Men in Towels

[Brian07663NJ]

Posted: 6/27/16 at 9:07am

Men in Towels at the DMAC-Duo Multicultural Arts Center on East 4th Street... 

Although the advertisements say "bring your own towel" (which some attending on Friday night did) all were reminded that they were not invited to remove clothing and put on the towel that they brought with them. Note to director...if your towel wrapped cast is going to wear underwear under the towels...please direct them to wear white briefs and not black boxers.

This is the summary provided by the show: "Men in Towels is a walk through/sit down multimedia performance piece that puts you at a notorious NYC bath house in 1971. A Pride NYC Event. 1971 NYC Bette Midler is on the tiny stage making yet another farewell appearance. Men in Towels. Everywhere. The sexual revolution is in full swing. Oh God, please don’t let this ever end......Ever wonder what it was like? Part theater event/part art exhibition."

This cathartic autobiographical missive failed to deliver what it was like back them and instead brings back the ghosts (literally) of the authors past to recall just a few widely known facts about gay history of the 60s and 70s: a sentence here and there about Bette Midler, The Continental Baths, Marilyn Monroe, The Stonewall Inn...you will gather much more information faster by googling it: saving your time, money and patience. After (over) sharing the personal traumas of his young upbringing (jerking off his endowed Cuba father in the shower, touching his father's penis when he is having sex with his mother, being abused by his mother as she pours scalding melted sugar on his arm, him slitting his wrist and being taken to the Dr to be stitched up...) he weaves in and out of the lives/deaths of his friends while being questioned by them (multiple times) as to why he brought them back. If this is your show, and you wrote it, MEMORIZE IT and STOP reading your script directly off the wall! The projections did not appear to be part of the art installation surrounding the audience. 

If you still insist on going to what was announced will be an open ended run this coming fall...sit in the closest seats to the door in case you need to make a hasty exit...for the bathroom (hint). It was a really tough piece to sit through. I unfortunately would have left if I weren't trapped on the far side of the theater and the only exit would have been across the performance 'stage'.

Masochists are invited to a glass of wine, chat with the cast and a viewing of the writers art gallery of paintings after the performance.