https://merandissime.com Merandissime Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:28:32 +0000 https://merandissime.com en https://merandissime.com/Index Wed, 29 Apr 2020 16:40:30 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/Index https://merandissime.com/Home-Page Wed, 22 Dec 2021 21:34:08 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/Home-Page <img width="6016" height="4016" width_o="6016" height_o="4016" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5868a1647109eaf2ad1ff8e5f8dc38cd9a5ad4d4f8e97fa78cea61107378f161/Rita-and-Meranda-in-I-have-something-to-say...-with-Pink-Fang.jpeg" data-mid="240977314" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5868a1647109eaf2ad1ff8e5f8dc38cd9a5ad4d4f8e97fa78cea61107378f161/Rita-and-Meranda-in-I-have-something-to-say...-with-Pink-Fang.jpeg" /> Performing with Rita Liu and Zinc Tong in a play called I have something to say… at Selfhelp Community Services - Maspeth Older Adult Center with Pink Fang As a theatre-maker, researcher, and facilitator, Meranda Flachs-Surmanek works with groups to share stories that must get told. Meranda leads WhyWOW Studio, a creative consulting practice developing environments for people and organizations to exercise our civic imagination. https://merandissime.com/Monuments-Across-Appalachian-Virginia Wed, 03 May 2023 00:50:46 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/Monuments-Across-Appalachian-Virginia Monuments Across Appalachian Virginia (MAAV) seeks and supports collaborations with community organizations, artists, researchers, educators, government officials, advocates, activists, memory keepers, and others who share an interest in constructing and reconstructing public narratives. Our mission is to reclaim, amplify, imagine, reinterpret, document, and display histories and experiences that highlight collective struggles for the vitality of Appalachian people and our shared environment, led by and for people whose stories have been silenced, denied, or excluded. From 2023-2026, MAAV is working with nine community groups across Appalachian Virginia and Eastern Siouan lands to:&nbsp; Inspire people to see themselves as capable of reshaping our physical landscapes Uplift histories that have potential to reshape public memory Center communities that have been chronically underrepresented and under resourced Form new coalitions and networks that promote community well being and set in motion new ways of collaborating Reimagine what a monument can be, beyond conventional statues or murals Create artistic expressions and spaces for reflection that go beyond the delivery of information We offer technical support to build the capacity of Appalachian community leaders and organizations to employ participatory arts and commemoration as tools for storytelling, organizing, and social change. <img width="1380" height="1382" width_o="1380" height_o="1382" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ced84ae06f4b38c952dbf8126588ab8439a48ab690b8e9ed6bac3d33a6895d0f/MAAV-Projects.png" data-mid="242563870" border="0" data-scale="100" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ced84ae06f4b38c952dbf8126588ab8439a48ab690b8e9ed6bac3d33a6895d0f/MAAV-Projects.png" /> Project team photos by Matthew Pickett https://merandissime.com/At-this-table Thu, 16 Jul 2026 15:44:24 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/At-this-table &nbsp; <img width="9504" height="6336" width_o="9504" height_o="6336" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7b387748a1717e970436b6874756b3a715d22f1acac68ba6fd65eb891b971f9c/250528-_DSC5251.jpg" data-mid="250468327" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/7b387748a1717e970436b6874756b3a715d22f1acac68ba6fd65eb891b971f9c/250528-_DSC5251.jpg" /> <img width="9504" height="6336" width_o="9504" height_o="6336" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/cabf9a9e6a028aa42fe2c0735fe9c7984a70b52c9ef1c13a8b7d99fae9715a59/250528-_DSC5093.jpg" data-mid="250468325" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/cabf9a9e6a028aa42fe2c0735fe9c7984a70b52c9ef1c13a8b7d99fae9715a59/250528-_DSC5093.jpg" /> <img