Dani Levsky

Danielle Levsky (they/she) is a West Philly-based transdisciplinary artist whose work brings together clowning, physical theatre, and embodied storytelling.

Their original work includes "War and Play," a clown piece about a queer couple navigating Russia's invasion of Ukraine, commissioned by National Queer Theater at Lincoln Center; "The Crone Chronicles," an audience-interactive exploration of Baba Yaga and Slavic folklore, and most recently, "The Waiting Room," an absurdist, immersive clown piece about migration and bureaucratic purgatory. Recent presentations include Philadelphia Fringe, PhysFestNYC, Cannonball Festival, FringeArts Scratch Nights, and Philly Theatre Week. Danielle has also performed clown in variety shows around Philly, including Hat on a Hat, Freak Mic, and Couch Gag.

As a community curator and producer, Danielle hosts monthly events like Full Moon on Fire and co-produces Philly Clown Slam, connecting performance to community healing and social transformation. They've also organized events at Dyke+ Art Haus, including the Fragments of Sappho Reading Circle, After Sappho Book Club, the Andrea Gibson Poetry Night, and the upcoming production of Sappho's Salon. Other recent productions include Studio 45 Live: Disco Transcendence at The Trestle Inn and the upcoming Candy Land Variety Show + Dance Party at National Mechanics.

As an educator, Danielle teaches workshops on introductory clown, building clown bits, Fool's Yoga (their own creation combining clown, yoga, and mindfulness), Jewish clown traditions, and yoga. Since moving to Philly, they've taught at venues including Studio 34, Dance Medicine Philly, Anahata's Purpose, The Clown School, Clown Gym NYC, Deep End Studios, and more.

Danielle's poetry and essays have been published in The Future Fire, Last Girls Club, Fractured Literary Magazine, Collide Literary Magazine, Sand Hills Literary Magazine, Sappho's Salon, Poetry for Ukraine, Silence is Different Now, Quarantimes, LOCUS: IV, and other publications.

Danielle dreams of more inclusive and accessible spaces centering queer joy, experimental forms, and stories that remind us of our shared humanity.