True North Food + Music Festival: Saturday, Warner Park. Gates open at 1 pm. This year’s lineup centers on indie-folk, Americana, roots-country and rock from Wisconsin and beyond, with Nashville’s Langhorne Slim headlining. Also on the bill: Cory Chisel & The Wandering Sons, Dead Horses, Genevieve Heyward, Dusk, Louka & Co. with ModernArte, Free Dirt, Exchange and DJ Dish Pit. The festival also has a vintage market, kids market, and arts and crafts, plus restaurant food. Ticketed; tickets here.
Forward Madison FC vs. Spokane Velocity: Saturday, 5 p.m. Breese Stevens Field, streaming on ESPN+. The club is marking Hispanic Heritage Night and Family Night. Madison comes in off a 3-0 win over AV Alta FC that clinched a playoff spot, and is now aiming for a top-four finish and a home playoff match. Ryan Carmichael holds a club record of 12 goals in a single season going into the match. Tickets.
Monroe Street Festival: Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., 1600-2600 blocks of Monroe Street. Free. This is the festival’s 48th year. It includes street sales from neighborhood shops, food and drink specials, free outdoor music by local bands and international dance groups, children’s music and games, and a book sale at the Monroe Street Library. Henry the Lion from Henry Vilas Zoo is scheduled to appear, and there will be a bouncy castle and free face painting. Performances are at Monroe Commons by Trader Joe’s and in the Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream parking lot.
They Might Be Giants: Saturday and Sunday, 8 p.m., Barrymore Theatre. The band is on tour as an eight-piece, including a three-piece horn section. The first set each night features a different album, and the second set covers their whole career. Shows are 16+ and standing room. Saturday is sold out; Sunday tickets are still available. Tickets are $40 in advance and $45 day of show, and doors open at 6:30 p.m.
Also happening this weekend
- Cheese Fair Off the Square: Saturday, 8 a.m.-1 p.m., Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Free. Cheesemakers from around the state sell alongside the Dane County Farmers’ Market.
- Madison Vegan Fest: Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., William G. Lunney Lake Farm County Park, 4330 Libby Road. Free, with food vendors, exhibitors, children’s activities, speakers and live music.
- McFarland Community Festival: Friday through Sunday, McFarland Municipal Center.
- Verona Fall Fest: Friday, 4 p.m., Hometown USA Park. Includes bonfires, hayrides and a petting zoo.
- Kathleen Madigan: Friday, 7 p.m., Orpheum Theatre.
- Run Wild: Sunday, 8 a.m., Henry Vilas Zoo.
