In partnership with Alchemy Poetry Series, NAAM invites our community to connect virtually for a writing workshop. Ben Yisreal and Ebo Barton of Alchemy Poetry Series will facilitate a writing workshop for young people between the ages of 13-19. They’ll be exploring writing prompts and ideas based on the intersections of identity and how young people navigate their perceptions of Blackness as it relates to the many identities that inform their story.
About Alchemy Poetry Series
“Alchemy Poetry Series is a curated performance art space that elevates voices that are often silenced. Performers in our community focus on the brilliance of storytelling by offering personal stories and reflections that are socially relevant. We are powerful artists and our space allows our audience to witness the craft at its highest form. We believe that art is a divine power to create community. We are an all ages show.”
Facilitators
Ben Yisrael is a performance poet, storyteller, and writer. Yisrael has participated in the performance poetry community since 2005. He has been a member of 10 National Poetry Slam (NPS) teams. He is a NPS team finalist and a 2-time NPS semi-finalist. Some of his performance accomplishments include being the 2010 Dallas Poetry Grind Slam Champion, the 2012 Individual World Poetry Slam 17th ranked poet in the world, the 2014 NPS Haiku Champion, and the 2017 Seattle Poetry Slam Grand Slam Champion. He is the co-founder of Mic Check, one of the longest running poetry readings in Texas, and curates Alchemy Poetry Series in Seattle WA.
Ebo Barton is a Black and Filipino, Transgender and Non-Binary, poet and educator currently residing in Seattle, Washington by way of Los Angeles, California. As a representative of Seattle, they've been on 4 National Slam Teams and participated at 3 Individual World Poetry Slams. Their most notable poetry slam accolade is placing 5th in the world in 2016. Ebo curated and directed, How to Love THIS Queer Body of Color: An Unapology and wrote and directed the award-winning play, Rising Up. They are a cast member of Anastacia Renee's Queer. Mama. Crossroads. You may have seen Ebo's work in Adrienne: A Poetry Journal by Sibling Rivalry Press, Thriving While Trans: A Love Manual, Natasha Marin's Black Imagination, the King County Metro, SlamFind, Write About Now, Button Poetry and All Def Poetry. They and their work have been featured in Seattle Weekly, Seattle Gay News, Seattle Review of Books, and Crosscut. Their work touches on political issues from a personal point of view and often is birthed from the struggles of living in the identities that they are. Ebo believes in the power of language and art as a tool for revolution.