Mielke Park & Mielke Arts Center
The Shawano Folk Music Festival has one of the best sites imaginable for a small summer folk music festival. It’s beautiful, it’s big enough for outdoor stages, yet small enough to feel intimate and friendly.
Mielke Park is a small wooded County Park. Footpaths meander through the trees, connecting a few small clearings. It's got a big pond, a playground, an amphitheater and an air-conditioned theater. A pair of bald eagles has found a home at the top of one of the park’s tall trees.
Evening Concerts are in Mielke Arts Center, a small black-box theater in the center of the park. Daytime programs are on multiple stages under tents in the park’s clearings. There’s a food court just outside the Arts Center, and crafters along the foot paths. The Mielke Arts Center is managed by the Shawano County Arts Council.
Mielke Park is part of the Shawano County Park system. The 32-acre parcel was donated to Shawano County in1971 by Dr. Mielke, a local dentist. The Mielke Family Foundation donated funds to build the Mielke Arts Center, a 250-seat black-box theater in the center of the park, with ground-breaking in 1975. There is also a small outdoor amphitheater close to the building. Mielke Park is heavily wooded with a few small lawn areas, a pond and walking paths winding through the park. The Mielke Arts Center is managed by the non-profit Shawano County Arts Council, which sponsors arts events like the Shawano Folk Music Festival, Box in the Wood Theatre Guild productions and the Shawano Arts and Crafts Fair. Plans are currently underway to improve both the park and the theater building with support from the Mielke Family Foundation and other funders. Since 1979 Mielke Park has been the perfect home for the Shawano Folk Music Festival. We’re grateful.