SPECIAL PERFORMANCE Officer: Confessions of a South Bronx Cop

The Irish American Heritage Museum invites local heroes and their families — including police, fire, and other first responders — to a special performance of Officer: Confessions of a South Bronx Cop, a one-person show by Al Gonzalez, at IAHM's Flanagan Theater.

Officer: Confessions of a South Bronx Cop is written, produced, and directed by Al Gonzales, a retired member of the NYPD. The work offers a candid look at the experiences, challenges, and realities faced by law enforcement officers in the South Bronx during the 1980s and 1990s, drawing from firsthand encounters to provide a personal narrative shaped by years of service.

During that time, Al lived through many unique and poignant experiences, some fraught with danger and many filled with the sorrow of the human condition that a policeman sees and feels every day. OFFICER carries you inside the world of a South Bronx cop and, along with moments of hilarity, explores his own humanity along with the sting of regret and failure — told faithfully on stage just as it occurred.

Al Gonzales grew up in Leonia, NJ, and entered the NYPD Police Academy in July 1986. His first assignment was walking a beat under the bright lights of Broadway and the Times Square area of Manhattan. He was later transferred to his permanent command at the 40th Precinct in the South Bronx, then a desperately poor and crime-besieged area where some of his own relatives had settled about 50 years earlier after arriving from Ireland.

Al worked in a radio car for most of his career, a rigorous assignment he enjoyed immensely. He considers being a street cop to have been his purpose in life and the NYPD.

Al is also a well-known musician who plays the bagpipes professionally and has traveled the world. He has appeared in numerous movies, commercials, and TV shows, and has performed at Madison Square Garden, Lincoln Center, and Radio City Music Hall. He is the only American piper to have performed privately for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Balmoral Castle, Scotland.

Al is currently writing a book titled The Wearing of the Blue, From the Boogie Down Bronx to Buckingham Palace, which details many of his experiences as both a police officer and a musician. He is a member of The Irish American Writers and Artists.

Al appeared in April 2025 as part of the cast of A Cop, A Cabbie and A Crusader along with John McDonagh and Brendan Fay. The show was included in the 1st Irish Origin Theatre Festival and was performed at the Irish Repertory Theatre in NYC.

The Irish American Heritage Museum thanks the sponsors of this event: Common Roots Brewing Company, ParkAlbany, and the Flanagan Family.

ON THE DAY OF THE SHOW PRESENT YOUR TICKET AT COMMON ROOTS BREWING COMPANY AND RECEIVE A SPECIAL IAHM EVENT OFFER - "BUY ONE/GET ONE" BEVERAGE.