In collaboration with Madison Public Library and UW-Madison’s Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives, the Go Big Read program is hosting a series of workshops for community members to create performance pieces that speak to themes addressed in the 2025-2026 Go Big Read book, James by Percival Everett.
“I have yet to choose a name” is a generative workshop series centered around themes of history, memory, imagination and creative expression as a means to reclamation and self-identification. In these workshops we invite participants to create, collaborate, and engage in “retellings” of their own stories and lived experiences. Through this workshop series we hope to offer participants an opportunity to connect, create and imagine futures for themselves and our communities. Selected workshop participants will be invited to share their work within the 2026 Line Breaks Festival at the Community Performance Showcase “My Name Became My Own”.
“I have yet to choose a name.”: Creative Expression, Storytelling, and Writing Our Futures (Workshop #1)
Saturday, December 13, 2025
1:30-3:30pm
Madison Central Public Library, Room 302 (201 W Mifflin St, Madison, WI 53703)
“I have yet to choose a name.”: Creative Expression, Storytelling, and Writing Our Futures (Workshop #2)
Wednesday, February 11, 2026
6:00-8:00pm
Madison Central Public Library, Room 302 (201 W Mifflin St, Madison, WI 53703)
“My name became my own.”: Community Performance Showcase presented by OMAI, Go Big Read, And Madison Public Library
Friday, March 20, 2026
6:00-8:00pm
Madison Central Public Library, Room 301 & 302 (201 W Mifflin St, Madison, WI 53703)