Latest Posts

When are you performing next?

I’ve gotten this question a lot lately. Typically, if I go for a long time without performing, I get all antsy.  It can happen in as few as 15 performance-less days in a row.  But oddly and interestingly, I haven’t gotten too awfully antsy lately.  This is definitely because a lot of my energy has…

not a poem

This is not a poem. But it has words. The kind that are efficient in their sitting, pencil shading on the side in the 75% post-consumer recycled content sketchbook.  Graphite words that I smudged with my hands–the smudges of honor still visible when I ordered tea at that place down the street with the quiet,…

lake-citement

hooooooooooooo boy Moving sucks. Everybody agrees.  Not that I need to be validated by other people’s opinions (butitsureisnice). BUT I DIGRESS This post was intended to be half-full, not half-empty. 1/2 full <begin> My new home is wonderful!  I am right by the lake, near a park by the lake, not a warehouse by the…

I don’t think I’m getting enough respect in this relationship.

So if a Chicago winter is like being punched in the face, then a Chicago summer is like being pinched in the ass.  Just last night as I waited for the train, shivering in my winter hat and scarf, Chicago was definitely punching me in the face.  This Memorial Day, weather forecasters are predicting some…

improv and life….once again…

So once again, I look down at the pages of my notebook–the one I use when I’m coaching improv, teaching improv, and directing shows–and I notice that a note I wrote for creating an engaging and sincere moment on stage applies to creating an engaging and sincere moment in life. It matters less what we…

Coming up in April!

The Good, the Bad, and the Monkey has four performances in April–two right here in Chicago, and two in Louisville, KY!  Please come check out the show in a city near you! The Good, The Bad, and The Monkey Singlehood, Dating, and the Search for Something Real Amanda Rountree takes a hilarious–and at times, heartbreaking–look…

Thought of the Day

I sure am lucky that I’m such a happy person.  Otherwise, I’d be miserable.

mini me

So the other day, I was teaching an improv workshop to very young kids (ages 6-9).  We began with sitting in a circle and I asked them if they knew what they were going to learn in the workshop.  A few hands shot up, and I called on one of them.  As I listened to…

The Good, the Bad, and the Monkey returns to Chicago!

After running my one-woman show in Chicago in the fall of 2009, I’ve toured it to several cites.  But I’m happy to announce that I’ll be performing it in Chicago again this April!  If you haven’t gotten a chance to see it yet, the monkeys and I sure would love it if you came out…