Photo by Jordan Taylor
The Tea Leaves/Dire Need Zine organizers
The Tea Leaves/Dire Need Zine organizers
Tea Leaves is a free open mic and pop-up series that takes place every Friday evening outside Crossroads Collective on Milwaukee’s East Side. Hosted by the folks behind DIY art publication Dire Need Zine, the event features performers and vendors and is an outdoor alternative to the traditional bar atmosphere. Tea Leaves is slated to run through the end of October.
We spoke to organizers Mary Hansen, Alyx Byrne and Ash Metz to learn more.
The Dire Need Zine folks’ series began over the summer under a different name, Sun Dry’d. Hansen explains that the concept originated upon them being asked by non-alcoholic cocktail pop-up business Equal Parts to help plan an event at Crossroads Collective. “We all thought it sounded like a great opportunity to connect with other artists and musicians because that’s what Dire Need Zine has always been about.”
Sun Dry’d debuted at the end of July with three performers and seven vendors. “We got to curate the whole thing, which was a lot of work but ended up being super cool,” Hansen continues. “It went a lot better than we all thought it would, and every event after that just kept it growing.”
Starting in September, the organizers changed the series’ name from Sun Dry’d to Tea Leaves in order to better suit the fall months. They typically kick things off at 6 p.m. and go until 9 p.m. Performers and vendors may sign up to participate via open calls on social media. Musicians, poets and comedians get 10 to 15 minutes to perform, depending on how many have signed up.
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Foot Traffic
The event is set up on the Ivanhoe Place side of Crossroads Collective, which recently became pedestrianized. The organizers appreciate the location for its consistent foot traffic and open setting. “We had so many people who vended for Sun Dry’d who are coming back every week now because they had such a good turnout,” Byrne said.
“People would come to Crossroads and get food, then come out and watch the open mic,” Metz adds. “It’s nice that we ended up having fans of it who come back again and again.”
The last Fridays of each month will feature performances from full bands rather than being an open mic, plus there will be a clothing drive as well as a raffle for a $250 Crossroads Collective gift card. “You get entered into the raffle plus you get a drink special if you donate,” Hansen mentions.
Tea Leaves’ final event is set for October 27. Beyond that, the Dire Need Zine folks hope to continue the series in some capacity in the future - perhaps next summer. On another note, Dire Need Zine releases their issues quarterly now. The fall issue comes out on September 23.
Follow @direneedzine on Instagram for Tea Leaves open calls and updates.
