Women's Storytelling Weekend: Margin x Jakarta Poetry Slam's Special

About

Kickstarting the first day of Women’s Storytelling Weekend with a soulful musical showcase. This is an open mic session with pre-registered spots, dedicated to aspiring and hobbyist musicians and music lovers alike to share their voices.

Curated by Ashley Hamel of Jakarta OST, six women performers will take the stage to perform originals and covers in a cozy, ‘pajama party’ setting. It’s a laid-back session designed for you to unwind, decompress, and find solace in music.

Our host

Jakarta Original Soundtrack

Jakarta OST is an open-mic music session highlighting emerging and established songwriters, and the wider songwriting community in Jakarta, hosted by musician and stage actor Ashley Aisyah Hamel.

About

Welcome to the Soft Baddie Era… a space where we trade the pressure of ‘having it all together’ for the power of feeling it all deeply.

Society has spent centuries telling women that their longings are ‘too much’, ‘too loud’, or ‘too desperate’. We’re here to flip that narrative.

A Soft Baddie knows that her deep desires are her fuel. We begin with a curated silent reading session to connect with the voices in our books and our hearts, followed by a bold discussion on why wanting more is a radical act of self-love.

It’s an afternoon of being soft enough to feel the ache, and ‘baddie’ enough to never apologise for it.

About

In this workshop, participants will get to enjoy:

• A guided poetry writing session with prompts inspired by girlhood, angst, memory, tenderness, and legacy.

• The freedom to use existing poems (or combine them with new writing made during the workshop). 

• Learning the basics of zine layout and page planning. A hands-on tutorial on basic bookbinding, so participants can bind their own zine from scratch

• A creative decorating session using collage, doodles, handwriting, stickers, and mixed media elements. A safe space to express personal stories through art, without pressure to “be perfect”

• The satisfaction of taking home a finished handmade literary poetry zine. a personal artifact that captures your voice, your story, and your legacy

Our Facilitators

Ika Vantiani is a Jakarta-based Indonesian artist, curator, and crafter. A graduate of The London Institute of Communications–Jakarta with an Advanced Diploma in Advertising, her work explores what it means to be a woman in contemporary society—particularly through the entanglements of media, consumption, and everyday life. Working primarily with collage, Ika expands the medium beyond the page into workshops, installations, and street-based interventions, using making as both a reflective and collective practice.

Lizzie Chan is a corporate baddie, by day, and by night, a writer-director whose strange working hours still make her parents suspect she might be a vampire or a spy. She writes with an honest, lyrical, and delightfully unruly voice. A 2023 UWRF Grand Slam winner and 2024 Ubud Women’s Slam champion, she founded Jakarta Poetry Slam and Jakarta Improv Club, and recently represented Indonesia with her original poems at the Sydney Opera House and the Jakarta International Literary Festival.

About

A dedicated spotlight on the feminine narrative and the power of personal storytelling. It brings together the raw energy of a live performance with the intimacy of a shared sanctuary.

The evening features a curated showcase of featured poets sharing their craft, entwined with a spontaneous open-mic session. We invite anyone in the audience to step up to the microphone to share their reflections in a supportive and empowering environment.

It is an invitation to be heard, to release emotions, and to bridge the gap between individual expression and collective connection. In this space, every story is witnessed, and every voice has the power to resonate with the shared complexities of girlhood.

Our Host

Jakarta Poetry Slam

Initiated by Lizzie Chan and Ayu Meutia, Jakarta Poetry Slam is a dynamic community of storytellers—poets and spoken-word performers that champions raw, unfiltered expression. They create a platform where voices, especially women’s, are amplified through rhythm, vulnerability, and unapologetic truth.

About

This is a live, podcast-style dialogue designed to bridge the emotional gap between genders. In this unique session, the stage belongs entirely to women, while the audience is composed of men invited to practice the art of active listening.

Stripping away the impulse to interrupt or ‘mansplain’, this is a space for men to reflect on the profound depth of female friendships—bonds that foster emotional eloquence and vulnerability.

By exploring why men often struggle to find this same openness with one another, we aim to uncover how the lessons of girlhood can help men navigate their own emotional landscapes in a healthier, more mature way.

Our Host

Lizzie Chan says: "I'm the kind of person whose life path raises eyebrows. I’ve been told I lack focus. That I make reckless, confusing choices. And maybe that’s true...if life is supposed to be linear. I’m the Founder of Jakarta Improv Club and Co-Chair of Jakarta Poetry Slam. A poetry slam champion (Ubud Writers Fest 2023, Women’s Champion 2024). A shortlisted SEAQCF artist for my book “I broke my heart so you don’t have to” and “Seeking Neon Buddha”. A tea brewer at Tales Through Tea. An educational consultant. A writer, lyricist, and director for musical theatre. A featured poet on stages from Jakarta to Australia—including Salihara, Graha Bakti Budaya and the Sydney Opera House."

About

Redefine your understanding of ‘hope’ through a transformative journey of reflection and creation.

We begin by looking inward, using guided meditation and intentional breathwork to uncover your personal truths.

Once grounded, we transition into visual storytelling, where your reflections take a tangible form.

By weaving together personal photos and visual artefacts, you will curate a hope-centred photo journal—a meaningful narrative that honors your past lessons, celebrates your present self, and illuminates your path toward the future.

The ticket includes junk journal materials, gf material cookie for takjil, one free yoga class at Mood Studios Kemang, and a body scrub from Creme+Tonic.

Our Host

Breathe Love Play offers curated wellbeing experiences for people of color across US and Indonesia to have spaces to explore well-being, love, and joy.

Women’s Exposure is a collective initiative that empowers women interested in analogue photography to express their talents through visual storytelling.

About

An open-stage platform designed for actors and aspiring performers to showcase their craft in a semi-spontaneous setting.

Much like a comedy open mic, this session invites participants to take the spotlight and perform snippets of film or theatre scenes, monologues, or dialogues.

This special edition centres on the feminine perspective, requiring performers to bring to life female characters or narratives that explore women’s stories through an authentic female lens.

It is a space to experiment, express, and celebrate the nuances of the feminine experience through the art of performance.

Our Host

Kaan Lativan is an actor who sees performance as a way of reading life. After a long journey across stage and screen—including winning a Piala Citra —Kaan now shares the belief that, in many ways, everyone is an “actor” in their everyday lives.