We’ve been noticing a fun trend recently. Plays, as in theater pieces, particularly about urban history and transformation. First there was The Eternal Space about the demolition of the original Penn Station. Now, the ever creative Jeff Stark behind Nonsense NYC and Empire Drive In movie theater, is doing a site-specific work about the Gowanus Canal. And it’s ever so timely because big changes are coming to Gowanus as it transforms from artist hotspot amidst industrial warehouses to superfund site with a newly renovated subway station at Smith-9th Street, a forthcoming “Sponge Park” and lots of development underway.
The work, as described the Stark and team is like “the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at night in the middle of a crumbling industrial neighborhood. Our story centers on the character Charon, the boatman on the River Styx. It’s got elements from Greek and Roman myths, pieces of Dante’s Inferno, and blasts of black metal.”
But if you’ve been to any of Stark’s events, you’ll know that supporting their Kickstarter is much more than giving a thumbs up to the project alone. His team is one of the last to put on those kind of urban experiences you’ll tell to your children. We’re still talking about the underground rave party/seance we experienced with Stark in an abandoned subway station.
As they write:
Our makeshift company makes shows in places where you don’t expect shows. Because we think art and culture are too important to relegate to museums and galleries and theaters and rock clubs.
There are still wild places in New York, and we think artists should be out there imagining them. We need your support to make that happen. Because you believe in do-it-yourself culture. Because you support the radical use of public space.
To that end, the prizes for the Kickstarter are pretty awesome ranging from
Limited-edition handmade representations of real-life Gowanus filth, to a tarot reading ($75), home brewed honey meade ($110), private screen printing class ($150), tree-house picnic ($333), cocktails for two on a raft on the Gowanus Canal ($500), and a secret dinner for two in some awesome urban exploration location in NYC ($1200).The Kickstarter goes until Friday.
