Butch Mermaid To Bring Two Solo Shows To Philly Fringe

Butch Mermaid Productions in partnership with Cannonball Festival presents The Tea written & performed by Ania Upstill and Transhumance written & performed by Ania Upstill and directed by Molly Houlahan 

Freshly arrived from multiple sell-out shows and four- and five-star reviews at the 2023 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, award-winning trans clown Ania Upstill (they/them) will make their Philadelphia debut with two solo works at the Cannonball Festival in September 2023. 

“There is such a wonderful arts community in Philly, and I'm thrilled to be here,” says Upstill. “For me, clowning is about approaching the world with a sense of joy and curiosity. Whether we're talking about gender identity or history, I think it's important to connect to audiences with humor, warmth, and curiosity.

In The Tea, Upstill assumes the role of Robert Fortune, the aptly-named British colonialist who stole tea from China, to tell an immersive story of drama, colonialism, piracy, drugs and, perhaps most surprising of all, botany. Learn the scandalous history of Britain's iconic beverage and have your own fortune read.

For one night only, take a surreal journey through the landscape of gender with Transhumance, winner of a Best Weekly Award for Circus and Physical Theatre at Adelaide Fringe in 2020, and previously seen in Austin, New York City, New Zealand, Iceland, London, and Edinburgh. Upstill playfully explores what it means to be a trans human—or any human—in a society where the gender binary often blocks us from the richness of human experience. 

Reviewers called Transhumance 'a work of joy and playfulness – whimsical, witty, and replete with wonder' (TheatreView.org.nz) and 'a deeply personal story of self-identification and a universal experience of gender paradigms' (TheatreScenes.co.nz).

 “We hear a lot about how difficult it is to be part of a gender minority, like having to explain your pronouns. And yes, it is hard,” Upstill says, “but it is also beautiful and exciting to play with the performative aspects of gender and find what feels right to you. I made Transhumance specifically for audiences of all ages, and I'm especially hoping to share it with trans and gender-nonconforming young people and their families.” 

Transhumance: 25 September 2023, 5 pm, Ages 13+ (45 minute run time)

The Tea: 18 September 2023, 8 pm & 9 pm; 25 September 2023, 6:30 pm & 8 pm. (40 minute run time)

Both at MAAS Building Garden, 1320 N 5th Street. Tickets from $25 at www.phillyfringe.org. (sliding scale Pay What You Can also available). 

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