width="9504" height="6336" width_o="9504" height_o="6336" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/16f7d68e1dfe47d634a2345f6af25c6cb9e55742f484981a4f8e893da2639586/250528-_DSC5110-Enhanced-NR.jpg" data-mid="250468376" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/16f7d68e1dfe47d634a2345f6af25c6cb9e55742f484981a4f8e893da2639586/250528-_DSC5110-Enhanced-NR.jpg" /> <img width="9504" height="6336" width_o="9504" height_o="6336" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3246b2353feadc516051b529281eaa02506b1f04a9dd3413bd7e8717fdee7f2d/250528-_DSC5166.jpg" data-mid="250468328" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3246b2353feadc516051b529281eaa02506b1f04a9dd3413bd7e8717fdee7f2d/250528-_DSC5166.jpg" /> <img width="9504" height="6336" width_o="9504" height_o="6336" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/efede35d6ff3cb5a238ec5392c92496ee8978a8fc568ac4f7796529979fed2fb/250528-_DSC5151-Enhanced-NR.jpg" data-mid="250468329" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/efede35d6ff3cb5a238ec5392c92496ee8978a8fc568ac4f7796529979fed2fb/250528-_DSC5151-Enhanced-NR.jpg" /> <img width="9504" height="6336" width_o="9504" height_o="6336" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/714528ccaf8586e3b8715c442088657f441b0849476c88c36ee3e1fe7c58e1d0/250528-_DSC5212.jpg" data-mid="250468395" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/714528ccaf8586e3b8715c442088657f441b0849476c88c36ee3e1fe7c58e1d0/250528-_DSC5212.jpg" /> <img width="9504" height="6336" width_o="9504" height_o="6336" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/513e18590de6878329d0c53d112833e19a1c1eac8c3a76afc82ea078b12a1d91/250528-_DSC5198.jpg" data-mid="250468396" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/513e18590de6878329d0c53d112833e19a1c1eac8c3a76afc82ea078b12a1d91/250528-_DSC5198.jpg" /> <img width="7058" height="4705" width_o="7058" height_o="4705" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3cb5c654e4b78c34a01ff0d47359e6163bc372058294b80564d06236ebb7bd0a/250528-_DSC5187.jpg" data-mid="250468398" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3cb5c654e4b78c34a01ff0d47359e6163bc372058294b80564d06236ebb7bd0a/250528-_DSC5187.jpg" /> Photos by Ji Hoon Kim, courtesy of CultureHub and Yiru Chen From December 2025–May 2026 Meranda Flachs-Surmanek and Rita Liu were the inaugural Wellness Together Arts Fellows, in partnership with The Performance Project at University Settlement, Culturehub, and La MaMa Experimental Theatre. Our team facilitated Breaking the Walls, a six-month workshop series to create new, experimental performance in a supportive environment. Breaking the Walls was open to an intergenerational group of artists and case managers through Wellness Together, an initiative that aims to improve quality of life for a network of older adults who are homebound for health reasons or because they are caregivers.&nbsp;Breaking the Walls focused on relationship-building and collaborative performance creation, culminating in At this table…, a hybrid devised performance. Structured as a “three-course meal” of performances, conversation, and interactive digital engagement, the work explored themes of community, wellness, aging, pleasure, and belonging. At this table… reached more than 270 global audience members through two work-in-progress performances at La MaMa and online on the Broadcaster. The experience&nbsp;piloted innovative hybrid engagement tools designed by Creative Technologist Jay Reinier, and demonstrated the potential of hybrid performance to foster connection. “I was deeply moved by the clear desires to connect with each other in-person and virtually. I think everything blended in a way that made this future feel more inspiring/human and less dystopian.” -Audience Member Learn more here. https://merandissime.com/Breaking-the-Walls Tue, 25 Nov 2025 01:00:56 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/Breaking-the-Walls &nbsp; <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/daa2bce37c504481f684302280cdf14fab37ace8d40d78072413217c8bc3fa03/Wellness-Together-2.jpg" data-mid="245080814" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/daa2bce37c504481f684302280cdf14fab37ace8d40d78072413217c8bc3fa03/Wellness-Together-2.jpg" /> <img