OPEN MIC THIRD THURSDAYS continue.

We are hosting an evening of spoken word, featuring amazing poets throughout the Bay Area. This month we will also feature the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts (Spoken Arts) poets for a culminating reading of work created as part of the poet-in-residence program at MoAD.

Sign up for your chance to read some of your poetry at the museum in the form below.

Featured Performer: B.A. Collins

Born and raised in Alachua County, Florida Blake-Alexandria “Ally” Collins is a proud descendant of Jamaican and American parents. During her childhood, Ally was afforded the opportunity through home school to  nourish a distinctive love for all forms of art, African history, creative writing, and classical music. The resulting distinctive perspective from which she views the world has produced unique material for her poetry.

The style with which she writes draws inspiration from C.A. Conrad, Bri Black Rose Kapri, and many other talented poets of color. As an artist, Ally is just beginning to build a body of work that spans a wide array of subject matter. Ally currently resides in Santa Cruz, CA where she works; her career in education and behavior analysis has spanned over 8 years in various capacities, culminating in her current instructor and case manager position at a local private school for children and young adults with severe developmental disabilities and behavioral challenges.

Ally has a diverse background in music performance for classical piano, as well as music education; she maintains a small private studio for classical music studies, primarily serving special education students with whom she has a particular connection. Ally is an advocate for sex-positivity, LGBTQ rights, Black lives, and women’s rights.

As of Summer 2019, Ally is preparing to release her first manuscript to the public; she frequents many of the Bay Area’s poetry slams and open mics on a weekly basis, and she is privileged to call Santa Cruz’s own Legendary Collective, currently housed in the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History, home. Ally has featured as an artist at ThirdHouse Books in Gainesville, Florida as part of their Local Fires series. Her most recent pieces cover topics such as racial inequality, sex positivity, gendered violence, religion, sexuality, and social conflicts.

Ally is a graduate student, studying human development and social psychology. In her free time she is often found hiking, traveling, home brewing, and spending time with her friends and loved ones.