Word up Wisconsin
News & Events from the Office
of Multicultural Arts Initiatives
* Youth Speaks Wisconsin * Cinefest * Latino Arts * Sin Fronteras *
February 2007
Hello! Looking for the perfect Valentine’s Day gift? Take your special someone out to the Teen Poetry Slam Finals and Marc Bamuthi Joseph showcase on February 24. Or meet a new match and boogie the night away at the DanceFest with SambaDá on March 3. Whatever your heart’s desire, we’ve got lots of events coming up designed to build community one couple at a time. We know the events are not listed chronologically, but remember that this multicultural arts movement is not linear—like life, like love, it grows cyclically. Enjoy…
In this issue…
1. Teen Poetry Slam Finals & Bamuthi Series Kickoff: February 24
2. First Wave Scholarship Series: March 3 and April 28
3. Teachers’ Institute Wins National Award, Returns this Summer: June 18-22
4. Soul Sessions Kicks Off Spring Season: March 10
5. Youth Speaks Wisconsin on PBS “Teen Connection”: February 20
6. Cipher Zone Celebrates One Year on the Air: February 17
1. Teen Poetry Slam Finals & Bamuthi Series Kickoff February 24
Poets and prodigies, friends and fans – we’re getting close to the big date: Saturday, February 24. Don’t miss the Grand Slam Finals of the 4th Annual Youth Speaks Wisconsin Teen Poetry Slam and the Hip Hop Theater Showcase of Marc Bamuthi Joseph. Meet me at the Union…it’s going down…
4th Annual YOUTH SPEAKS WISCONSIN TEEN POETRY SLAM
Semi-Finals
- Wednesday February 21
- West HS: 11:00 am
- Memorial HS: 2:40 pm
- Open Slam & PEOPLE Program - 7:00 pm at the Memorial Union Play Circle
- Thursday, February 22
- LaFollette HS: 10:00 am
- East HS with Shabazz & Affiliated Alternatives - 1:45 pm
Grand Slam Finals & Hip Hop Theater Showcase
Saturday, February 24 - 7:30 pm
Wisconsin Union Theater
hosted by Marc Bamuthi Joseph
$10 for all students with ID, $22 general admission
Presented in conjunction with WUD Theater Committee and UW Arts Institute
2. First Wave Scholarship Blowout Benefits:
March 3 and April 28
With many incredible student artists already accepted into
UW-Madison and soon the First Wave Spoken Word & Urban Arts Learning
Community, now it’s time to raise some scholarships to help these emerging
leaders attend the university and be a part of the country’s first integrated hip
hop college program. Mark your calendar for this spring’s top two parties with
a purpose: the First Annual DanceFest featuring SambaDá on March 3 and the Omar
Sosa concert on April 26.
First Annual DanceFest
Saturday, March 3 - 8:00 pm
Featuring SambaDá - California's # 1 Afro-Brazilian funk band
& In Black N' White - Milwaukee's reggae sensation
Great Hall, Memorial Union
$10 for all students with ID, $20 general admission
All Proceeds benefit First Wave scholarships
Presented by Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives (OMAI) and Dane Dances
More info and purchase tickets online at www.danedances.org/DanceFest
Omar Sosa and his Afreecanos Quartet
Featuring the Grammy-Nominated Afro-Cuban pianist Sosa and his
Latin Jazz band
Thursday, April 26 – 8:00 PM
Music Hall, UW-Madison Campus
$10 for all students with ID, $25 general admission
All Proceeds benefit First Wave scholarships
Presented by OMAI, Wisconsin Union Theater, and TheDailyPage.com as part
of The Isthmus Jazz Series
3. Teachers’
Institute Wins National Award, Returns this Summer: June 18-22
This past week, OMAI’s annual Summer Teacher Institute was
awarded the North American Association of Summer Sessions Creative and
Innovative Program Award. With that long title, you know it’s important, and we
are honored that "The Art and Science of Using Spoken Word and Hip-Hop in
the Classroom and Community" was selected from this very competitive
field of courses from universities across the U.S to take home the bacon,
I mean, plaque. Special congratulations go to co-instructors E.G. Bailey,
Roberto Rivera, and Professor Paula Wolfe for setting such a high standard with
the first annual institute. Perfect timing, as we are now gearing up for the
2nd Annual Teacher Institute and this time, we’re going national with it.
