Posts related to BOM's Loyola Park After School Program.
Posted by Rani on March 4, 2013
School Shows
After School Program
Here’s a little taste of some of the awesomeness that will occur at the Loyola Park Winter show today…..
This is how many iPods it takes to make the magic
Diego is tired after all that adapting
James trying to talk through the giant space helmet=hilarious
There is nothing I can say to explain this photo
And then this adorable puppy showed up at rehearsal
But that’s not all! There will also be a self-propelled farting cat, Kate Staiger as a kleptomaniac mother, beautiful and haunting red balloons and a cameo by Abraxes from “When I Went to Wizard World” by Lauren H. from the Dewey School.
It’s gonna be great ya’ll!
Posted by Lindsey D on November 25, 2012
After School Program
Here at Barrel of Monkeys, we get to tackle some pretty compelling questions. Questions like:
“What does food talk about when you close the fridge?”
“What happens when there is a Pizza Shortage and you normally eat pizza ALL THE TIME?”
and “What did Pocahontas name her five kids?”
Friends, not even William Shakespeare himself was brave enough to take on these age-old quandaries, but the writers at the Loyola Park After school Program are more than up for the task. Now as we near the end of rehearsals for our Loyola Park show, the Monkey Actors are glad to know what goats would say if they could talk, what kind of cows live on the Moo Planet, and what it felt like to survive the Chicago Fire.
And now, some pictures:
Here some Barrel of Monkey cast members focus on learning the “Gangnam Style” dance that Zoe showed you in the last blog post. Look at that Intense Concentration!
Brandon, Brenda, and Melissa dance like baby snakes. You didn’t know baby snakes could dance? Well, now you know.
Zoe tries to befriend an alien (Caleb). Could this be the worst first day of school ever…or the best?!
Now I am off to perfect my “Russian Dwarf Hamster” dialect and practice singing about Pies You Can’t Have for tomorrow’s show. Go Loyola Park!
Posted by Zoe on November 23, 2012
School Shows
After School Program
Ah, November. The last few leaves are tumbling to the ground, the days are becoming increasingly darker and colder, and three months of frozen toes lurk just around the corner. As you sit in your car and groan that the airwaves are already polluted with christmas music, fret not! I am here to say “Take solace my sweet friends!” I have found a glorious place of warmth and delight to make this annual transition into winter a GREAT one. And NO, I’m not talking about a certain holiday where you recently cozied up to your besties and stuffed yourself until you could not possibly fit anymore cranberry turkey pumpkin pie into your belly. I speak of the Loyola Park After School Program Fall Show!!!!
This show is made up of stories from 21 incredible students at the Loyola Park After School Program. In case you don’t know- The Loyola Park Program encompasses students from across the city from ages 7-13 and runs for the entire school year. There are three shows throughout the course of the year. The first two are set up as regular BOM school shows (Ensemble and Company members read, adapt and perform stories) but the third show gives some of the older students a chance to get in on the adaptation process and perform their own stories for their peers, friends and family. Its pretty much awesome. But thats later in the year. Lets get back to this tremendous line up of stories being featured this coming Monday!
This show has is all! A stolen White House! Luxury cars! A walking and talking goat! A glimpse into the beautiful life of Pocahontas and John Smith! A war between gerbils and hamsters! Elvis! Pie you can’t have! Puppets! Smart pens! Pigs! The Olympics! Zombie cheese cows! Three beautifully composed songs! I bet you want a sneak peak, don’t you? Ok, FINE. If you’re going to twist my arm about it.
Rani and Justin practice lifts while portraying a very accurate relationship between a girl and her cat.
Caleb falls to the ground after being knocked out by two very excitable characters- Captain Loaded Underpants and Ultra Fart Fruit!
Meredith and Nick take a break to ponder the age old question: pretzel crisp or regular pretzel?
And last but not least, here is a short film of the cast perfecting our moves to the hit song Oppa Gangnum Style. (For those of you who may not know about this internet sensation: Oppa Gangnam Style is by Korean pop star Psy and has made its way into the hearts of millions including almost every child under the age of 15. I can assure you, this will not be the last time you see or hear Psy on a monkey stage this school year. Psy is to 2012 as Bieber was to 2010.)
LP FALL GANGNAM STYLE from Barrel of Monkeys on Vimeo.
In the midst of these 21 stories, this show also features three brand new Monkeys- Taylor, Mara, and Gwen- and two volunteer teachers- Justin and Melissa!!! They are all doing an amazing job and taking very nicely to their first BOM school show process!
Don’t you feel warmer already!?
Posted by Joe on September 28, 2012
After School Program
Barrel of Monkey has a new addition to our program offerings!
We will be conducting a brand-new after-school program at the brand-new Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts at The University of Chicago!
Each session is led by two Barrel of Monkeys actor-educators and includes games, group story writing, student performances and creative writing time. Students will engage with many different writing forms including, but not limited to: radio plays, acrostic poems, haikus, creative nonfiction, commercial jingles, monologues, science fiction and newspaper reporting. Participants in the program also explore many acting and performance techniques and learn the value of working as a supportive ensemble. Each session ends with a showcase, and our final performance in the spring of 2013 will feature a full performance of students’ work by BOM’s professional actor-educators!
The program meets every Wednesday from 4:15-5:15 at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts at 915 E. 60th Street on the University of Chicago campus. Classes for the Fall session begin October 10 and conclude December 5 (and will take November 21 off for the Thanksgiving holiday).
For information and registration for this program, go here!
Posted by Rachel on September 18, 2012
After School Program
We’re gearing up for what I believe to be the 8th year (Fact Checkers, please?) of our After-School Program at Loyola Park!
Each fall, a new cohort of talented young writer-performers joins the Monkey ranks, and each fall, their imagination, collaboration, and commitment astound me.
Oh, did I mention that’s our motto?:
IMAGINATION
COLLABORATION
COMMITMENT
These three magic words shine all over the faces of last year’s veteran crew, some of whom will be returning to the program for their fifth consecutive year.
We’ll also have a couple of stellar peer volunteers helping us out, including Dell who developed Barrel of Monkeys’ promotional video “Birth of a Story” and (fingers crossed) Sebby who co-penned “Tough Love.” I encourage you to check out Joe’s video based on that dialogue here.
My absolute favorite thing about this program is that our students return year after year. BUT, we still have a few slots left. Students 7-13 can register for this free program at Loyola Park—online registration is currently full. Or for information, call Loyola Park Supervisor Mary Hopkins at 773-262-8605.
And now a promise fulfilled . . .
We are lucky to have extraordinary teachers at Loyola Park. Collectively, they have performed all over town and have taught at Second City, After-School Matters, Words @ Play, The Actors Gymnasium, The Girls Leadership Institute, Northwestern Mime Company, Ag47, Drama Girls, CircEsteem, and more.
At our orientation, I tested their extraordinary skills at guessing things about each other . . . For example, which teacher has a mild obsession with the OC? And which one keeps Magic the Gathering cards in his pocket? I’ll never tell, but Anthony and Brandon were each able to make five correct guesses. And for that, they have won a poem.
Oh, the brave teaching team of Brandanthony!
It’s been split to forestall teacher entropy
Brandon’s now with Rani
Anthony’s got Zoe
They can howl, but please guys, no lycanthropy!
Okay, so the rhymes swayed the content a bit. The real reason they’ve been split up is that we like to pair new LP teachers with veterans, and while I’m sure they’ll miss each other, I think they’re both quite happy with their new teaching partners!
