A decade ago, Mij Tanith premiered her production of A Rose … at Ayres House. This reprise was set in the likewise stately venue of the Saldechin Tea Rooms. Originally the Commercial Bank on King William Street, the soaring, vaulted ceiling and walls of marble created an ambience matched by the high tea on offer.

The work of more than 30 lesbian poets, novelists, and letter and journal writers was interwoven to cover a rough arc, with sections such as: Smitten, In Praise of the Beloved, Loss and Death, to the political last, Rally Call. Across the centuries, authors’ work was read by three main voices: AC Arts graduate and now Flinders student Tahlia Harman, slam poet and dancer Jenny Toune, and retired senior government official (with multiple Antarctic tours as station leader under her belt) Joan Russell. Joining them was Melbourne novelist and Porter’s partner, Andrea Goldsmith.

The readers proved their performance pedigrees, with an injection of energy and characterful expression. Russell, particularly, has a lovely, measured reading voice. Harman gave of her youth and exuberance, and Toune’s dramatic physicality helped project the words beyond the page in such a grand volume of space.

Words of Saphho, of course, resound down the years, but less well-known contenders for inclusion were a delight to hear. Segues between different authors were sometimes as simple as “Audre Lord was nothing like Renee Vivian” but the snippets about the women and their situations were interesting enough to intrigue.

Feast’s literary committee, with Sue Webb as co-ordinator, is to be congratulated for its efforts to expanding what’s on offer. The Salon at the Saldechin was delightful enough to run again and again.