Teachers
National
Spoken Word & Hip Hop Educator’s Institute
June 18– 24, 2007
At the University of Wisconsin-Madison
Co-Instructors
Michael Cirelli & Martha Diaz
Presented by the Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives (OMAI) in conjunction
with Urban Word NYC and the Hip-Hop Association
Coordinated through the Office of Education Outreach
Featuring
nationally renowned guest artists and instructors
Sessions include “Hip-Hop History,” “Spoken Word as Art and
Pedagogy,” “The Role of Women in Hip-Hop,” “Youth Culture & Social
Justice” and will culminate in a closing Block Party, Open Mic Celebration, and
the 3rd Annual Hip Hop Revival
4. Soul
Sessions Kicks Off Spring Season March 10
We
know you missed it - we did too. That's why we're bringing Soul Sessions back.
Madison's top all-ages open mic and community cipher is returning for a spring
season on March 10 at a new and bigger location: The Loft at the Lussier Teen
Center. Watch out for special features from Milwaukee, Chicago, and of course
Madison's finest. It's going down every month: March 10, April 13, May 12, and
then culminating in the 3rd Annual Hip Hop Revival on June 22-23.
Soul Sessions Open Cipher
Saturday, March 10th – 8:00 pm
All-ages open mic, dance floor, turntables, and art space
Hosted by the Hispanic Panic MC and B-Boy Spirit
The Loft at the Lussier Teen Center. 827 E Washington Avenue
Sponsored
by Elements of Change & OMAI/Youth Speaks Wisconsin
5. Youth
Speaks Wisconsin on PBS “Teen Connection” Show: February 20
On February 20, Youth Speaks Wisconsin poets and mentors will
perform for the whole state of Wisconsin – everyone that’s watching Wisconsin
Public Television that night at least. Appearing on the live broadcast of “Teen
Connection,” UW Artist in Residence Marc Bamuthi Joseph, Youth Speaks
poets Lyjya Miles and Isabel Medina of Madison, Kyle Parker of Milwaukee,
and program director Josh Healey will each perform their own work and discuss
the Badger State’s growing spoken word movement. The show, which allows for for
viewers to call in live and ask the guests questions, will also feature
clips from last year’s Spoken Word Educator’s Institute and the Passing the Mic
Showcase Series. Go set your TiVO’s…
'Teens
and Poetry: The Spoken Word Revolution'
Tuesday, February 20 – 7:00 pm
A Live call-in TV program on Wisconsin Public Television and MPTV
With Marc Bamuthi Joseph, Lyjya Miles, Isabel Medina, Kyle Parker, & Josh
Healey
Channel 21 in Madison, Channels 10 and 36 in Milwaukee
6. Cipher Zone Celebrates One Year on the Air February 17
Cipher Zone, the official Youth Speaks Wisconsin radio show airing every Saturday 10pm – 12 am on WORT 89.9 FM, will celebrate its first full year on the air on February 17. The Cipher Zone collective is inviting the Madison community to join us in marking the occasion by participating in WORT's semi-annual pledge drive and calling in to win prizes on February 17 and 24. You can win CD’s, official Cipher Zone mixtapes, concert tickets, and other goodies, AND you can donate to support the show and WORT. Get in the Zone…
Cipher
Zone One Year Anniversary Special
Pledge Drive Special and Prize Giveaway Special
Saturday, February 17 & 24
10:00 pm – 12:00 midnight
WORT, 89.9 FM
Office of Multicultural
Arts Initiatives
* Youth Speaks Wisconsin * Cinefest * Latino Arts * Sin
Fronteras *
357 Bascom Hall
500 Lincoln Dr
Madison, WI 53703
(608) 890-1006
www.youthspeakswisconsin.wisc.edu