Woodland Pattern’s Poetry Marathon Returns Live at Saint Kate

MILWAUKEE, WI—Woodland Pattern is gearing up for its 31st Annual Poetry Marathon, which will take place at Saint Kate–The Arts Hotel (139 E. Kilbourn Ave.) on January 25 and 26, 2025, from 10 am to 10 pm on both days.

Featuring performances from more than 200 poets of all ages, along with live music and film screenings, this year’s Poetry Marathon will combine the best aspects of Woodland Pattern’s previous in-person and virtual iterations of its beloved annual gathering, offering its first-ever hybrid version of the event, as well as its first off-site. Performances will take place in Saint Kate’s Arc Theater and will also be livestreamed via Crowdcast to online audiences.

In addition to several general hours featuring poets from the city and region, this year’s Marathon will showcase several Milwaukee– and Wisconsin–based small presses and journals—including Adjunct Press, Genre: Urban Arts, Moody the Zine, Oxeye Press, pitymilk press, and WYRD—along with special segments curated by organizations such as Indigenous Nations Poets, Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets, Wisconsin Poet Laureate Commission, and Veterans for Peace, as well as an episode premiere of Milwaukee Kitchen (which has been described as “the only surrealist cooking show” in the world), screenings of works by moving-image artists curated by Tahiro Suzuki and Janelle VanderKelen, and live improvisational music by Wilhelm Matthies.

Those attending the Wisconsin Poet Laureate hour will additionally be present for a special ceremony, as outgoing Wisconsin Poet Laureate Nick Gulig passes the title to the new incoming state Laureate, who will be publicly announced in early January.

A variety of ticket options for the live Marathon are on sale now through Eventbrite (a link can be found on the organization’s website) and can also be purchased at the door. Lunch and dinner, catered by Saint Kate and which includes vegan and gluten-free options, will be provided on both Saturday and Sunday for day- and weekend-pass holders, as well as for participating poets and performers. Marathon-goers from out of town or who would like to stay the night at Saint Kate will also find a link to discounted hotel rooms on Woodland Pattern’s website.

In addition to being a unique event, the Poetry Marathon serves as Woodland Pattern’s most important fundraiser, providing fuel for the year ahead in support of the organization’s numerous and wide-ranging literary and interdisciplinary arts activities, as well as for its major public initiatives like the Milwaukee Youth Poet Laureate and Milwaukee Emerging Poet Fellowship programs.

Presenting sponsors for Woodland Pattern’s 31st Annual Poetry Marathon are DeWitt LLP and 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 Fund.

For a full list of sponsors, participating poets, schedule of performances, and additional information—including links to purchase tickets, sponsor poets, book hotel rooms, and watch the event online—visit www.woodlandpattern.org/poetry-marathon.

ABOUT WOODLAND PATTERN

Woodland Pattern is a poet- and artist-run nonprofit book center, gallery, and performance space supporting the work of writers and other artists from Milwaukee and around the country. Dedicated to the discovery, cultivation, and presentation of poetry and the arts since 1980, the organization is home to a nationally recognized collection of poetry and small-press literature, and presents over 400 free and low-cost programs each year that support lifetime creative practices while encouraging exchange across the visual, sonic, and literary arts.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.