width="1080" height="1350" width_o="1080" height_o="1350" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6c657c81186ad667b920a6e38ac6bda1c4ee84a1e5761cfcef4536b5b95160c6/Wellness-Together.png" data-mid="245080552" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6c657c81186ad667b920a6e38ac6bda1c4ee84a1e5761cfcef4536b5b95160c6/Wellness-Together.png" /> Rita Liu and Meranda Flachs-Surmanek have been selected for the inaugural Wellness Together Arts Fellowship. Wellness Together aims to improve quality of life for a network of 1,000 older adults who are homebound for health reasons or because they are caregivers.The artists will work with The Performance Project at University Settlement, Culturehub, and La MaMa Experimental Theatre to create an ensemble of storytellers. The project, titled Breaking the Walls, will culminate in a hybrid performance at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Company that will integrate an innovative new platform for livestreaming theater into a performance for both in person and virtual audiences. Wellness Together participants will create and feature in the performance. Learn more here. https://merandissime.com/Life-is-More-Than-Taking Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:28:32 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/Life-is-More-Than-Taking &nbsp; With Pink Fang, we bear witness to communities sharing their stories. Every place teaches us something different about showing up for our work and in our lives with integrity. Sometimes we help people see something new about the people they love, the people they strongly dislike, and the people they thought they already knew. We are storytellers. Collectors of details. For the second year in a row, Meranda Flachs-Surmanek and Rita Liu, joined by Pau Zabaleta LLauger, led an interview-based storytelling process at SelfHelp Maspeth Senior Center.&nbsp;We explored how we live out our days with meaning and authenticity. We shared stories about establishing belonging where loneliness might have otherwise took root. The film, Life is More Than Taking, is the culmination of our process.&nbsp; <img width="2016" height="1126" width_o="2016" height_o="1126" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b3db29f83c84fb876ea8f683ee6d0166243c4fdc3e326e0741a32fadeca30dd7/Screenshot-2026-07-16-at-12.30.13-PM.png" data-mid="250469157" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b3db29f83c84fb876ea8f683ee6d0166243c4fdc3e326e0741a32fadeca30dd7/Screenshot-2026-07-16-at-12.30.13-PM.png" /> Learn more about Creative Aging at Pink Fang here. https://merandissime.com/Our-Stories-Our-Songs Thu, 16 Jul 2026 15:26:49 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/Our-Stories-Our-Songs <img width="828" height="546" width_o="828" height_o="546" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/da70890f2c309430c5be4e76dcf67a56b245b5d680cc6dc2d87b34656c8e88bf/IMG_8733.jpg" data-mid="250465953" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/828/i/da70890f2c309430c5be4e76dcf67a56b245b5d680cc6dc2d87b34656c8e88bf/IMG_8733.jpg" /> <img width="828" height="623" width_o="828" height_o="623" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0d3d592162bc0ba144d4e9ab353f9510168b8dd4d7552482a79385618089aec3/IMG_8718.jpg" data-mid="250465955" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/828/i/0d3d592162bc0ba144d4e9ab353f9510168b8dd4d7552482a79385618089aec3/IMG_8718.jpg" /> <img width="828" height="540" width_o="828" height_o="540" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ef6f336e46fbf55ae6f151f968344b6999a06a6247bdc45638470df413f625f0/IMG_8730.jpg" data-mid="250465952" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/828/i/ef6f336e46fbf55ae6f151f968344b6999a06a6247bdc45638470df413f625f0/IMG_8730.jpg" /> <img width="1620" height="162" width_o="1620" height_o="162" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8927a68737cba6cc8b583abb4c8fc2b9c82864ac9c023953a300d896d0c13356/When-you-see-queerer.png" data-mid="250465881" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8927a68737cba6cc8b583abb4c8fc2b9c82864ac9c023953a300d896d0c13356/When-you-see-queerer.png" /> Our Stories, Our Songs, is an intergenerational storytelling experience with Queens Center for Gay Seniors (QCFGS) members and youth ages 12-21 from GenerationQ. In workshops with Queens Center for Gay Seniors members and Generation Q, a drop-in center for LGBTQIA+ youth, we explored our stories, LGBTQIA+ activism in Queens, and created protest songs. The workshops culminated in a work-in-progress discussion on the making and meaning of Pride and a community sing at the World's Borough Bookshop. At Queens Pride in Jackson Heights, we shared songs along the parade route. We plan to continue the collaboration, building out the song cycle and further building our relationships. 