Butch Mermaid Productions presents Ania Upstill and Danielle Levsky’s Sappho's Salon

Inspired by Selby Wynn Schwartz’s Booker Prize-winning 2022 novel After Sappho, this salon recreates American writer Natalie Clifford Barney’s legendary turn-of-the-century literary parlor, where audience members interact with and learn from real-life icons like Dietrich (Rosa Darling), Baker (Cinnamon Cheri), and Woolf (Oliver Jane Jorgensen). This evocative and informative experience is created, directed, and produced by Ania Upstill and Danielle Levsky.

As a former academic, I love this event’s focus on living history. Levsky, Upstill, and their production partners, Butch Mermaid Productions and Dyke+ ArtHaus, repurposed the original Victorian architecture of Dyke+ ArtHaus's West Philadelphia-based rowhouse to replicate the salon.

Inviting active participants

The experience really comes alive through small group excursions and well-researched historical enactment. The production encourages the audience to remain active participants rather than inactive bystanders, splitting us into groups of five and staggering our entry into the house. Watching the performers dress or undress in their kitchens, bedrooms, and bathrooms feels intimate and subversive in such a small space. The casual expression of each character’s sexuality makes their sexual identities more tangible and prominent, rather than underplaying them.

The interactive cast does a great job establishing an egalitarian, communal feel. As an improvisor, I love positive crowd-work and recognize the skill in playing characters entertaining to watch yet real enough to address directly. The actors make a point of approaching anyone who appears alone, and remain interested in the conversations they initiate—shout-out to my group’s guide, Yoshiya Nobuko (Rosin Kuroyama).

Levsky and Upstill smartly allow the characters to disagree rather than pretending the queer community is a unified monolith. Through the readings selected, they showcase that questions of gender and sexuality have ALWAYS existed, and give the audience space to share their concerns. Although the experience skirts contemporary politics, it recognizes that people living their truths might be viewed as inherently political to others. Pearls of wisdom dropped by the performance team include “I create a radical space simply by being in it” (Jen Fellman as Kiki de Montparnasse) and “I take a piss and it's a source of political debate” (Rowan Mucci, poet-in-residence).

Minor adjustments needed

Despite its overall success, Sappho’s Salon needs minor adjustments. My entire experience took three hours from the first tour to the closing events. The upstairs interactions took over an hour combined, the discussion portion about 1.5 hours, and the subsequent treat break and closing ceremony took 30 minutes altogether. After the upper tour ended, we sat in the parlor for about 10-15 minutes waiting for the other guests. I would've preferred if the artists called it an intermission and encouraged us to get water, use the restroom, or step outside, rather than keeping us corralled. Or they could have moved the chocolate break to the intermission, even if it lost some of the post-debate intimacy.

The show’s interactivity might also benefit from stronger curation of the commentary from guests. Some moments reminded me of my experience as a performer in a highly interactive 2025 Fringe production: people in that audience who might be more accustomed to taking up space (e.g. cis men) typically spoke more than others. To maintain an egalitarian space, we learned to start balancing attendee responses. The evening I attended Sappho’s Salon, I noticed a parallel experience. I love that the Salon embraces all voices, but I might suggest encouraging those who have not spoken yet.

For those “brave enough”

Overall, the show is a great experience. In our current moment in American history, I definitely needed a safe space for a few hours to connect with others. I appreciated the performers’ racial diversity and attempt to represent most sexual identities within the LGBTQIA+ community.

The remaining performances (through May 10) are currently sold out, but you can join a waitlist through the ticketing page. If you do snag a ticket, be prepared to interact with the performers, but do so respectfully. There’s a waiver due to the numerous steps in the house, so don’t forget to wear comfortable shoes with your 1920s Parisian flair-inspired outfit. If you are “brave enough to attend” (in the words of Danielle Levsky as Natalie Barney), come with an open mind and open heart.

At top: Performer GC Harper recreates Loie Fuller’s ecstatic dance. (Photo by Danielle Levsky.)

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