What is a Goreyesque Gala?

What is “A Goreysque Gala”?, you may be asking. Simply a macabre merriment honoring the illustrious Edward Gorey’s Centennial and benefiting the building renovation of Artists Book House. 

Where shadows lengthen and peculiarities abound, gather at the eerie domicile of Alison Aldrich & John Varones, nestled ominously in Highland Park, IL on Sat., Oct. 25th, 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm.

Join us for an evening fraught with: Curious Comestibles, Treacherous Tonics, Excerpted Performances of The Uncanny Attic, and An Exquisite Corpse Auction. Tickets are 15% off until Oct. 11th!

Illustration © Landis Blair, 2025.

"The Uncanny Attic" is an absurdist dark comedy brought to life through puppetry, clowning, dance, live music, and a macabre fascination with death. Co-created and co-produced by Bazuka Joe and The Bunny Royale (Jennifer Friedrich), this twisted tale unfolds in a world where catastrophe strikes with unsettling regularity, and the youngest among us are constantly at risk.

Photograph by Lydon French

Tickets for the Goreyesque Gala can be purchased here.

Goreyesque awakens!

Dear readers past and present - We have startling news. After 10 years of silence, Goreyesque has awakened from its slumber. The stories, poems, and artwork you once loved in this journal are moving to a new home. Artists Book House, the Chicago-based literary and book arts nonprofit, will host Goreyesque at https://www.artistsbookhouse.org/goreyesque. Each issue will move to its new home throughout the months of September and October, then vanish from this location like a curious mirage. You can view Issue 1 now!

Artwork © Landis Blair, 2025

The intrigue won’t end there. The journal, founded by ABH co-founder Ken Gerleve and Board member Todd Summar, and edited by Summar, Howard Simmons, Kori Klinzing, and Jess Millman, is moving to ABH as part of a series of late 2025 celebrations and fundraising events honoring the work of Edward Gorey.

The events will include A Goreyesque Gala, held at the home of Alison Aldrich & John Varones in Highland Park, IL on Saturday, October 25th, 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm. Guests will enjoy food, refreshments, and excerpted performances of The Uncanny Attic, a Gorey-inspired absurdist dark comedy brought to life through puppetry, clowning, dance, live music, and a macabre fascination with death.

Tickets to the Gala are available here.

Illustration © Landis Blair, 2025.

ABH will also host a Gorey-themed open house and fundraiser - A Goreyesque Open House - on Saturday, December 13th, 2025 from 2:00 to 5:00pm at 4207 W Irving Park Rd, Chicago, IL 60641. Light refreshments will be served, and visitors will have the opportunity to view work by illustrator and comics artist Landis Blair, along with set pieces from The Uncanny Attic. Also on display will be a series of “Exquisite Corpses”, collaborations wherein artists design various body segments without seeing the others’ work, resulting in uncanny configurations.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Gorey’s birth and 25th anniversary of his death, and the ABH event and Goreyesque launch will honor these milestones.

Please join us - either online or in person or both - and help us celebrate the enigmatic work of your favorite creator.