Posts relating to school shows.
Posted by Joe on July 6, 2015
The Monkey Minute
Company Members
School Shows
Here is another Monkey Minute from super director Meredith!
A Day in the Life: From Page to Stage in 18 Hours or Less
Meredith Milliron
As we arrive at Loyola Park for the first rehearsal, excitement is in the air. Monkey after monkey arrives in the space as well as a director, we set up the keyboard and, wham!, it’s time to get started.
We sit in a circle and introduce ourselves to everyone. Then we hear from the teachers. They tell us a little bit about the students and the school.
Then we dig into the journals. Each monkey takes a turn reading a story or two from each child. We then warm up by stretching and playing theater games. Once we are warm, we divide into groups and grab whatever story inspired someone. Maybe it was a setting, a character, a mood, or they wanted to turn it into a rap… we listen to their idea and then we discuss and improvise our way through the story. We run it a couple of times to get down our lines and actions, and then we present it to the director and the larger group. They help us to solidify our ideas and make it look good on the stage. We then talk to the manager about what props we need to make, buy or borrow. Perhaps we need a shark hat or a giant whale? We might have one in storage or we might have an awesome person in the cast who wants to make it for the show.
We do this again and again until we have 20 stories for the show!
Songs take a longer time to work through, so we normally give that an entire three hour rehearsal. Normally we have two big songs per show and the closing number which is written by a monkey and performed at each show all year. The person who wrote the song normally plays it for the group, then we learn it, record it, and put it up on stage. Sometimes we have a choreographer that teaches us some awesome moves, and sometimes we work as a group to come up with them. We listen to the recording for the rest of the week to memorize it before our performance.
The dress rehearsal is the last night before the show. We make sure we have all the costumes and props we need for each story. We run through each song and dance and complicated story before the run, and then we do the entire show for a small audience of other monkeys and friends. The director takes notes, and we listen to them before we head home that night.
We pack up everything after the dress rehearsal. Then we meet for breakfast before the show. We like to meet in the neighborhood of the school. It’s a good time to go over lines with other monkeys, review our run list and ask any questions and get a good breakfast!
Then we get to the school, set up the stage, run a top and bottoms (which means we start and end each sketch really fast). We normally run the songs, so we can set the sound levels in the space and practice any dancing. Then the children arrive and we start the show!
From Page to Stage in 18 hours!
The End
Posted by hpalmer on May 24, 2015
School Shows
Hey there, everyone! James and I (Hailey) are doing our first Barrel of Monkeys school show! We’ve been having a lot of fun in rehearsals, learning about how the Monkeys adapt stories from journals into an entire production in just a handful of rehearsals. In the Dixon show, James is playing everything from a plotting caterpillar to Dave Parker, a man who resorts to eating his own clothes. I get to play a daughter who swaps bodies with her dad (pictured below), the side an epic mountain, and a lot of other things that I can’t wait to show the students.
James and I sat down and had a real conversation about our experience as noobs in a Monkey show. Here are some things we learned about each other:
1. We were both new Monkey teachers at Dixon during our residency there this spring. We both found the experience really inspirational.
2. Both of us learned a lot from the Monkey agreements that we talk about with the students everyday, specifically every idea is a good idea and respect yourself and others. We talked about how applying those agreements in our own lives helps us live more positively and openly.
3. James mentioned how much he appreciated how there has been no ego involved in the rehearsal process. I totally agreed.
4. I mentioned how I found rehearsals to be uplifting. James agreed. We talked about the importance of play and honoring what the student authors write.
5. James’ favorite word is histrionics. Mine is ghoul. We liked learning this about each other too.
Rehearsals have flown by and we’re pumped to be in our first Monkey show on Tuesday morning!
Posted by Bryan on May 15, 2015
Education
School Shows
Hi, internet! This is your good friend Bryan letting you know all is well—nay, FANTASTIC—with the North Lawndale school show adapting process. And I’ll have you know that it’s especially thrilling for me to be in on this collection of stories, having been one of the teachers at one of the school involved. Yes, having just finished our in-the-classroom workshop residency at Chalmers School of Excellence, Monkey Courtney and I are lucky in that we get to jump right into the making of our students’ freshly-writ stories into plays.
In fact, this school show is unique in that it teams-up four amazing schools, all in the North Lawndale area and each with their own residencies, into one big show. Chalmers School of Excellence, Dvorak School of Excellence, Herzl School of Excellence, and Johnson School of Excellence are all on the roster of this Avengers-level superhero troop, and I’m glad I get to be a part of this display of community.
Here’s a moment in rehearsal where monkeys Ashley, Elisa, Evie, and Geoff are a group of friends jamming out to their boombox, but I feel like they could easily be a quartet of supe’s warming up to battle some evil foe.
