Are you tired? Burned out? In need of tangible advice from local artists dressed as zebras, lobsters, and horseshoe crabs? Of course you are. So be sure to check out “Voices From The Animal Kingdom,” coming to the Washington Park Media Center, 4303 W. Vliet St., Friday, April 24.
The free, all-ages event is the whimsical brainchild of Milwaukee artist and poet Anja Notanja Sieger. Best known for her live typewriter poetry, Sieger has done “Advice Tent” pop-ups in the past. “Voices From The Animal Kingdom” will be similar in that attendees will be invited to write down one “intentional question”; it’ll be different in that the answers will be doled out silently by artists assuming the identities of animals “they’ve thoroughly researched.” Artists/animals will draw, paint, dance, mime, or type their answers.
“As a kid I figured we’d all solve the climate crisis, mostly get rid of cars, and convert to community compost energy by the time I turned 40. Instead, it appears jaded disillusionment and resigned helplessness are at a worldwide high as I’m about to turn 39,” Sieger says in a press release. “If complex-brained humans are too overwhelmed to deliver answers, maybe it’s time to pipe down and listen to the wild animals.” (Animal costumes for attendees are encouraged but not required.)
The event—made possible by a 2026 Joy Engine grant—will take place between 6-10 p.m. during the 43rd & Vliet Near West Side neighborhood open house. DJ Invis will provide music. Here are the artists/animals:
Amanda Reavey: Phillipine Tarsier
Van Rung: Buff Tip Moth
Victoria Robison: Jellyfish
Becca Segal: Mantis Shrimp
Luna Sachse-Abrechse: American Barn Owl
Sindie Ho: Cone Snail
Kate Pociask: Fennec Fox
Michael Laurito: Lobster
Anna Rodriguez: Horseshoe Crab
Rosalie Robison: Zebra
Dylan Olive Dornfeld: Spotted Hyena
Anja Notanja: Bowerbird
Lamont Smith: Star-Nosed Mole
Lucas Alamo: Secretary Bird/Jackson’s Chameleon
Jessi Miller: “An entire animal menagerie”
Oh, and Washington Park Media Center’s own Wes Tank will play the part of beloved natural historian David Attenborough. Beautiful.
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