Barrel of Monkeys Partners With Steppenwolf, Lookingglass and More For CHICAGO'S WEIRD, GRANDMA, 10/8-12/17
By: Kelsey Denette
Barrel of Monkeys (BOM) kicks off its 15th season with an all new, cross-disciplinary extravaganza titled "Chicago's Weird, Grandma". From the powerhouse theater of Steppenwolf to the experimental dance of BONEdanse to the quirky stylings of Noah Ginex Puppet Company, BOM brings children's stories to life in an innovative way. "Chicago's Weird, Grandma" is a new spin on the BOM classic "That's Weird, Grandma" on Mondays, October 8 through December 17 at 8 p.m. at the Neo-Futurarium, 5153 N. Ashland. BOM Artistic Director Molly Brennan directs.
Company members from each guest organization will use elements of theater, experimental dance, puppetry, clowning and vaudeville-inspired performance art to transform the creative writings of third, fourth and fifth grade CPS and Chicago Park District students into original sketches and songs. Each artist will be given three original stories from BOM's in-school residencies to choose from and create a 3-minute sketch. A different guest artist/s appears each week (see below schedule).
"This is an exciting celebration of the BOM tribe, and an opportunity for the Chicago theatre community to celebrate with us the incredible imaginations of our young authors," said Brennan. "The participants in 'Chicago's Weird, Grandma' are all heavy hitters, from the groundbreaking giant that is Steppenwolf to last year's Tony-Award Winning Lookingglass to Chicago's signature late night Neo-Futurists. This is a series not to be missed."
Barrel of Monkeys, a Chicago-based arts education theater ensemble, conducts creative writing workshops with students in underserved Chicago Public Schools and turns their stories and words into professionally-performed theater, presented both in-school and through a weekly revue for the general public called "That's Weird, Grandma". BOM performs more than 300 student-written stories for the students in their schools and 150 stories on the stage of "That's Weird, Grandma" each year.
Barrel of Monkeys presents "Chicago's Weird, Grandma" Monday, October 8 through December 17 at 8 p.m. at the Neo-Futurarium, 5153 N. Ashland. Tickets for all performances are $12 for adults and $6 for children under 12.
For tickets, reservations or information call 312-409-1954 or visit
www.barrelofmonkeys.org.
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