Passing the Mic 2026 Festival Schedule

The Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives (OMAI) presents the Passing the Mic 2026 Festival from October 15 through October 18, 2026. Below is the updated schedule for participants, scholars, chaperones.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2026 – ARRIVAL DAY (Registered Youth & Chaperones only. NOT OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC)

3:00 PM Check-in at Hotel (Fluno Center)

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 16, 2026 – A DAY IN THE LIFE - FW EDITION (Registered Youth & Chaperones)

7-9:00 AM Breakfast (Hotel Lobby) - Registered youth and chaperones ONLY

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.

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

1:00 PM Transition / break

1:15 PM Campus Walking Tour - (Led by Visitor and Information Programs, this walking tour highlights key academic and cultural landmarks across campus.)

2:45 PM Studio Tour - Tour of Studio living community, a first year student living community where all First Wave scholars live their first year.

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

4:30 PM Dinner Break (meal cards provided for registered youth and chaperones ONLY)

6:00 PM Raveena IACS (Open to General Public)

Interdisciplinary Arts Community Sessions (IACS), provide a platform for scholars, students, campus partners and the community to engage with artists across disciplines, anchoring real-world practice in academic context and cultural inquiry

7:00 PM Evening Performance – Raveena Concert (Open to General Public)

Tickets included in Passing the Mic Registration

8:30 PM End of day / free time

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2026 – PASSING THE MIC ACROSS THE PILLARS (Open to General Public)

7-9:00 AM Breakfast (Hotel Lobby) - Registered youth and chaperones ONLY

9:00 AM Shuttle to WYSO (Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras), 1118 E Washington Ave Madison WI

10:00 AM Welcome from OMAI Staff

10:30 AM Workshops Round 1 - 3 concurrent workshops, 90 minutes each

Histories’ Kindred: Storytelling across mediums and archiving the present. Interdisciplinary Storytelling workshop with visiting artist and First Wave 1st Cohort Alumna, Kayla Van Ert. In this experiential workshop session participants will look at the medium not as the message but the vehicle. Participants will practice how to find the root of the story, communicate it across different mediums and identify how the story changes or stays the same. Through these processes, participants will examine the importance and necessity of telling our stories to create the archive for the future and understand the artist’s role as keepers of histories and creators of our futures

Future Classics: Innovation for the moment and beyond. MC and Lyricism workshop led by visiting artist and First Wave 1st Cohort Alumna, Adam Levin (Defcee). Participants will ask what it means to be before your time and what it means to write for the moment and future. By examining Hip-Hop’s timeless classics and contemporary staples participants will come to understand their own work within a different context, and find the place their work sits within Hip-Hop’s historical dialogue. Offering them an opportunity to unlock innovation for themselves, expand their lyrical lexicon and find their personal voice.

Present Movement: Finding the moment and moving free. Movement workshop with choreographers from Barrio Dance Studio. Movement is intrinsically tied to Hip-Hop music and culture, it is human embodied memory and vital to a community’s ability to heal and get free. With more people worried about being recorded - we are less in the moment than ever. Hip-Hop is responsive, movement is reactive and in this workshop participants of all skill levels will be equipped with tools to become more comfortable moving with the moment, freestyling and responding to what you hear with what you know; further connecting you to the moment and the music around you.

12:00 PM Lunch (Provided for PtM attendees and Staff)

1:00 PM Youth Roundtable- Panel discussion and collective visioning session with Passing the Mic Youth and First Wave Scholar

3:00 PM Transition/Break

3:15 PM AAA Field Study- Multi-medium generative and investigative space. Stations in each of the workshop rooms for participants to create, experiment and collaborate within the mediums workshopped earlier in the day. Adding in opportunity for visual art space during this time as well.

5:00 PM Dinner Break (Provided for PtM attendees and Staff)

6:30 PM Passing the Mic Showcase, (Open to General Public)- Performances by First Wave Touring Ensemble, Passing the Mic youth and Barrio Dance

8:30 PM Return to Hotel, Fluno Center

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2026 – CLOSING & DEPARTURE (Registered Youth & Chaperones)

7-9:00 AM Breakfast (Hotel Lobby) - Registered youth and chaperones ONLY

9:00 AM Closing Session - Closing session will include opportunities for reflection, and information/reminders about how to apply to UW and the First Wave Scholarship.

10:00 AM Admissions Session- Admissions and First Wave staff will be present to support students in starting their UW and First Wave applications

12:00 PM Hotel Check-Out