50/crowler and $14/growler (refill). It’s currently available only at the Great Danedowntown.

— ROBIN SHEPARD

A new way to meat BiteMadison buying club hooks up customers with locally raised beef, pork and poultry Locally raised meat can be pricey. But Oppor says the buying club model allows BiteMadison to sell at prices “well below” what you’d pay at the grocery store.

“You do have to plan ahead. Arrange pickups or drop-offs, stuff like that,” says Oppor.

“But you know exactly where your meat is coming from.”

BiteMadison works exclusively with Twisted Oak Farm in Oxford. Animals raised on the farm are free to roam. Cows and pigs forage on pasture in addition to being fed some supplemental cut and dried grass (sometimes potatoes when it gets really cold). Chickens dine on organic corn feed. No hormones, antibiotics or GMO products are used.

“We slaughter everything on the farm. It’s always a little weird when you talk about it, but it really does afford us the opportunity to take orders and process them as needed,” says Oppor. “It also creates a better environment for the animals because we aren’t shipping them off somewhere, causing stress.”

Oppor grew up in Columbus. Her first job was milking cows. She studied marketing and communication at Edgewood College with hopes of working in the culinary industry. After stints as the marketing director at Yahara Bay Distillers and the Children’s Theater of Madison, she enrolled in the culinary program at Madison College. It was there she found an interest in butchering and charcuterie.

Before launching BiteMadison, she was a meat manager and buyer at the Willy Street Co-op.

“There are over 130 people who are now part of the club,” says Oppor. “We are hoping to sell wholesale to restaurants, too.”

The buying club is just phase one for BiteMadison. Oppor is partnering with Chad Nelson from Twisted Oak Farm to open a brick-and-mortar butcher shop in the next few months. They are currently looking at spaces in DeForest and Sun Prairie.

— DYLAN BROGAN

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

Where’s the beef? Turns out, on Facebook.

BiteMadison is using social media to bring local cuts of meat straight from the farm to your dinner table. Butcher Heather Oppor launched the new buying club in November.

“The goal is to provide more people with access to local, humanely raised meat at an affordable price,” says Oppor. “We offer pretty much anything in the beef, pork and poultry areas.”

Here’s how it works: BiteMadison takes orders via Facebook and email for New York strip steaks, ground beef, maple-smoked thickcut bacon, pork shoulders, boneless chicken breasts and other cuts at the beginning of each week. On Fridays, the meat is ready for pickup or delivery. The club’s Facebook page updates customers on popular items as well as seasonal selections. To become a member of BiteMadison, you have to request permission to join the Facebook group.

“Once you are a member, you can place orders,” says Oppor.

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In early December, right around the time Bud Selig was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, the sport abolished one of the silliest rules ever implemented by the former Major League Baseball commissioner.

MLB’s new collective bargaining agreement stipulates that home-field advantage in the World Series no longer will be determined by which team wins the All-Star Game.

That 14-year-old decree, which potentially allowed the outcome of an exhibition game to affect Game 7 of the World Series, dates back to 2002’s so-called Midsummer Classic at Miller Park. That game ended in a controversial 7-7 tie after 11 innings, when both teams ran out of available pitchers.

Selig hoped that by making the outcome matter, players would take the All-Star Game more seriously.

Now that one wrong in the world of sports is righted, how about fixing some more? Here are three places to start: Drop NFL games on Thursday nights. The richest professional sports league in the world decided in 2006 to generate more television revenue by cutting significantly short two teams’ prep time every week.

Not only is the NFL endangering its players (who hate Thursday games, by the way), but the schedule also has resulted in completely unappealing matchups. Cleveland at Baltimore, anyone? Speaking of unappeal-

ing, the less said about Nike’s single-color, head-to-toe “Color Rush” uniforms worn exclusively on Thursdays, the better.

Find a way to better recognize worthy teams that fall outside the four-team College Football Playoff format. Sending No. 8 Wisconsin to the Goodyear Cotton Bowl to face a team from the Mid-American Conference isn’t good enough. How about expanding the playoff format to five or even seven teams, with the No. 1 seed receiving a bye? That wouldn’t have helped the Badgers this season, but it would have given No. 5 Penn State — whose comeback victory over Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game should have counted for more — a shot at the national title.

Get serious about sportsmanship at the youth and high school levels. The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association endured widespread ridicule from the likes of comedian Stephen Colbert and ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt last winter for distributing to member schools a reminder list of unacceptable student chants, including “air ball,” “sieve” and “fundamentals.” I’ve heard a lot worse come out of adult mouths at middle school basketball games and club swim meets. If we’re truly concerned about sportsmanship — and we should be — let’s take a broader approach and focus on real change. Let’s begin by kicking out a few flagrant fans. ■

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25

■ ART

Printmaking pilgrimages “Alternative Photographies” showcases unusual techniques

BY SEAN REICHARD

“Pehoski Purple with Baby Ginger” by Eric Baillies (above) and “Pyramiden” by Anders Zanichkowsky.

Anders Zanichkowsky and Eric Baillies are moving forward while looking backward — reviving historical processes to create prints.

And though the results are quite different, the two artists featured in the “Alternative Photographies” show at Overture Galleries were both inspired by pilgrimages of sorts.

Anders Zanichkowsky started producing cyanotypes (or blueprints) on a summer 2016 residency with the Arctic Circle Program, which sponsors artist trips to the Arctic.

A longtime Madison resident who recently entered the MFA program at UWMadison, Zanichkowsky, 31, stresses that he is not a photographer, not even an amateur one. His background is in printmaking.

“They put us on a tall ship — a sailboat, a huge sailboat — and we sailed around the Arctic for three weeks,” says Zanichkowsky, who was drawn to the challenge of creating cyanotypes. To make prints, Zanichkowsky would scour the beaches in places like Svalbard, an island between Norway and the North Pole. He would place pieces of ice on chemically prepared paper.

The immediate footprint of the shape of the ice would stop the print from developing, creating a stark white shape in a sea of cyan, he says. Then the ice would start melting, leaving additional, unique marks on the print.

“As it melts, the sunlight is slowly turning permanent blue wherever the ice isn’t,” Zanichkowsky explains. “As that water is melting — before the sun can make it a really, really deep, dark blue — the ice melts water onto it and says ‘all right, we’re done now.’ Wherever that melting water goes also

CSArt

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

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informational session on “CSArt Madison” on Jan. 7, 1-3 p.m., at Goodman Library on South Park Street. Applications from artists who wish to participate are due Jan. 16.

Entries across the artistic spectrum are welcome. Depending on the applicants, the offerings may include small-scale sculptures, drawings or paintings; a run of prints; photographs; vinyl 7” records; or letterpress editions of a poem or short story. The 10 artists selected — to be announced Feb. 15 — will earn a $1,000 stipend, a piece of art from

each of the other nine artists and exposure to collectors and the community.

Like an agricultural CSA share, CSArt Madison aims to cut financial risk for artists.

It also creates an entry point for fine art collecting for new and lower-income art buyers. “[CSArt] is designed to be a cooperative alternative to the commercial gallery system,” says Doing, adding that Madison is a difficult place for artists to make a living.

For $300, patrons will be able to buy a one-time share that includes 10 works of art;

half-shares will also be available for $150.

Non-purchasing community members can still take part in May and June tours of the artists’ studios and an exhibition at the Arts + Literature Laboratory, beginning June 30 and ending with a pick-up event on July 22.

At the exhibition, participating artists will be able to display larger-scale works along with their community-supported pieces. “In the same way that you would want to meet your local farmer, you would meet your local artist,” says Doing. ■

fixes a permanent image — sort of recording that process.”

Eric Baillies’ mediums (tintypes made on aluminum and prints made from collodion glass negatives) are likewise more like “recordings” than typical photos. Most of the prints depict familiar Madison landmarks (Camp Randall, the Edgewater), but the effect is otherworldly. The scenes appear to be a century or more old. One highlight: “Pehoski Purple with Baby Ginger,” which depicts a bundle of garlic and ginger hanging in a void of gray.

Baillies, 37, says he came to photography later in life, although his father, a chemist, enjoyed it as a hobby. Baillies spent his childhood in DeForest “looking through rangefinders and viewfinders, printing in the darkroom.” He majored in business at UWLa Crosse, but returned to photography after about five years of odd jobs, working with several commercial photographers to learn the ropes before launching as a freelancer.

Baillies studied his techniques at a number of workshops led by “process historian” Mark Osterman of the George Eastman Museum in Rochester, New York. Baillies describes the museum’s namesake, George Eastman (founder of Kodak) as the “Willy Wonka Batman” of photography.

To make his prints, Baillies has to first make a glass negative, using a difficult process he learned from Osterman. The end products are stunning. Says Baillies: “The silver [of the prints] has a kind of tooth to it that you can actually lay down with your finger, so it reflects light differently. So when you try to take a picture of it...they just never look the same.” ■ “Alternative Photographies” runs through March 6, with an opening reception Jan. 13 from 6 to 8 p.m.

■ MUSIC

The music she le behind A family releases a songwriter’s posthumous album

BY HOLLY HENSCHEN

Two days before she died at age 28, Madison-born musician and rising star Alicia Lemke was sending notes to her producer with instructions on how to finish her first full-length release.

Lemke, known in the music world as Alice and the Glass Lake, was on her way to a successful career. In 2013, she opened for Fleetwood Mac and played the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee; in August, she dropped her first EP of electronic dream pop. The following December, she was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia.

After her death in August 2015, her family and friends rallied to finish Lemke’s last project, the full-length Chimaera.

“She never expected to die, so she had a steely focus, an intense optimism,” Gale Lemke says of her daughter.

