\u201cDirty Books\u201d <\/a>is causing quite a stir in New York\u2019s theater world. Written and directed by Mara Lieberman, the executive artistic director of Bated Breath Theater Company, the production\u2014equal parts funny, thought-provoking, and poignant\u2014is based on true stories and examines the fraught history of censorship and book banning in the 1960s.<\/p>\nMarie is known for her buzz-generating plays, and her latest work speaks tuye of her calling card. It\u2019s immersive- a time travel to another era, where secret bookstories and banned novels were mainstays. Throughput the performance, the audience becomes part of the show.<\/p>\n
I caught up with Marie recently all about her New York.<\/p>\n
Where do you live in NYC?<\/p>\n
I live in Chelsea\u2014remarkably, only four buildings from where I first started my New York life in my early twenties. It feels like a strange and beautiful full-circle moment. <\/p>\n
What is your favorite neighborhood in NYC and why? <\/p>\n
I\u2019ve lived all over Manhattan and for years assumed the Village would always be my favorite\u2014 it\u2019s twinkly, romantic, historic. But when I changed my whole life and moved to Chelsea last year, something just clicked. It fit me perfectly. Walking down 8th Avenue is like being in a musical: people step out of coffee shops and little stores to greet my dog Benny. I stop and kibbitz with people on the street corner, and the whole neighborhood has this creative joy that matches me. At night, I look out my bedroom window at the Empire State Building and say, \u201cGoodnight, New York,\u201d because honestly\u2014it\u2019s my longest relationship. <\/p>\n
The best place for a pre-or post-theater meal and why. What are the dishes to order? <\/p>\n
If I\u2019m seeing a Broadway show, my favorite pre-theater spot is Meme\u2019s on 10th. It\u2019s Mediterranean, cozy, and the food is amazing. I always order their vegetarian tapas \u2014 especially the cauliflower and the beets. And their tagine is perfect. It feels like a little gem tucked just far enough away from the chaos of Times Square. <\/p>\n
Best watering hole near your theater and the drink to get? <\/p>\n
Bated Breath just moved into our new space on 14th between 5th and 6th, but when I lived on 12th Street, I fell in love with the 8th Street Wine Cellar. It\u2019s this small, candlelit bar that\u2019s casual but still feels really special. The staff is genuinely lovely. And, it\u2019s been awhile, but I used to order their Aperol Spritz quite frequently. <\/p>\n
Insider tips for enjoying a show like yours? Anything to make the experience better? <\/p>\n
For a show like Dirty Books, the best insider tip is simply: surrender to it. It\u2019s funny, sexy, disarming, and I hope unexpectedly moving. The more you let yourself stay open \u2014 to the story, to the performers, to the moments that catch you off guard \u2014 the more thrilling I think it becomes. <\/p>\n
I\u2019m interested in theater that breaks with tradition. I loved Ha ha ha ha at the Public, and I find myself drawn to the work at St. Anne\u2019s Warehouse, New York Theatre Workshop, and BAM\u2019s Next Wave Festival. I\u2019m also a fan of immersive and experiential theater, even though it honestly terrifies me. It\u2019s incredibly hard to get right and it\u2019s even harder to create an environment where people don\u2019t shrink from participation, myself included. But when it works, when you feel the whole room leaning in together, there\u2019s nothing like it. <\/p>\n
Share your insider New York gems. <\/p>\n
Jefferson Market Garden is one of my favorite secret New York sanctuaries \u2014 steeped in history yet somehow hidden in plain sight on 6th Avenue. It’s a perfect oasis in the middle of the Village. I spend a lot of time walking along the Hudson. Pier 57 has become my go-to for its breathtaking views and the amazing popsicles. If you keep walking past Little Island you\u2019ll stumble onto the <\/p>\n
Beach, which I love. Pastis in the Meatpacking District has the best pancakes and sometimes I wander down to South Street Seaport. The Tin Building there is this beautifully curated indoor world of small specialty food counters and shops and it feels like you’ve stumbled upon a secret corner of New York. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The cast of Mara Lieberman’s “Dirty Books.” Bjorn Bolinder – Find the Light Photography 2025 The play \u201cDirty…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":41485,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[16007,23908,23906,23907,9,56,63,65,64],"class_list":{"0":"post-41484","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-city","8":"tag-1960s","9":"tag-censoryship","10":"tag-dirty-books","11":"tag-mara-lierberman","12":"tag-new-york","13":"tag-ny","14":"tag-nyc","15":"tag-nyc-headlines","16":"tag-nyc-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41484\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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