American Experience: Casa Susanna

Donna, New York City. Circa 1963. 

Courtesy of Collection of Elizabeth Wollheim

Visit the Catskills hideaway where, in the 1950s and 60s, an underground network of transgender women and cross-dressing men found refuge.

In the 1950s and ’60s, an underground network of transgender women and cross-dressing men found refuge at a modest house in the Catskills region of New York. Known as Casa Susanna, the house provided a safe place to express their true selves and live for a few days as they had always dreamed— dressed as and living as women without fear of being incarcerated or institutionalized for their self-expression.

Told through the memories of those who visited the house, the film provides a moving look back at a secret world where the persecuted and frightened found freedom, acceptance and, often, the courage to live out of the shadows. A co-production with ARTE, Casa Susanna is directed by the critically acclaimed French filmmaker Sébastien Lifshitz (Wild Side, Little Girl, Bambi) and executive produced by Cameo George. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2022 DOC NYC Festival, American Experience: Casa Susanna premieres Tuesday, June 27, 2023 at 8 p.m. on WXXI-TV.