Photo by Paul Conrad
(formerly “Barry Smith’s Baby Book”)
(ALTERNATE TITLE: “ME, MY STUFF AND I: A MULTI-MEDIA COMEDY ABOUT DEFINING YOUR LIFE WITH MEANING, NOT STUFF”)
"Who saves this stuff?"
That's the question at the heart of ME, MY STUFF AND I, a multi-media, solo, autobiographical comedy about...stuff.
Writer/performer Barry Smith is certainly one who "saves this stuff," and has from a very early age. Traumatized by an early housecleaning mishap--his mother disposed of his impressive collection of first grade "See Spot run" scribblings - Smith vowed to never throw anything away again. The young Smith began documenting every detail of his existence, determined to understand himself and his place in the world by chronicling his life through ... stuff.
ME, MY STUFF AND I is a disturbingly funny and inspiring multi-media comedy about our relationship with "stuff." Universally relatable (who doesn't have stuff?), the show examines how we attempt to hold on to our memories as a way of defining ourselves. "Both hilarious and poignant," says The Vancouver Province, "this show will make you think about your own life in entirely new ways."
“Smith’s multimedia, autobiographical comedy is obsessive, compulsive and very funny.”
– Montreal Gazette
“The laughter felt like it came from my toes.”
– Georgia Straight (Vancouver)
“Think Spalding Gray and David Sedaris with a whole lot of audio and visual aids…”
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-The Aspen Times
"A show that reinvents the solo confessional memoir," says the Edmonton Journal. AMERICAN SQUATTER is an autobiographical multi-media comedy about a year spent living in a "squat," an abandoned building, in London, and all that led up to it.
Born and raised in Mississippi, writer/performer Barry Smith moved to California at 14 to live with his obsessively clean and orderly father. When it came time to be a rebellious teen, Smith chose the most unclean and disorderly things that mid-80s Southern California had to offer; punk rock, skateboarding, upsetting hair styles and lots of "consciousness expansion." His quest for identity eventually found him in his early twenties living in filthy abandoned buildings in London. An AMERICAN SQUATTER.
Smith unfurls his coming of age tale of conflicted adolescence with his signature comedic, multi-media style; using old family video, audio tapes, photos and personal memorabilia to create an engaging "Modern Monologue." AMERICAN SQUATTER uses humor to explore our culture's need for rebellion as a pathway to finding one's own place in the world.
This multi-media, award-winning comedy keeps the Internet Generation engaged and entertained in this deeply personal and broadly relatable message, speaking to anyone who's ever been a rebel without a cause.
“Five stars! What sets this production apart is not only Smith’s sharp wit, but his ability to channel laughter’s deeper cathartic powers.”
– The Hour (Montreal)
“Engaging and funny, Smith is in full control of his unique form. His ongoing use of video and photo footage…gives American Squatter a twenty-first century zing.”
– OffOffOnline.com
Adventures in a Doomsday Cult
(ALTERNATE TITLE: “ALL ROADS LEAD TO YOUR OWN PATH: TRUE ADVENTURES IN A DOOMSDAY CULT - A MULTIMEDIA COMEDY”)
"Five stars! A devastatingly significant work, a scintillating sense of humor, a magnificent turn of phrase and a way with a punchline that is jaw-dropping. You must see Jesus in Montana." - Montreal Gazette
In the early 90s, writer/performer Barry Smith found himself in a bizarre doomsday cult, living in the basement of a man who claimed to be the return of Jesus. After a few years of earnestly following "Jesus in Montana," Smith grew disillusioned (and tired of waiting for the oft-promised Apocalypse) and left the cult.
Then he wrote a comedy about it!
This absolutely true, multi-media, award-winning comedy offers an irreverent glimpse into the world of religious fanaticism from one who's been there and back. With pictures! Using his signature "Modern Monologue" style, Smith uses projected photos, old audio, home movies and hilariously simplistic graphs to further explain how one gets into--and out of--such a bizarre situation.
Winner of the 2005 New York International Fringe Festival Outstanding Solo Show Award, JESUS IN MONTANA is a timely and revealing comedy about a young man's personal road trip to discover Truth, spiritual fulfillment and ultimately, himself.
"Smith's delivery is fantastic--he's quick, dryly comical, and most importantly, authentic." - CBC Winnipeg
"Smith is most definitely a traditional humorist in the same vein as David Sedaris or Garrison Keillor. This piece is hilarious and a must-see piece of work." - nytheatre.com
“Smith is an affable storyteller, and his show is both funny and gently thought-provoking.”
– The New York Times
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Photo by Victor Des Roches
Photo by Derek Skalko
Photo by Derek Skalko
Writer/performer Barry Smith (Jesus in Montana, American Squatter) isn’t exactly what you'd call "ambitious" when it comes to careers. He’s managed to resist actual "adult" employment and get by on a lifetime of odd jobs - some odder than others. Using words, pictures, sound and video, this multimedia comedy examines the employment consequences of a life spent following one’s bliss.