In late March, Dayton audiences will be introduced to a new immersive theater experience. WYSO music director Juliet Fromholt spoke to Mer Imbri from Dirty Words, the production company behind Welcome to the BonTon Hotel.
Dirty Words has been presenting burlesque performances locally since 2021, often featuring both dance and reading of erotic literature from various historic periods. But it was Mer Imbri's time in New York that inspired this new production.
"I discovered a few immersive plays while I was there, and they were life changing," Imbri said. "When I came back [to Ohio], it was all I wanted to do. I would throw parties at my house with, like, immersive theater involved. So I'd get my friends to play characters and stuff for me. And, I always wanted to do a show, an actual public one like this. So I'm very excited to be doing it, and it's been a long time coming."
While Welcome to the BonTon Hotel is a work of fiction, the production will feature some of Dayton's history by incorporating legendary Dayton brothel owner, Elizabeth Richter Hedges into the story.
"She was one of the most successful wealthy women in Dayton because of her business in the sex work industry. She donated on a regular basis to Dayton's first hospital, the YWCA, the YMCA, and donated more than pretty much any other business when the 1913 flood hit. She donated about $1,500, which would have been in today's spending power, about $34,000. I think it's amazing. There's no books about her. And, you know, most people try to write sex workers out of history a lot of the time. So I really wanted to give her like an opportunity to be remembered," said Imbri.
Tickets are going quickly for Welcome to the BonTon Hotel, which will premiere March 29 and 30. Learn more about Dirty Words on social media.
