No Fest: Poetry Marathon Fundraiser

Join us for our fundraiser of the Fall season at Beyond Baroque!

In this marathon-style reading, Beyond Baroque gathers poets and members of the Beyond Baroque family in the Wanda Coleman Theater for a full day of poetry and art. The event will also include a community Open Mic hosted by Joseph Paulson, a Small Press Fair in the Poets' Garden, the closing of the exhibition X:On The Road and At The Crossroads, and a special performance by L.A. rock band Lawndale, led by former Beyond Baroque Programming Curator, Jack Skelley, who organized readings and punk rock performances in the early 80s. Guests can purchase tickets for individual segments or as an all-day No Fest pass!

Beyond Baroque started No Fest in 2025 as a way to help make up for the loss of grant funding and to bring our community together in support of Beyond Baroque. For the last couple of years, we have continued to find ways to gather and raise the support needed to sustain our programs and mission to keep art, community, poetry, experimentation, and new literary work alive.

This year, we are asking our community to come together not only to help sustain this work, but to celebrate it. We hope you will join us for No Fest, and we look forward to seeing you at our historic space in Venice!

Reading Segments in The Wanda Coleman Theater

12–1 PM: Metaphors Be With You
Michelle Bitting, Laela Duncan, Jeff Graham, Richard Modiano, Iván Salinas, Adam Stutz, Duncan Cuervo, Johanna Drucker, Karen Kevorkian, Lizeth de la Luz, Zachary Jensen

1–2 PM: Honoring Ancestors & Lineage
Cynthia Briano, Teresa Mei Chuc, Amy Shimshon-Santo, Lynne Thompson, Allison Hedge-Coke, Grace Muller, Harry Northup, Brian Sonia-Wallace, Xochitl Julisa Bermejo

2–3 PM: Nearly Fatal Poets
Laurel Ann Bogen, Suzanne Lummis, Brendan Constantine, Nikki Ochoa, Shelby Pinkham, Amy Raasch, Rhiannon Cielos Chavez, Steven Reigns

3–4 PM: Open Mic Hosted by Joseph Paulson

4–5 PM: Lunch Break

5–6 PM: QTPOC Power & Resistance
José Hernandez Diaz, Elina Katrin, Jeremy Ra, Luivette Resto, Mitchell Jacobs, AJ Luxton, Jen Cheng, Anika Duenas, José Enrique Medina, Julian dela Cruz

6–7 PM: Ghosts of Venice West
Genesis Perez, S.A. Griffin, Tom Laichas, Mike Sonsken, Pam Ward, Holaday Mason, Rich Ferguson

7–8 PM: Possibilities of Language
Jimmy Vega, Amy Gerstler, Joseph Mosconi, Gail Wronsky, Ivanna Baranova, Larkin Higgins

8–9 PM: Lawndale Performance

Featured Presses and Vendors TBA

About Beyond Baroque

is one of the United States' leading independent Literary | Arts Centers and public spaces dedicated to expanding the public's knowledge of poetry, literature and art through cultural events and community interaction. Founded in 1968 as an experimental literary magazine, Beyond Baroque is based out of the original City Hall building in Venice, California. The Center offers a diverse variety of literary and arts programming including readings and workshops. The building also houses a bookstore with a large collection of new poetry books for sale.

Livestream: If you can’t join us in person the event will be livestreamed on at the scheduled time of the event. If you are tuning in this way, no ticket purchase is necessary.

If you are attending in person, ticket purchase is required. Tickets will be available at the Beyond Baroque bookstore on the day of the event, but we recommend registering in advance through Eventbrite. Masks are encouraged while inside our center. Please arrive early.

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, staff, fellow attendees, or performers.