2026 Public Events: Making &amp; Meaning of Pride + Community Sing at World's Borough Bookshop34-06 73rd St, Jackson Heights, NY 11372Saturday, June 6th, 6:00 PM Can we hold space across generations to have our multiple conflicting stories and relationships to Pride? Queens Pride, like many mainstream Pride events across the U.S., platforms the police, uplifts corporations, and chooses silence in the face of genocide. Let's talk across generation gaps about our relationships with the second oldest and second largest pride parade in NYC. Discussion and singing will be held with youth from GenerationQ in Forest Hills and members of the Queens Center for Gay Seniors in Jackson Heights. All are welcome. <img width="828" height="546" width_o="828" height_o="546" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/39bfa7ccef17ca78108d503e7ba4cbb90de1897b73e824923c7fe0da0545e20e/IMG_8732.jpg" data-mid="250466027" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/828/i/39bfa7ccef17ca78108d503e7ba4cbb90de1897b73e824923c7fe0da0545e20e/IMG_8732.jpg" /> Queens Pride Parade with Queens Center for Gay Seniors + Generation QSunday, June 7th, 12:00pm Creative Team: Co-Directors/Facilitators: Meranda Flachs-Surmanek and Ania UpstillCreative Partners:Patrick Lin at the Queens Center for Gay SeniorsBo-Andrea Bogats, Felicity Flores, Riley, and Ligaiya Romero at Generation Q Youth CenterMusician/Composer: Will ShishmanianMusican Arrangement: Sean Ivy <img width="1610" height="742" width_o="1610" height_o="742" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e3763a839b386c0c8a6513c93fcb6ac4cf31ad801c523f2cc15b894c309d81aa/Power-to-the-people.png" data-mid="250466033" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e3763a839b386c0c8a6513c93fcb6ac4cf31ad801c523f2cc15b894c309d81aa/Power-to-the-people.png" /> Our Stories, Our Songs is part of the series Our Stories Are Alive, growing since 2025. This project&nbsp;was made possible in part with public funds from the Queens Arts Fund in 2025 and 2026, a re-grant program supported by NYC Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and administered by New York Foundation for the Arts. https://merandissime.com/Our-Stories-Are-Alive Thu, 12 Jun 2025 21:52:15 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/Our-Stories-Are-Alive <img width="2796" height="2064" width_o="2796" height_o="2064" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b0a8112af031f2cdb55d6b9fd954c0a51040a8064a9b83e71e5f95461d643156/IMG_7841.jpeg" data-mid="242454997" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b0a8112af031f2cdb55d6b9fd954c0a51040a8064a9b83e71e5f95461d643156/IMG_7841.jpeg" /> <img width="4032" height="3024" width_o="4032" height_o="3024" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/98cb2def94af3b8217b2176f98d57d4990cea41f957d6e48a29688136a051c81/IMG_5904.jpg" data-mid="234514226" border="0" data-scale="96" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/98cb2def94af3b8217b2176f98d57d4990cea41f957d6e48a29688136a051c81/IMG_5904.jpg" /> <img width="2257" height="2132" width_o="2257" height_o="2132" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9e1dfac2a8f83710df8599927b351ee852ff1f2fcb42a234b5eaaf66af4e0f5f/QCFGS.jpg" data-mid="241387624" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/9e1dfac2a8f83710df8599927b351ee852ff1f2fcb42a234b5eaaf66af4e0f5f/QCFGS.jpg" /> <img width="2447" height="2926" width_o="2447" height_o="2926" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/55b7366c8fc95f73437da371378d544810e1411438043acbca93c2567f842e80/Our-Stories-Are-Alive_Workshop-with-Lili.jpg" data-mid="243981751" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/55b7366c8fc95f73437da371378d544810e1411438043acbca93c2567f842e80/Our-Stories-Are-Alive_Workshop-with-Lili.jpg" /> <img