**Note to self: Explore a writing activity where we act out a story from a picture (a la Picture Day), take a snapshot of the acting, then write a totally new story based off of the snapshot. Lather, Rinse, Repeat until infinity!
Now that I think of it, the world could use a superhero team like that, with the energy, talent and creativity of all of our student writers, to overcome a fearsome cataclysmic event like the one depicted in one of our stories we’ll perform in the show, which I leave you with now:
The Ancient Attack
by Justin S., Johnson School of Excellence
Day 13 12:30pm April 15th. One night a war started. The dead dinosaurs came back alive. Every civilan in U.S.A. moved to other places. Cops soldiers and vehicles blocked the bridges to U.S.A.
Day 40 9:50am December 4093. Dead bodies and dead dinosaurs were everywhere
Eagle Wing 3: I just found 10 pterodactyls
Eagle Wing 2: Captain I’m going down. A dinosaur is inside my osprey!
Warthog 6: Our vehicles are destroyed but they have now turned into barriers when the T Rex stepped on them. Oh no we’re under attack run run run!!!
To be continued
Posted by Amanda Farrar on May 14, 2015
The Monkey Minute
Company Members
Celebration of Authors
School Shows
School Residencies
As the end of the school year approaches, Barrel of Monkeys is hard at work in the rehearsal room adapting student-written work from our writing residencies for the stage to be performed for the student-authors and their peers in their schools! Emeritus Monkey and past Artistic Director Luke Hatton describes the fast and furious adaptation process and the joys of collaboration to adequately celebrate the voices of students on the stage.
Do you want to see some of the most exciting work from this year performed for the students, their families, and the public? Please join us for the FREE performance of Celebration of Authors on June 2 at the University of Chicago’s Logan Center! This show features one story from each of our residencies conducted during the 2014-15 school year performed by upwards of 30 Monkey actor/educators. Call 312-409-1954 for reservations.
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Adventures in Group Song Writing
By Luke Hatton
The Barrel of Monkeys school show rehearsal process is always fast and furious. Every moment is valuable. On a particular day in the Winter of 2010 we were working on an upcoming performance at Columbia Explorer’s Academy. We were missing a few actors, so couldn’t productively review anything we’d already created and nothing that musicians had taken home to adapt was ready to stage. We were stuck.
Philip, one of our musicians, had taken some students’ poems home to adapt into a rap. He said it wasn’t finished. Desperate to use our valuable time productively, I said to him, “Would it be all right if we all work on the rap together?” Fortunately, he said yes. This is a hallmark of how Monkeys operate creatively. There’s rarely if ever ego involved. So Philip played us the instrumental of No Diggity which he was thinking would underscore the piece. People started bopping to the piece. We’d overcome our temporary inertia. Quickly I had everyone grab a partner and one of the pieces and for about 20 minutes the room was alive with pairs of Monkeys spitting mad beats, devising hilarious choreo. The final product was tremendous: total commitment and abandon to the pieces (reprinted below). Group song writing doesn’t always work, but thank god for the ‘yes and’ Spirit of the Monkey, because this time it worked gloriously.
Puffins Muffins
By Alejandro I.
Oh baby oh baby
I’m talkin’ puffins you
fly like a kite up in
the sky you like
muffins when
your hand cuffin
Remix
By Joshua P.
Oh baby oh baby I’m
talking about Ms. Parise style yo.
I see you writing but you don’t see
me writing. When I see you you don’t
see me because I am under my desk looking
for sandwich extra beef don’t forget the tomato
I’m really hungry. I did eat but I want to eat again
my doctor said you got eat 10 meals day.
Skateboarding
By Gustavo P.
Oh baby oh baby I’m talking about
Skateboarding, at the skate park, you know
how I do it, it’s hard, but I know, I know
ollie, kickflip, 360, 180, 180 kickflip, you know
what I’m talking, oh baby, oh baby. Remix! yo!
Oh baby, Oh baby, I’m O.P.P., It stands for
other peoples’ plastic yo. You got to go
green don’t be a fool, don’t go cheesey afar
cheesey
All about you
By Alfredo V.
Oh baby, Oh baby I’m
thinking all about you
Oh, baby, oh, baby I’m
thinking all about you!
You hypnotize all about you!
I can’t stand all about you!
You should not leave me around
I will hunt you down. I will
search you down! I’m thinking all
about yooouuuuuuuuuuuuu!
You!
Were the only one to kiss
AAAAAAA!
You!
would look!
like!
a!
Beautiful!
Person!
Lollipop Chair
By Miriam H.
Look at my candy.
“Oh no the bug eat it.
look at my candy again.
look how delicious is it
“ill the bug eat it again.
Pop the candy broke.
“Oh my god what am I going to do
Pop the candy broke again.
