American Graffiti

Caitlin Cook studied art history in college, and now, as a touring standup comedian and musician, she spends a lot of time in public restrooms. Through that lens on her surroundings, Cook noticed and took pictures of bathroom stall graffiti some years ago. She then used the jokes, bits of advice and profane illustrations she collected as songwriting prompts.  Those songs now form The Writing on the Stall: A One-Woman Bathroom Graffiti Musical. After a successful off-Broadway run, Cook brings The Writing on the Stall to Eugene Wednesday, Oct. 30, at Olsen Run Comedy Club & Lounge. The show also enjoyed sold-out dates in London and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. Cook tells Eugene Weekly in a phone call that photographing bathroom stall vandalism “beautifully broke my brain at a time when I was grappling with my relationship with art history. And I started photographing bathroom graffiti everywhere.” A woman’s restroom, she adds, “is a place where we bond and gossip and share secrets, and graffiti is where people get confessional.” Get the Eugene Weekly in your inbox! Local journalism delivered directly via email each Thursday. In the show, Cook plays guitar, narrates and sings about the bathroom stall...