Inspired by our current production of Donja R. Love’s soft , MCC in collaboration with Poetic Theater Producations. is hosting a Spoken Word Open Mic event.

This is a FREE event. Show up as a performer OR as an audience member!

We would love to support the show by exploring the theme of softness. If you have another piece that speaks to who you are in this world, about what it means to be seen for who you really are, please feel free to bring it.

This is first and foremost a community event where we will be welcoming audiences and participants from all generations. Please keep the community guidelines below in mind when selecting a piece to share.

The open mic will take place on Saturday June 18th from 5:30 – 6:30pm EST, IN-PERSON at MCC Theater- Robert W. Wilson Theater Spaces.

Ticket reservations END 2 HOURS before the event!

Visit www.mcctheater.org for more information on our shows.

The Open Mic will be hosted by:

Joél Leon

Joél Leon is a Bronx-born and raised performer, proud #GirlDad, author, and storyteller who writes and tells stories for Black people—specializing in moderating and leading conversations surrounding race, masculinity, mental health, creativity, and the performing arts, Joél puts love at the center of his work and purpose.

He is currently a Creative Director at the New York Times’s T Brand Studio. He has worked with TED, ABC NEWS, The Gates Foundation, HBO, Nike, Twitter, and the TODAY Show. His essays and words have been featured in the New York Times, POP SUGAR, EBONY, The Black News Channel, Forbes, and others.

Joél is repped by Folio Literary.

Featured Poets:

Maya Carter

(they/them/theirs/Maya)

Maya is a multi-hyphenate maker/performer, teaching artist + cultivator of joy— living and working on the land of the Lenni Lenape and Canarsie People. Maya strives to decolonize access to artistic practice and prioritize ease + creative liberation in all things. Maya also facilitates the development of new plays and devised work in various capacities, including: Direction, Dramaturgy, Choreography, and Writing. Much of Maya’s generative work is an examination of the queer utopian ideal as it relates to the bodies + hearts of Black queer folk who grew up/out of/through trauma in Faith Communities. An excerpt of their play, How We’ll Get Over was commissioned for the Poetic Theater Productions annual festival in early March of 2020. Recent performance projects include: Silos with Elevate Theater Company, Rehearsing Justice at Brooklyn Arts Exchange, The Incomplete Collection with Linked Dance Theater, and We Are Only Dead If We Are Forgotten with Long Wharf Theatre + Rebirth Arts Collective.