MAYA (celia) OWEN

Her poems have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net anthologies, longlisted for Palette Poetry’s Emerging Poet Prize, Foundlings Press’ Ralph Angel Poetry Prize (selected by Mary Ruefle), and highlighted in Frontier Poetry’s list of Exceptional Poetry From Around the Web. She has worked as a reader for various literary journals, facilitated poetry workshops, and performed at events around the UK.

As a theatremaker, she constructs a queer-feminist magic realism that centres fabulous creatures, monstered others, and spectacles of transgression. She has recently been selected by CRIPTtic Arts as one of five emerging disabled writers and theatremakers to develop the script for a full-length show through a four-month development programme. Two of her short plays, YOU DON’T HAVE TO STAY HERE BUT YOU CAN’T GO HOME and SPREAD have been produced, respectively, as part of KDC Theatre‘s New Writing Competition and for UntoldCollectiv‘s Short & Mighty programme. She developed and performed her original act WET WORK as part of Carnesky’s Radical Cabaret School, and again at Club Silly.

She also makes art pop for outsiders as Maya Celia, and is working on her debut EP with Iona Catherine Productions. Meanwhile, she is learning to produce music to support her singing/songwriting practice, and to do her part to defy the gender gap in music production.

Further to this creative hodgepodge, she has directed and assistant-directed one-act and full-length plays, acted on stage and screen – often alongside her actor twin – and worked as a supporting artist in the film and television industry for many years.

If you meet her at a party, she will tell you she is Mad, gay, and once broke into the British Museum inside a wooden horse.