This Month in Milwaukee

This Month in Milwaukee 9 THINGS TO DO IN MAY

BY ALLEN HALAS AND DAVID LUHRSSEN

Photo by TatianaMironenko/Getty Images.

THROUGH MAY 5 Milwaukee Film Festival

The Milwaukee Film Festival has returned to cinemas for the first time since the pandemic began. However, it will retain its hybrid status with many options for viewing from home. The festival, which began in April, continues into early May with screenings at three historic Milwaukee cinemas: the Oriental, the Times and the Avalon Atmospheric Theater. For information, visit mkefilm.org.

THROUGH MAY 29

“Then They Came for Me” 

Jewish Museum Milwaukee

“Then They Came for Me” contextualizes the racism that made the wartime internment of Japanese Americans possible and reviews the anti-Asian legislation that culminated with a ban of Japanese immigration altogether. The bulk of the exhibit consists of enlarged photographs on display panels accompanied by text. Many were taken by Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange and Clem Albers, acclaimed photographers employed by the federal government to document the internment. Eventually one of the captives, Toyo Miyatake, was able to take some of the pictures included in the exhibit.

THROUGH JUNE 16 Big Beat MKE Beat Battle Jackalope Lounj

Milwaukee’s hip hop scene will be on display in the Third Ward on Thursday nights throughout May and June, with the Big Beat MKE beat battle taking place at the Jackalope Lounj, the event space at The Wicked Hop. Sixteen producers will go head-to-head in a tournament to become this year’s champion, with two battles and two local artists performing every night. The May portion of the lineup includes sets from Nile, Yogie B & Keez, Kia Rap Princess, Cam Will and many more.

MAY 7 Body Futures, Stomatopod, Vacancy Chain Cactus Club

Local indie rockers Body Futures are playing their first Milwaukee show since 2018 as well as introducing a new bass player, Evan Gritzon into the fold. The band will get the chance to give a local debut of material from their Maybe It’s Just The Weather album, and they’ll be joined by Chicago outfit Stomatopod, fresh off the release of their third LP, Competing With Hindsight. The trio of acts will be rounded out by punks Vacancy Chain, making for a high-energy night of rock and roll.

MAY 7, 2022

Spring Ephemerals Walk with Justine Miller 

Lynden Sculpture Garden

Join horticulturist Justine Miller on a plant walk through Lynden's grounds with an eye toward Wisconsin native spring ephemerals. These plants are the earliest flowers to bloom and keep their growing season brief to take advantage of full sunlight in the bare woods. Participants will learn about their ecology, cultivation and how they can promote these beautiful species in their own yards. Register for the event at lyndensculpturegarden.org

Photo by Cavan Images/Getty Images.

Evacuees of Japanese ancestry from agriculturally rich Yolo County boarded onto a train. May 20, 1942, Woodland, California. Photo by Dorothea Lange. National Archives. Photo courtesy of Jewish Museum Milwaukee.

MAY 9 Michael Benson, Gangsters vs. Nazis: How Jewish Mobsters Battled Nazis in Wartime America Boswell Books virtual event

The Italian Mob didn’t care much for Mussolini, who crossed them in Sicily, but the Jewish Mob had a special sense of vengeance against Hitler. At a time when the U.S. remained neutral—and a pro-Nazi group could book a rally at Madison Square Garden (and the Milwaukee Auditorium)—Jewish gangsters were ready for war. Acclaimed nonfiction crime author Michael Benson divulges the role of Jewish mobsters like Meyer Lansky and Bugsy Siegel in fighting Nazi sympathizers in the years leading to World War II.

MAY 13-14

Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto 

Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Bradley Symphony Center

Johannes Brahms’ life was a whirlwind of creativity with masterpieces in every form of music he knew, except opera. Almost alone among 19th century German composers, he is credited with infusing the discipline of a Haydn or Schubert with the ardor of the Romantic movement. The MSO is pairing his piano concerto (featuring pianist Alessio Ba) with a work by Brahms’ contemporary, Antonin Dvorak’s Symphony No. 5, along with Flounce by contemporary Finnish composer Lotta Wennäkoski. Rising young conductor Ruth Reinhardt will lead the orchestra.

MAY 19 Kyle John Kenowski, Caley Conway, Scam Likely Linneman’s

Experimental folk musician and animator Kyle John Kenowski has made a name for himself within circles of arts appreciators. His unique sound and style garnered attention all the way up to working with Cartoon Network. Kenowski is heading out of the city, though, releasing music on what he calls an “infinite album,” Ourugorus Garden, along the way. An EP within the infinite album and a new animation will be premiered at the going away party, along with sets from Caley Conway and Scam likely.

MAY 28 Lest We Forget Turner Hall Ballroom

Part reunion, part memorial, but all celebratory, the Lest We Forget anniversary concert revisits the early punk and new wave scene in Milwaukee. With appearances from Dan Kubinski of Die Kreuzen (now The Crosses,) Johnny & The Losers, Wanda Chrome & the Leather Pharaohs, as well as Starship Jukebox, the music of bands like Those X-Cleavers, The Prosecutors, Lubricants and many more will be fondly looked back upon. The night will also feature sets from Xposed 4heads, 3 On Fire, Rock-A-Dials, Liv Mueller and more.

REINHARDT