This event will feature readings by
Deirdre Jayko
Aubrey Johnson
Brenda Orso

Open mic will follow. Hosted by Brooke Palma

Barnaby’s West Chester
15 S. High Street
West Chester, PA 19382

Deirdre Jayko’s (DJ's) poetry is straight forward with a confessional style and touches on a variety of topics ranging from Queer identity to spirituality. She started to dabble in performance poetry in 2016 and quickly fell in love with the sense community at open mic nights and poetry slams. DJ has been a featured poet for Moonstone Poetry and is currently working on their first chapbook. When not writing, you can find her hiking at Wissahickon, frequenting their favorite South Philly dive bars, or waxing philosophical about the state of the world.

Aubrey Johnson holds an MFA in Poetry from BYU and a PhD in Creative Writing from Oklahoma State
University. She teaches English at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. Her poetry has appeared in
Arcturus, Whiskey Island, Canary Literary Magazine, and the collection Breathing Stories from Torrey
House Press. She is currently pursuing publication for her first poetry collection, Ruin(ed)nation.

Brenda Orso started writing poetry as a teenager. When entering college, her father advised her to "do what you love," and 4 years later she earned a BA in English with a writing concentration. She continued writing poetry until her early 30's when she abandoned the craft for 18 years. Her love for the written word never abated, and recently she began attending workshops and poetry readings, and writing. Brenda believes that everyone has a story to share, and has something to contribute that can bring beauty and wonder and healing to others. She has grand plans to someday see her work in print, but for now, she’s enjoying the ride.