Chimaera, named for the winged, firebreathing, snake-tailed lion of Greek mythology, is the sonic mirror of a spirited, relentless perspective. “Chimaera” is also the medical term for someone with two genetically distinct types of cells, which was Lemke’s situation after a bone marrow transplant. She wrote and recorded the album while hiding her illness from public view.

Chimaera is stacked with smart, multilayered pop in the vein of Florence + the Machine, but more down to earth. Lemke’s

rise again/From the beast we alternating whispery and strong love and the beast we live.” songbird vocals weave in and The late Alicia Lemke Lemke displays honest out of a thick net of guitar loops, displayed honest vulnerability in the album’s dynamic drums and synthesizvulnerability in hauntingly titled closer, “Disapers. With production true to her Chimaera, her final pear.” First, she trills optimistivision and the feel of her earlier release. cally about “coming off a year EP, the lows are low and the that would slay any woman,” highs are high. The rich sound then sings about “cancer of is adorned with artistic touches the bone...mar-row.” The song that showcase her talents. fades as her voice echoes its To record Chimaera, Lemke title simply, yet dramatically. and her significant other, Alice Lemke leaves behind and the Glass Lake guitarist a masterful and inspiring Adam Agati, built a makeshift artistic legacy. To film the studio in the basement of her video for the album’s first parents’ Shorewood Hills home. single, “Coals,” she delayed a More tracks were recorded second bone marrow transat Audio for the Arts on East plant. In November, the video Washington Avenue by Smart debuted posthumously on Studios veteran Mike Zirkel.

Billboard.com. In a lilac pixie Madison native and Brooklynhaircut, Lemke dons a gosbased drummer Dave Scalia, samer bodysuit that hides the who toured with Alice and the Hickman line where chemoGlass Lake, laid down drum therapy drugs were injected tracks. After Lemke’s death, into her chest. On a beach at producer Danny Garibay spent sunset, she hands off a flamfive months perfecting the reBRYONY SHEARER ing torch to another young cord. It debuted streaming on woman, who dances around a driftwood In the electro-dancy “Supernova,” Lemke hipster music staple BrooklynVegan.com. fire. The song’s chorus echoes, “Burn sings, “Every little thing we touch/Has got an Lemke’s rare knack for writing earnest pop deep to the core/Set fire to the coals/Let energy, a spark/We’re burning up the dark anthems that never seem hackneyed is adit flame up and storm/The way your soul with explosions.” In the post-punk rocker vanced by her forced state of introspection and gives its warmth.” ■ “Beast,” she demands, “Release me now/I’ll the recurring, apropos theme of energy.

Real-life drama UW prof’s Artemisia opera will premiere in New York City

BY JAY RATH

“Self-Portrait as a Lute Player,” Artemisia Gentileschi.

that “you use very thin layers, so you see the expression, say, on Mona Lisa’s face. The effect is that you don’t see the edges of things.”

Chiaroscuro and sfumato recur throughout Artemisia, “to pull you back into this earlier time, and also really taking those two artistic ideas by painters and using them in the music,” she says.

Unusual for an opera, Artemisia is something of a docudrama, based on letters and rape trial transcripts retrieved from Italy.

Schwendinger says one of the show’s climactic arias is about “the making of art, and how that transcends all.” Even after surviving rape and the humiliation of the trial, the overarching tragedy of Gentileschi’s life may have been the growing blindness that led to her death.

The world premiere of Artemisia will be performed at New York’s famed Trinity Church, as part of the annual Time’s Arrow Festival. Schwendinger anticipates that the performance may be made available by Trinity through online streaming or recording. ■

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

A rape trial from the 17th century is the basis of Artemisia, an opera by Madison composer Laura Elise Schwendinger, premiering in New York City Jan. 7.

Schwendinger, professor of composition at UW-Madison and artistic director of the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, used original documents from the Baroqueera trial of Artemisia Gentileschi to write the full-length opera with librettist Ginger Strand, a New York-based author of works including The Brothers Vonnegut (2015).

Gentileschi (1593-circa 1656) was a well-known painter whose canvases are still housed in collections around the world.

She brought suit against her tutor, Agostino Tassi, when she was 17 years old, claiming he had raped her. During the grueling seven-month trial, Gentileschi was subjected to gynecological examination and even torture with thumbscrews, in an attempt to verify the truth of her testimony.

Schwendinger says she and Strand were attracted to Gentileschi’s story because she made a name for herself at a time when women artists were often marginalized. “The fact that she was the first woman member of the Accademia di Firenze is beyond wonderful,” says Schwendinger. “She is an amazing artist who had an operatic, larger-than-life bio.

Artemisia was on both of our radars as being a great and important artist.”

Schwendinger, who also paints and has worked with clay, says she attempted to translate painting terms to musical expression. “I’m not a Broadway composer, and I’m not a minimalist,” she says. “There’s a sense of line and melody.”

“What you hear in my score is sort of hazy, very painterly chiaroscuro,” says Schwendinger, referring to contrast of light and shade. She also mentions sfumato (where outlines are blurred), an effect made famous by Leonardo da Vinci, nearly a contemporary of Gentileschi.

“Artemisia also used [sfumato],” Schwendinger says. In painting it would mean

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About damn time Hidden Figures spotlights the women behind the moon launch

BY MARYANN JOHANSON

Once upon a time, during the early years of America’s space program, computer meant “person who does manual calculations.”

This was considered rather menial labor, particularly when a woman did it — and lots of women did it. Though these women were as smart and educated as the men they worked alongside, and often did much the same work as the men, they were paid less, both in money and in respect. Anything done by black women was, obviously, barely worth mentioning.

You know Alan Shepard and John Glenn.

But you have probably never heard of Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughn and Mary Jackson, who were pioneers in, respectively, mathematics, computer programming and engineering at NASA, without whom those guys would never have flown.

Hidden Figures is a true story that fixes that wrong and puts to rest the notion that the only people who had “the right stuff” in the moonshot effort were white and male.

This is no dry history lesson, though, but an often funny, ultimately feel-good triumph of geeks who faced even more absurd obstacles than any white boy with a pocket protector.

It’s disgraceful that it has taken this long for this film to come along. Now that it’s here, Hidden Figures is cause for celebration.

Empire’s Taraji P. Henson is marvelous as Johnson, who does a lot of standing at

agitating for validation of her work. Melfi also makes sly visual allusions to iconic moments from The Right Stuff: His use of the “victory walk,” which Right Stuff director Philip Kaufman all but invented, has the always wonderful Octavia Spencer as Vaughn leading her “colored computers” to the plum new assignment at NASA that she has made happen. It’s a glorious moment in the film.

And then there’s Jackson, whom Janelle Monáe makes the spikiest of the three as she faces an actual legal battle to get into NASA’s engineering training program. Here, through the interconnected stories of all three women, we feel the weight of the ignominy of separate public facilities and Taraji P. Henson (center) plays a NASA mathematician the pressure to not complain tasked with critical calculations. about it all lest one be tagged as a troublemaker. (Johnson does finally blackboards chalking out calculations and maksnap in a scene that is devastating.) ing that genuinely thrilling, and not only because Some white folks do eventually get it, she is trying to invent the math needed to put a but they are not the focus of the story: ship into orbit and return it safely to the Earth’s They are merely listening to the voices and surface. Director Theodore Melfi wrings a lot experiences of black women being heard, of wry humor out of simple visual moments, as really heard, at long last. And therein lies when Johnson hesitates while typing up a report the beauty of Hidden Figures. n for reasons that have everything to do with her

Roasting bad cinema Movie Hell invites the audience to join the fun

BY JOSH HEATH

NOW PL AYING HIDDEN FIGURES

CC & DESCRIPTIVE NARRATION

Fri: (1:45, 4:20), 7:10, 9:45; Sat: (11:10 AM, 1:45, 4:20), 7:10, 9:45; Sun: (11:10 AM, 1:45, 4:20), 7:10; Mon to Thu: (1:45, 4:20), 7:10

LA LA LAND

CC & DESCRIPTIVE NARRATION

Fri: (1:35, 4:10), 6:55, 9:40; Sat: (11:00 AM, 1:35, 4:10), 6:55, 9:40; Sun: (11:00 AM, 1:35, 4:10), 6:55; Mon to Thu: (1:35, 4:10), 6:55

MANCHESTER BY THE SEA

CC & DESCRIPTIVE NARRATION

Fri & Sat: (1:25, 4:15), 7:00, 9:45; Sun to Thu: (1:25, 4:15), 7:00 CC & DESCRIPTIVE NARRATION Fri: (1:40, 4:25), 7:05, 9:25; Sat: (11:20 AM, 1:40, 4:25), 7:05, 9:25; Sun: (11:20 AM, 1:40, 4:25), 7:05; Mon to Thu: (1:40, 4:25), 7:05

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

JACKIE

28

ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY CC & DESCRIPTIVE NARRATION Fri & Sat: (1:20, 4:05), 6:50, 9:35; Sun to Thu: (1:20, 4:05), 6:50

FENCES

CC & DESCRIPTIVE NARRATION

Fri & Sat: (1:15, 4:00), 6:45, 9:30; Sun to Thu: (1:15, 4:00), 6:45

Amenity Fees Vary With Schedule - ( ) = Mats. www.sundancecinemas.com/choose LOCATED AT HILLDALE MALL 608.316.6900 www.sundancecinemas.com Gift Cards Available at Box Office

Showtimes subject to change. Visit website to confirm Closed captioning and descriptive narrative available for select films

Showtimes for January 6 - January 12

Some people view hell as fire and brimstone. For several Madison comedians, hell is watching movies. Bad movies. The worst movies imaginable.

On the last Friday of each month, Eric Olander, Anthony Siraguse and Cynthia Marie joke their way through cinematic disasters during Movie Hell, Madison’s only live film commentary show.

