Fall is in full swing, and Madison is suffused this weekend with the sights, sounds, and scents of the busy arts and advocacy season. The calendar includes: the Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival; Gallery Night, a Room of One"s Own grand reopening; comedy by The Capitol Steps, and Hal Sparks with John Fugelsang; a production of Acts to Grind V; performances by the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and Madison Bach Musicians; the B-Side Records 30th anniversary party; more live music from Gossip, Serengeti, Hundred Waters, Woods, Peter Yarrow, Corey Smith, Freelance Whales, and Dubtonic Kru; and, the Found Footage Festival.
Friday 10.5
NOTEWORTHY: Public Broadcasting Service founded, 1970.
Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival
Frequency, 6 pm. Also Saturday, Oct. 6, UW Library Mall, 11:30 am-6:30 pm; and Sunday, Oct. 7, 1-4 pm, with march to Capitol at 4:20 pm
This yearly celebration of all things hemp is more than an excuse to party like it's 1969 -- it takes seriously its push for deregulation and decriminalization of marijuana. The festivities kick off with a medical cannabis benefit at the Frequency. Other highlights include a fashion show, a rally and a Sunday march to the Capitol.
5-9 pm
The semiannual showcase for Madison's visual-arts scene includes special events at over 50 venues. Highlights include "The Singing Bird Room of Robert Lostutter" at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, with a talk by the Chicago Imagist; new paintings by Lee Weiss and her daughter Jo at Fanny Garver Gallery; the premiere of Kiera Faber's "Completely Human" at the Center for Photography at Madison; and works by Holly Cohn and Martha Glowacki at the new Edgewood College Gallery.
Grand Opening Events
A Room of One's Own, Oct. 5-11
The venerable indie bookstore celebrates its new space at 315 W. Gorham St. with several readings, including best-selling novelist Chris Cleave (Friday, 6:30 pm); gay fiction writers David Pratt and Mark Zubro (Sunday, 2 pm); novelist Antoine Wilson (Wednesday, 6:30 pm); and Madison-based children's-book legend Kevin Henkes, who'll feature his lovely Penny and Her Doll for beginning readers (Thursday, 4:30 pm).
Overture Hall, 8 pm
Take a break from the nonstop political grind by poking fun at it. These former legislative staffers and their cronies put the pun in punditry with a smart, bipartisan musical revue mocking life inside the Beltway.
Encore Studio, 8 pm. Also Saturday, Oct. 6, 2 & 8 pm
Encore Studio for the Performing arts, the professional theater company for people with disabilities, opens its season with a collection of original vignettes. This fifth iteration explores depression, schizophrenia and Winnie the Pooh.
Overture Center's Capitol Theater, 8 pm
To open its 2012-13 indoor season, the orchestra has teamed up with the 5 Browns, a quintet of siblings who plays five grand pianos at once. They'll perform a work the Chicago Symphony commissioned just for them.
Majestic Theatre, 9 pm
Though nodding is the motion of choice for many Madison show-goers, this post-punk trio will take extreme measures to get the crowd to dance. See if they succeed. With Magic Mouth and Bonnie Montgomery.
UW Union South Sett, 9 pm
Chicago's Serengeti has vowed to "put the fun back in hip-hop" with his new, Robert Christgau-approved album, C.A.R. With Bi-Polar Bear and Junk Science.
High Noon Saloon, 9:30 pm
Earthy vocals and graceful electronics converge when these cooing songbirds take the stage. With Psychic Twin and Samantha Glass.
UW Memorial Union Terrace, 9:30 pm
This falsetto-loving folk band from Brooklyn, N.Y., will share selections from Bend Beyond, a new album Pitchfork has described as "effervescent and sweetly touching." With Exitmusic.
Saturday 10.6
B-Side Records 30th Anniversary Party
High Noon Saloon, 4:30 pm
B-Side Records and the compact disc both turn 30 this month. Celebrate with some album shopping and performances by the Low Czars and Post Social.
First Unitarian Society, 7:30 pm
The accomplished English soprano Amy Haworth of the Tallis Scholars joins the chamber ensemble for "Baroque Vocal Masterworks" by the likes of Bach, and Handel.
Stoughton Opera House, 7:30 pm
The Peter from '60s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary has made lots of waves in his 74 years on Earth, from releasing the controversial "Puff, the Magic Dragon" in 1963 to co-organizing the monumental March on Washington in 1969. Commune with the spirit of protest at this show.
Overture Hall, 8 pm
Subtitled "Magical Music from the Movies," this touring show features four singers performing songs from the likes of The Little Mermaid and The Lion King, backed by the Wisconsin Pops. The multimedia experience includes projected images from the films, plus original storyboard artwork.
Barrymore Theatre, 8 pm
Sparks and Fugelsang are whip-smart liberal commentators and comedians, known for their appearances on radio and TV talk shows. They team up for a "Politics, Sex & Religion" comedy tour, merrily delving into those hot-button topics.
Majestic Theatre, 9 pm
Smith's blend of country, rock and blues has made a splash on six different Billboard charts, including Heatseekers, Indie and Top 200. With Adam Ezra.
Redamte Coffee House, 9 pm
This indie-pop band bucked the trend of moving to Brooklyn, N.Y., by choosing Queens instead. See if their sophomore release, Dilvuia, is equally daring while soaking up their three-part harmonies and SPIN-lauded stage presence. With Geographer.
UW Memorial Union Terrace, 9:30 pm
Enjoy 2012's last few hints of summer with this award-winning reggae band from sunny Jamaica. With Kool Johnny Kool and DJ Trichrome.
Sunday 10.7
NOTEWORTHY: Cats opens on Broadway and runs for 18 years, 1982.
Majestic Theatre, 8 pm
Stoughton natives Nick Prueher and Joe Pickett, veteran comedy writers from The Colbert Report and The Onion, return with another touring show of laughably awful video footage, discovered at garage sales and thrift stores. Among the highlights: classroom films from the '60s and '70s.
