That's Weird Grandma @ Barrel of Monkeys



Every story that you see as written by a child (uh huh).

And every child was taught by the Barrel of Monkeys (well well).

First we take the stories and perform them in the schools.

Afterwards we share them with the world (you are the world).

So sings the opening song of That’s Weird, Grandma—the Monday night public performance where Barrel of Monkeys showcase the amazing talents of student authors and our company of performers. After teaching creative writing residencies at Chicago Public Schools and working with students to generate literally thousands of creative stories, they have a gigantic repertoire of material to share with you! The show changes each week as audience votes tell the company which two stories to cut from the show to be replaced by two new stories, so the show is different each week.

 

 

1. It is a feat to craft humor that is authentically applicable to both adults & children, while still being derivative of the skill-sets both demographics bring to the table. The Chicago Tribune’s Christopher Borrelli got it right when he said this piece is “So respectful of how kids think, it sidesteps 'Kids-Say-the-Darndest-Things' syndrome, veering into lunacy, social criticism, even poignancy.”
2. It is in it’s 10^th year & nothing speaks better for a production than longevity.
3. Barrel of Monkeys is obviously comprised of a smart artistic staff & company. There was clear intent & effort directed towards every aspect of the show‘s primary purpose & message; that attention to detail was impossible not to notice. The (really big) ensemble was very talented, strikingly enthusiastic, & crazy committed to their roles. The front-of-house made a great impression as friendly & invested ambassadors for the company’s work & goals. The Neo-Futurarium provided an inspiring energy in one of the coolest theatre settings: the lobby felt like Julie Taymor throwing a children party meets smart, subtle outsider art.
4. It is a very accessible show. In a world where our theatres are uniformly dark on Mondays, I was very excited for a Monday night show. I was equally excited for my local HotTix booth that made this evening possible.
5. To me, Theatre & Education go together like peanut butter & honey.
6. The basis for That’s Weird, Grandma is an innovative but complicated artistic vision that was tightly executed. The process of skit selection & weekly re-editing process must be tedious but it was presently seamlessly. The musical numbers were surprisingly great & strongly reminiscent of the Bat Boy-vibe, which I love. The ensemble numbers were clean with tight blocking, smart staging, cool color schemes, & clever costume touches. Overall, this production was great execution of an even better inspiration.