30th Annual Poetry Marathon and Benefit! *ONLINE*

In honor and in memory of Janine Arseneau

Presented by the General Federation of Women’s Clubs–Wisconsin with support from DeWitt LLP and Juneau Park Friends, Woodland Pattern’s 30th Annual Poetry Marathon will feature performances from nearly 300 poets, musicians, and moving image artists from Milwaukee and across the globe. In addition to more than 100 poets from Wisconsin, this year’s event will include participants from 35 states and more than a dozen countries outside the U.S! Once again, all 24 hours of the Poetry Marathon will be livestreamed via Crowdcast. 

As you might imagine, we’ve got an amazing line-up. In addition to several community hours, this year’s Marathon will also offer special segments curated by partner organizations such as the African Poetry Book Fund; Indigenous Nations Poets; Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets; Wisconsin Poet Laureate Commission; and Veterans for Peace. Milwaukee-based presses and journals—including Genre: Urban Arts, Moody the Zine, pitymilk press, and Wyrd—will join in with small-press poetry publishers from around the country, including Bloof Books, City Point Press, Oxeye Press, and Sarka. And there is still so much more—not only additional curated hours, but also improvisational musical performances, short films curated by aCinema, and contributions from Milwaukee Kitchen (which has been described as “the only surrealist cooking show” in the world). Please be sure to check out our full schedule online!

As this is our 30th consecutive Marathon, we could not resist commemorating this anniversary with a couple of special keepsakes. Artist Nomka Enkhee has designed a special, limited-run T-shirt, along with a beautiful RISO-printed program, both of which are available to pre-order online.

In addition to being an extraordinary event and a beloved tradition for poets of all ages, the Poetry Marathon serves as a community-driven fundraiser. You can support the Marathon this year by helping poets meet their $50 pledge goal, or by signing up to sponsor an hour or more. Thanks to our community, funds raised through the Marathon each January have kept Woodland Pattern going strong for decades, providing fuel for all our programmatic activities in the year ahead.

As always, it’s the mix of voices that makes Woodland Pattern’s Poetry Marathon an authentic celebration of our shared humanity and the possibilities of language. We thank you in advance for honoring the many individual creative practices that compose and enrich our vast community. 

Sponsor a Poet: Visit our website or give us a call to sponsor a Marathon participant. You can make your donation on behalf of a particular poet, or if you’re unsure who to sponsor, consider a “Pledge a Reader” donation. Money received through these donations will go toward assisting a poet who is unable to meet the $50 pledge goal.  

Sponsor an Hour: Each hour of the Marathon is matched by a sponsor for that hour, and we still have a few hours in need of sponsorship! To underwrite an hour of the Poetry Marathon, contact Executive Assistant Molly Hassler at mollyh@woodlandpattern.org or call the center’s main line.

Major Sponsorships: In addition to hour sponsorships, the Poetry Marathon is supported by major sponsors at the presenting, premier, and supporting levels. To learn more, visit our website or give us a call and ask for Executive Directors Jenny Gropp and Laura Solomon.