麻豆社

If you go to New York's Times Square you stand a good chance of seeing a man praying next to a hot dog stand.

That man is Amine El Khezzani, a Moroccan Muslim who earns his living by dressing up as cartoon character Elmo and posing for photographs.

Yet even in the excitement of the world's most famous square, he still has to find time to pray five times a day.

Public Places, Private Lives is a series of portraits of well known places that reveal the lives and stories of those people who come to a famous spot not to gaze as tourists, but for work or for their own private reasons.

The first programme, broadcast in January 2009, was set in Trafalgar Square, London and followed a pigeon feeder on her weekly rounds, along with reflections from other faces familiar to the square.

The next edition of the series takes us to Times Square, New York City. Amid the never ceasing movement of tourists and flashing neon signs, an intriguing collection of people comes to this public place each day. Throughout the programme we will meet some of the square鈥檚 regulars, such as Moroccan Amine El Khezzani, who for the past six years has dressed up as cartoon character Elmo collecting tips for photos. He has to balance his work serving the tourists with his beliefs as a Muslim, which means praying in the square five times a day, even if he has to do so next to a hot dog stand.

Maintenance worker Jonathan Breshin likes to take his break from working in one of the square鈥檚 office complexes by standing in the midst of all the tourists 鈥渏ust watching.鈥�

For Jonathan, Times Square has become an unlikely place of peace and contemplation.

In a church that is almost hidden from the square, Reverend Stephen Gerth tends to the spiritual needs of his community in a place that is often criticised for being lacking in soul. And from the window of his 8th floor office on Broadway, Tim Tompkins, director of the Times Square Alliance 鈥� an organisation that manages the day-to-day running of the space 鈥� looks out upon the scene below, which he believes is a reflection of New York and America today.

One thing that connects the lives of all of these people, is an ability to transform their surroundings and find a private corner for reflection beneath the bright city lights.

In some of the most well known and busy destinations in the world, Public Places, Private Lives encourages us to stop and stare for a moment. The longer you stay, and the closer you listen, the more is revealed about the lives, experiences and stories of their most regular visitors.

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