MPM offers unique events, programs, and resources throughout the year.
Upcoming Events: Visitors and members enjoy unique events hosted by the Museum throughout the year. Explore ↓
Planetarium: Take a tour of the universe with an awe-inspiring Planetarium program or learn about the wonders of our world with a giant screen film. Explore ↓
Ongoing Programs and Initiatives: Together with our partners, MPM's programs and initiatives make learning about the wonders of the world accessible, engaging, and fun for the community. Explore ↓
Online Resources: Want to learn more about your favorite MPM topics? Check out our educational videos, virtual exhibit tours, and partner links. Explore ↓
Upcoming Events
Haunts and Harvest in the Streets
September 18, 2024-November 4, 2024
The Streets of Old Milwaukee exhibit is decorated for Halloween! Experience how Milwaukee residents at the turn of the 20th century celebrated the fall season.
Free with admission.
Annual Gala
October 5, 2024
Attend our annual fundraising gala for an evening of cocktails, gourmet dining, and dancing, where you and your guests will get the chance to talk with the exhibit designers and architects of the Future Museum project as well as our world-class curators.
Mystery at MPM: Adult Edition
Friday, October 11, 2024
Test your MPM knowledge at this interactive scavenger hunt game. Solve a series of clues that will take you around all three exhibit floors.
This event is sold out.
Indigenous Peoples' Day Luncheon
Sunday, October 13, 2024
Noon - 2:30 p.m.
Enjoy the delicious Indigenous cuisine of Ketapanen Kitchen, Chicago's first Native American pop-up kitchen and catering company, during this special event to celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day.
$55 for members; $60 for nonmembers
Indigenous Peoples' Day
Monday, October 14, 2024
MPM celebrates Indigenous Peoples' Day on the second Monday of October with special programming and educational resources that highlight indigenous cultures, traditions, and history.
Free with admission.
Special Session: Learn With An Expert
Monday, October 14, 2024
Celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day with the Milwaukee Public Museum! Experience live, virtual performances by Indigenous artists, and stick around for a Q&A with them at the end. Perfect for all ages!
This program will be live-streamed to YouTube and Zoom
“Beyond Binaries: LGBTQ+ Histories through Time and Place” Museum Tour
October 16 & October 19, 2024
5:30 p.m.
Go on a 45-minute journey through the exhibits to explore the ways people have lived beyond the binary throughout time and space. For ages 15+.
$10 per person
Groundbreaking exhibition
October 18, 2024 - January 20, 2024
Explore the innovation and evolution of Milwaukee Public Museum throughout its 140 year-history and learn more about its new home at this special exhibition.
Free with admission
Science Fest
October 18-19, 2024
Cultivate your curiosity and learn about the history of Wisconsin agriculture with stations about the production of maple syrup, the wonders of Oneida white corn, and the harvesting of manoomin (wild rice).
Free with admission.
“Bending Gender: Infamous Women Warriors in History” Webinar
October 23, 2024
6:30-8 p.m.
Join this free webinar by MPM Curator of Anthropology Dawn Scher Thomae to learn about women who took up arms in history to defend their country, land, freedom, and beliefs.
Halloween Hauntings
October 25-26, 2024 (hours vary)
Trick-or-treat through the Museum's exhibits (costumes encouraged), where you'll also encounter live birds of prey and critters like snakes and frogs. You'll also enjoy arts and crafts, ghost tours, and much more!
Decline, Decay, & Death of the Universe Museum Tour and Planetarium Show
October 31, 2024
Celebrate Halloween at MPM with a tour through the exhibits about different cultural practices surrounding death, as well as a Planetarium show about the eventual demise of all stars.
Old Milwaukee Mixer
Thursday, December 12, 2024
Join us to celebrate the season with an after-hours mixer. Learn more about how people celebrate the season during the Victorian period while strolling the Streets of Old Milwaukee exhibit decked for the holidays.
Mystery at MPM: Family Edition
Saturday, January 25, 2024
The family version of our after-hours mystery caper! Test your MPM knowledge at this interactive scavenger hunt game. Get an extraordinary opportunity to get up close and personal with one (or two) of our rarely seen objects!
Planetarium
Now Showing at the Daniel M. Soref Theater and Planetarium
Check out the Planetarium programs and giant films playing daily.
June 21, 2024 through September 30, 2024
| 10:15 a.m. | Wisconsin Stargazing |
| 11 a.m. | T. REX |
| Noon | Spooky Space |
| 12:45 p.m. | T. REX |
| 2 p.m. | Wisconsin Stargazing |
| 2:45 p.m. | T. REX |
| 3:45 p.m. | Spooky Space |
| 4:30 p.m. | Pink Floyd: Dark Side of the Moon* |
*Join us for special viewings two Saturdays of each month: October 12 and 26, November 16 and 30, December 14 and 28, from 5:45-8 p.m. Includes an additional live 25-minute Planetarium program plus concessions. $18 all members, $20 non-members.
Ongoing Programs and Initiatives
Kohl's Thank You Thursdays
First Thursday of every month
All visitors enjoy free admission to MPM thanks to generous support from Kohl's.
Science on Tap
Grab a brew (or root-brew!) and meet us at the Museum or online to listen to a lecture from some of the best minds in natural and cultural sciences. Lectures are scheduled every couple of months.
Docent Tours
Explore the hidden wonders of our exhibits and galleries with free half-hour docent tours every Saturday at 1 p.m.
SPARK!
This program is designed for people in the early-to-mid stages of memory loss to visit with their family and care partners. Programs are offered at MPM at 1 p.m. on the third Sunday of each month.
Summer Connections
MPM's annual summer initiative provides free, educational programming and access to the Museum for K-8 students throughout Milwaukee in coordination with community partners.
Wisconsin Statewide Community Science Project
This community-based initiative seeks to make science accessible to a broader audience throughout Wisconsin, even nationally, so the public can feel trust towards science by participating directly in it. The data is then used for future research.
MPM Book Club
A volunteer-led monthly program that invites interested adults to join lively monthly discussions about nonfiction books of a scientific nature that relate to Museum exhibits, research, or programs.
360 Virtual Exhibit Tours
Native American Heritage
Black History Month
Hispanic Heritage Month