Living in Madison has its year-round benefits, but summers in Wisconsin’s capital city can be really special. With a variety of festivals, outdoor music and sporting events to choose from, your calendar can fill up fast.
Here is just a sampling of what’s happening (mostly for free) throughout the city this summer:
Festivals
• Maxwell Street Days (July 17-20): Billed as “State Street’s Summer Sidewalk Sale,” this long weekend also includes expanded outdoor dining experiences, live music and special activities. The street even will be closed to bikes and bus traffic! Free
• AtwoodFest (July 26-27): One of the city’s premier summer festivals always delivers a colorful lineup (which this year will feature about 60 vendors) and three stages of live music. It’s held along a stretch of Atwood Avenue and is a terrific way to experience life on Madison’s east side. Free
• OutReach Magic Pride Festival (Aug. 17): This annual event hosted by the OutReach LGBTQ+ Community Center at Warner Park is now in its sixth year and features a stage show with LGBTQ+ performers, a large vendor area, and games and activities for families and kids. Free
• Taste of Madison (Aug. 30-31): Labor Day Weekend wouldn’t be the same without the Capitol Square’s largest picnic. This non-profit event offers more than 80 food vendors from Madison and surrounding communities, and also includes a variety of beverage options and local and national musicians. Free
Live Outdoor Music
• Concerts on the Square (June 25-July 30): For more than 40 years, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra has performed on summer nights in front of the Capitol Building. Each Wednesday brings a different theme, which this year will range from Motown to Mozart. Free
• Jazz at Five (Aug. 6-Sept. 3): The music doesn’t stop once the Concerts on the Square series concludes. Jazz at Five takes place at the South Hamilton Street side of the Capitol Square and features numerous local musicians. Free
• Olbrich After Hours (June 24-Aug. 12): This blend of live music, surprise popups, food carts and drinks celebrates every Tuesday’s golden hour between 6 and 9 p.m. Free, but a $5 donation is suggested
• Breese Stevens Field Concerts: Not only is Breese Stevens Field home to multiple professional sports teams (see below), but the historic stadium also hosts a series of big-name concerts each summer. This year’s lineup includes Queens of the Stone Age (June 20), The Flaming Lips/Modest Mouse (Aug. 14), “Weird Al” Yankovic (Sept. 12), and Halestorm/Lindsey Stirling (Sept. 21).
Sporting Events
• Madison Mallards and Madison Night Mares Home Games (ongoing throughout the summer): The seasons for the city’s summer collegiate baseball and softball teams are in full swing at The Duck Pond on Madison’s north side. The Mallards are celebrating their 25th season, and the Night Mares are in their second season.
• Madison Radicals Home Games (through July 20): Madison’s professional ultimate team is a hoot to watch, especially at historic Breese Stevens Field in the hopping East Washington Avenue corridor.
• Forward Madison Home Games (through Oct. 11): Breese Stevens also is home to Madison’s professional soccer team, which plays in USL League One and has some of the coolest team colors and merch in town.
• IRONMAN Wisconsin and IRONMAN Wisconsin 70.3 (Sept. 6-7): Whether you’re competing or not, there’s no better place to hang out than at the finish line along Martin Luther King Boulevard. You’ll be inspired, and maybe even motivated. Free to watch
By no means is this list intended to be inclusive, so I refer you to Destination Madison’s day-by-day events calendar here.
It’s time get out and explore this summer. After all, that’s part of the fun in realizing that Madison is a really cool place to live — especially at this time of year.