At the show, which takes place at the Fountain on State Street, Satan — who looks an awful lot like a sock puppet — appears from behind a podium, introducing the panel and boasting about the amount of pain he inflicts.

Other comedians have mocked films for the enjoyment of audiences, most notably in Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Rifftrax. But Movie Hell’s bright cast creates a special rapport with the audience. The minimalist set includes a fake bookshelf and a table covered with a black cloth and

microphone. “It makes you feel like you’re in Satan’s living room,” says producer/host Tucker Rowan.

“We make the audience feel like we’re all in this weird secret club together, like we’re all sharing a private joke,” says Siraguse.

Guest stars often accompany the regular cast members. At December’s end-of-the year show, local comedian/evil red-robed wizard Patrick Henry sat on the panel for Neil Breen’s cinematic bad trip, Fateful Findings, a Z-grade film featuring magic stones, ghosts and the “most secret government secrets.”

Movie Hell has also been blessed by the presence of Guy Fieri (aka Chicago-based comedian/writer Ian Erickson), who sat in during the Halloween screening of 1988’s B-horror Night of the Demons. That film features one 1980s hair metal song and approximately 87 minutes of fake blood, fake boobs and every horror trope imaginable.

The four cast regular members are seasoned improvisers and stand-up comedians who write, act and produce The Whoa Show, a

bimonthly sketch comedy event at Broom Street Theater. Olander often turns to the audience for suggestions. And they don’t hold back. At the December show, Tucker tore into Breen, director of Fateful Findings, calling him a “dollar store David Lynch,” and mocked the film’s royalty-free score, calling it “broke-ass Titanic music.”

I’ve seen the last three installments of Movie Hell, and it’s nice to see the audience steadily growing. While at theaters, people aren’t supposed to talk, at Movie Hell, reactions are welcome. Encouraged by the cast, audience members turn to each other, elbows in ribs, pointing at the screen, taking it all in together.

If you’re looking for a comedy show different from anything else in town, featuring bad films, a receptive audience and, says Siraguse, “a bunch of dumb friends having the time of their lives,” it might be time to visit Movie Hell. n The next Movie Hell will be Jan. 27, with special guest James Corlett.

WIN T ER f Writing Wonderland

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Warm up your writing skills in the company of supportive instructors and fellow aspiring writers.

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Face-to-face writing classes meet in cozy locations across Madison, so join us and get to work on your novel, nonfiction piece, poetry, or memoir.

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f Continuingstudies.wisc.edu/writing or call 608-262-5095f

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FREE BEER & CHEDDAR SAMPLES

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CITIZEN Tuesday, Jan. 10, Overture Hall, 7:30 pm Choreographer Reggie Wilson brings his Brooklyn-based Fist & Heel Performance Group to explore the timely and relevant theme of belonging. In five solos, interspersed with haunting footage, Wilson and his talented troupe explore the history of African Americans in the United States, using elements of blues, folk and African culture to question our notions of what it means to be an American. And they have the best tagline: “Not Just Your Mama’s Post-Modern Dance Company.”

thu jan 5 MU S I C Alchemy Cafe: DJs Radish, Dr. Funkenstein, free, 10 pm.

Bos Meadery: John Widdicombe & Glenn Widdicombe, free/donations, 7 pm.

picks ART EXHIBITS & EV ENTS Tom Miller: Photographs, noon-4 pm Saturdays, 1/7-28, PhotoMidwest (reception 7 pm, 1/5). photomidwest.org.

T HE AT E R & DANCE Jersey Boys: Touring Broadway production, 7:30 pm on 1/5, 8 pm on 1/6, 2 7 8 pm on 1/7 and 1 & 6:30 pm, 1/8, Overture Center-Overture Hall. $135-$45. 258-4141.

B OOKS / SP OKEN WORD

Brink Lounge: Blues Jam with Bill Roberts Combo, 8 pm; Thomas Guillion Quintet, jazz, 8 pm.

Bill C. Malone: Discussing “Bill Clifton: America’s Bluegrass Ambassador to the World,” with Doug Moe, 7 pm, 1/5, Mystery to Me. 283-9332.

Cardinal Bar: DJ Jo-Z, Latin, 10 pm.

Poetry Open Mic: 6:30 pm, 1/5, Central Library. 266-6350.

Chief’s: Hoot’n Annie, string band, free, 8:30 pm.

Christy’s Landing: Open Mic with Shelley Faith, free, 8 pm Thursdays.

PICK OF THE WEEK

COME DY

M OV IES Princess Mononoke: 20th anniversary screenings of Hayao Miyazaki’s anime classic, 7 pm, 1/5 (subtitled) and 7 pm, 1/9 (dubbed), Point. 242-2100.

Inherent Vice: Director Paul Thomas Anderson follows the misadventures of “Doc” Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix), a private investigator living in the squalid California splendor, circa 1970, in this Thomas Pynchon adaptation, 6 pm, 1/5, Central Library. 266-6300.

fri jan 6

Essen Haus: Big Wes Turner’s Trio, free, 9 pm.

The Frequency: Black Star Drum Line, Keon Andre, Trilogy, 7 pm.

M USIC

High Noon Saloon: Pupy Costello & the New Hiram Kings, 5:30 pm; Magma Carta, August Teens, 9 pm.

Nick Brown + Dan Walkner Friday, Jan. 6, Bos Meadery, 6:30 pm

Brown (pictured) & Walkner are most often seen playing in full-band formats (and have played together for several years as part of the Backroom Harmony Band). This acoustic show is a rare chance to hear Brown’s incisive Americana storytelling and Walkner’s roots rock adventuring unplugged.

Ivory Room: Michael Massey, Vince Strong, 9 pm.

Knuckle Down Saloon: Blues Jam with Tate & the 008 Band, free, 8 pm Thursdays.

Liliana’s Restaurant, Fitchburg: Ken Wheaton, fingerstyle guitar, free, 5:30 pm Thursdays.

Louisianne’s, Etc., Middleton: Jim Erickson, jazz, free, 6 pm Thursdays.

Lucille: DJ Brook, free, 10 pm Thursdays.

Mickey’s Tavern: Mal-O-Dua, French swing/ Hawaiian, free, 5:30 pm.

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

PaintBar: Grant Charles, free, 7 pm.

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Plan B: DJs EMC, Cover Gurrl, 9 pm Thursdays.

Tip Top Tavern: Bryan Drewyor, free, 9 pm.

Tricia’s Country Corners, McFarland: Jackie Marie, 8 pm Thursdays.

Twist Bar & Grill: Gerri DiMaggio Jazz Unit, free, 5 pm.

Up North Pub: Catfish Stephenson, blues/Americana, free, 9 pm Thursdays.

Willows Tavern, Westport: Open Jam with Six Mile Creek, free, 7:30 pm Thursdays.

Zuzu Cafe: Jazz Jam, free, 7 pm Thursdays.

Jackie Kashian Thursday, Jan. 5, Comedy Club on State, 8:30 pm Milwaukee-born Kashian allegedly got into standup after drunkenly heckling the late Sam Kinison in the mid-1980s, prompting a recommendation that she try performing at an open mic.

Since then, Kashian has released three albums, appeared on Comedy Central and A&E, started her own Welcome to the Dork Forest podcast, and became good friends with fellow Midwestern comedian Maria Bamford. Wielding smart, densely packed comedy, she’ll provide plenty of local references in a relatable show that may transform your thoughts on who to marry and what kind of pet to get. With Adam Degi, Marty Clarke.

ALSO: Friday-Saturday, Jan. 6-7, 8 & 10:30 pm.

Melissa Etheridge Friday, Jan. 6, Orpheum Theater, 8 pm

With her instantly recognizable, raspy vocals, Melissa Etheridge brings to mind some of the gravelly soul stars of the 1960s. With her new album, Memphis Rock and Soul, Etheridge takes it one step further, recording Stax Records classics by Otis Redding, Mavis Staples and many others. She’ll be performing songs from it live, so if you’ve ever wanted to hear the “Come to My Window” star’s take on rock history, now’s your chance.

Wisconsin Metal Fest Friday, Jan. 6, Majestic Theatre, 8 pm

Stretch out those necks, Madison, because the Badger State’s finest are coming to the Majestic to make you bang your heads. Sets from Madison’s own Bongzilla, Droids Attack, Zebras, Bereft (pictured), Whisky Pig and Cave Curse are lined up for a night that’s sure to rock so hard, neighboring states may have to call the cops and complain about all that racket.

➡

Patti

Ring in the New Year with a Show!

LaBelle

THURS JAN 12

FRIDAY JAN 13

Big Thief Sam Evian Hoops Ian Sweet

THU, JAN 12, 2017

Ceremony TENEMENT The Blind Shake Yoko Oh No’s

HIGH NOON SALOON

sat JAN 14 SERIES PARTNER

COMMUNITY PARTNER

JAN 3 – 8

Jersey Boys

JAN 10

CITIZEN: Reggie Wilson/ Fist and Heel Performance Group

JAN 12 FREE

MadCity Sessions: Oh My Love & Modern Mod

JAN 12

Patti LaBelle

JAN 14

Brown Bear, Brown Bear and Other Treasured Stories The Phantom of the Opera

FEB 12

Boyz II Men

FEB 18

Duck Soup Cinema: Safety Last

FEB 19

FRZNFEST.COM

WITH SPECIAL GUEST

CUDDLE MAGIC SERIES SPONSOR

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SERIES PARTNER

MUSIC SERIES SPONSOR

SPONSORED BY

The Burish Group of UBS Financial Services Inc.

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JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

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SPONSORED BY

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JAN 25 – FEB 5

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

Noname theMIND Mic Kellogg Rich Robbins

31

■ ISTHMUS PICKS : JAN 6 - 8

Madison Area Jugglers present the 47th Annual

MADFEST

Brink Lounge: East Wash Jukes, blues/soul, free, 8 pm; Edi Rey y Su Salsera, DJ Rumba, 9 pm.

