The Brooklyn Papers / Tom Callan

'Urine' luck: Catia Ojeda stars as Hope Cladwell and Joshua James Campbell as Bobby Strong in the Gallery Players production of "Urinetown," written by Greg Kotis.

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Four years after taking home a pair of Tony Awards for the Broadway hit, "Urinetown," Boerum Hill author and lyricist Greg Kotis is still marveling at the way his ode to pay toilets has been embraced all over North America.

"The response to the show continues to be a happy surprise," Kotis told GO Brooklyn. "I generally feel like I’ve gone off the deep-end after I reach the end stages of developing a full-length piece. That was certainly true for ’Urinetown.’ It’s a relief when people return after intermission."

After running on Broadway from 2001 to 2004, this hilarious musical satire of corporate greed and government corruption has spawned a popular national tour and well-received productions in Canada and Chicago. This month, Park Slope’s Gallery Players is staging its own version of the musical about a city where individuals have to pay to pee, thanks to a water shortage and opportunistic financiers and politicians. The title refers to the place to which violators of the strict commode codes are exiled.

Reportedly moved to pen the musical after an unpleasant encounter with Europe’s pay public toilet system, Kotis won his Tonys for writing the show’s book and co-writing its lyrics with Mark Hollmann. The musical also earned Gallery Players alum, John Rando, the Tony for best director.

Although Kotis admits he has checked out a few of the newer productions of "Urinetown," the married father of two says he generally tries to avoid them, so he can concentrate on creating more shows.

"It’s a thrill to see new takes on the material, new solutions to challenges in the script," he explained. "I am trying to keep a little bit of distance, however, so that I can write new stuff."

With Tom Wojtunik at the helm, the Gallery Players production features Jon Frazier as Officer Lockstock, Jennifer McCabe as Penelope Pennywise, Joshua James Campbell as Bobby Strong and Kat Aberle as Little Sally.

Despite the attention he has received since "Urinetown" became a sensation, Kotis says his lifestyle hasn’t changed all that radically in recent years.

"I live with my family in the same apartment we did prior to ’Urinetown,’ " he said. "It’s small, but it’s right across the street from my kid’s school, so we’ve stayed put. I wouldn’t say our life is ’normal,’ exactly, but we’ve been given a great gift of time to work, write and see what life is like without a day job.

"My wife, Ayun Halliday, is also a writer. She’s just published her fourth book, ’Dirty Sugar Cookies,’ which everyone should buy, in addition to her other books, ’The Big Rumpus,’ ’No Touch Monkey,’ and ’Job Hopper.’ "

So, what is it like being half of a couple who writes for a living?

"Having two writers in the family means that our apartment - more days than not - is very messy," quipped the veteran of the experimental, Neo-Futurists theater troupe and author of the play, "Jobey and Katherine."

In addition to working on two new musicals and "a number of plays that are all in various stages of development," Kotis is also putting the finishing touches on "Pig Farm." A new, dark comedy about how a couple and their farmhand try to hold onto their 15,000 pigs as the Environmental Production Agency cracks down on them for dumping sludge into the river, the husband starts to drink and the wife catches the eye of the help, "Pig Farm" recently enjoyed a successful engagement at New York’s Roundabout Theatre Company where it was directed by Kotis’s "Urinetown" collaborator, Rando.

"The ’Pig Farm’ script is just about done," said Kotis. "We had a great run at the Roundabout over the summer, and the Old Globe has just launched an equally excellent production in San Diego last week, so now it’s just a matter of entering in the changes and getting the manuscript off to the publisher."

The Gallery Players production of "Urinetown" will run from Oct. 14 through Nov. 5 at their theater on 14th Street, between Fourth and Fifth avenues in Park Slope. Showtimes are Thursday through Saturday at 8 pm and Sundays at 3pm. Tickets may be purchased online at www.galleryplayers.com or by calling TheaterMania at (212) 352-3101.

©2006 The Brooklyn Paper