Explore ‘Constellations of Love’ with Virtual Stargazing

Stargazing. (Pixabay License).

Each week, Urban Milwaukee is curating a list of events that are taking the necessary safety precautions provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in order to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

This week, there are plenty of safe ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day with a loved one. You can pick up some specialty strawberry-flavored Cream Puffs from the State Fair and do some virtual stargazing with the Milwaukee Public Museum. Need some last minute gifts for Valentine’s Day? The Milwaukee Public Market will have some special sweets and flowers available on Sunday morning. Milwaukee’s Giving Fest is still in full-swing, so if you’re looking for a good way to support local businesses while staying at home, there are plenty of virtual cooking lessons, tours, and arts and crafts to be had.

Ongoing: Visit Milwaukee’s Giving Fest

Because of COVID-19, this year’s Giving Fest will be entirely virtual. It is a series of over 50 events hosted by local businesses that help them raise money. For more information visit this website.

The new winter chalets at South Shore Terrace in South Shore Park (2900 S. Shore Dr.) are open for reservation. This is the county’s first winter beer garden season. The chalets can fit up to six people and there is nearby fire for warming up. Up to six people from the same household or two people from different households can share a chalet for $75, which includes a $50 food and beverage credit and a 90 minute time slot. The chalets are reservations only, and are available seven days a week. To reserve, follow this link or call 414-257-5616.

Ongoing: Florentine Opera Presents Shakespeare

The Florentine Opera Company is celebrating music inspired by Shakespeare with performances of classics from Britten, Gounod, Verdi, Finiz and more. The hour-and-a-half long program will take place in a secret room in a Milwaukee landmark home with ties to England and bootlegging. Historian John Eastberg will make an appearance to provide some historical background. The performance is digital only and can be purchased for $25 by following this link.

Ongoing: The BelAir Ice Bar

Bel Air Cantina’s Brookfield location (250 High St.) has unveiled its new 30-foot ice bar, made with over 10,000 pounds of ice, located in Market Square. The bar will serve specialty cocktails and there will be fire pits, ice sculptures and photo opportunities. A small food menu featuring Tortilla Soup and Gringo Nachos will also be available. The ice bar will remain until the weather starts getting a little warmer. For more details, visit the BelAir website.

February 11: Harley-Davidson Virtual Gallery Talk

Harley-Davidson is continuing its new Virtual Gallery Talks with a discussion titled Road Gallery, Part One. This week’s gallery talk will focus on selected motorcycles from the Road Gallery and will highlight the changes in look and functionality over time from the early models through the 1940’s. Guests will learn what drove the changes in the aesthetics, engineering and technology of the bikes. The talk will run for 45 minutes and will feature a Q&A session with Harley-Davidson experts. The event will run from 7 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. Tickets are $6 and can be purchased here.

What’s the best way to tell a Wisconsinite that you care for them? Buy them a Valentine’s Day Cream Puff, of course. The State Fair is continuing its holiday-themed specialty Cream Puffs with a new Strawberry Cream Puff. The fair is also bringing back its Cocoa Cream Puff that it unveiled for Christmas last year. Customers can purchase three-packs of Strawberry or Cocoa Cream Puffs for $14 each or six-packs of either flavor for $25 each. Pick-up for orders runs Thursday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. To place your order, visit this link.

February 13: Milwaukee Winter Farmers Market

There may be snow on the ground, but there are still farmers markets to enjoy, such as the Milwaukee Winter Farmers Market. The market, which is celebrating its 12th season, takes place on Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Greenhouse Annex at the Mitchell Park Domes (524 S. Layton Blvd.) until March 27th. The market will feature 30 vendors offering fresh local produce, baked goods, cheeses, handmade soaps and more. COVID-19 safety precautions and guidelines will be enforced, including a mandatory mask policy and restrictions on eating and drinking in the market.

February 13: Star-crossed Mexican Chocolate Churro Stout Beer Release

Valentine’s Day means plenty of sweets to be had in Milwaukee, and that includes some delicious craft beer. Indeed Brewing Company is celebrating love with the release of its new Star-Crossed Mexican Chocolate Churro Stout. The beer is an 8.5% abv stout brewed to emulate the cinnamon-sugary churro dipped in a chocolate sauce. The beer will be available in bottles and on draft the day of the release, with C-viche and Kompali Taqueria on-site serving Peruvian churros and tacos. To preorder 750-mL bottles, click here. Bottles are $17 each, and guests receive a complimentary churro with the purchase of two bottles.

Love isn’t just in the air this weekend, it’s in outer space as well. Take that special someone on a virtual exploration of the universe from the comfort of your home with the Milwaukee Public Museum’s special Valentine’s Day stargazing event. The three-hour event will explore constellations of love, and it promises to help you discover the “magic of the night.” As a bonus, participants can submit a four line or 50 word love poem for a chance to get their work featured in the show. Those interested can submit their poems to planetarium@mpm.edu. Tickets to the event cost $10 per member household and $15 per non-member household. The event will run from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

February 14: Valentine’s Day at the Milwaukee Public Market

The Milwaukee Public Market, with the help of Sugar Cube Donuts and Marius Bell, will transform the second floor of the public market into a one-stop shop for last minute Valentine’s Day sweets and gifts. Sugar Cube Donuts will offer White Chocolate Covered Strawberry, Vanilla Glaze, Chocolate and Cannoli donuts, and Marius Bell will sell Valentine’s bouquets. The event will run from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The market will require all patrons to wear a mask that covers both mouth and nose, and social distancing will be required and enforced by staff.

February 15: Milwaukee Rep’s We Rise: It Takes a Village

Milwaukee Repertory Theater is continuing its celebration of Black History Month with “It Takes a Village,” a platform for the Milwaukee Black Theater Community to showcase its work and explore the contributions that Black artists and administrators have made throughout Milwaukee’s history in the arts. The event will feature La’Ketta Caldwell from LUMIN Schools; DiMonte Henning (founder of Lights! Camera! Soul!); Chike Johnson (actor and founder of Cheeks Films); Dr. Donte McFadden of Milwaukee Film Fest Black Lens; Sheri Williams Pannell (Producing Artistic Director of Bronzeville Arts Ensemble) and Malkia Stampley (actor, director and co-founder of Milwaukee Black Theater Festival). The event is free and can be streamed on Milwaukee Rep’s Facebook and Youtube pages. The event will run from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.