Juggling

Brocach Irish Pub-Monroe Street: The Currach, free, 6 pm Fridays.

Cardinal Bar: Tony Castañeda Latin Jazz Quartet, free, 5:30 pm; DJ Rumba, 9 pm.

Chief’s Tavern: Frankie Lee, Chuck Bayuk & Tom Dehlinger, free, 6:30 pm.

EXTRAVAGANZA

Club Tavern, Middleton: DJ Robbie G, free, 9 pm.

JACK KALVAN & CO. • ANDREA NOEL

Delaney’s: Bob Kerwin & Doug Brown, jazz, free, 6 pm.

Essen Haus: David Austin Band, polka, free, 8:30 pm.

TRULY REMARKABLE LOON • MARK HAYWARD

First Unitarian Society: Noon Musicale: Olivia Musat, piano, free, 12:15 pm.

SATURDAY, JAN. 14 - 7PM

Fountain: Richard Shaten, piano, free, 7:30 pm Fridays.

Tickets $20 advance, $25 d.o.s. at Sugar Shack, Star Liquor, MadCity Music, B-Side, Frugal Muse, Strictly Discs, the Barrymore, online at barrymorelive.com or call & charge at (608) 241-8633. General Admission – All Seated Show madjugglers.com/madfest

T H E AT R E

2090 Atwood Ave. (608) 241-8633 barrymorelive.com

High Noon Saloon: The Whiskey Farm, Ryan Mauer & the Angry Fix, 5:30 pm; Bones Jugs, No Name String Band, The Lower 5th, 9:30 pm.

Hody Bar, Middleton: Mr. Burgundy, free, 9 pm.

Speaking his mind in the city he once ruled!

Ivory Room: Peter Hernet, Eben Seaman, Vince Strong, dueling pianos, 8 pm.

Louisianne’s, Middleton: Johnny Chimes, New Orleans piano, free, 6:30 pm Fridays-Saturdays.

Mickey’s Tavern: Momotaros, Color TV, darn it, Jonesies, free, 10:30 pm.

PaintBar: Open Mic, free, 9:30 pm.

Red Rock Saloon: Georgia Overdrive, country, 10 pm.

Artisan Gallery Exhibits: New works by Alan Servoss & Rick Hinze; “Anthropomorphism” group show, 1/62/19, A.G., Paoli (reception 5-9 pm, 1/6). 845-6600.

S PO K EN WO RD Madtown Poetry Open Mic: With host Ron Czerwein, 8 pm, 1/6, Mother Fool’s Coffeehouse. 255-4730.

S PEC TATO R S PO RTS UW Wrestling: vs. Ohio State, 7 pm, 1/6, Field House. $5. 262-1440.

Madison Capitols: USHL vs. Green Bay, 7:05 pm, 1/6, Alliant Center-Coliseum. $23.50-$15.25. 267-3955.

UW Men’s Hockey: vs. Michigan State, 8 pm on 1/6 and 7 pm, 1/7, Kohl Center. $24/$20. 262-1440.

S PEC I A L I N T ERESTS Home Expo: Exhibits & vendors on building & remodeling, 2-8 pm on 1/6, 10 am-8 pm on 1/7 and 10 am-5 pm, 1/8, Monona Terrace. $5 (free ages under 18). homeshowcenter.com. 800-374-6463.

Euchre Tournament: Monona/East Madison Optimists event, 6:30 pm, 1/6, Goodman Community Center, with silent auction. $20. 279-9063.

sat jan 7

Rex’s Innkeeper, Waunakee: Universal Sound, 8:30 pm.

Stoughton Opera House: Laurie Lewis & the Right Hands, 7:30 pm.

MUS I C

Tip Top Tavern: Pine Travelers, folk rock, free, 10 pm.

starring former Madison Mayor

Varsity Bar, Sun Prairie: Open Mic, 10 pm Fridays.

VFW-Cottage Grove Road: Frank James, 7:30 pm.

THEATER & DANCE

Read him online at

.com

Old Befana: 30th anniversary production of holiday musical by Ken Lonnquist: 7 pm, 1/6, Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ; 6 pm, 1/7, St. Dennis Catholic Church; 10:15 am, 1/8, Bethel Lutheran Church; 4 pm, 1/8, St. Bernard Catholic Church, Middleton. Free. kenland.com.

ART EXHIBITS & EV ENTS

Wisconsin Funk Fest Saturday, Jan. 7, Majestic Theatre, 8 pm

January’s not going to get funkier than it will at this all-star festival, featuring the R&B stylings of the Big Payback, the brassy and energetic Mama Digdown’s Brass Band, Afrobeat from Immigre (pictured) and DJ Phil Money. Hot stuff!

Wisconsin Triennial

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

Through Jan. 8, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art

32

It’s your last chance to experience some of the most beautiful and thought-provoking art being created by state artists.

Chosen from hundreds of applicants, the artists included in the 2016 Triennial present haunting video and paintings, soundscapes, photography, sculpture and more. Part of the exhibit is dedicated to environmental themes, featuring Amy Fichter’s photographs of endangered birds, Xiaohong Zhang’s prints depicting industrialization, John Hitchcock’s works juxtaposing war machines and natural beauty and Colin Matthes’ wry, instructional drawings. Bonus: One of the artists, Sky Hopinka, recently had work selected for the prestigious Whitney Biennial.

Harmonious Wail Saturday, Jan. 7, Brink Lounge, 7 pm

Thirty years is a helluva long time to play together, but the married-in-real-life duo of Sims and Maggie Delaney-Potthoff is celebrating three decades of making music together. With Sims’ virtuoso mandolin playing and Maggie’s smoky vocals, the two always bring freshness and energy to their Gypsy jazz-inspired performances.

The addition of award-winning bassist Jeff Weiss makes for an unforgettable night of local, handcrafted jazz.

SEARCH THE FULL CALENDAR OF EVENTS AT ISTHMUS.COM

Rex’s Innkeeper, Waunakee: Universal Sound, 8:30 pm.

Tricia’s Country Corners, McFarland: 2AM, 8:30 pm.

Tuvalu Coffee, Verona: The Buzzards, free, 6:30 pm.

Tyranena Brewing Company, Lake Mills: Kristy Larson Trio, honky tonk, free, 7 pm.

Williamson Magnetic Recording Company: Tippy, Good Morning Midnight, In the Rushes, 7 pm.

I . •.

COME DY

A Giant Dog Saturday, Jan. 7, High Noon Saloon, 9:30 pm

Austin live wires A Giant Dog made a splash in 2016 with Pile, their first album for Merge Records, but DIY garage rock aficionados have known for years that they’re one of the best, wildest bands in the country. Lead singer Sabrina Ellis and her freak-flag-waving band play hooky, dirty glam punk that revels in both the darkness and joys of being a weirdo. With an ensemble lineup featuring Midwestern garage rock mainstays the Hussy, Absolutely Not and His & Her Vanities, this show is a sure bet for those looking to shake the dirt off from their 2016.

Atlas Improv Company: 8 & 10 pm Fridays & Saturdays, 609 E. Washington Ave. $8 ($5 kids). 259-9999.

Monkey Business Institute: Improv: all ages, 5:30 pm; and 8 pm & 10:30 pm Saturdays, Glass Nickel-Atwood. $12-$5. 658-5153.

S PECTATOR SP ORTS Mad Rollin’ Dolls: Unholy Rollers vs. Reservoir Dolls and Quad Squad vs. Vaudeville Vixens, 6 pm, 1/7, Alliant Center-Exhibition Hall. $15 ($12 adv.; half price ages 6-11; portion of proceeds benefits Wisconsin Indian Education Association). madisonrollerderby.org.

DAN CI N G Madison Dance Club: Open dance with DJ Tim Parker, 7:30-10 pm, 1/7, Prairie Athletic Club, Sun Prairie. $10 (lesson 6:45 pm). 845-5140.

Madison Tango Society Milonga: 8-11:45 pm, 1/7, Madison Senior Center. $17. 238-2039.

E N VI RON MENT Bald Eagle Watching Tours: With Ferry Bluff Eagle Council, 10 am Saturdays, 1/7 & 1/14-2/18, from Cedarberry Inn, Sauk City. $5. RSVP: 643-6625.

KI D S & FAM ILY Kids in the Rotunda: Free performance by Mark Hayward, 9:30 am, 11 am & 1 pm, 1/7, Overture Center-Rotunda Stage. 258-4141.

Mead & Metal Fest Saturday, Jan. 7, High Noon Saloon, 2-7 pm

Warm up on a cold winter afternoon with face-melting guitar riffs from some of Madison’s best metal bands — Subatomic (groove metal), Carbellion (heavy metal, pictured), Tubal Cain (occult black metal) and Ember’s Night (symphonic metal).

It’s also a Viking-themed party, complete with mead from Bos Meadery and “brutal” scaldic poetry readings between sets.

• MAJESTIC THEATRE,

Saturday Science: “Adaptation & Survival” activities, 10 am-noon. 1/7, UW Discovery Building. Free. 316-4382.

Kid Disco: With DJ Nick Nice, 11 am-2 pm, 1/7, Great Dane-Hilldale. $5 ($15/family). 661-9400.

sun jan 8

'

.

DOORS OPEN AT lPM�MUSIC SY.ARTS AT BP·M

WIN TICKETS T O I S T H M U S ’ U LT I M AT E FROSTIBALL EXPERIENCE

MUS I C

1855 Saloon, Cottage Grove: Robert J, free, 7 pm.

Alchemy Cafe: Sortin’ the Mail, bluegrass, free, 10 pm.

Bandung: Mideast Salsa, free salsa lesson, 7:30 pm.

