“Sugar Daddy” — one of the biggest buzz words in sex work in the past several years — is a relatively new term for Charla Hathaway, a 70-year-old grandmother and former Austinite who now lives in Portland, Oregon. In fact, she hadn’t even tried escorting until she was 54.

Hathaway, who learned the ins-and-outs of sex and its industry during a two-decade stint in the Lone Star State, moved to Portland three years ago to be with her grandkids. But she’s bringing her stories back where they belong: onstage in front of people who know, or desperately need to be reassured, that sex only gets better with age. Hathaway will be performing a one-woman show calledNaked at My Age at The Vortex on August 26 and 27.

“The pressure for young people is … ‘I’ve gotta get it now because it'll go away soon.’ And there's some things you just can't get right until life becomes so precious and fleeting,” says Hathaway. “Who would come up after [a show] were young women, more so than almost anyone else. I was showing them that you don't have to learn it all tomorrow. You can learn, you can enjoy; you're just really on this procession of aging with sexuality, and it can be a very beautiful journey.”

Before Hathaway had her PhD in clinical sexology, her several certifications in body work and touch therapy, and her BodyJoy Intimacy School (now taken care of by intimacy coach and somatic sex educator Melissa Davison), she had a violin and a divorce. Tired of teaching aspiring musicians, she flipped to the back of the Austin Chronicle and saw an ad. As she remembers it: “Be an amazing escort of Austin. Earn $5,000 a week.”

The thought had crossed Hathaway’s mind before, reading books about sexuality — more of a fantasy than a plan. She dialed the number and lied about her age for the first time, shaving off 10 years to 44. The agency foray only lasted three months, but with the help of “Austin’s Blue Bonnet Madame,” who became her mentor, Hathaway put together a website, found some clients, and launched a self-determined career.

Since Hathaway’s life did not start at 54 — as much as it must have felt like it sometimes — her play reaches back to less conspicuous moments of sexual development. She discusses being 6 years old and wishing for a penis, her first summer kiss, and a pre-Roe v. Wade abortion as a college senior. She sings a song about sex in her 20s (“Go Straight for the Goods”) and acts out requesting a “marriage sabbatical.” She calls the period in her 50s her “sexual renaissance.”

Like any good show, the stories all serve a greater purpose of loosening up the audience, and even resolving some anxieties. Hathaway even strays from the storytelling format to teach a miniature workshop, using bananas to facilitate one of her favorite exercises that involves setting a timer for three minutes and practicing receiving. Some audience members volunteer to demonstrate authentic communication skills.

“So much of sex is just kind of trying to take care of each other at the same time, and it all gets confused, and both people are really giving and nobody's receiving,” says Hathaway. “Intimacy isn’t giving more; it’s receiving. That’s the true barometer of the degree of intimacy between two people.”

Despite the politics surrounding the progressive city of Austin and their effect on sex education, Hathaway is glad her renaissance happened there. In two decades, she only faced one police inquiry. A neighbor found and reported her website, resulting in a sheepish, nearly avoidant follow-up call. The officer asked if she was seeing clients in her home, accepted a “No,” and presumably applied his next hour’s worth of taxpayer dollars on something more productive.

“Austin allowed me to grow. I had no idea that there was anything else besides prostitution, basically. And now there's so many fields of dating coaches, breath coaches, cuddling coaches, erotic masseuse[s],” Hathaway says. “There's an umbrella of sex work … which is between consenting adults, and we don't want to conflate it like we often do with with sex trafficking. [It] should be legal, and safe, and respected between consenting adults. [We should] not waste our resources trying to criminalize these people.”

Another show by Hathaway, available on video, is called Tales of Sex Magic & Healing, and shares stories of teaching intimacy during grief; while aging as a rock star; and for someone with the specific desire to model his vintage underwear collection.

The self-proclaimed "Fairy Godmother of Sexuality" will take the stage at The Vortex on August 26 and 27 at 8 pm. Tickets ($15-37) are available at vortexrep.org.