Off limits A look behind some doors that are usually closed Christopher Guess on Friday 08/21/2009, (1) Recommendation This photo essay is the result of a three-month attempt to gain access to areas of Dane County that most people have never seen. Most of these places receive public funding and yet restrict access to taxpayers. The people in charge were usually baffled about why we wanted to photograph their facilities. The answer: We hope to shine a light on places that are behind closed doors and electronic locks, but have a significant effect on local life. >More
NEWS
'Four Lakes' sculpture hits State Street Joe Tarr on Thursday 08/20/2009, (1) Recommendation The city of Madison has quietly unveiled its latest piece of public art. Called "Four Lakes," the $230,000 sculpture sits on the pedestrian section of Frances Street on the south side of State Street (next to State Street Brats). >MoreAlder: Mayor's pick is a Plant Cieslewicz appoints own aide to public safety committee Joe Tarr on Thursday 08/20/2009 Madison Ald. Paul Skidmore has been adamant that Mayor Dave Cieslewicz can name whomever he wants to city committees. As he told Isthmus regarding a recent dust-up, "I'm not comfortable with someone saying you can't appoint this person or you can't take this person off. I think that's wrong." >More
MUSIC
Ken Lonnquist never stops entertaining kids -- and everyone else Hard at work in Kenland David Medaris on Friday 08/21/2009 Free-spirited and spontaneous, imbued with boundless energy, driven by a relentless creative impulse. A cross between Dylan, Cheech & Chong and Elmo. That's how his closest friends describe Ken Lonnquist. >MoreSteez synthesizes the local scene Adding electronics to the jam sound Rich Albertoni on Friday 08/21/2009, (1) Recommendation The synthesizer is eclipsing the guitar as the primary voice in the most influential pop now being made. From the simple synth riffs that define MGMT songs like "Kids," to baroque compositions such as Animal Collective's "My Girls," the synthesizer is increasingly the heart and soul of 21st-century pop. >MoreLikely Stories: Self-Titled (Porch String) Rich Albertoni on Friday 08/21/2009 Tracy Jane Comer, Dave Schindele and Nancy Rost have teamed up to make the most creative concept album to come out of Madison so far this year. >More
An Rx for the Dems Some suggestions on saving the plan to 'reform' health care Rick Berg on Thursday 08/20/2009, (1) Comment When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Some head home to town hall meetings to face down the mobs; the president goes to sanitized town hall meetings in airport hangers (who said all of "W"'s ideas were bad?); Sarah Palin walks away in search of a higher calling; and Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle says he's had enough and won't be running for a third term in 2010. >MoreLolita in a cubicle Old dude lusts for young co-worker on Thursday 08/20/2009, (1) Recommendation Dear Tell All: My dilemma is that working, as I do, in a cubicle in an office in a building that is filled with what I call the young nubiles and considering I am well beyond the age of nubile attraction, it hurts me that there is one that has captivated me beyond the reasonable level of wanting to look down her low-buttoned shirt as often as possible and has burdened, nay, forced me to become acquainted with... >More
Young workers pitch in with Evita production by Four Seasons Theatre Don't cry for me, student interns Jay Rath on Friday 08/21/2009 When Four Seasons Theatre opens Evita this weekend, another, shadow production will occur backstage: 16 students are working as interns with the professional production staff. Ralph Russo, director of the Union Theater, counts himself as a fan whenever Four Seasons produces there. But besides what happens on stage, he says, "It’s the experiential learning piece of what Four Seasons does that we value so much." >MoreKennedy Center brings 'Arts in Crisis' symposium to Overture Jay Rath on Friday 08/21/2009 Michael Kaiser, president of the Washington, D.C., John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, will lead a symposium on "Arts in Crisis" at Overture Center Aug. 24. Among issues for nonprofits he’ll address are fundraising, board relations, budgeting and marketing during the recession. >MoreProject Runway takes a long, strange route to its sixth season Fashion casualty on Lifetime Dean Robbins on Friday 08/21/2009 The sixth season of the fashion series Project Runway had been in limbo for the past year. But it's hard to believe the rancor won't seep into the series itself. >More
MOVIES
It's Brad Pitt versus the Nazis in Inglourious Basterds Tarantino at war Marc Savlov on Friday 08/21/2009 As with puppies and nudity, you can never go wrong by sprinkling a whole mess of dead Nazis in your film, a truism that Quentin Tarantino takes to heart (and, via Louisville Slugger, head) in Inglourious Basterds, an in-name-only remake of the 1978 Enzo Castellari World War II outing. >MoreThe Stoning of Soraya M.: Brutal punishment Marjorie Baumgarten on Friday 08/21/2009 The Stoning of Soraya M., an impassioned, American-financed drama, is in service to the filmmakers' opposition to the religiously sanctioned stoning of inconvenient or insubordinate Muslim women in Iran and elsewhere. So far, so good. >More
Spring Green's winning dining options Take me to the river... and the bank Raphael Kadushin on Friday 08/21/2009, (1) Comment, (2) Recommendations Given Spring Green's status as a cultural center, the town should be crammed with top chefs playing with the culinary culture. But the dining options, at least until recently, have been limited. >MoreMadison's five best ice cream sundaes The sweetest scoop Erin Hanusa on Friday 08/21/2009, (4) Recommendations It takes a special person -- someone selfless, really -- to sample a lot of sundaes for the benefit of the community. But enough about me. Readers of Isthmus, I ask you: What better way can there be to give thanks for this wondrous dairyland we live in than to enjoy a sundae on a hot summer afternoon? Here are five of Madison's greatest. >More
SPORTS & RECREATION
A lapsed Vikings fan's dilemma over Brett Favre Jason Joyce on Thursday 08/20/2009 A couple years ago in this space, I wrote about how Brett Favre's steady, managed, almost methodical play in Green Bay had won me over, after a lifetime of being a Minnesota Vikings fan. I leaped aboard the Packers bandwagon and rode it all the way to the NFC championship game, when the Pack lost in overtime to New York. Now what the hell am I supposed to do? >More
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