Brink Lounge: Ryan McGrath Band, blues/rock, 9 pm.

Cardinal Bar: DJ Chamo, Latin, 10 pm.

Cargo Bike Shop: Casey Day, family concert, free, 9 am Saturdays.

F.Stokes

Come Back In: Your Mom, Rock/pop. free, 9 pm.

Sunday, Jan. 8, Frequency, 9 pm

Crystal Corner Bar: Oedipus Rex, Wastrels, The Apologists, 9:30 pm.

If you haven’t caught Madison-raised F.Stokes’ annual holiday season rap show before, you’ll want to hit this one. Expect eclectic, high-energy storytelling raps about topics ranging from Stokes’ childhood to tales from the ’hood. R@dish will serve as the night’s DJ. This year’s event is a fundraiser for Ain’t No Babies in the City, a documentary about his sister’s struggle to adopt a child with her lesbian partner.

Essen Haus: David Austin Band, free, 8:30 pm.

Harmony Bar: Color Me Once, Well Known Strangers, 9:45 pm.

Hody Bar, Middleton: City Electric, free, 9 pm.

Ivory Room: Jim Ripp, Peter Hernet, Eben Seaman, dueling pianos, 11 pm.

Lakeside Street Coffee House: Michael Gruber, fingerstyle guitar, free, 9:30 am Saturdays.

Mezze: Charlie Painter & Friends, jazz, free, 9 pm.

Mickey’s Tavern: Ka-Boom!Box, free, 10:30 pm.

Oakwood Village-West: Dixie Sizzlers, free, 7 pm.

Parched Eagle Brewpub: Back2Back, free, 7:30 pm.

Plan B: DJs Mike Carlson, WhiteRabbit, Alistair Loveless, Leather & Lace, 8:30 pm.

PAC K AG E I N C L U D E S

• 2 FROSTIBALL TICKETS • ONE NIGHT STAY AT THE CONCOURSE • $150 MEAL AT RARE STEAKHOUSE

Bos Meadery: Open Mic, free, 2 pm Sundays.

Brocach-Square: The Currach, Irish, free, 5 pm.

Cargo Coffee-East Washington: Jamie Guiscafre, guitar, free, 2 pm.

➡

Find out how to enter at

isthmus.com/ultimatefrostiballexperience

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

Club Tavern, Middleton: Pat McCurdy, free, 9 pm.

33

418 E. WILSON ST. 608.257.BIRD CARDINALBAR.COM FRIDAY 1/6 LIVE HAPPY HOUR

TONY CASTAÑEDA

LATIN JAZZ QUARTET 5:30-7:30PM • FREE

_______________

SALSERA REVOLUTION w/ DJ RUMBA ____________________ NEW!

10PM

SATURDAY 1/7

Spicy Saturdays with DJ

CHAMO

10PM

____________________

n ISTHMUS PICKS : JAN 8 - 12 Funk’s Pub, Fitchburg: Open Jam with Mudroom, free, 8 pm Sundays.

2201 Atwood Ave.

(608) 249-4333

SAT. JAN. 7

Color Me Once

Liliana’s Restaurant, Fitchburg: Cliff Frederiksen, jazz, free, 10:30 am Sundays.

Mickey’s Tavern: Open Mic, free, 10 pm Sundays.

The Rigby: Madison Jazz Jam, free (all ages), 4 pm.

WELL KNOWN STRANGERS

Tip Top Tavern: Open Mic, free, 9 pm Sundays.

____________________________________

EVERY MONDAY 5:30-6:15 pm $3

Tricia’s Country Corners, McFarland: Frank James & Jackie Marie, 3 pm Sundays.

THE KING OF KIDS MUSIC

presents Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite 6:30PM

_______________

9PM

COMING SUNDAY 1/15

JAZZ FEST 2017

Java Cat: Nick Matthews, free, 9 am Sundays.

9:45 $8

with special guests

DAVID LANDAU

TUESDAY 1/10

Darren Sterud Orchestra JAZZ____________________ JAM w/ THE NEW BREED

High Noon Saloon: Groove Karaibe, The Darren Sterud New Orleans Sit Down, 7 pm.

____________________________________

MON. JAN. 9 7:30-9:30pm NO COVER

Oak Street Ramblers

sponsored by Door County Brewing Co.

____________________________________

WED. JAN. 11

Doors 6pm

GERRI DIMAGGIO • NEW ORLEANS TRIBUTE HANAH JON TAYLOR ARTET featuring ROB DZ

M A DISON’S CL A SSIC DA NC E B A R

6-8pm $5 suggested

Cork ‘n Bottle STRING BAND

sponsored by

www.harmonybarandgrill.com

TWO PERFORMANCES ONLY

SP ECIAL EV ENTS Jazz at the Opera Center: Madison Opera fundraiser, 2 pm, 1/8, Madison Opera Center, with Richie Cole & the Alto Madness Orchestra, an excerpt from “Charlie Parker’s Yardbird” sung by Anna Poluml, hors d’oeuvres. $25. adv. only: eventbrite. com/e/28512085415. 238-8085.

mon jan 9 M USIC

Crystal Corner Bar: Josh Harty & the Big Tasty, 8 pm.

Free House Pub, Middleton: The Westerlies, Irish, free, 7:30 pm Tuesdays.

High Noon Saloon: The Earthlings, Mossmen, 9 pm.

Ivory Room: Josh Dupont, free, 9 pm Tuesdays.

Liliana’s Restaurant, Fitchburg: John Vitale, Marilyn Fisher & Ken Kuehl, jazz, free, 5:30 pm Tuesdays.

Louisianne’s, Etc., Middleton: Johnny Chimes, New Orleans piano, free, 6 pm Tuesdays-Wednesdays.

Mason Lounge: Five Points Jazz Collective, free, 9 pm Tuesdays.

Mickey’s Tavern: Em Jay, free, 10 pm.

Neighborhood House: Bluegrass Jam, 7 pm Tuesdays.

Up North Pub: Derek Ramnarace, free, 8 pm.

T H EAT ER & DA N C E Reggie Wilson Fist & Heel Performance Group: 7:30 pm, 1/10, Overture Center. $40-$30. 258-4141.

B O O KS Christine Merrill: Discussing her novels, noon, 1/10, Madison Senior Center. 266-6581.

DA N C I N G Skilaufers: Meeting & dance with Kristi B, 7 pm, 1/10, East Side Club. $5 admission. 514-5767.

wed jan 11 MUS I C

David Dondero + Trapper Schoepp Monday, Jan. 9, Kiki’s House of Righteous Music, 8 pm

Sat., Jan. 14, 8:00 p.m.

Sun., Jan. 15, 2:30 p.m.

Overture Hall

“Seldom has enlightenment proved so entertaining.”

—Chicago Tribune

This twin bill of ace Midwestern songwriters is headlined by Duluth native David Dondero (pictured), touring behind the brand-new album Inside the Cat’s Eye, a stripped-down affair featuring — you guessed it — a whole bunch of great new songs. Wisconsin-raised Trapper Schoepp has been gaining plenty of notice himself for a growing catalog of top-notch roots rock storytelling. RVSP to righteousmusicmgmt@gmail.com.

Alchemy Cafe: DJ Samroc, free, 10 pm Mondays.

East Side Club: Bluegrass Jam, 6:30 pm Monday.

Featuring APT Stars

NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV

Fountain: Open Mic with Adam Pitt, 8 pm Mondays.

Scheherazade

Harmony Bar: David Landau, family concert, 5:30 pm Mondays; Oak Street Ramblers, bluegrass.

John DeMain, Conductor

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

James DeVita* as Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

34

Brenda DeVita* as the Storyteller

EXCLUSIVE SPONSOR: A Good Friend of the Symphony Beyond the Score® is a production of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Gerard McBurney, Creative Director for Beyond the Score®

Beyond the Score explores what’s behind one of the most popular orchestral works ever written— Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s colorful and exotic Scheherazade—with: • Video and photos • Actor and narrator • Musical examples and a full performance of Scheherazade.

Malt House: The Kissers, Irish, free, 7:30 pm.

DANCING Cripple Creek Cloggers: Beginner lessons begin 6 pm, 1/9, Waunakee High School. First class free; semester is $75 if continuing. cripplecreekclog.shutterfly.com.

SP OKEN WORD The Moth Madison StorySLAM: 7:30 pm, 1/9, High Noon Saloon. $10. 268-1122.

Dash Hounds Wednesday, Jan. 11, High Noon Saloon, 7 pm

Fans of mellow dream pop would do well to acquaint themselves with Dash Hounds. The up-and-coming Madison band put out a great debut EP in 2016 and played some solid gigs to boot. They’ll pair nicely with Nester, another local alt-rock outfit with a similarly spacey vibe. With White Bush Unicorn.

1855 Saloon and Grill, Cottage Grove: Ken Wheaton, fingerstyle guitar, free, 6 pm Wednesdays.

Brink Lounge: Runa, Irish/Scottish, 7:30 pm.

Brocach Irish Pub-Monroe Street: Gypsy Jazz Jam, free, 7:30 pm Wednesdays.

Brocach-Square: Irish Open Jam, 8 pm Wednesdays.

Cardinal Bar: DJ Mechvnize, 9 pm.

Crescendo Espresso Bar: The Hottman Sisters, Karen Wheelock, Leopard Hound, 7 pm.

The Frequency: Queen Hilma, Paper Holland, Luna Luna, 8:30 pm.

Genna’s Lounge: Open Mic, free, 9 pm Wednesdays.

Harmony Bar: Cork ‘n Bottle String Band, 6 pm.

tue jan 10

Ivory Room: Vince Strong, piano, free, 8 pm.

Liliana’s Restaurant, Fitchburg: Cliff Frederiksen & Ken Kuehl, jazz, free, 5:30 pm Wednesdays.

