PASSING THE MIC – October 8-10
The Passing the Mic Series has become a signature event of the Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives (OMAI) and is an important component of the annual Wisconsin Book Festival. Now in its fifth year, the showcase First Wave performers from the UW–Madison, teams of teen poets and artists from around the country, award-winning feature artists including internationally renowned spoken word, hip hop and musical artists from across the globe. The three day Passing the Mic evening series of events are held annually at the Wisconsin Historical Society Auditorium and this year take place from October 8-10 and the outreach events and workshops tied to the series will take place in Madison public high schools and in different venues on the UW campus (all events are free and open to the public).
Thursday, October 8th
Get Up/Stand Up – OMAI-First Wave Wins 2009 Governor’s Arts Awards and OMAI Website Release Showcase
8:00-9:30pm
Wisconsin State Historical Society Auditorium (816 State Street)
Join the OMAI staff, First Wave students and friends as we celebrate winning the 2009 Governor’s Award in Support of the Arts, the first university arts program in the twenty-nine year history of the award to do so. The evening will feature special appearances and performances by friends of OMAI and some of the headliners of Passing the Mic. Additionally, Zebradog will unveil the dynamic new website they have developed for OMAI.
Friday, October 9th
Making Waves Showcase: From Hawai’i to First Wave through Chitown
7:00-8:30pm
Wisconsin Historical Society Auditorium (816 State Street)
Join two-time International Teen Slam Champion Hawai’I as they share their award-winning pieces that have taken the nation by storm (resulting in an invitation to the White House). Also featured will be Chicago-based artist and HBO Def Poetry Veteran Marty McConnell who will do a special set and the event will be closed by special First Wave hip hop theatrical shorts drawn from the Sophomore and Freshman cohorts.
Passing the Mic Spoken Word & Hip Hop Open Mic
9:00-11:00pm
Hosted by First Wave featuring the Midwest Youth Slam All-Stars
Wisconsin Historical Society Auditorium (816 State Street)
A special complement to Madison’s freshest monthly open mic, Just Bust!, this Spoken Word & Hip Hop event is hosted by First Wave and features the Midwest Youth Slam All-Stars. Come hear youth poetry slam champions from Madison, Milwaukee, Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland. Bring your own piece to share, get on the mic, and just bust! Sign up starts at 8:30pm.
Saturday, October 10th
A Tribute to Tico da Costa: A Celebration of Twenty Years of Building Cross-Hemispheric Arts Alliances through Music and Poetry featuring Guillermo Anderson (Honduras), Philip Montalvan (Nicaragua), Greg Landau (Bay Area), Tish Jones (Twin Cities) and the First Wave Hip Hop Music Ensemble
8:00-10:00pm
Wisconsin Historical Society Auditorium (816 State Street)
Join OMAI for a tribute event celebrating the amazing, enduring spirit of Tico da Costa, a Brazilian singer-songwriter who passed away in early September. Some of his closest Madison friends as well as some special international guests will perform and reflect on Tico’s legacy and the historic cultural connections between artists from Central and South America as well as the Caribbean and artists from Madison, WI, which two decades later led to the establishment of the Office of Multicultural Arts Intiatives. Don’t miss what promises to be one of the most memorable cultural events of the year.
Line Breaks Festival – Symposium & Performance Series – April 19-25, 2010
In 2007, Marc Bamuthi Joseph’s spring UW Arts Institute residency (OMAI & Afro-American Studies) created a major groundswell of support on campus to more systematically integrate spoken word and hip-hop aesthetics and activities into the fabric of university life. The Line Breaks performance & lecture series, then curated by Joseph & coordinated by OMAI, educated and electrified hundreds of students, faculty, and community members each week about the history, politics, and performance of hip-hop theater. The following year, Line Breaks returned to UW Madison as a week festival, showcasing some of the top performers around the country in the realms of hip hop-theatre and poetics. Next spring, we are proud to bring the 4th Annual Line Breaks series to the University of Wisconsin, Madison, with an all-star lineup of hip-hop artists and poets for 5 amazing days of performances, panels, and workshops. Presented by the Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives & coordinated by Willie Ney and curated by Creative Director Rafael Casal, Artistic Director Chris Walker and Office Manager Lauren Rutlin Young.
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Line Breaks Spring 2010 Schedule
MONDAY, APRIL 19 – TBA
TUESDAY, APRIL 20
First Wave Sophomore Cohort Hip Hop Theatre Ensemble presents
7:00pm • Wisconsin Historical Society
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21 – TBA
THURSDAY, APRIL 22 - TBA
FRIDAY, APRIL 23 - TBA
SATURDAY, APRIL 24
MARC BAMUTHI JOSEPH PRESENTS “THE BREAKS”
WISCONSIN UNION THEATER
8:00pm
Events held in conjunction with MCSC’S Hip-Hop as a Movement Week
Line Breaks CoSponsors Include:
Youth Slam
Semifinals - Dates, times and locations coming soon
Finals – February 26, 2010 at the Wisconsin Union Theater
Teacher Training Institute
Participant Applications will be available November 2009
