What do you do if you own a trendy DUMBO
restaurant and have a large, unused space in the basement? The
owners of Rice have answered that question by creating an intimate
underground lounge, appropriately named Low, offering nourishment
for the body and food for thought.
Low has a renovated industrial look produced by exposed bricks,
beams and the water main of the building. Overhead, a web of
lights creates the illusion of open sky. Patrons drink and even
eat at the unpolished wooden bar, or at benches by low tables
and barstools by high tables.
The lounge has a full-service bar that features cocktails and
domestic and imported beers. And it offers a skewer menu with
snacks such as sweet and spicy beef, pinchado de pollo con romescu
(chicken, bacon and scallion with Catalan sauce of roasted tomato
and almonds) and yaki nasu (roasted Japanese eggplant with sake-miso
glaze). Patrons who want more substantial fare can order from
Rice’s restaurant menu.
But what makes Low really special is its entertainment roster.
On Wednesdays, the lounge presents a variety show with burlesque,
magic and DJs who spin old blues, jazz, boogaloo and country.
Fridays and some Saturdays, the lounge has live music. And Thursdays,
Low presents a reading series, "Playwrights in (other) Words,"
featuring short, comic pieces.
The manager and curator of programming is Ariana Smart, a young
woman who cut her teeth working behind-the-scenes at the Wooster
Group, which counts among its founding members Willem Dafoe and
Spalding Gray.
Formed in 1975, under the direction of Elizabeth LeCompte, the
Wooster group has been recognized as one of the most politically
and culturally radical theaters in the world. The group also
produces films and videos. The Wooster Group is no stranger to
DUMBO, having brought "To You the Birdie!," featuring
Dafoe and Frances McDormand, to St. Ann’s Warehouse at 38 Water
St. It was at the Wooster Group that Smart met playwright James
Strahs, who read his work-in-progress "Open Call" at
Low on Jan. 9.
Strahs’ association with the Wooster Group dates back to the
group’s 1983 production of "North Atlantic." More recently,
Strahs has been working on a theatrical series: "How to
Act" (performed in Williamsburg last August), "Producers
of Fiction," and "Jane Dorch," named after an
actress.
"[The three plays] are about theater, the last refuge of
scoundrels," said Strahs. "When playwrights run out
of things to say they write about theater."
After only a few weeks’ work, however, a reading of Strahs’ "Open
Call," a play about what actors might say to each other
while waiting to audition, ran for about an hour. Clearly, Strahs
still has plenty of things to say.
"I like the opportunity of a reading, because it allows
you to work it up. At a reading you can see what doesn’t work,"
Strahs told GO Brooklyn.
Strahs does not yet know where his five-character play will go,
but that doesn’t bother him.
"It’s very early," he said. "This is the fun time,
because there’s no pressure on me to do anything."
Certainly Low’s full house of more than 30 enjoyed Strahs’ reading,
as well as the casual convivial atmosphere of the lounge.
On Jan. 16, Jorge Ignacio Cortinas will read from a novel-in-progress
titled "The Polished Jungle." Cortinas is an award-winning
Hispanic writer whose plays have been workshopped at INTAR, South
Coast Repertory, the Magic New World Theater and the Arena; and
have been produced by Campo Santo and Intersection for the Arts.
Aaron Landsman will present a staged reading of "Family
Establishment," a work performed site-specifically in bars,
on Jan. 23. "Family Establishment" tells the stories
of various strangers – a lawyer’s experience with jelly-candy,
a bartender’s secret to making matzo ball soup, and a barfly’s
favorite entertainment in the park – illustrating the disappearing
histories of neighborhoods and the possibility of intimacy among
strangers. Landsman’s work has appeared at PS 122, HERE, Chashama,
Movement Research and Dixon Place, which is presenting the staging
at Low.
For Smart, the formula that keeps Low vibrant is simple: "Classic
cocktails, tasty food and nice, personal service." Add in
a generous dash of off-beat and on-beat entertainment, and it’s
easy to see why after a mere six months, it seems Low has already
become a hot spot for a young, spirited and sophisticated crowd.
Low’s "Playwrights in (other) Words"
continues on Jan. 16 at 7 pm with Jorge Ignacio Cortinas; on
Jan. 23 with a staged reading at 8 pm of Aaron Landsman’s work;
a reading by Adam Rapp on Feb. 6 at 7 pm; and a reading by Brooke
Berman on Feb. 13 at 7 pm. Low is located below the restaurant
Rice at 81 Washington St., between Front and York streets, in
DUMBO. For more information, call (718) 222-1569 or visit www.riceny.com/low on the
Web.