Mickey’s Tavern: Proud Parents, Sass, free, 10:30 pm.

buy tickets now!

MADISONSYMPHONY.ORG , the Overture Center Box Office, or (608) 258-4141.

M USIC

The Red Zone: Open Jam, free, 8 pm Wednesdays.

Alchemy Cafe: Ted Keys Trio, free, 10 pm Tuesdays.

Up North Pub: MoonHouse, free, 8 pm.

Cardinal Bar: Darren Sterud Orchestra, jazz, 6:30 pm; New Breed Jazz Jam, free, 9 pm Tuesdays.

VFW-Cottage Grove Road: Jerry Stueber, 6 pm Wednesdays.

B OOKS / S P O K EN WORD

701 East Washington Ave. 608-661-8599

Jerry Apps: Discussing “Never Curse the Rain,” his new book, 6:30 pm, 1/11, Midvale Community Lutheran Church. 283-9332.

Tribute to Dr Martin Luther King Jr.: Presentation by Michael Hecht, with music by Richard Macdonald & Linda Kunz, 1 pm, 1/11, Stoughton Opera House.

Free/donations. 877-4400.

Open Tue-Sat 4pm - close

THUR. JAN. 5 .

COME DY

8pm / $5

Wisconsin Punk Fest

Cut Mic: 11 pm, 1/11, Fountain. Free. 250-1998.

Thursday, Jan. 12, Majestic Theatre, 8 pm

SAT. JAN. 7.

With the state’s recent political track record being, shall we say, less than stellar, it’s encouraging to witness Wisconsin’s growing punk scene. Some of our best bands will channel their defiance by rocking this festival, headlined by Madison’s own Masked Intruder (pictured). With support from Arms Aloft (Eau Claire), Tim Schweiger & the Middle Men (Milwaukee), Jaill (Milwaukee), No Hoax (Madison) and Static Eyes (Milwaukee). Come on out, and up the punx!

30th Anniversary Party!

Bitter Rice: Small time criminals in Italy hide from police with a group of rice field workers, 7 pm, 1/11, Bos Meadery. Free. bosmeadery.com.

thu jan 12 MU SI C

Brink: Aaron Williams & the Hoodoo, free, 8 pm.

Buck & Honey’s, Sun Prairie: David Hecht, 6:30 pm.

Cardinal Bar: DJ Chamo, Latin, 10 pm.

The Frequency: Rocket Paloma, Heavy Looks, Chris LaBella, 8:30 pm.

Ivory Room: Kevin Gale, Jim Ripp, free, 9 pm.

Twist Bar and Grill: John Christensen Combo, 5 pm.

Patti LaBelle Thursday, Jan. 12, Overture Hall, 7:30 pm In a career spanning five-plus decades, Patti LaBelle has been a singing star with groups (Bluebelles, the eponymous LaBelle) and on her own, crossing genre boundaries for hits on the pop, R&B and gospel charts. Whether on records or starring on Broadway — or becoming a viral sensation for her line of sweet potato pies — she remains one of the most iconic voices to emerge from the 1960s.

T HE AT E R & DANCE The Lion in Winter: Upstart Crows: Royalty, heirs and rivals come together for Christmas, 1183, 7 pm, 1/12-14, Orchard Ridge UCC. Donations. 827-9482.

COME DY

feat. David Cooper, Vince Fuh, Mark Urness, Dane Richeson

FRZN Fest Thursday, Jan. 12, High Noon Saloon, 8 pm

WED. JAN. 11 .

2609 E. •Washington Ave • Madison 2609 E.2609 Washington Ave Madison E. Washington Ave • Madison 608.204.6258 608.204.6258 608.204.6258 www.MaltHouseTavern.com www.MaltHouseTavern.com www.MaltHouseTavern.com Open 4pm M-F; Sat;Sun Closed Sun Open 4pm M-F; 2pm Sat; Closed Sun Open 4pm M-F; 2pm Sat;2pm Closed

2010, 2012, 2013,Poll 2014 Isthmus 2010, 2011,2010, 2012,2011, 2013, 20142011, Isthmus Readers 2012, 2013, 2014 Isthmus Readers Poll Readers Poll

“America’s 100 Best Beer Bars” “America’s 100 Best Bars” “America’s 100Beer Best Beer Bars” 2011, 2013 Draft Magazine 2011, 2013 Draft Magazine 2011, 2013 Draft Magazine

4pm608.204.6258 M-F; 2pm Closed Sun 2609Open E. Washington AveSat; • Madison www.MaltHouseTavern.com 608.204.6258 1st Place “Favorite BarTVs! For Beer” … and STILL no Open 4pm M-F;2013, 2pm Closed 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014Sat; Isthmus Readers Sun Poll www.MaltHouseTavern.com Open 4pm M-F; 2pm Sat; Closed Sun 1st Place “Favorite Bar For Beer” “10 Hottest Places to “10 Hottest Places to “10 Hottest Places to Drink Whiskey Around Drink Whiskey Around the U.S.” Drink Whiskey Around the U.S.”the U.S.” Zagat Blog Zagat Blog Zagat Blog

…TVs! andnoSTILL … and …

STILL andno STILL TVs!no TVs!

“America’s 100 Best Beer Bars”

isthmus live sessions

2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014Magazine Poll 2011, 2013 Draft 1st Place “Favorite BarIsthmus ForReaders Beer” 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 Isthmus Readers Poll “10 Hottest Places toBars” “America’s 100 Best Beer 2011, 2013 Draft Magazine Drink Whiskey Around the U.S.” “America’s 100 Best Beer Bars” 701A E. Washington Ave. 268-1122 www.high-noon.com ZagatMagazine Blog 2011, 2013 Draft “10 Hottest Places to “10 Hottest Drink WhiskeyPlaces Aroundtothe U.S.” Pupy Costello Magma Carta Zagat Blog thu Local & National Artists & The New The August Drink Whiskey … andAround STILL no the TVs!U.S.” Jan Zagat Blog 5 Hiram Kings Teens Perform in the Isthmus Office

fri Jan

6

sun jan

8

5:30pm FREE

9pm $5

The Whiskey Farm Ryan Mauer

Bones Jugs No Name String Band The Lower 5th

& The Angry Fix

… and STILL no TVs!

performances by: DIRECT … and STILL no TVs! HIT!

9:30pm $6

Subatomic Carbellion Tubal Cain Ember’s Night

A Giant Dog The Hussy Absolutely Not His & Her Vanities

2pm $9

9:30pm $7

ISTHMUS LIVE SESSIONS

ISTHMUS LIVE SESSIONS

ISTHMUS LIVE SESSIONS

live videos at isthmus.com/ils

Groove Karaibe The Darren Sterud New Orleans Sit Down 7pm $10

mon jan

9

THE MOTH

Madison StorySLAM PRESENTS “VOYAGE” 7:30PM

Earthlings The Mossmen

5pm $10 sug. don

wed Jan

11

$10

The

“Just Eat It” Film 10 Screening tue Jan

UW Men’s Basketball: vs. Ohio State, 6 pm, 1/12, Kohl Center. $41-$33. 262-1440.

Tales from the Arboretum’s Gardens: Arboretum Naturalists’ Winter Enrichment class, 9 am, 1/12, UW Arboretum Visitor Center. $10. 263-7888.

Madison’s CraftOasis Beer Oasis Madison’s Craft Beer Madison’s Craft Oasis Beer THE MALT THE MALT HOUSE THE MALT HOUSEHOUSE

1st “Favorite Place For Beer” 1st Place “Favorite Bar “Favorite For Beer” 1st Place Bar ForBar Beer”

www.thebrinklounge.com

7

E N VI RON MENT

“America’s Best Beer Bars” • Lagavulin100 16 yr 2011, 2013 Draft Magazine $29 •Madison’s Ardbeg Uigeadail Craft Beer Oasis (LIMITED & ALLOCATED) “10 Hottest Madison’s CraftPlaces Beer to Oasis THECorryvrecken MALT HOUSE • Ardbeg Madison’s Craft Beer Drink Whiskey Around the U.S.” 2609 E. Washington Ave • Oasis Madison • Ardbeg 10 yr Zagat Blog THE 608.204.6258 MALT HOUSE THEwww.MaltHouseTavern.com HOUSE 2609 E.MALT Washington Ave • Madison

See our full event calendar at:

sat jan

S PECTATOR SP ORTS

• Lagavulin 8 yr

RUNA Celtic Roots Music

5:30pm $5

Thursday, Jan. 12, Comedy Club on State, 8:30 pm DiGiovanni was one of the inaugural students in Canada’s Humber College’s “Comedy Writing and Performance” course in 2000, and in 2002 she was named “Best Stand-Up Newcomer” by the Canadian Comedy Awards. After making it to the top 10 in the fifth season of Last Comic Standing, she started touring extensively.

With her fast pace and infectious energy, DiGiovanni takes audiences on a whirlwind tour of her mind, sharing thoughts on men, dieting, and getting drunk at baby showers.

With Jim Flannigan, Adam McShane. ALSO: Friday-Saturday, Jan. 13-14, 8 & 10:30 pm.

