Registration
Admission for this tour is $40. Members receive exclusive discounts on our programs and courses. Not a member? Learn more.
Please check your spam folder for your email confirmation. If you have questions, please call (215) 732-1600 or email rsvp@rosenbach.org.
This program is for those 18 and older.
To promote access to onsite and virtual Rosenbach experiences, we offer scholarships for each Signature Program. To inquire, email Associate Curator and Manager of Public Programs Bryn Michelson-Ziegler at bziegler@rosenbach.org.
Description
“What then shall I pray to?” the lesbian poet, novelist, playwright, and screenwriter Mercedes de Acosta wrote to Marlene Dietrich in the mid-1930s. “And what will then turn this gray life into starlight?” Mercedes de Acosta (1892-1968) spent most of her adult life striving to bask in the starlight of the greatest actresses of her time, most famously Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, and the theater star Eva Le Gallienne. Describing herself as a “white prince” in her letters to Dietrich, Acosta, the hopeless romantic, alas never found the lasting love she sought. Yet her literary works have earned her a place in LGBTQ+ literature, and her collection at the Rosenbach documents the life of a conflicted Queer person in pre-Stonewall America. This tour will introduce you to the life, literary work, and romantic liaisons of Mercedes de Acosta before exploring the fascinating story of how Acosta’s papers came to the Rosenbach under the guidance of curator and director William H. McCarthy, Jr. The tour will conclude with a discussion of Acosta’s life lessons for LGBTQ+ Americans in the 21st century.
Content note: This program involves discussion of mental illness, addiction, and suicide.
This tour is dedicated to the memory of William H. McCarthy, Jr., renowned bibliographer and the first curator and director of the Rosenbach Museum & Library who acquired the Mercedes de Acosta collection and died by suicide on April 3, 1968. If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, help is available via the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988.
Behind the Bookcase: Hands-on Tours at The Rosenbach
Behind the Bookcase: Hands-on Tours offer unparalleled access to see, and even touch, rare and important items not usually on view to the public. Each program is dedicated to a different author, theme, or topic and grants a truly hands-on experience with materials in The Rosenbach’s inspiring collection.
See all upcoming tours here. Space is limited and advance registration is strongly recommended.