width="4032" height="3024" width_o="4032" height_o="3024" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/89d3cfdf72ffd477910d969575ab420397f654568902da6ba26f661fa056b80c/IMG_5912.jpeg" data-mid="234514047" border="0" data-scale="98" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/89d3cfdf72ffd477910d969575ab420397f654568902da6ba26f661fa056b80c/IMG_5912.jpeg" /> <img width="2048" height="1536" width_o="2048" height_o="1536" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/248a1135a4f682ec5ef26c22bbbf81a2b9bbed4181fb977687890c3cc2377191/WhatsApp-Image-2025-06-09-at-7.09.02-PM.jpeg" data-mid="235459574" border="0" data-scale="97" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/248a1135a4f682ec5ef26c22bbbf81a2b9bbed4181fb977687890c3cc2377191/WhatsApp-Image-2025-06-09-at-7.09.02-PM.jpeg" /> <img width="2048" height="1536" width_o="2048" height_o="1536" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/be03ce1b658b0fcd3c39e9e838baf2dc9f411660635056783a0d453ada660fdc/Our-Stories-Are-Alive.jpeg" data-mid="234514048" border="0" data-scale="97" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/be03ce1b658b0fcd3c39e9e838baf2dc9f411660635056783a0d453ada660fdc/Our-Stories-Are-Alive.jpeg" /> “Delightful, informative, respectful, entertaining, thrilling, welcoming, structured, warm, very playful, interactive, fun, and multicultural” - Participant “Sharing my story through improv allowed me to share a vulnerable side of myself in a way everyone enjoyed.” - Participant In Our Stories Are Alive, we are creating a community ensemble of intergenerational storytellers at the Queens Center for Gay Seniors in Jackson Heights, NY. LGBTQIA2S+ older adults and students at LaGuardia Community College discover what we are called to communicate about ourselves and our future. Through workshops that mix theatre games, improv, poetry performance, and story circles, we build community.In Spring 2026, we will lead workshops focused on creating protest songs, culiminating in a performance at the Queens Pride Parade with Ania Upstill and Social Practice CUNY. Our Stories Are Alive started as a program with Spectrum Arts Productions called the S.G.B. Generational Bridge, created with Craig Anthony Bannister and supported by Apollo Boissiere. In summer 2025, Liliana Rebolledo Vergara brought her experiences as a musician and activist to the group. In fall 2025, our work continued with workshops facilitated by Manny Dunn and Samantha Ciccone, with Guest Artists Irisdelia Garcia and Craig Anthony Bannister.Our Stories Are Alive is made possible in part with public funds from the Queens Arts Fund in 2025 and 2026, a re-grant program supported by NYC Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and administered by New York Foundation for the Arts. https://merandissime.com/We-Shape-This-City Tue, 17 May 2022 16:37:24 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/We-Shape-This-City <img width="2217" height="1320" width_o="2217" height_o="1320" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7d8e0a6bae12cefe7ca9420aca4f7e3aa9d2f92f7186d3ef3328e56960545990/We-Shape-This-City-closeup.jpg" data-mid="163661816" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/7d8e0a6bae12cefe7ca9420aca4f7e3aa9d2f92f7186d3ef3328e56960545990/We-Shape-This-City-closeup.jpg" /> <img width="3024" height="4032" width_o="3024" height_o="4032" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e2d52704114cd253eab0fb2ec925e8d607540a147a613f6b6509ce9e24cbe746/Shape-this-city-3.jpeg" data-mid="173907387" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e2d52704114cd253eab0fb2ec925e8d607540a147a613f6b6509ce9e24cbe746/Shape-this-city-3.jpeg" /> <img width="882" height="1176" width_o="882" height_o="1176" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4dce008a0f50ad578d763409e263e583c45345973cbeaa7045b3484f775b129a/IMG_4517.jpeg" data-mid="142876373" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/882/i/4dce008a0f50ad578d763409e263e583c45345973cbeaa7045b3484f775b129a/IMG_4517.jpeg" /> <img