How do you have sex on stage? That’s the question at the heart of Good Sex, a wildly inventive new play coming to Brooklyn’s Powerhouse Arts from November 5–8—and yes, it’s as provocative as it sounds.
Created by acclaimed Irish theater company Dead Centre with writer Emilie Pine, Good Sex flips the script on what happens when desire and performance collide. Each night, two actors—who have never met, rehearsed or even read the script together—step onstage as strangers to navigate a story of intimacy, betrayal and loneliness. The only safety net is an intimacy director guiding them in real time.
As the show cheekily promises, “The sex will be safe. It will be consensual. And it will be good.”
The New York debut arrives with serious star power. On November 6, Tony Award winner John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) and Oscar nominee Elliot Page (Juno) share the stage. The next night, it’s Morgan Spector (The Gilded Age) and Constance Wu (Crazy Rich Asians). On closing night, Brandon Flynn (13 Reasons Why) and Chris Perfetti (Abbott Elementary) take over. The first night’s lineup remains a mystery—because, really, who doesn’t love a little suspense?
Directed by Ben Kidd, the piece brings Dead Centre back to New York after buzzy runs at BAM (Hamnet) and the Irish Arts Center (Chekhov’s First Play). Known for their meta-theatrical style, the Dublin-based company has earned raves for breaking the boundaries between audience and performance. The Irish Examiner called Good Sex “beguiling, chaotic, hilarious and profound,” while The Guardian praised it for “playing with expectations of reality and theatrical illusion.”
The show is part of Powerhouse: International, a new festival curated by Tony Award winner David Binder, spotlighting bold, global performances through December.
In short: This isn’t your average night at the theater—it’s part social experiment, part live wire, part very, very adult education. Tickets start at $30 at Powerhouse Arts.