Lyrical Sanctuary feat. Steven Espada Dawson
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Lyrical Sanctuary is UWM’s monthly open mic night! Celebrating 25 incredible years of poetic tradition, experience powerful spoken word, live art, and the opportunity to share your own creative expression. Be inspired. Speak your mind. Leave an impression.
Wednesday, September 9 | Workshop, Open Mic & Performance
6:00 PM – 6:45 PM | Creative Writing Workshop | Union 119
Embracing Change: On Trapdoors, Trojan Horses, and Quicksand
In this generative workshop, we will explore how the trajectory of a poem changes—not only in subject, but in pressure, direction, temperature, music, and emotional truth. Together, we will look at the concept of the volta, or “turn,” and consider how a poem might pivot suddenly or slowly: like a trapdoor opening beneath the speaker, a Trojan Horse revealing what it has been carrying all along, or quicksand quietly changing the ground beneath us.
7:00 PM – 9:00 PM Open Mic & Feature Performance | Union Fireside Lounge
Steven Espada Dawson is the author of Late to the Search Party (Scribner, 2025). From East Los Angeles and the son of a Mexican immigrant, he has received fellowships from the Academy of American Poets, the Poetry Foundation, and the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing. His poems appear in many journals and have been anthologized in Sarabande’s Another Last Call, Best New Poets, Best of the Net, and Pushcart Prize. He has served as a poetry editor for Copper Nickel and Sycamore Review and has taught creative writing at universities, libraries, and prisons across the country. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin, where he serves as poet laureate.
Wednesday, September 9 | Workshop, Open Mic & Performance
6:00 PM – 6:45 PM | Creative Writing Workshop | Union 119
Embracing Change: On Trapdoors, Trojan Horses, and Quicksand
In this generative workshop, we will explore how the trajectory of a poem changes—not only in subject, but in pressure, direction, temperature, music, and emotional truth. Together, we will look at the concept of the volta, or “turn,” and consider how a poem might pivot suddenly or slowly: like a trapdoor opening beneath the speaker, a Trojan Horse revealing what it has been carrying all along, or quicksand quietly changing the ground beneath us.
7:00 PM – 9:00 PM Open Mic & Feature Performance | Union Fireside Lounge
Steven Espada Dawson is the author of Late to the Search Party (Scribner, 2025). From East Los Angeles and the son of a Mexican immigrant, he has received fellowships from the Academy of American Poets, the Poetry Foundation, and the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing. His poems appear in many journals and have been anthologized in Sarabande’s Another Last Call, Best New Poets, Best of the Net, and Pushcart Prize. He has served as a poetry editor for Copper Nickel and Sycamore Review and has taught creative writing at universities, libraries, and prisons across the country. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin, where he serves as poet laureate.
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Where is it happening?
Union Fireside Lounge, 2200 E Kenwood Blvd, Milwaukee, WI 53211-3361, United States
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
Host or PublisherUWM Sociocultural
