This Week in Milwaukee: June 1-7, 2023

Here are the Milwaukee events we are looking forward to coming up this week

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Pridefest kicks off the festival season, Gallery Night and Jazz take over Bay View, Wisconsin Bike Fed gets the lead out, a tribute to Manty Ellis, Dex Romweber makes an appearance and more—This Week in Milwaukee!

Thursday, June 1

Pridefest @ Henry Meier Festival Park, through Saturday

Celebrating its 35th anniversary, PrideFest, Milwaukee’s LGBTQ extravaganza, launches Cream City’s summer festival season (shepherdexpress.com/lgbtq/my-lgbtq-pov/pridefest-2023-celebrating-35-years-of-pride). This year’s headliners include Peaches, Cazwell, Big Dipper, DJ Shawna, DJ DripSweat, Murray “the Magician” Sawchuck (direct from Las Vegas), Bright Light, and Dance Pavilion host, local drag sensation, Melee the Queen, Araelee Berberbaby and many more.

The PrideFest family experience is also a high priority. “With the expanded Northwestern Mutual Community Park offerings, our Saturday family day is growing and features a full day's worth of activities for LGBTQ+ and ally families to experience fun shows, the playground and share space that encourages and empowers the family dynamic,” Wes Shaver, president and CEO of Milwaukee Pride, Shaver said.

Friday, June 2

Wisconsin Bike Fed: The Roll Out Bay View Gallery Night – Community Gathering @ Rushmor Records, 5:30 p.m.

Wisconsin Bike Week 2023 officially begins on Saturday, but here’s a jumpstart in conjunction with Bay View Gallery Night.

Bay View Gallery Night @ 70 locations

Celebrate local Milwaukee art, music, and local business on one amazing evening featuring hundreds of artists. Ride the shuttle as it runs in a continuous loop with stops at Lincoln Warehouse, Hide House Creative, Cactus Club and Enlightened Brewery 5 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. House of Gaud, a vintage furniture and home goods shop at the Lincoln Warehouse, is hosting Rachal Duggan aka Rad Illustrates, a Milwaukee-based illustrator and author. Known for her highly coveted booty portraits, Rachal’s new book “All Butts are Good Butts” will be featured in the shop.

MOR Bakery’s featured artist is Mb Squared Photography (Michael Burmesch), a traveling iPhone photographer capturing all of Milwaukee and greater Wisconsin. Eyes on the Lake will feature work from Milwaukee favorite Luke Chapelle. The Bindery, Milwaukee’s sole traditional book bindery, plus a community print shop offering letterpress, Risography, professional digital print/layout services will host a demonstration at 7 p.m., also featuring specialty zines and prints from local artisans, Robert Trettin and Nomka Egi.

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Voyageur Book Shop will preview Milwaukee’s first-ever typewriter festival, QWERTYFEST MKE (June 23-25); pick up a copy of Qwerty Quarterly Zine. Additionally, Anja Notanja Sieger will be typing custom poems and typewritten portraits.

Thrive Wellness Services features Diego Heredia, a local Xicano Milwaukee artist from the North Side of the city, who has been an active artist for the past 15 years. Recently, Diego began incorporating wood burning into his practice, creating pieces of art inspired by Central American Indigenous art (Zapotec ceramics, wooden masks, paintings; Mayan K’iche’ folklore, wood reliefs; Raramuri photos from childhood family trips to Chihuahua, MX and google images), animals, along with contemporary pop art. More info here: bvgn.org.

Bay View Jazz Fest @ Various Locations

Merging with BVGN, Milwaukee’s one and only free Jazz Festival at venues around the Bay View neighborhood, offers a wide swath of jazz including Milwaukee Jazz Institute Ensemble, Dave Bayles Trio, Adekola Adedapo and Octavio Arcanjo. 

Rev Pop hosts the album release of Jamie Breiwick’s  Awake Vol. 2 - The Music of Don Cherry. The album, Breiwick’s 15th, honors the late musician who said, “When people believe in boundaries, they become part of them.” Cherry’s musical vision drew on music of Africa, the Middle East and India. “Don Cherry went in so many different directions that it's really hard to put him in a box, Breiwick said. “He had deeply studied the music of Thelonious Monk, Fats Navarro, Charlie Parker and Clifford Brown, but also, African music, Reggae, European folk music … e even rapped on a track on his last record.”

More Friends, More Luv: Open Mic Night Hosted by Spider Creek @ Nō Studios, 7 p.m.

Spider Creek is a Milwaukee music collective consisting of roughly 30 artists ranging from musicians and producers to visual artists. Sonically, the group employs the term “genre fluid,” a phrase they coined to match their ability to hop between genres. On any given day you can hear a mix of hip hop, alternative, R&B, rock, blues and indie. This is a perfect opportunity for emerging musicians to gain experience performing to a live audience, to share your work and network.

Uptown Nights @ Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. (Through Sunday)

Inspired by Harlem’s famed musical hot spots like The Cotton Club and The Savoy, this swingin’ performance of musical sensations focuses on Harlem’s heyday when Duke Ellington’s orchestra was the house band, and Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald and Ethel Waters showcased the classics. Thrill to the vocals of Carmen Bradford, the fancy footwork of tap dancer Leo Manzari and conductor-trumpeter Byron Stripling as they share the stage with the MSO.

