The Women's Room.Photo courtesy of Lisa Ann Markuson
Arts & Culture

Enjoy “Speakeasy Vibes” At A Women-Only Conversational Salon And Coworking Space In Old Louisville

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The poetry company Ars Poetica and the mental health service provider Casa Galenia are teaming up to host The Women’s Room, a three-day conversational salon, cafe, and coworking space with “speakeasy vibes” for women and “fem-centric people,” tomorrow through Friday, March 3, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. each day.

The event will take place at an apartment in Old Louisville that is temporarily vacant before a new tenant moves in next week. This week, Ars Poetica founder and CEO Lisa Ann Markuson said, the space will become “a fantasy world, a dream safe space for women to just hang out and be together in safety and secrecy and beauty.” (The address is only available to paying guests, but Markuson said the space is on the third floor of a building without elevators.)

The salon will be divided into two rooms: a lounge room, made for yoga and relaxation; and a cafe room, made for co-working. The cafe room will have roasted coffee from Van’s Coffee Tour and fresh bread from El Bread Shop.

Each day will also include special events featuring local women-owned businesses. Here’s the schedule:

Wednesday, March 1

  • 12-2 p.m. — Tarot readings with Tigresse Bleu
  • 2 p.m. — Free poetry workshop with Lisa Ann Markuson
  • 6:30 p.m. — Wine tasting + popcorn sampling with Sarah Height of Canary Club and Tracy Brown of Poppin’ Flavors

Thursday, March 2

  • 2 p.m. — Mixed-media art workshop with Tatiana Rathke
  • 6 p.m. — Intro to BUTI yoga with Chrystal
  • 7 p.m. — Sound healing with Hillary Hoffman

Friday, March 3

  • 12 p.m. — Group therapy with Alejandra, “The Weight of Being a Working Woman” (max. 10 people)
  • 6 p.m. — Matriarchy Open Mic and Mixer (three-minute sets, plus games and activities)

 

Tickets for The Women’s Room are $8, and half of the proceeds will go to SisterSong, an organization dedicated to reproductive justice for women of color. Guests with financial difficulties can use the code “halfoff” to get a half-priced ticket.

Markuson said the inspiration for creating The Women’s Room came from an invite-only Galentine’s Day event she hosted earlier this month, where she was “amazed by the energy and how safe it felt and how beautiful it was.”

“I have had too many experiences in my life as a woman where I’m approached by strangers who want to get my attention or want to get in my space in a way I’m not comfortable with,” she told LEO. “This speakeasy vibe makes it safe and cozy. It keeps us away from the world that wants to take a lot from us a lot of the time.”