You're Touchy-Feely

Massage Party at Summit Presbyterian Church

by Holly Otterbein

To be honest, the flier for Susana Mayer's massage party sounds like an advertisement for a mega-porn site — it guarantees "one-on-one, multiple-hand and group" touch. But Mayer, a 61-year-old sexologist and founder of the Erotic Literary Salon, cringes at the thought of people confusing her massage party for something sexy.

"When you talk about massage in the United States, the first thing people think about is sex," she says. "But that's not what this event is. This is more about experts in massage teaching novices who want to know more."

Mayer, who has studied with Jack Meagher, a pioneer in sports massage, will show attendees how to relieve headaches, reduce stress and utilize pressure points through massage. She'll also give simple tips to newbies, like working with the direction of a tendon instead of against it, or switching that common-sense approach and massaging opposite the tendon if you suffer from tennis elbow.

As for the "multiple hand" and "group" massage Mayer promises in the flier, it's much less creepy than it seems. "As an icebreaker, we'll sit in a circle, so that everyone is massaging and being massaged," she says of the group massage. In the multiple-hand session, as many as four or six hands will work on one person's muscles at the same time. While Mayer stresses that any type of nudity or sexual advances will get you promptly kicked out, I have to say — that multiple-hand massage sounds as if it'll have you glowing like something very sexy just happened.

Sun., April 19, 4-8 p.m., $20-$25 (bring your own mat), Summit Presbyterian Church, 6757 Greene St., 215-840-5830, theeroticsalon.com.