From the organizing body that brings you the Berkeley Slam and the Oakland Slam, RichOak Events presents a new poetry show in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission District. In partnership with Medicine for Nightmares, the Day Dreamer’s Poetry Showcase is a spoken word event where voices that have often been silenced or overlooked have a chance to shine. Join us every 2nd Saturday in the Galleria as we invite local and traveling poets to shape and nurture the very dreams we as poets refuse to let die. This month’s features are Ashley “Ms. Write,” Pugh, Esperanza Cabrales, Michael “Mic” Ting.

Ashley Pugh, known as Ms. Write, is a Florida-raised poet who has done most of her performing and poetry slam competing while residing in the “DMV Area“ (D.C, Maryland, and Virginia). Her first slam was in 2013 at the Beltway Poetry Newbie Slam. Other slam competitions that she has participated in included the Pigeon Slam in Philadelphia hosted by Alyesha Wise, Spirits n‘ Lyrics, and Slam Richmond; where she competed and was a finalist for the 2014 Slam Richmond team for the National Poetry Slam Competition. She frequently performed at Wednesday Verses, hosted by the late Lorna Pinckney, Spirits n“ Lyrics in Manassas, Va hosted by Jeff “Luciano” Johnson and Matthew “Lucky Lowkey“ Higgins, and Spit Dat, the longest running poetry show in Washington DC hosted by Drew “Droopy the Broke Baller" Anderson and Dwayne “The Crochet Kingpin“ Lawson-Brown. In 2015, she caught the ear of and was granted her first feature by poet and activist Christopher Alexandria-Bernard Thomas. After taking a  seven year break from poetry due to working in the friendly skies, nationality-acclaimed poet (and NPS champion) Jeremyah “The Fluent One“ Payne nudged her to go back on the mic this year for her birthday in Houston, TX. Her love for the mic and the poetry community is now back in full force. Since then, she has performed in multiple venues in California and Houston, TX; and most recently competed and won the Berkeley Slam competition hosted by (who she considers the “Most awesomest host in Northern California“) Reggie Edmonds. 

Esperanza Cabrales is a Xicana poet from the 209 that is proud to put the B in LGBT. She fell in love with poetry in 2013 and has been writing it ever since. Her work has been published in the 2022 edition of Havik: The Las Positas Journal of Arts and Literature and The Aesthetic Digital Magazine (where she was a former editor). She has a finished chapbook she is currently pursuing publication for. Esperanza has performed throughout California from Stockton and Manteca to the bay and LA. She's featured in Stockton at Hatch Workshop, a makerspace for local artists. With a year left to finish her major in business entrepreneurship, Esperanza enjoys incorporating marketing or business related twists into her writing. Armed with her background in the performing arts, she aims to uplift fellow marginalized voices and share her art with the world for the sake of meaningful connections. She prioritizes compassion, mental health, exploring decolonization and lost histories, and equality.Her favorite place to be found is by a beach writing poetry or trying not to drown in a kayak.

Michael “Mic” Ting is an Asian-American poet, born and raised in the Bay Area, who has toured both internationally and in cities across the country, sharing his particular brand of spoken word. Mic started writing and performing poetry during his college years at Santa Clara University, which eventually led to his competing on three national slam poetry teams. In 2015, he helped Team Palo Alto take 2nd place at Group Piece Finals, and in 2018, Mic became the first Chinese-American to win the Individual World Poetry Slam held in San Diego, CA. His debut poetry collection, Novelty, was published in March 2022 and can be found where books are sold online.