Poet | Performer | Producer
Through poetry I can do all things.
“I Was There Too!”
I Was There Too is a multimedia spoken word and musical performance about one woman’s inner revolution as she struggles to understand what it means to have been born into the Black Panther Party. Born to two Black Panthers who are now celebrated artists (Emory Douglas “Minister of Culture” and Gayle Asali Dickson “Artist and Educator”), Meres-Sia describes a childhood of poverty, secrecy and confusion that she sometimes wished would just go away. Meres-Sia takes the audience on a journey through time and space, from Oakland, California in the 1970’s, to Paris, France in the 1990’s, where she hoped she could forget it all. Now Meres-Sia presents this work to continue her journey of individual healing. Further, Meres-Sia believes that the act of presenting and viewing this work will foster community healing.
Written, performed and produced by Meres-Sia Gabriel. Directed by Ajuana Black with Musical Direction by Dr. Yafeu Tyhimba. 75 minutes.
I Was There Too! was developed thanks to awards from California Arts Council, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Center for Cultural Power, and BE-IMAGINATIVE.
Get to know Meres-Sia
Meres-Sia Gabriel is the writer and producer of the one-woman show about growing up in the Black Panther Party entitled “I Was There Too!" She is the bestselling author of I Twirl in the Smoke and a co-author of the KQED watch guide for the BE-IMAGINATIVE emmy-nominated film When the Waters Get Deep. Poet, performer, playwright, lyricist, and educator, her work deals with helping marginalized groups center themselves through artistic expression and personal narrative.
She has collaborated as a poet and performer with de Young Museum of San Francisco, Legion of Honor Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and Oakland Museum of California where her poetry is featured in the permanent installation “Black Power in California.” In 2024, Meres-Sia launched a series of interactive community events honoring the perspectives of adults who grew up in the Black Panther Party. “Year of the Panther Cub: We Were There Too!” panel discussion and her one-woman show “I Was There Too!” act as catalysts for intergenerational conversations around self-care in activism and caring for children in revolutionary movements.
In addition to her artist practice, Meres-Sia is a former high school teacher of 20 years, an adjunct French instructor, a teacher consultant for the Bay Area Writing Project at UC Berkeley, and the founder of her own creative writing program, Life-Changing Writing. When she is not teaching, writing and performing, she is dreaming, and enjoying being the mother of two adult children. Meres-Sia currently resides in the Bay Area, California.
Life-Changing Writing Programs
You're not looking for another course, you're looking for results. Life-Changing Writing is a live online writing program that is designed with your true capability in mind. Something different.
Most people aspire to write like their favorite authors but I teach you how to write like yourself. Tap into your own unique writer’s voice. In this coaching and live mentorship experience, your stories will begin to pour out of you on the first session.
If you have no writing practice to speak of or if you are an experienced writer having writer's block, you will benefit from this course & live mentorship!
I will help you learn to trust your voice while embracing your unique writing path. Through writer self-care, self-compassion, and consistent practice in our creative community, your writing will blossom in unexpected and inspiring ways.
Every genre and experience level is welcomed.
Music
A native of Oakland, California, Meres-sia began performing and writing rhymes in elementary school. In high school she joined The Mad Circle, which evolved into Hieroglyphics (Hiero), as a member of the group “Cell Dwellaz”. As the first female MC of the collective, she is affectionately referred by some as “The First Lady of Hiero.” Returning to her rhyming roots, Meres-Sia aligns with some of the Bay Area’s finest MCs for DeL Presents Manik Mondaze. Find more compilations from the crew at www.delpresents.com. She is currently working on an album project with Del The Funky Homosapien and Fanatik onBeats.
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