Winter Festival of Poetry

Eight afternoons of poetry, each featuring six or seven Wisconsin poets, and all before we even hit National Poetry Month (April, of course). The fest revs up Jan. 19 at ALL with Madison poet laureate Stephen Espada Dawson along with Madison’s youth poet laureate Justin Festge Russell, Shoshauna Shy, Marshall Begel, Marilyn L. Taylor, and Breanna Grow. In upcoming sessions look for Isthmus contributors Guy Thorvaldsen (Feb. 2), Charles Edward Payne (Feb. 9) and Margaret Benbow (March 9), along with many other familiar names including Rusty Russell, Katrin Talbot, Marilyn Annucci and Adam Gregory Pergament. Note: series continues at ALL through Feb. 9 and moves to Cafe Coda Feb. 16-March 9. Find the full schedule of readers below.

media release: The 2025 Winter Festival of Poetry returns to the Arts & Literature Laboratory beginning Sunday, January 19 and running through Sunday, March 9. NOTE: The readings on February 16, February 23, March 2 and March 9 will be held at the Cafe Coda, 1224 Williamson Street.

SCHEDULE OF READERS

January 19 : Steven Espada Dawson, Justin Festge Russell, Shoshauna Shy, Marshall Begel, Marilyn L. Taylor, Breanna Grow.

January 26 : Sharon Rook Daly, Dominic Holt, Kimberly A. Blanchette, Kristian Petrov Iliev, Amanda Reavey, Rusty Russell.

February 2 : Martha Kaplan, Jeanne Tomasko, Marilyn Annucci, Andrew Yim, Guy Thorvaldsen, Janet Stutz.

February 9 : Katrin Talbot, Isaiah Janisch, Sara Parrell, Charles Edward Payne, Cristina Norcross, Joseph Lutz.

February 16 : Maliha Nu'Man, Araceli Esparza, Tim Walsh, Eileen Hocker, Dave Benson, Brenda Lempp, Richard Merelman.

February 23 : Lynn Patrick Smith, Carrie Voigt Schonhoff, Michael Strosahl, Jess L. Parker, Jo Scheder, Karen Redfield.

March 2 : Adam Gregory Pergament, Patricia Alea, Sujash Purna, Mark Kraushaar, Annie Sokovich, Becky Schigiel, Jenelle Clausen.

March 9 : Paul Creswell, Maureen O'Grady, Margaret Benbow, E. Hughes, Cynthia Marie Hoffman, Christine Reding, Richard Vargas.