OPEN MIC THIRD THURSDAYS continue.

We are hosting an evening of spoken word, featuring amazing poets throughout the Bay Area.

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

FEATURED PERFORMERs: Jeanne Powell & Lakiba Pittman

Jeanne Powell is a poet and essayist, with four books in print from Taurean Horn Press and Regent Press: MY OWN SILENCE, WORD DANCING, TWO SEASONS, and CAROUSEL.  All are available online. She holds degrees from WSU and USF.  

She is the founder of Meridien PressWorks™, which has published 20 other writers.  For ten years she hosted "Celebration of the Word," a weekly open mic in San Francisco.  Jeanne taught in the College Summit, OLLI and Upward Bound programs on college campuses.  

She is an online cultural critic, reviewing films, plays and concerts for starkinsider.com.  Jeanne currently facilitates a writers group at Mechanics Institute Library.  

See her site at  jeanne-powell.com.

Lakiba Pittman is an educator and creative artist. She is currently working on the 2nd edition of her book “Bread Crumbs from The Soul… Finding Your Way Back Home,” which features original art, poetry and autobiographical reflections. Her art was most recently featured at The Black Woman is God art exhibit at SomARTS in San Francisco.  

She was also one of the featured poets at the 50th year celebration of the Black Arts Movement, and was a recent keynote presenter using poetry as a self-healing process for Sister Spirit’s Annual Retreats. Lakiba was the former Director of Nairobi Institute of Cultural Arts, which was the incubator for Malonga Casquelourd’s Congolese Dance & Music Ensemble, Fua Dia Congo, of which she was an original member.  

She also sang with the Nairobi Messengers, Wajumbe Cultural Ensemble, and has recorded with the Sons & Daughters of Lite and with John Santos and the Machete Ensemble. She is an Adjunct Professor at Menlo College in the field of diversity, social justice and culture in media, and she also teaches workshops on compassion, healing trauma and mindfulness.

She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Psychology with specializations in Consciousness, Spirituality & Integrated Health, and Transformative Social Change.

She can be reached on Facebook, Linked In, Twitter and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/alightwithin/