width="4032" height="3024" width_o="4032" height_o="3024" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/792ef90134b00e3643036dcef710f51506ed0f37a1e2e16bc72a6068a989d2cd/Shape-this-city-2.jpeg" data-mid="173907382" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/792ef90134b00e3643036dcef710f51506ed0f37a1e2e16bc72a6068a989d2cd/Shape-this-city-2.jpeg" /> <img width="2231" height="1561" width_o="2231" height_o="1561" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bb5a5ac3a3862c893723be7ca97e3c473c79df66c5b336fbc2434e3d736d5bcc/Photo.jpg" data-mid="173907378" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bb5a5ac3a3862c893723be7ca97e3c473c79df66c5b336fbc2434e3d736d5bcc/Photo.jpg" /> LOCATION Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, New York, NY, USA, and Newcastle upon Tyne, UK SPONSORS The Mitchell Art Gallery at MacEwan University, ProjectArt, and Newcastle University PROJECT DATES Spring 2018 - present &nbsp; We Shape This City&nbsp; We Shape This City is a laboratory that explores belonging, displacement, and spatial justice through creative expression. Drawing on dance, visual art, and theater practices, we build connections between these ideas and our stories. The experience is especially suited to people curious about the role of the arts to help us look at civic processes and structural inequities anew. Places are shaped by memory. When communities are destroyed or extracted from, we lose more than just wealth. In We Shape This City, we look at the hierarchy of memory created through systemic violence. We feel through our memories as we experience others’ memories. The experience invites people to move differently in association with their neighbors and in the environments they move through daily. In doing so, we implement a micro-space of justice within the context of the workshop space. These new insights travel with us.&nbsp; We Shape This City was initially developed as an Artist-in-Residence at MacEwan University’s Mitchell Art Gallery in Alberta, located on Amiskwacîwâskahikan, Treaty 6 Territory, Canada in 2018.&nbsp;It was recently supported by the 2023 Diversity Scholars program out of the Office of Recruitment, Diversity, and Inclusion.&nbsp; I have led We Shape This City with Andreza Jorge (dance, Mulheres ao Vento), Hiromi Okumura (visual/performance), and Rosa Stourac McCreery (theater). https://merandissime.com/You-re-a-Poet-Too Sun, 01 Mar 2026 15:53:30 +0000 Merandissime https://merandissime.com/You-re-a-Poet-Too <img width="701" height="877" width_o="701" height_o="877" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d101886d9e6609370a2e9fd687cbbcdbd3948c6183f925213d2accd4d4eaacd6/Screenshot-2025-08-14-at-9.12.40-PM.png" data-mid="245470123" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/701/i/d101886d9e6609370a2e9fd687cbbcdbd3948c6183f925213d2accd4d4eaacd6/Screenshot-2025-08-14-at-9.12.40-PM.png" /> You’re a Poet, Too!Poetry Month Workshops at Queens Library in English and Spanish&nbsp; Upcoming Workshops:&nbsp; Far Rockaway Teen Library May 20, 2026, 3:30-4:30 PM&nbsp; co-hosted with Jasmine Rosario (alias JRose)Long Island City Library Teen Center:&nbsp; May 21, 2026, 4-5 PM&nbsp; co-hosted with Marcos de la Fuente Poetry has always been a vehicle of community-building and gathering in NYC. In these critical times, we pause and re-engage with our innate creativity and joy. You’re a poet, too! Yes, you! Together, we will draw inspiration from curated prompts and the creative energy of our neighbors, leading to an informal and optional poetry sharing from what we create. Every person comes to this workshop with a style of their own, and together, we’ll lean into our style and build on it, drawing from the work of June Jordan’s "Poetry for the People". Avid poets will gain a community of support. And if you're new to poetry, we can't wait to welcome you in. We all have things to learn from each other. Poetry is every person's birthright and accessible to everyone, if only we begin. You’re a Poet, Too! workshops were designed with Rae K. Devine for Vanesa Álvarez’s “Our Story” SU-CASA Artist Residency with Brooklyn Arts Council at&nbsp;Cypress-Hills Fulton Older Adult Center.&nbsp;