Gateway to summer
Tommie Smith, a 1968 Olympics gold medalist and lifelong activist.
Tommie Smith Awards,
Thursday, May 27, 6:30 p.m.: A new collaborative event coordinated by Madison College and UW-Whitewater, the Tommie Smith Awards recognizes area athletes who are also working for positive change in their communities. The event is named for lifelong social justice activist Tommie Smith, who along with fellow medalist John Carlos made the world take notice with the âclenched fistâ gesture at the 1968 Olympics. Smith will speak about activism as part of the livestream, honoring Maka Chikowero (West High School), Jonas Luskey Sanders (Madison College), Eduardo Saucedo (Madison College), and Armari Tucker (Middleton High School).
A year of survival and reinvention
Artists, venues and organizations persist through the dark times
Arts-Barrymore-12-30-2020
The 91-year-old Barrymore Theatre will come out the other side of the pandemic, says general manager Steve Sperling.
Oh, the things I learned while talking to arts folks about surviving the COVID-19 pandemic. Bill Brehm, director of the Stoughton Opera House, planted grass for the first time this spring, and was enjoying watching it grow, except under the ferns. Steve Sperling, manager of the Barrymore, is more worried about Madison restaurants than music venues. Mark Bitney, a veteran Overture stagehand, has been keeping bees, playing trumpet and recording music. Kirk Stantis, executive director of the Bartell Theatre, kicked one of the door frames at the theater in frustration, and then apologized to the building.