Written by Jen Scott (Clown Funeral), directed by Levi Weinhagen (Comedy Suitcase, Clown Funeral, Empty Nest), Sound and Noise and Bodies is a one-person storytelling show, a music-show, a bit of a clown show, all about being human and maybe being heard.
CW: surgery, child loss
We won the "Uke to the Heart" Golden Lanyard!
Thank you, 2026 Minnesota Fringe!!! Our hearts are all filled up!
"...Sound and Noise and Bodies: still trying to wrap my brain around this must see show from Jen Scott; remarkable writing; gentle jovial delivery of life events and insights that are often devastating; original ukulele song lyrics with equal punch; the message, "humans, am I right?"" - 5 Stars, Very Highly Recommended - Matthew Everett, Single White Fringe Geek (full review here).
As a solo performer, Scott is a kick in the pants. She’s bubbly and full of knowing looks and quips and little bits of physicality that make the whole show buzz with an undercurrent of energy. - Stages of MN (full review here)
"This show is raw, funny, deep, silly (the props!), poignant, heart-breaking, and heart-warming. It's one of those personal story solo shows that strikes something bigger, something grander, by expressing both the unbearable pain and exquisite joy of being alive." - Cherry and the Spoon (full review here).
"Engrossing, intimate, funny, and heartbreakingly honest one woman show." - Audience Review
"...really sweet stuff. Scott revisits a life well-lived—her own—regaling us with rapid-fire tales of world travel, falling for a deaf French guy, and motherhood... Verdict: A cute, feel-good show. Go see it." - Jessica Armbruster, Racketmn.com, (full reivew here)
"...awesome music references... comic book references... a relationship on paper that perhaps should not work, yet somehow does... the geological history of a rare Paris park that allows you on the grass... and then WHAM, gut punch of a devastating loss... &^%! You genetic anomalies (my family has their own recent history)... and yet somehow, a lovely & optimistic ending. One of my faves."- Wells Farnham
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO CAME OUT!!
You dreams. Thank you for seeing the show, for supporting live theater, for making Fringe possible: we are so damned lucky.
Sound and Noise and Bodies debuted at the 2026 MN Fringe at Theatre in the Round Players.
Writer/Performer Jen Scott (she/her) is a Twin Cities based theater maker and teaching artist. She's worked as an actor, improviser, performer, playwright, director, storyteller, talk show host, producer, and musician. She's taught theater and art making for a long time, and has a special love for the Twin Cities improvised theater scene.
She’s a COMPAS teaching artist, has been an artist-in-residence at Pillsbury House + Theater, and also has taught for HUGE Theater, Children’s Theatre Company, Very Good Improv, The Guthrie Theatre, Park Square Theatre, the Brave New Workshop, and others. You can also catch Jen and her millions of 2 minute songs at pennyandthebandits.com. Jen also produces Bring Your Kids!, a comedy variety show for kids and their grown ups and I Wrote This For You, a showcase for new work and local performers. All of this and more can be found at octoberdandy.com.
Director Levi Weinhagen (he/him) is a writer, producer, performer, podcaster, coach & therapist. He co-founded the all-ages theater company Comedy Suitcase and has created multiple original shows that were in the top 10 of ticket sales at the Minnesota Fringe Festival, including The Gentlemen’s Pratfall Club and Intermediate Physical Comedy For Advanced Beginners. In 2012 Levi was named an Artist of the Year by City Pages. He was the first ever Artist in Residence for the Walker Art Center’s Education and Family programs department. He is a teaching artist with COMPAS. Levi produced and hosted a podcast called ‘Not About You’ that is a serious yet entertaining look at social justice issues in America. He is a graduate of HOPE Community’s Sustainable Progress Through Engaging Active Citizens (SPEAC) organizer training program. Levi is a qualified administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory. He completed the 2017 Center for Performance and Civic Practice Summer Institute. Levi also runs Routine Maintenance, a race and gender justice focused consulting firm. Go see Levi and his wife Laura in Empty Nest at the Rarig Thrust this Fringe!
Attention without feeling,
I began to learn,
is only a report.
- Mary Oliver
Some say why don't you be a scout,
why don't you read a book?
But I get lots more pleasure
when I'm playing with my uke.
- George Formby
