Woodland Pattern's 32nd Annual Poetry Marathon

Woodland Pattern’s Marathon is a life-affirming celebration of voices from every corner of our community. As the baton passes from poet to poet, hour after hour, you will hear from children and seniors and people of every age group in between; from writers of varied heritages, backgrounds, and experiences; from Milwaukeeans, Wisconsinites, and from people across the country and globe; from poets writing in diverse languages (including invented ones); and from poets at every stage of their practice—from those sharing their work for the first time and from those who have spent a lifetime doing so. More than any singular performance, it is this range of voices and the equal attention each one receives that most deeply inspires us, year after year.

In addition to poetry addressing every subject imaginable, be prepared to also enjoy live music, screenings of moving-image works, and some special surprises. Performances will take place in the Arc Theater at Saint Kate and will also be livestreamed via Crowdcast.

In order to create the greatest access, Woodland Pattern is presenting its Poetry Marathon this year as a Give What You Can event, with a minimum suggested donation of $10 and various thoughts on higher tiers depending on how long you are staying—and, more importantly, how much you are eating! Though Saint Kate is generously offering us its Arc Theatre venue for free, each meal will cost approximately $25 per person.

 So, here are some suggested ticket levels to consider:

• Staying for a few hours and not partaking in meals? $10
• Staying for a half a day and joining for lunch or dinner? $35
• Staying for a whole day and eating a couple of meals with us? $75
• Spending the entire weekend with us? $125

That said, we offer an important reiteration: We want all Marathon-goers to attend for the love of community and poetry, so please Give What You Can! (And if you are reading in the Marathon and raising funds, your meals are on us—so please allow us to feed you!)

Tickets can be purchased in advance online via our website, or at the door.

Discounted hotel rooms at Saint Kate for Marathon-goers are also available through our .

In addition to being an extraordinary event and beloved tradition, the Poetry Marathon serves as a community-driven fundraiser. Participating poets attempt to raise $50. Those contributions are then matched by a sponsor for the hour and supplemented by major sponsorships. All funds raised are then reinvested right back into our community through hundreds of free programs that support creativity at every stage of human life.

We hope you will join us for Woodland Pattern’s biggest event of the year and for what promises to be an electrifying weekend of live poetry and performance! Tickets may be purchased in advance or at the door.

For more information, to sponsor poets, or to stream our live broadcast, please visit our .

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THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!

This year’s Poetry Marathon is generously presented by DEWITT LLP and by WISCONSIN’S OWN LIBRARY, a unique collection of Wisconsin authors and illustrators owned by the General Federation of Women’s Clubs–Wisconsin, with funding provided by the Gwendolyn M. Schultz Charitable Trust. 

Ode-level sponsors include Juneau Park Friends, Paula Kiely, and Margaret Rozga, with individual hours presented by The Book Drop, Café Corazón, Karen Campbell & Kevin Ronnie, Brenda Cárdenas & Roberto Harrison, Educators Credit Union, Eastside Family Chiropractic, Greg Flegel & Rich Greene, Karl Gartung & Anne Kingsbury; Genre: Urban Arts, Peter Goldberg, Metro Eye, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, Reuter & Associates, RitzHolman CPAs, Riverwest Currents, Riverwest Realty, Jill Sebastian & Jake Fuller, Transfer Pizza, WE Energies, the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets, The Weird Times, James R. Wilson, and Mary Gute Witte & Ned Witte.

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Host or Publisher Woodland Pattern Book Center