Punk Grandpa


inn_logo
ccs_logo

Current Productions

The original one-woman show performed for the first time in Los Angeles. One night only at the Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks on Saturday February 10, 2024 at 8:00 PM as part of the Whitefire Theatre's Solofest 2024
Buy Tickets


Kingdom Theater A full production of the show in Manhattan, NYC at Kingdom Theater will be produced as a part of their 2024 playwrights festival in early November. More details will follow soon!

What is it?

"Punk Grandpa" is like a modern-day Auntie Mame, with genders reversed. It’s all about being yourself, not worrying about what others think, embracing life and humor and the value of the grandparent/grandchild relationship. The show takes place one magical weekend Laura spent with her grandpa at 5 3/4 years old, portrayed through storytelling, dance, music and vintage family movies and photos. Grandpa was the free-est, most inappropriate person Laura ever knew and this show demonstrates how he set Laura free to be herself through his humor and unpredictable, wild ways. It'll put hair on your chest.


Past Productions


Endorsements

"This is a kind-hearted production which I hope will find an audience around the country."

-Ed Malin, NY Theater Now


"Scruggs is a breathtakingly fresh story teller."

-Carl Gauze, Ink19, Orlando, FL


"...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


"...the love letter to her grandfather is endearing..."

-Jon Busdeker, Orlando Sentinel


"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."

-Aaron, Audience member


"It’s evident that the text has been lived in and is well polished."

-Michael Block, Theater in the Now, NYC


"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


"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

Awards

  • • A 2020 ScreenCraft Stage Play Contest Quarterfinalist.
  • • 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.
  • • Won The Outstanding Performance in a Solo Show Award and Congeniality Award at the 2015 Planet Connections Theatre Festivity in NYC. Announcement video