Saturday, June 3

Chain Reactions: A week-long celebration for a lifetime of inspiration is the theme for Wisconsin Bike Week 2023, June 3-10

Celebrate pedal power, socialize and get to know some of the great trails in our own backyard. Milwaukee offers a full schedule of Bike Week events including neighborhood rides, Pride Ride, rides at Urban Ecology Center, Hank Aaron State Trail, Phoenix Sober Social Ride, Wheel and Sprocket E-Bike Social Ride and more. More details here: wisconsinbikefed.org.

A Tribute To Manty Ellis @ Jazz Gallery Center for the Arts, 6 p.m.

April 27, 2019, was recognized as “Manty Ellis Day” in Milwaukee. Here is another chance to honor the musician and educator who has been at it his whole life. Celebrate guitarist Ellis, the godfather of Milwaukee Jazz at the historic venue he’s played at countless times. Sponsored by the Jazz Foundation of America, a performance will include Ellis on guitar, Jesse Montijo on sax, Victor Campbell on drums, Pam York on piano, Jeff Haman on bass and special guests.

Meditate Milwaukee - Lotus Rising: An Afternoon Bhakti Retreat with Seán Johnson & The Wild Lotus Band @ Blue Lotus Farm, West Bend

Meditate Milwaukee re-launched on Jan. 1, 2023, with 2,000 people at The Riverside Theater. While regular events take place at Sojourner Peace Center, this special event presents Seán Johnson from New Orleans to create a Meditate Milwaukee experience outdoors in nature. He will guide the meditation while The Wild Lotus Band plays music during the event to enhance the experience. The meditation from 12:30-1:30 p.m. is free. A separate event will take place afterward from 2-6 p.m. More info here: tickets.brightstarevents.com/tickets/lotus-rising-afternoon-bhakti-retreat-2023.

Sunday, June 4

Ride For the Arts: Bike the Hoan @ The Daniel Hoan Memorial Bridge, 7 a.m.

Wisconsin Bike Week 2023 offers you the opportunity to bike the Hoan. The new 20-mile closed Hoan loop course has expanded north on Lincoln Memorial Drive and continues to utilize I-794 from Downtown Milwaukee to Cudahy and back again. Completely closed to vehicle traffic in both directions and free of traffic lights, the ride is uniquely safe and smooth for all ages and abilities. The start and finish line party at the Summerfest grounds will feature performances from local artists. The Ride raises vital funding for 47 performing arts organizations energizing, educating and connecting people throughout Southeastern Wisconsin. Registration info here: wisconsinbikefed.org/bikeweekevent/upaf-ride-for-the-arts-and-festival.

Monday, June 5

“Milwaukee PBS at 65: Looking Back & Moving Forward” @ MATC Create Gallery, through Sept. 1

Help celebrate the 65th anniversary of Milwaukee PBS. The exhibit, “Milwaukee PBS at 65: Looking Back & Moving Forward,” is a chance to remember how Milwaukee PBS has evolved over its 65-year history and to celebrate the future. Attendees will have the chance to look at historic memorabilia as well as watch some clips of its incredible production accomplishments including “The Great Circus Parade,” “The Making of Milwaukee” and “The Great TV Auction. 

It also celebrates how Milwaukee PBS continues to serve the community with thought-provoking local programs like “10thirtysix,” “Adelante,” “Black Nouveau,” “The Arts Page,” “My Wisconsin Backyard” and “Rhythm Cafe MKE,” all currently in production.

Legendary Shack Shakers w/Dex Romweber and Viva Le Vox @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.

Twenty-five years into their worldwide crusade, Legendary Shack Shakers have become the leaders in the underground music scene’s “Southern Gothic” sound. Led by their charismatic front man, Col. JD Wilkes, the band continues to wow crowds with their explosive interpretations of swamp blues, rock n' roll and hillbilly music. 

Don’t sleep on opener Dex Romweber, who has long been an American music treasure. The real deal—as they say, he “has trolled the dark corners and back shelves of the haunted thrift store of Americana ephemera and honed an extraordinarily idiomatic sound,” Jack White, Neko Case, and the Reigning Sound as well as Ty Segall, No Age, Japandroidand The Black Keys have fallen under his spell.

Tuesday, June 6

Death Cab For Cutie w/Lomelda @ The Riverside Theater, 8 p.m.

Named for a Bonzo Dog Band song, Death Cab for Cutie rose from being a side project for Ben Gibbard to headlining theaters. Revisionist history? Twenty years after the release of Transatlanticism, The Dallas Observer called the album a masterpiece “and everybody knows it.” The band’s 10th album, 2023’s asphalt meadows, was also released in an acoustic version.

Wednesday, June 7

Tootsie @ Marcus Performing Arts Center’s Uihlein Hall, through June 11

Grab image at link

It’s been over 40 years since the hit comedy Tootsie played on the movie screens, wrote Harry Cherkinian: shepherdexpress.com/culture/theater/tootsie-on-stage-at-the-marcus-pac. And for many mainstream audiences, the popular film showcased a first of its kind: an out of work male actor, Michael Dorsey, desperate for any job, dressing up as a woman—Dorothy Michaels—for auditions. It works! Michael lands a major role on a soap opera and makes Dorothy—and the show—an overnight sensation.