September 26-29, 2024 at Unity Village, Missouri
This powerful conference brings together writers, storytellers, performers, musicians, educators, activists, healers, health professionals, community leaders, and more! Together we explore the written, spoken and sung word, seeking to find how it can bring liberation, celebration, and transformation to individuals and communities.
Travel and lodging information.
(If you join the TLA Network as a member, you will save on the conference now, and on classes and other offerings later.)
Conference ScheduleAll times listed are U.S. Central Time (UTC -5) Thursday, September 26, 2024:4-6 p.m.—Check-in for pre-conference 6-7 p.m.—Dinner 7-9 p.m.—Pre-conference: Poet Laureati: A Celebration with Midwest Poets Laureate: Huascar Medina, Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, Eric McHenry, Maryfrances Wagner Love poetry but can't make the whole conference? Join us Thursday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. for our special in-person event "Celebration with Midwest Poets Laureate: An evening with the Power of Words". Friday, September 27, 2024:Pre-Conference9:30–12 p.m.—Pre-Conference Workshops:
12-1 p.m.—Lunch 2:30-5:00 p.m.—Pre-Conference Workshops
Conference:4-6 p.m.—Check-in 6-7 p.m.—Dinner 7-8:30 p.m.—Opening session:
9-10 p.m.—Song Circle
Saturday, September 28, 2024Conference:7-8 a.m.—Nature Walk with Ken Lassman 9-10 a.m.—Talking Circles
10:15-11:30 a.m.—Workshop session #1; 5 concurrent workshops
12-1 p.m.—Lunch 1-2 p.m.—Keynote performances
2:15-3:30 p.m.—Workshop session #2; 5 concurrent workshops
3:45-5 p.m.—Workshop session #3; 5 concurrent workshops
5-6 p.m.—Immersions: Music, Story, or Energy; 3 concurrent experiences
6-7 p.m.—Dinner 7-8:30 p.m.—Keynote performances
8:45-10:15 p.m.—Open Mic for Writing, Storytelling, Theater & Music Sunday, September 29, 2024:Conference:7-8 a.m.—Nature Walk with Ken Lassman 9-10 a.m.—Talking Circles
10:15-11:30 a.m.—Workshop session #4; 5 concurrent workshops
12-1 p.m.—Lunch 1-2 p.m.—Closing ceremony with music from Kathryn Lorenzen Note: Schedule of specific workshops and presentations subject to last-minute changes. Thanks for understanding. You can find travel and lodging information here. (If you join the TLA Network as a member, you will save on the conference now, and on classes and other offerings later.) |
Testimonials From Past Conferences |
"Come and meet some seriously interesting and diverse people with a love of transformational politics, poetry and language. I loved the whole experience!" "I always appreciate the comraderie at this event. People are non-judgemental and open. I don’t think it would be possible to feel more accepted or at peace. This truly satisfies and transcends the human experience by combining heart with art." — Anonymous "The Transformation Language Arts conference provides a home for artists, writers and musicians who want to help create a peaceful world. I go to learn, I go to contribute, I go to sustain hope." | "As an artist and philanthropist who participates in artistic/humanities conference and festivals throughout the United States, Europe, Canada, Mexico and the Middle East - I'm very impressed with this conference! The workshop and performance presenters were diverse; audience participants supportive; key note speakers memorable; staff magnificent. A genuine pleasure to be in attendance!" "The TLA Conference is an adventure of diving into a deep pool of unexpected discoveries. Some are delightful and awe-inspiring, some frightening and strange, but the immersion in diversity and the authenticity of the presenter's (and participant's) stories and presence is palpable and real. A necessary reminder of what we are so starved for in the current climate of media and political rhetoric. If change is going to be sustainable and humane, we need more people trained and working with the qualities of these warriors. The Conference is a way to either dip a toe in or dive in head first." | "The Power of Words Conference...in the midst of the unpredictability of daily life, for a few precious days I found myself surrounded by beauty, reminded yet again how art and wordcraft are not luxuries, to paraphrase Audre Lorde, but tools for survival, 'sanctuaries and spawning grounds for the most radical and daring of ideas.' We think and language into existence, whether our language takes the shape of words, images, sounds, or movements, summoning new worlds with our breath and our bodies. And as we come together to share we move away from isolation and fear and into one another, drawing close to the hearth where we warm and nourish ourselves before heading back out. This is the power of words -- that something so fragile, awkward, limited and limiting can, in the end, still be a way in: a key in a lock, a warm breeze signaling an end to winter's slumber, a torch to light the way." |