Beyond Baroque presents Skulls & Stairs a reading series showcasing poets beyond text dwelling on the goth and the illuminating void. This Halloween special features performances in the staircase by poets Adam Stutz, celebrating two new books out from Whit Stag Press, Sham Tapestry & COMPUNCTIONS + THEFTS; Beyond Baroque bookstore favorite and former Ventura County Youth Poet Laureate, Genesis Perez, and wicked BB intern, USC-undergrad Nicholas Wilder Forman. The evening will feature a synthful set of archestral anarchy by The Martian Sunset keyboardist Ryan Madariaga, aka Celestial Cyclops. Dress up in your favorite spooky ghoul or dead author. All customes encouraged!

doors open: 7:00 pm, readings: 7:30 pm

About the authors

Adam Stutz is the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Broken Lens Journal, co-host of the Broken Lens Podcast, and a neurodivergent poet. He is the author of Transcript (Cooper Dillon Books, 2017), The Scales (White Stag Publishing, 2018), The Sham Tapestry (White Stag Publishing, 2024), and Compunctions + Thefts (White Stag Publishing, 2024). His work has appeared in various print and online publications including The Equalizer: Second Series, A Sharp Piece of Awesome, Prelude, Be About It, Deluge, Dum Dum Zine, The Pinch, Dodging the Rain, Where is the River, Dream Pop, Cover, Ghost Proposal, Columba Poetry, INKSOUNDS, Spectra Poets, Trilobite, hush: a journal of noise, and others. He currently resides in Los Angeles, CA. His work can also be found at https://stutzwrites.com.

Nicholas Wilder Forman was born in Los Angeles. They will probably live there forever. They study Creative Writing and Media Arts and Practice at the University of Southern California. Their work has been published in Expat Press, Feral Dove, Charm School Magazine, and more.

Genesis Perez is queer Chicana poet and performer from Oxnard, California. From 2019 to 2020 they were the Youth Poet Laureate of Ventura County. They released their debut collection of poetry Flash Photography in 2021. Perez has performed at Paak House, Beyond Baroque, and Da Poetry Lounge.

Celestial Cyclops Ryan Madariaga is a trans artist based in the greater LA area. She’s the keyboardist for SFV surf punk band The Martian Sunset, whose self-titled debut album releases on October 23rd. She also makes solo music as Celestial Cyclops. You can buy her single Shipwrecked and Gutpunched for $1 on bandcamp, or stream it anywhere. Look out for her forthcoming project: The Fall EP.

This event is Free & In-Person at Beyond Baroque. Masks are encouraged while inside our center.

Event attendees are expected to behave in a respectful and considerate manner while in our space. Beyond Baroque reserves the right to remove individuals from our events, virtual or otherwise, if they are not respecting the space, fellow attendees, or performers.

Because this is a free event seating is limited. Please arrive early.