Punk Grandpa

[NoHo Arts District, CA] – Punk Grandpa, written and performed by LaurA! Force Scruggs and diirected by Jacob Baierl makes its Los Angeles debut at Whitefire Theatre’s Solofest 2024 on Saturday, February 10.

Punk Grandpa is like a modern-day Auntie Mame, with genders reversed. It’s all about being yourself, embracing life and humor and the value of the grandparent/grandchild relationship.  It also touches on the topics of  Alzheimer’s (as Laura’s grandpa passed away due to Alzheimer’s and the show has been used as a fundraiser for various branches of The Alzheimer’s Association) and Big Band/jazz music. The show is portrayed through storytelling, dance, music and vintage family movies and photos. It’ll put hair on your chest. 

“I saw Punk Grandpa performed by Laura Scruggs, and it is simply put,  perfect beauty. Intersections of identity and vulnerability and honesty and history and family, executed by a very talented and special performer, coming together in a way that touched everyone’s hearts. If you’ve ever felt different and admired the freedom that comes with just being true to that difference,  no matter what other people think or say, go see it! Really.” – Chicago audience member Aaron S.  

“For a young girl, even a seemingly innocuous trip to the bank is a magically wondrous adventure when mixed with a grandfather’s bawdy humor and complete lack of filter. This play is a pleasant reminder of how the indelible  memories of a loved one can forever shape character.”  – Anwar Ragep, My Entertainment World/My Theatre, NYC  

“This is a kind-hearted production which I hope will find an audience around  the country.”  – Ed Malin, Indie Theater Now, NYC  

“…when a kid realizes you don’t have to follow the rules all the time — it’s  magical…when Scruggs dons a mitten adorned with a photo of  her grandpa and waltzes around the stage for one last dance with her beloved  and much-missed relative, only a stone could remain unmoved.” – Jessica Bryce Young, Orlando Weekly  

“It’s evident that the text has been lived in and is well polished.”  – Michael Block, Theater in the Now, NYC  

“While its psychedelic trappings and goofy humor delight, it’s Punk Grandpa’s honest simplicity which gives the play its real beauty…As in  love and memory, Punk Grandpa magnifies and celebrates the little moments  with those we cherish, honoring the idiosyncrasies that define a person and  the relationships that define our lives.”  ~ Emily Cordes, Theatre is Easy, NYC, http://www.theasy.com/Reviews/ 2016/P/punkgrandpa.php

Punk Grandpa was first performed as a one-woman show at the 2013 Chicago Fringe Festival by the playwright LaurA! Scruggs. And, it had a partial reading (15 minutes of it) at Chicago Dramatists’ Saturday Series in July of  2013. It has since been performed as a one-woman show around Chicago at numerous venues such as Three Cat Productions’ SOLO Chicago Festival,  David Boyle’s Chicago Solo Theatre, Chicago Home Theater Festival and  Stage 773 (alongside Hip Hop Grandma) as well as at the 2015 NYC  Planet Connections’ Theatre Festivity, the 2014 Orlando Fringe Festival, 2014  Elgin Fringe Festival and The Hammond Academy for the Performing Arts  (three times in one day in 2013 as a fund-raiser for their Performing Arts  Department). The first time it was performed with multiple characters was at Three Brothers Theatre in Waukegan, Illinois at their Waukegan Theatre Festival (a new works play festival) and then it was featured in Three Brothers’ 2016 season (had a one-month run). It was also performed with a multiple-character cast at the 2016 NYC FRIGID Festival at Under St. Marks. In addition, it has been performed with multiple characters online with the  Incarn Virtual Theatre out of Brooklyn, New York and Act Your Page as well as internationally with The Adelaide Fringe Festival and in England with  Under The Headstocks Theatre and a scene from it was read with Canada’s  Sing for Your Supper. The show has also served as a fundraiser for the  Alzheimer’s Association. So far, Punk Grandpa has raised about $3,000 for Alzheimer’s.  

Punk Grandpa has won several awards. At 2016 FRIGID NYC, it received the Sold Out and Hangover (one of the top-selling shows in the venue, so it received an additional performance) Awards. At the 2015 Planet Connections Theatre Festivity in NYC, it won The Outstanding  Performance in a Solo Show Award and Playwright/Performer Laura  Scruggs also won the Congeniality Award. Punk Grandpa was a Quarterfinalist for the 2020 Screencraft Stage Play Contest as well.

LaurA! Force Scruggs is a produced, published and commissioned playwright.  She has her B.S. in Elementary Education with a Jr. High/Middle School Theatre endorsement and M.A. in Communication, Media and Theatre. She taught theatre for about 10 years (ages 18 months – senior citizens) in a  variety of environments. She also plays piano and sometimes teaches kids how to be fairies. She was a 2008 Golden Apple semi-finalist and is a  published, produced and commissioned playwright. She is a Resident  Playwright at Three Cat Productions in Chicago.  She also produced and directed a documentary about the late Chicago toy store, Uncle Fun, and  its creator, Ted Frankel, called Uncle Fun: You’re The One, which has been featured at several festivals and other venues and has won numerous awards,  among them being a tie for Best Documentary at The Lonely Seal Festival. She also loves playing with her nieces and nephews, thrift shopping, reading,  exploring and creative reuse centers.