“PAY ATTENTION!!” Poetry. Worship… and the Erotics of Attention

All good poetry is erotic because it labours to carry us into closer relationship with our own humanity. All good poetry is erotic because it endeavours to salt our wounds alive!

Details

  • Date: March 12, 2026
  • Time: 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM
  • Fee: $35 (Low barrier options available at the door)
  • Doors open: 30min before start
  • Duration: 3 hours
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Material to bring: See workshop main text
  • For individuals or pairs: any constellation welcome
  • Who is this for: Queer and friends

Tickets

Tickets also available at the door. Low barrier options like PWYC and our Pay-It-Forward-Board available at the door. For assistance, please ask us via info@studio-allegory.com

About This Event

A workshop with Jillian Christmas

I am arriving at the belief that all good poetry is erotic, and that all erotic good is certainly poetry. Which is not to say that all “erotic” “poetry” is “good”. But rather, that an access to eroticism is at the core of what makes any poetry anywhere any good at all. What I name here to be the most erotic of acts is the distribution and acquisition of attention.
All good poetry is erotic because it labours to carry us into closer relationship with our own humanity. All good poetry is erotic because it endeavours to salt our wounds alive! Erotic, as it reveals, examines and forgives our shifting moralities, erotic, as it begs us to confront our naked vulnerabilities – as it reminds us that we are merely flesh and bone and blood and sweat and breath and cum and spirit.
If eroticism is not evident immediately or explicitly in the language, or imagery of a good poem, undeniably it will be present within the ethos, praxis, and labour of the writing itself. A stretch toward freedom is embedded in the very need to carve the words, to conjure a memory out of absence is an act fueled by desire; freedom is inherently erotic.
A human being can be seen: waging every imaginable manner of irreconcilable war, crafting innumerable dimensions of havoc – all while dreaming of a soft bed, on the other side of the ocean of our destruction. Everywhere there are gnarled and tangled horsemen of some apocalypse, yearning to distract us from the patient hands of a waiting lover.
What is a revolution, if not an opportunity to turn — our attention toward a most deserving direction. Connection. Love. The ache of caress. A willing and consenting witness to some deeply chosen movement. Your body desires you. Your body deserves you…lean into the erotics of your own attention. Make poetry of everything you notice. Our desires shape the world we create.
This is a writing, being, relating and moving workshop designed to be accessible for all bodies.
Over 2.5 hours we will engage in gentle rope work, reflection, writing, conversation, and a depth of curiosity.

Please carry with you:

– any small sacred items that help you to conjure
– rope (at least a couple lengths. We have loaner ropes!)
– writing implements
– a love of consent
– a partner (…if you like, but not mandatory)
– a spirit of play
– an open mind
– water (stay hydrated)

Facilitator

Jilian Christmas

Writer. Seeker. Travelling Circus.
Author of
– The Gospel of Breaking. (Arsenal Pulp Press 2020)
– The Magic Shell. (Flamingo Rampant 2022)

Fine Print

Accessibility

Studio Allegory is on the ground floor and there are no steps anywhere in the space. There is a single washroom for all with a handle bar and an air hand dryer. We have unscented soap, and we run an industrial air purifier automatically. Studio Allegory has a kitchen corner with a kettle and a coffee maker, as well as a mini fridge and a microwave. Studio Allegory also has a quiet room equipped with fidget toys, colouring books, blankets, noise cancelling earmuffs, and stuffed animals. Upon request we can provide closed captions for our workshops running on a screen. We have masks for a small donation.

More info & details on accessibility .

Cancellation & Refund

If Studio Allegory has to cancel an event: We will either refund ticket holders or transfer tickets to similar events in the future, depending on the wishes of the ticket holder.

Cancellation by participants: Cancellation before 48h prior to the start of the event entitles the ticket holder to a full refund. Between 48h and the start of the workshop, we can provide a partial refund (50% minus payment processing fees) or transfer of the ticket to a similar event in the future.

No refund or transfer can be offered for no-shows or cancellation after the event has started.

Read our entire refund policy .

Terms & Conditions

Please be aware that this event falls under our current terms and conditions.

Read our entire terms & conditions .

Studio Rules

Please be aware that this event falls under our current studio rules.

Read our entire house rules .