Posted by Amanda Farrar on April 29, 2015
The Monkey Minute
That's Weird Grandma
Company Members
Celebration of Authors
School Shows
School Residencies
Barrel of Monkeys teaches creative writing residencies in Chicago Public Schools to third through fifth grade students. During our time with students, the team of five teaching artists create a safe and supportive space for students to express themselves. Company member Marika Mashburn tells us about some of the more heart-wrenchingly beautiful stories written by our student-authors and adapted for the stage by Barrel of Monkeys.
Be radically kind to one another, Monkey friends! We’ll see you at our performances this summer beginning Monday, June 8.
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5 Beautiful Stories from the Hearts of Children
By Marika Mashburn
You might think that a theatre company who adapts stories about Monsters, Aliens and Dinosaurs only has a bunch of weird and happy stories in its wheelhouse. But here at Barrel of Monkeys, our teaching artists encourage Chicago Public School scholars to write whatever they wish – no judgments on the subject or theme. Sometimes, those beautiful stories will truly break your heart. Here are five stories about heartbreak and loss, written by Chicago Public School students, that we have adapted for the stage.
Two Friends
By Ashley F., Garfield Park After School Program
Once upon a time there was a T-Rex named Corey. Everyday he went to his job where he ate cars. He ate trucks, long trucks with lots of metal. One day he saw a rat that was 10 inches. He screamed, “Mommy!”
T-Rex: Mommy!
Rat: You don’t have to be afraid of me.
T-Rex: But I am.
Rat: (starts crying…cries real hard. Hard enough to make a big puddle)
T-Rex: I’m sorry.
Rat: You hurt my feelings.
T-Rex: You want to play with me and have fun together?
Rat: Yes.
T-Rex: Do you want to be my friend?
Rat: Yes I will like to be your friend.
T-Rex: Friends forever and ever.
They play by the pad together. Then he said “We’re going to do everything together forever.” The next day Corey the T-Rex had to go to work then he went to rats house and said, “Do you want t come with me to work?” “Yes I like that.”
T-Rex: Boss I found someone to be the clean up boy.
Rat: I’m going to be a clean up boy.
T-Rex: Yes you are.
Rat: started crying, cause he was happy.
One day the rat is taking out all of the metal. Then people circle around him. They kick him, they punch him so hard that he died. The T-Rex came he started crying and running. I’m sorry I let that happen but the rat was dead.
This wonderful narrative/dialogue was performed in our Barrel of Monkeys 5th Anniversary Season Special. It made our audiences laugh and cry.
My Dreams of My Dad Visiting Me
By Rachel D., Graham Elementary School
Every Dream I have my dad appears he started to appear after 12:00 three days after he died and he appears and we always start off dancing and he sings a song about loving me he always tries to remind me but when he goes to say I love you I had to wake up at 6:30 and get ready for the day and I always think about it and last Sunday he got to tell me everything like I love you, your safe, don’t cry, will see each other again, and we remember each other using are hearts, that’s what my dreams are. The End.
This personal narrative was staged simply and sweetly, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house when we performed it for Celebration of Authors.
Untitled by Rene, Avondale-Logandale Elementary School
Once upon a time there was a very sad microwave oven because they did not use it to heat up food. It always cried every night because they did not use it and it wanted to leave from the house and leave to other things and following day they were going to use for the first time but it (the microwave) wasn’t there and they looked for it and called the police and put papers (flyers) saying looking for a microwave oven and at last / finally they found it in a house. The End.
Nobody likes to feel underutilized, and we turned this cautionary tale into a jazzy number that was a huge hit.
The Tiny Door in the Back of My Closet
By Tyler W., Cleveland School
I had never noticed the tiny door in the back of my closet before. I opened and saw a friendly monster that was scared of me. Then in a few more weeks and he knew me well and we started to play in my room. Then my mom came in and the monster had to hide. Then my mom said that I had to clean my room then my mom closed the door. After that the monster came out and help me clean my room and we finished the room quickly then we played some more and then the monster fainted. Then he got up in an hour. Then he died.
Every kid needs a best friend they can count on, and losing that best friend can sometimes make you feel happy and sad, all at the same time. We explored having all of the feelings when we adapted this story for the stage.
My Streets is Always Quiet
By Takayla N., New Sullivan Elementary School
I believe that I want my streets to be quiet and peaceful. And I don’t want no fighting or gun shots. If my street was peaceful, me and my friends could play outside and play jump rope. If my street was quiet and peaceful I would be less bored because I could go outside instead of having to stay inside. If there were no arguments on my street I could say hello to my neighbors, I could hang out, and then go back outside and have fun. That is why I believe my street should be quiet and peaceful. The End.
This lovely argument was turned into a beautiful song, and has been featured recently in That’s Weird, Grandma.
