One of America’s filꦑthiest waterways is having a cultural renaissance.
Stretching from Brooklyn to Queens, the Newtown Creek is best known as the site of one of this nation’s largest oil spills, being so polluted♊ it’s designated a Superfund site, and for smelling like trash. But now, it’s also got a burgeoning resume as the outer boroughs’ hottest floating off-off-Broadway venue.
On the heels of that had its watery world premier🔥e on the creek this September, another 💖theatrical event is using the Newtown as its stage beginning Thursday.
Put on by Queens-based theater group the Motor Company, in partnership with the North Brooklyn Community Boathouse, “River Watchers” tells the meta story of protagonists Silt and Marsh’s mission to save♊ the Newtown Creek itself.
“Be r🌄eady to paddle and persevere for this site-specific play in a 14-seat canoe on the water,” warns a press release, explaining that the immersive experience was inspired by “the waterway’s environmental challenges and resilience.”
Creator and director Dina Vovsi further specified to The Post that the idea for “River Watchers” came to her during the pandemic when she went on a coronavirus-safe public paddle of th🅺e Newtown and thought “wow, this should be a play.”
After further thought, “I knew that I wanted to create an experience on this canoe that felt immersive and intimate, and that encouraged the audience to work together in order to make the boat — and the play — move,” Vovsi added. “I hope our audiences disembark the canoe considering the impact and complexity of our choices as individuals, and what we are capable of when we come together as a community.”
The 10 performances of “ꦡRiver Watchers” will take plac🍒e in the evening beginning Thursday, Oct. 19 and continuing through Sunday, Oct. 29.
Audience members will check in on land, at the Greenpoint Beer & Ale Co., before disembarking.
Admission is pay-what-you-can and𝓀 tickets in advance.
