The Poetry Brothel Chicago: LIFE IS A CABARET

DARLINGS!

Come blow your horn and start celebrating, right this way, your table’s waiting! This June, The Poetry Brothel Chicago invites you to embrace freedom, self expression, and the absolute joy of loving and living, with LIFE IS A CABARET, a special Pride Production. 

Join us as we bask in the sunshine and salaciousness that is Summertime Chi. There will be poetry, performances, and the palpable sense that everything is going to be alright. After all, while we can’t ignore the challenges of the world ahead of us, we must embrace the beauty of each moment while we fight for what we believe in: a world where a poetic peace buoys each and every living creature with the unchallenged right to exist and thrive.  

We are honored to be joined by Special Guest Poet C. Russell Price:

C. RUSSELL PRICE is the author of oh, you thought this was a date?!: Apocalypse Poems and Tonight, We Fuck the Trailer Park Out of Each Other. Their newest collection Bisquick: An American Seance will be published in August 2026 by Northwestern University Press. They are a poet in residence at the Chicago Poetry Center and work with the Anarchist Review of Books. They are a Lambda Fellow, a Ragdale Fellow, Literary Death Match champion, and two—time Lit 50 honoree. Price landscapes in Chicago.

As a further special treat for our Pride Show, we are excited to announce Guest Host Dandy, of the Emmy Award Winning Dandy and Friends:

Dandy (he/him) is the award-winning host made popular on TikTok for his viral videos promoting queer joy! Winner of Host of the Year 2024 for Vancouver International Burlesque Festival and awarded runner up in the Georgia Straight’s BEST OF VANCOUVER for his show Drag Attack! - you can catch him regularly on stage in his shows at the iconic Rio Theatre in Vancouver, or touring regularly between LA and New York City. His Emmy-nominated series Dandyland, which highlights LGBTQIA+ businesses, organizations, and artists in the lower-mainland of British Columbia, is streaming now on Optik TV. @dandyandfriends 

Event Detail

• Age Requirement: 21+
• Doors Open: 7:30 PM
• Show Time: 8:00 - 10:00 PM
• Private Readings Continue after 10pm
• VIP tickets include priority seating, and a token to get your journey started.

About The Brothel:

“Alongside staged poetry readings, there are burlesque performers, dancers, acrobats, tarot readings, poem-on-the-spot writers and more around the venue. Guests can also get private readings from whichever poet they like upon request.” – Block Club Chicago

At The Poetry Brothel, a “madam” presents a rotating cast of poets, artists, and artisans who operate within self-constructed characters, “erupting into verse in public and luring guests into back rooms for private readings,” as described in The New Yorker. Central to The Poetry Brothel experience is the creation of character, which for each artist serves as a disguise and a freeing device, enabling The Poetry Brothel to be a place of uninhibited creative expression where artists and audience members alike can communicate more authentically.

Artists performing with the Brothel reflect the diverse identities of our great city of Chicago. Cis and trans women, cis and trans men, genderqueer, genderfluid, and nonbinary folks, people of color, queer, straight, emerging, established, local, and international poets make up our cabinet of poets and brothel beauties. Their alter-egos may be faeries, sirens, witches, aliens, divas, royalty, demons, ancient forests, and everything in between. The Poetry Brothel uses its platform to support sex workers and to educate audiences about the sex industry.

On Consent: Behave with beauty, connect with intention. We are, by and large, a no-contact event -- here to blow your mind and nothing else! Always ask before touching anyone in our House, and report any discomfort to security, staff, or the Madam Herself without delay.

Our show may include flashing lights, reasonably amplified music, and a startling glimpse of your true self.

On Accessibility: If any special accommodations are needed, please contact the madam: [email protected]

Please see our FAQs for answers to common questions.

Follow us on Instagram: @poetrybrothelchicago for updates and sneak peeks.

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Host or Publisher The Poetry Society of New York