日韩精品久久一区二区三区_亚洲色图p_亚洲综合在线最大成人_国产中出在线观看_日韩免费_亚洲综合在线一区

Secret in a tower: a tiny illegal party

Updated: 2013-06-09 05:48

By Alex Vadukul(The New York Times)

  Print Mail Large Medium  Small

 Secret in a tower: a tiny illegal party

The Night Heron bar in New York was the size of a freight elevator. Photographs by Benjamin Norman for The New York Times

A trapdoor in the water tower opened when the guests approached. Thumping live music, candlelight, chatter and the sound of clinking glasses emerged, as well as a helping hand.

Inside was a round wooden space no bigger than a freight elevator, filled with about a dozen people sipping whiskey cocktails. Couples sat at five petite tables built into the cedar paneling. A young woman mixed drinks behind a bar. Above people's heads, a two-man band - accordion and upright bass - serenaded from a platform.

But amid the revelry, the staff communicated using headsets, checking that the operation remained unnoticed outside. In the event that the police did arrive, several exit routes were planned. This was life inside the Night Heron, a decidedly illegal nightclub run by a group of adventure-minded artists in a water tower atop a vacant building in Lower Manhattan for eight weekends in March, April and May.

The Night Heron was as exclusive as it was lawless. The only way to get in was to be handed a pocket watch by a prior guest (who had been instructed to offer minimal explanation), report to a street corner at a certain time, and call a number pasted inside the watch. Mysterious helpers led guests through one decrepit building into another and up 12 flights of stairs to the roof. The watches were taken at the door, but guests were given the chance to buy watches at the end of the night if they wanted to continue the chain of invitation.

The Heron's architect was N. D. Austin, a 31-year-old artist known for what he calls "trespass theater." "It's about making the invisible visible," he said of his philosophy.

Mr. Austin found a suitable water tower by scouring New York Buildings Department records for egregious violations. That can indicate a neglectful landlord, he said, which meant it might be a vacant building ripe for adopting as one's own.

One Saturday night in April, 12 guests squeezed through the trapdoor into the space. "The great thing about the upright bass is how it got up here," said Dirby Luongo, one of Mr. Austin's collaborators who played the doorman. "It's like a ship in a bottle."

At one table, a first date was in progress. Chelsea Cammarota, 35, explained that she and her date did not know each other well.

Secret in a tower: a tiny illegal party

"He sent me a photo of a clock," she recounted. Her date, Steve Showalter, told her, "We're going to do something fun." But he was clueless, too, running on blind faith in the friend who had given him the watch.

Caroline and Michael Ventura, a married couple, arrived for the next seating. There were three per night, each lasting an hour and a half. Mr. Ventura said a friend had arrived at his office unannounced to give him the watch. "He placed it onto my desk, looked at me and said, 'I will answer no questions.'" On the way over, Mr. Ventura and his wife wondered where the night might lead: Some place underground? Some sort of sex club?

The night's final seating ended near 3 a.m., culminating with a loud drinking ballad from the band, the sardine-packed audience stomping and yelling along. Tipsy guests exited back through the hole like paratroopers to greet a quiet, blinking skyline.

The New York Times

(China Daily 06/09/2013 page12)

主站蜘蛛池模板: 天天搞天天操 | 女人色毛片女人色毛片中国 | 日日爱夜夜爽 | 亚洲国产综合网 | α片毛片 | 欧洲成人全免费视频网站 | 国产精品欧美精品 | a免费国产一级特黄aa大 | 亲爱的热爱的电视剧免费观看 | 91久久亚洲国产成人精品性色 | 操操操日日日干干干 | 亚洲一区中文字幕 | 激情五月色综合婷婷大片 | 夜夜夜操操操 | 亚洲视频黄| 国产在线看片 | 久久91久久91精品免费观看 | 人人澡人人爱 | 国产人A片777777久久 | 亚洲毛片 | 男女做性无遮挡免费视频 | 久久一本精品 | 欧美国产精品一区二区免费 | 久青草免费在线视频 | 九七婷婷狠狠成人免费视频 | 99青草青草久热精品视频 | 免费看香港一级毛片 | 久久久久久久久久久9精品视频 | 2021国产精品自拍 | 日日操夜夜 | 久久精品免费人成人A片 | 天天做天天爱夜夜大爽完整 | 欧美日本日韩aⅴ在线视频 日韩福利视频导航 | 一级一级毛片看看 | 欧美精品一区二区免费 | 免费午夜电影 | 午夜视频吧 | 久久精品国产免费观看99 | 欧美性一区 | 日韩欧美h | 一区二区视频在线观看 |