The Wizard & The Enchantress: A Night at the Goth Circus
A night beneath the lights of Goth Circus with aerialist Brooke Raquel—from behind-the-scenes rehearsals and an unexpected red velvet throne to chair choreography and a gravity-defying flight upon the lyra at Banyan Live.
For too long, this Wizard has been in a deep state of slumber. Not frozen in time, but rather consumed by its very passage. However, Dear Reader, do not be misled into thinking he has forgotten about you, for I have not.
In the flames of destruction, I am reborn. These bones have been resurrected by the Necromancer within, for you cannot kill that which does not die. Bound to this mortal coil, I have many tales left to tell, beginning with the story of the Goth Circus.
Our tale begins on All Hallows' Eve, 2025 (see Ruby Redstarr's Halloween Spooktacular for the full story), when I happened upon a beguiling enchantress by the name of Brooke Raquel, a sorceress who could fly high above the spectators through the magic of her lyra—a curious device reminiscent of the Eye that is always watching.
The way this wingless Muse moved through the air, one might believe gravity was merely an agreement she had made with the earth, and one she honored only enough to keep from floating away entirely. I watched from below, casting spell after spell through my lens, attempting to capture some small piece of the enchantment unfolding above me. Yet with each incantation, I found myself drawn further into her orbit.
In the months that followed that strange and magical night, we decided to see what manner of magic we might create together. Twice the Muse and the Wizard joined forces, setting forth on photographic quests of our own, conjuring strange images and discovering a shared appetite for the dark and unusual. By the time another invitation arrived to witness Brooke take flight, we were no longer strangers whose paths had happened to cross on All Hallows' Eve.
We had become an adventure party.
Our latest quest carried us to the nearby Kingdom of Banyan Live, where beneath the sprawling limbs of its namesake tree, a night of music, magic, and mirth had been assembled. There are many tales to be told of what transpired beneath that banyan tree—and perhaps, Dear Reader, one day I shall tell them—but this particular chapter belongs to Brooke.
The enchantress had invited this Wizard as her special guest to witness the evening's festivities, though before any spectator could enter the realm, there were rituals to perform. I watched as Brooke rehearsed beneath the empty stage lights, contorting herself around a chair and taking once more to the great Eye suspended overhead. The spectacle that would later appear effortless before an audience was first practiced in an almost empty room, surrounded not by applause but by cables, crew, and the quiet machinery required to make magic possible.
A Throne Among the Ruins
Yet before the gates opened, our quest took an unexpected detour.
Outside the venue, among the discarded relics of the mortal world, we happened upon a magnificent red couch—or at least, what remained of one. Its velvet was torn, its bones exposed and its glory seemingly long forgotten.
Naturally, we saw a throne.
There was no grand plan, no elaborate production. We simply had a Muse, a Wizard, two cameras, for any great Lord of Time operates with two hearts and a beautifully ruined throne abandoned beside a dumpster.
Sometimes that is all the magic one requires.
When the Magic Begins
But soon the hour arrived for Brooke Raquel to take the stage.
Her first performance began upon solid ground—or what passes for solid ground when Brooke is involved. She danced across the stage before taking possession of a simple chair, though in her hands even this ordinary object seemed to lose its allegiance to gravity.
She twisted around it, beneath it and above it, until at times it became difficult to determine whether Brooke was dancing with the chair or teaching it how to float.
Then came the Eye.
Once more the enchantress ascended above the crowd, returning to the strange circular talisman through which I had first witnessed her sorcery on All Hallows' Eve.
Suspended high above the spectators, Brooke twisted, turned and seemingly hung from nothing at all. Below, the Wizard did what he knew best.
I raised my cameras and began casting spells.
Enter the Forbidden Cabal
This is but a glimpse of the evening's magic. Members of the Forbidden Cabal can venture deeper into the complete photo story, with additional rehearsal photographs, the full red couch portrait session, and extended coverage of Brooke Raquel's chair and lyra performances at Goth Circus.