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Irish Actors Conveniently Stage Play in Park Bathroom
By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 20, 2008
Modified Mar 20, 2008
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By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 20, 2008
Modified Mar 20, 2008
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The hunt for a bathroom in Central Park gets even more desperate for the next week, as a troupe of Irish actors have commandeered the public bathrooms in Central Park's Bethesda Terrace to present their play Ladies & Gents. The noir thriller is acted out near the sinks and urinals, while audience members pay $25 a head (sorry) to stand along a row of stalls for the 40 minute play.
The audience splits in half to watch the two acts, which are performed simultaneously in the men's and ladies’ rooms; during the interval they switch to get the other side of the story. Set in 1950s Dublin at the corrupt crossroads between politics, prostitutes and toilets, the site-specific play did well across the pond, where it sold out bathrooms across England. Of course, New Yorkers are getting used to seeing theater in the toilet; last year the Rising Phoenix Rep staged Rules of the Universe in the bathroom at Jimmy’s No. 43.
But getting permission to use a public bathroom proved difficult for the show’s producers, who spent a year wading through city bureaucracy to get the proper permits. (To guide them on their quest, they used The Bathroom Diaries.) Ultimately, the Parks Department agreed to rent the restroom for a sum in the neighborhood of $30,000. Please note: no one is allowed to actually go to the bathroom in the bathroom during Ladies & Gents, but less entertaining portable toilets have been positioned nearby.
Ladies & Gents will be performed three times nightly at 7, 8 and 9 p.m. through March 29th. Tickets are $25.
Photo of Central Park bathroom: Marielle Deighan
Tagged
bathroom
central park
irish
ladies and gents
performed
play
restroom
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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