2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 Isthmus Readers Poll (LIMITED & ALLOCATED)

8pm / $15 adv, $20 door

Mead & Metal Fest

Debra DiGiovanni

THUR, JAN. 5 • 5:30-8PM www.MaltHouseTavern.com Open 4pm M-F; 2pm Sat; Closed Sun Sample 6 Exceptional Smoky Scotches Lagavulin Distillers 1st• Place “Favorite BarEdition For Beer”

9pm

$5

Dash Hounds Nester White Bush Unicorn 7pm

$5

18+

FRZN Fest 2017

thu jan

12

Big Thief / Sam Evian Hoops / Ian Sweet 8pm

$15 single day, $30 3-day pass 18+

FRI, JAN 6 H 8PM H $7

Ralph Jr. and the

Blackjack Blues Band SAT, JAN 7 H 9PM H $7

The Blue Olives Powerhouse Funk, Rock, Fusion band

FRI. JAN. 13 Tony Kannen SAT. JAN. 14 and the Sound Garden The Mannish Boys crew

2513 Seiferth Rd. 222-7800 KnuckleDownSaloon.com

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

With vets that include indie punks Cloud Nothings and recently crowned rap superstar Chance the Rapper, it’s a pretty safe bet that at least one of the bands in this year’s FRZN Fest lineup is the next big thing. Spanning three nights, the schedule includes Big Thief, Sam Evian, Hoops, and Ian Sweet (Thursday), Ceremony, Tenement, the Blind Shake and Yoko & the Oh No’s (Friday, Jan. 13), and Noname, the Mind, Mic Kellogg and Rich Robbins (Saturday, Jan. 14).

7pm / $7

Harmonious Wail

Oh My Love + Modern Mod Thursday, Jan. 12, Overture CenterCapitol Theater, 7:30 pm Pop takes on many forms as Mad City Sessions returns for another season. Kicking off the series is a co-headlining set from two excellent Madison bands. Atmospheric synthpoppers Oh My Love (pictured, who released an album last year called Ghosts and Bubblegum that you should definitely check out) will be joined by Modern Mod, a recently disbanded but much loved and super-talented power-pop crew reuniting for one night only.

2609 E. Washington Ave • Madison Single Malt Sampling 608.204.6258

Thomas Gullion Quintet

Open Mic: 9 pm Wednesdays, Comedy Club on State. $2. 256-0099.

MOVI ES

Madison’s Craft Beer Oasis Ardbeg & Lagavulin THE MALT HOUSE

35

The

Dane County Farmers’ Market

n EMPHASIS

~ JOIN US ~

for the Late Winter Market (8am - 12) and the Taste of the Market Breakfast (8:30am - 11)

January 7

MATT SMITH of Blue Valley Gardens

January 14

ROB GRISHAM

of Isthmus Dining Company

January 21

KRISTINA STANLEY

GiGi’s Monona Drive storefront has an open play area and one-on-one rooms. Claire Bible, above, helps with outreach in local schools.

of Brown Rice and Honey

January 28

DAVID HEIDE

of Liliana’s and Charlie’s on Main

February 4

CHRIS CUBBERLEY of The Graduate

February 11

FRANCESCO MANGANO of Osteria Papavero

February 18

BEN LUBCHANSKY and KATE ZOMBORACZ of 608 Community Supported Kitchen

February 25

JOEY DUNSCOMBE of Weary Traveler Freehouse

March 4

TORY MILLER and LISA JACOBSON REAP fund-raiser

March 11

UW DIETETICS AND NUTRITION CLUB March 18

TIM SMITH, JACOB WOLF and MICHAEL SIGNORELLI of Each Other

March 25

GIL ALTSCHUL

of Grampa’s Pizzeria, Gib’s, and Porter

April 1

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

SLOW FOOD UW

36

April 8

STEPHAN MAY of Banzo

Madison Senior Center 330 West Mifflin St.

www.dcfm.org info@dcfm.org

Live and learn GiGi’s Playhouse ramps up its programming for families and children with Down syndrome.

BY CANDICE WAGENER

The discovery that a baby or fetus has Down syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, means that parenting will include special challenges.

The genetic disorder causes various developmental delays and physical handicaps. But a new center on Madison’s east side provides community and support for families that include a child with Down syndrome.

GiGi’s Playhouse, 4104 Monona Drive, provides support and education for families. The original GiGi’s Playhouse was founded 13 years ago in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, by Nancy Gianni, whose daughter, GiGi, has Down syndrome. The Madison site opened in May 2016.

The mission of GiGi’s Playhouse is to educate and empower individuals living with Down syndrome but also to create greater community acceptance and awareness of the disorder.

Finding and training the right people takes time for the volunteer-staffed center.

The Madison location is in the early stages with its programming, says site coordinator Julia Meyers.

All of GiGi’s programs are free, also open to siblings and cover a wide variety of ages.

Enrichment programs like LMNOP (Language, Music N’ Our Peeps) guide

parents and infants through learning basic sign language while incorporating music and dance therapy. Leaps and Bounds focuses on large muscle development, social skills and language for preschoolers. And Teen Tastic is a social group with games and outings. The site also hosts special events, like a recent Winter Wonderland party. Programs on the docket for 2017 include a GiGi’s University, to prepare older adults for the transition to work life, and a one-on-one literacy program for younger participants.

GiGi’s is also a place for families who want to drop in just to talk, including parents who may be new to Down syndrome and want to learn more. Meyers says it is a great place to connect with other families, especially those who have already experienced Down syndrome in their lives Jen Kruk, whose 1-year-old daughter, Lily, uses GiGi’s services, couldn’t be happier that the organization is right in her neighborhood.

“I love what they stand for,” says Kruk. “Not only do they know their audience, but they listen for feedback on how to make it better. [It’s] very personalized to the community’s needs.”

Kruk, who is also on the outreach committee, says that connecting with other parents whose children have Down syndrome is invaluable.

“I remember what is was like being pregnant and getting the confirmed diagnosis...and the

inherent fear and uncertainty and different emotions that come with that. I’m eager to help connect parents with other parents who have been there, done that, as well as to other services too.”

Meyers and GiGi’s ambassador Claire Bible, who is living with Down syndrome, also do outreach together at local schools.

Their mission is twofold: to connect with students with Down syndrome to tell them about a safe hangout, but also to enlist other students as volunteers, which they hope will create an even greater openness about Down syndrome.

“Getting youth involved is always a great thing,” says Bible. “I feel like it’s a great educational opportunity for them, because there are probably kids all through Madison that are in their schools with Down syndrome, and maybe they’ll open their eyes a little more, make a new friend, [and] educate themselves about the movement.”

Bible, who will graduate with her early childhood certificate from Madison College in May, has had a full life so far between various education institutions, involvement in AmeriCorps and advocating for disability rights.

“I’ve been busy,” says Bible. “But it also shows how potential never expires. It does not have a shelf life.” n

n CLASSIFIEDS

Housing Buy-Sell-Exchange Matching people and property for over 20 years. Achieve your goals! Free consult. www.andystebnitz.com Andy Stebnitz 608-692-8866 Restaino & Associates Realtors Phil Olson Real Estate —Since 1984— Residential Homes, Multi-Family, Condos PhilandBeckyOlson.com 608-332-7814 POlson@RestainoHomes.com Powered by Restaino & Associates UW • EDGEWOOD • ST MARY’S Quiet and smoke-free 1 & 2 bedroom apartments starting at $800. Newer kitchens with dishwashers & microwaves. FREE HEAT, WATER, STORAGE. No pets. On-site office with package service. All calls answered 24/7.

Intercom entry. Indoor bicycle parking. Close to bus, grocery, restaurants, and bike trail.

Shenandoah Apartments 1331 South Street 608-256-4747 ShenandoahApartments@gmail.com ALL AREAS ROOMMATES.COM. Lonely?

Bored? Broke? Find the perfect roommate to complement your personality and lifestyle at Roommates.com! (AAN CAN) Charming downtown studio apartment. 3 minute walk from the capital. Dishwasher, electric oven, refrigerator/ freezer, breakfast bar, washer/dryer. Lots of cabinet space. New carpeting. High ceilings/fans. Close to mass transit. Near shopping/restaurants/nightlife.

Attached to Capital Fitness. Underground parking. 21 N Butler St, Madison, WI. $950 East Madison: 3 bdrm, 2 bath, unfurnished house near good schools, bus route, bike path, Olbrich Gardens and Park. 3158 Buena Vista St. $1700/month + utilites. Call/text Jordy at 608-354-2327.

All real estate advertised is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation, or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, national origin, or status as a victim of domestic abuse, sexual assault or stalking; or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. Isthmus will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are on an equal opportunity basis.

Jobs

Caring People Needed!

Energetic, dependable and fun people desired to assist the elderly in Madison. Nonmedical companionship and in-home care. Flexible hours. Home Instead Senior Care: (608) 663-2646.

Man with a disability looking for assistance with housekeeping and grocery shopping.

Preferably looking for an individual with a flexible schedule and a nonsmoker. 10 hrs/ week at $12.50/hr. Please call 608-819-6887.

Work for Hammerschlagen. Part-time.

Weekends only. Starting at $15/hr. For more information, call 1-844-WHACK-IT or visit jobs.hammerschlagen.com Looking for a caregiver to assist with light housekeeping and personal cares. Looking to fill part time evenings and overnights. Please contact (608) 222-5929.

Private duty RNs/LPNs needed for a nonvent individual on south side of Madison shift varies. Also seeking PRN shift help. Call (608) 692-2617 and ask for Jill.

Volunteer with UNITED WAY Volunteer Center Call 246-4380 or visit volunteeryourtime.org to learn about opportunities Become a “snow angel” to a senior in need by signing up to take care of their snow removal needs this season. The East Madison/ Monona Coalition of the Aging has numerous clients who are physically unable to clear their sidewalks and driveways and they desperately need your help to get to medical appointments, receive Meals on Wheels, and remain independent.

BE

A HAIR STYLIST Discover an amazing career and enroll in our cosmetology program!

Classes start every 5 weeks.

Schedule a VIP tour today!

Call 608.807.5993 Text "Your Name/Tour" to 608.260.7536 Email lauraf@madison.paulmitchell.edu 7021 Tree Lane, Madison, WI 53717 Intersection of Tree Lane and Gammon Rd.

Bring this ad in to receive a FREE Deep Conditioning Treatment and Style or haircut!

