Hosted by the Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives (OMAI), UW–Madison
Dates: Thursday, October 23 – Sunday, October 26, 2025

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2025 – ARRIVAL DAY (Registered Youth & Chaperones only. NOT OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC)

3:00 PM Check-in at Hotel

6:00 PM Dinner at Hotel – Provided by OMAI (A casual welcome dinner for youth and chaperones to settle in and connect before festival programming begins.)

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2025 – A DAY IN THE LIFE - FW EDITION (Registered Youth & Chaperones)

8:00 AM Breakfast (Hotel Lobby – Continental) - Registered youth and chaperones ONLY

9:30 AM Shuttle departs hotel for UW–Madison campus (OMAI staff will meet the group in the hotel lobby and guide the transfer to campus.)

10:00 AM Opening Session – Welcome to Passing the Mic
- Location: Red Gym (716 Langdon St)

10:30 AM Morning Session I – Arts, Activism, Academics Workshop
This 90-minute session immerses participants in the First Wave pedagogy. Youth will explore the First Wave pillars—Arts, Activism, and Academics (AAA)—through an interactive generative workshop led by First Wave staff and Touring Ensemble members

12:00 PM Lunch (meal cards provided for registered youth and chaperones ONLY)

1:00 PM Transition / break

1:15 PM Wheelhouse Studios Tour (A guided visit through UW–Madison’s student art-making studios, introducing youth to hands-on creative spaces available on campus.)

1:45 PM Campus Walking Tour - (Led by Visitor and Information Programs, this walking tour highlights key academic and cultural landmarks across campus.)

3:00 PM Break

3:15 PM Academic Resources Presentation (Presentations from the Center for Academic Excellence (CCAS), the Pre-Law and Pre-Health Centers, and the School of Education.)

- Location: Red Gym (716 Langdon St)

4:00 PM Admissions Presentation Office of Admissions and Recruitment - (presentation introducing UW–Madison’s pathways, student support systems, and application process.)

5:00 PM Dinner Break (Registered youth and chaperones ONLY)

7:00 PM Evening Performance – Everything, Still (Open to Genereal Public)

OMAI welcomes acclaimed poet Angel Nafis, presenting a collaborative, interdisciplinary work with the First Wave Touring Ensemble. Blending poetry, movement, sound, and visual art, Everything, Still exemplifies the festival’s commitment to unity through creativity. Following the performance, Angel Nafis and the ensemble will join Professor Rogério Pinto (University of Michigan) for a conversation—held in partnership with the A2ru Conference—on art’s power to shape identity, memory, and social transformation.

- Location: Play Circle, Memorial Union

8:30 PM Shuttle departs campus for hotel
9:00 PM End of day / free time

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2025 – PASSING THE MIC ACROSS THE PILLARS (Open to General Public)

8:00 AM Breakfast (Hotel Lobby – Continental) - Registered youth and chaperones ONLY

9:30 AM Shuttle to MYArts (Madison Youth Arts Center) - 1055 E Mifflin St Madison WI

10:00 AM Welcome & Tour of MYArts (approx. 30 min)
Participants will be welcomed to MYArts and divided into groups for a guided tour of the facility’s performance and workshop spaces.

11:00 AM Day 2 Opening (Open to General Public)

11:30 AM Workshop Round 1 – Rest Is Liberation: A Workshop on Sustainable Care for Ourselves and Our Movements
This session explores how authentic rest and mutual care are essential to sustaining movements for justice. Participants will reflect on how rest can serve as a liberatory act that resists systems of oppression and supports long-term community well-being.

11:30 AM Workshop Round 1 – Hip Hop in Politics: Revolution in Verse
An interactive session exploring Hip Hop as a political and revolutionary art form. Participants will examine how artists have historically used verse to confront injustice and uplift marginalized voices and consider how they can use their own platforms for expression and advocacy.

12:30 PM Lunch (Registered youth and chaperones ONLY)

1:30 PM Visual Art Workshop – with Adam Villegas
A hands-on visual arts session that invites participants to experiment with materials and themes that connect identity, storytelling, and activism.

1:30 PM Movement Workshop – with Papa Kobina

Rewinding the TikTok - A dynamic dance workshop tracing the history of viral TikTok dance trends back through the roots of Hip Hop movement and culture.

3:00 PM Transition / short break

3:10 PM PE Round Table – with Eneale Pickett
Artist, Activist, and First Wave Alum Eneale Pickett leads a discussion on embedding activism into art practice, sharing his own experiences using design, fashion, and performance as tools for social change.

4:10 PM PE Cypher – Community Engagement Fair
A resource fair connecting youth with creative, academic, and activist organizations across Madison and UW–Madison. Designed to inspire participants to carry their learning beyond the festival and into their own communities.

4:55 PM Dinner (Registered youth and chaperones ONLY)

6:30 PM Final Performance – Everything Is Everything: Passing the Mic Showcase

The culminating event of the festival! This community open mic celebrates the voices and creative work of Passing the Mic youth alongside local Madison artists. Inspired by Lauryn Hill’s Everything Is Everything, this showcase honors collaboration, growth, and artistic truth-telling. Performances will span poetry, music, movement, and more—celebrating art as both archive and act of liberation.

- Location: MYArts Starlight Theatre

8:10 PM Shuttle departs MYArts for hotel

8:40 PM End of day / free time

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2025 – CLOSING & DEPARTURE (Registered Youth & Chaperones)

9:30 AM Closing Session & First Wave Application Workshop
OMAI leadership offers closing reflections and introduces the First Wave program application process, providing guidance for youth interested in joining the UW–Madison community.

11:00 AM Hotel Check-Out