Financial aid and scholarships available to those who qualify. FAFSA code: 038223 For graduation/completion/placement/licensure rates, median loan debt and other important information, visit PaulMitchell.edu/ge.

All services performed by students supervised by a licensed instructor.

PMTSMad_4.75x5.479_Ad_1216.indd 1

12/19/16 5:54 PM

The Road Home Dane County is committed to helping families maintain housing.

Majority of these families pay 80-90% of their monthly income towards rent. The wish list items are household needs that families are provided through generous donations from our community. Items most needed: toilet paper, paper towels, size 4-6 diapers & wipes, laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, personal care items.

The Urban League of Greater Madison is hosting the 33rd Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Outstanding Young Person Breakfast on Jan 15. This family observance of the King Holiday is open to the public. Volunteer help is needed Jan 15 in the following roles: registration, hosts, food and coffee servers, food runners​, and clean up. Setup help is needed on Jan 14.​

Services & Sales PREGNANT? CONSIDERING ADOPTION? Call us first. Living expenses, housing, medical, and continued support afterwards. Choose adoptive family of your choice. Call 24/7.

877-362-2401 CHECK OUT THE FOUNDRY FOR MUSIC LESSONS & REHEARSAL STUDIOS & THE BLAST HOUSE STUDIO FOR RECORDING! 608-270-2660 www.madisonmusicfoundry.com CASH FOR CARS: Any Car/Truck 20002015. Running or Not! Top Dollar For Used/ Damaged. Free Nationwide Towing! Call Now: 1-888-420-3808 (AAN CAN)

JANUARY 5–11, 2017 ISTHMUS.COM

LOCAL DRIVERS WANTED! Be your own boss. Flexible hours. Unlimited earning potential. Must be 21 with valid U.S. driver’s license, insurance & reliable vehicle. 866-329-2672 (AAN CAN)

Now hiring: Dietary Aides, Resident Assistants, C.N.A.’s, LPN’s, and RN’s.

Sign on bonuses for some positions. Apply today! www.oakwoodvillage.net

37

JONESIN’

n CLASSIFIEDS

“The Best of 2016” — yes, there were some things.

#813 BY MATT JONES ©2016 JONESIN’ CROSSWORDS

ACROSS 1 5 10 14 15 16 17 18 20

22 23 24 25 27 29

Hairless on top Had in mind Backstage access Lyft competitor Tree with chocolateyielding seeds “At Last” singer ___ James Red gemstone Singer whose “Blonde” was Esquire’s #1 album of 2016 Late Jeopardy! contestant Cindy with an inspiring six-day streak (despite treatment for Stage 4 cancer and running a fever during taping) Cries of exasperation Clubber Lang portrayer in “Rocky III” Shrewd 2016 animated movie with a 98% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes El ___ (Peruvian volcano) Furniture wood

ISTHMUS.COM JANUARY 5–11, 2017

P.S. MUELLER

38

30 Puts on, as clothes 31 One way to find out 32 Founder of analytical psychology 34 “Spy vs. Spy” magazine 36 With 38-Across, 2016 headline that ended a 108-year streak 38 See 36-Across 42 LBJ’s VP 43 Self-defense system with throws 44 “Westworld” airer 45 Beverage brand whose logo is two lizards 48 Dandified dude 49 Copier paper orders 51 Newfound planet similar in mass to Earth (from National Geographic’s “6 Science Discoveries Worth Celebrating in 2016”) 54 “S” on the dinner table 55 “Inside ___ Schumer” 56 “Blueberries for ___” (Robert McCloskey kids’ book)

57 Donald Glover dramedy called “the best show of the year” by the New York Times 60 What Bertrand Piccard flew around the world using clean technology (one of BBC’s “Four good things that happened in 2016”) 63 Mascara ruiner, maybe 64 “A horse is a horse” horse 65 “SNL” producer Michaels 66 Former Montreal ballplayer 67 Cong. gathering 68 Key near the quote marks 69 Goulash, e.g.

DOWN 1 They may get stuck to hikers’ socks 2 Lie adjacent to 3 Movie millionaire sought by a same-last-named “Dude” 4 Deadpan style of humor 5 “Back to the Future” hero Marty

6 “My Name Is ___” (Jason Lee sitcom) 7 Obamacare acronym 8 “___ of the North” (1922 silent documentary) 9 2020 Summer Olympics city 10 Chest muscle, slangily 11 “Resume speed,” to a musician 12 Be the headliner of 13 Seasonal mall figures 19 East, to Ernst 21 Actor Wood of “Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency” 25 Follow a jagged path 26 Bookie’s calculations 27 Cheese’s partner 28 “Kinda” suffix 29 Yoko who loved John Lennon 33 “I’m not touching that!”

34 Pretend pie ingredient 35 Opposite the mouth, in biology 37 Party mix cereal 38 Coffee holder 39 “And then ...?”

40 Watson’s creator 41 Head-shaking replies 43 “You had one ___ ...”

45 Hiccups, e.g.

46 At least 47 Actor Peter and singer Susan, for two 48 Jokey Jimmy 50 Cheers up 52 Jerusalem’s home: abbr.

53 Syrup flavor 54 Take the wheel 57 A Brontë sister 58 Record, in a way 59 Get your ducks in ___ 61 Freemium game interrupters, perhaps 62 Curator’s canvases LAST WEEK’S ANSWERS

Happenings AIRLINE CAREERS begin here – Get started by training as FAA certified Aviation Technician. Financial aid for qualified students. Job placement assistance. Call Aviation Institute of Maintenance 800-725-1563 (AAN CAN)

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Awesome Therapeutic Massage with Ken-Adi Ring.

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n SAVAGE LOVE

Just drinks

BY DAN SAVAGE

My brother is a virgin and turning 30 in a few weeks. He said he wants to hire an escort just for drinks and conversation for his birthday, but he doesn’t really know how to tell what’s a reliable service or what criteria he should be looking for to tell whether an agency is legit, reliable, etc. I’m very happy he came to me with this because I can tell it’s not something he wants to share with many people — but I don’t have any advice or knowledge to pass on regarding this and I want to respect his privacy by not discussing it with everyone in our social circles. Do you have any advice in regards to what he should be looking for?

My Younger Brother’s Romantic Order

JOE NEWTON

I’ve been reading your column for years, and it has definitely helped me develop a sex-positive view of dating, relationships, sex and otherwise. I’ve been seeing a girl recently who revealed to me she’s a cam girl. I’m totally okay with it. She makes a great living, it’s important to her, and it turns her on — all great things! But it’s something she likes to keep to herself, and for good reason, obviously. People, however, are obsessed with what other people do for a living. So what’s the best answer for when I’m asked what she does?

She’s as unsure of what to say as I am. I’m bringing her to a company event (I work in finance), and both of us are sure everyone is going to ask what she does (cocktail party small talk is the worst!). What are your thoughts on this subject and other things in a relationship like this?

Man Behind The Cam Girl Say this: “She’s an independent contractor with a video production company — she makes her own hours and works from home.

It’s a great gig. Oh hey, how about them Bears/Colts/Cubs/Broncos/Braves/WhateverTheFucks.”

I’m a tall, slender, attractive, fit, artistic, female 65-year old, taking testosterone, and now without a partner. I’m not sure how to go about engaging in noncommittal quick sex dates. I don’t know of any escort services for the ladies, but I would be interested.

I’m also interested in exploring the bisexual side of life. Where would you advise I go?

Curious and Wondering I’m going to echo Mistress Matisse and suggest diving into Sex Work Twitter. Most male sex workers target their ads/online presence to other males, since men are likelier to buy sex, but many male escorts are bisexual or straight but gay-for-pay. They’ll happily see female clients, as will many female sex workers, you just gotta ask — politely and, again, without talking about sex explicitly. Remember: You’re paying for the escort’s time, CAW, anything else that happens is just consenting adults doing consenting adult things.

For more of Savage Love see Isthmus.com.

Email Dan at mail@savagelove.net or reach him on Twitter at @fakedansavage.

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“Look to social media,” said Mistress Matisse, a writer, sex worker and sex-workers-rights activist. “Now that so many review boards have been taken down, social media is the best way to find a good independent escort.”

About those review boards: Law enforcement agencies, always on the lookout for ways to “save” sex workers by making their jobs more dangerous, have gone after online sites, aka review boards, where clients rated and ranked escorts and — more importantly — escorts communicated with each other about safety, clients to avoid (flaky, rude, unhygienic), and clients they absolutely shouldn’t see (erratic, threatening, violent).

Elizabeth Nolan Brown wrote a great piece for Reason about the issue last fall (“The Truth About the Biggest U.S. Sex Trafficking Story of the Year,” Sept. 9, 2016), and everyone should go read it at Reason.com.

Anyway, MYBRO, back to your brother and Matisse’s advice.

“I’m not saying ‘no social media’ equals ‘bad escort,’” said Matisse. “There are lots of good escorts who don’t have much of a social-media presence. But if you want to get to know a little about who someone is before you meet them, that’s just how you do it now.”

Another rarely discussed, perfectly legal alternative to figuring out if an escort is for real: Pay them to meet up for drinks and conversation, which just so happens to be all your brother wants (or all he’s willing to tell you he wants).

“Obviously, this is not a good option for the budget-conscious,” said Matisse. “But if you want to test your chemistry and create some trust on both sides before booking a private date, it’s a solid way to go. Note the keyword, though: PAY her for her time.

(Most ladies have a public social meeting fee that’s lower than private-time rates.)

And remember the basic rules when you do decide to set a private-time date: Don’t ask about sex and don’t talk about money other than to briefly acknowledge that you have seen her rates and agree to pay for her time.

Expect to use condoms and to abide by the rules of whoever you’re seeing.”

You can follow Mistress Matisse on Twitter @mistressmatisse.

Life is full of hard choices.

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