Junie B. Jones leaps from the page
to the stage in musical adaptation

By Jennifer Pencek

Outspoken, precocious, and lovable all describe Junie B. Jones, the first-grader in the TheatreworksUSA musical of the same name based on several titles in a popular series of books by Barbara Park. But with all the giddy characteristics come little-kid versions of stress and angst.

Sound familiar? The way the musical’s director Nandita Shenoy tells it, everyone has a little Junie B. inside.

“She gets glasses, which is a somewhat traumatic event. She ends up getting a job as a lunchroom helper, where she goes a little bit astray. Then there’s the big kickball tournament. So she’s definitely experiencing a lot of different…obstacles that a lot of first graders really experience and come across, and I think that there’s a lot to relate to for children and adults quite honestly,” says Shenoy, speaking by phone from New York City.

“I had a friend come and see a dress rehearsal once who said, ‘Oh, I remember all of those kids when I was little.’ That’s a testament to the show,” Shenoy says. “I think both boys and girls and men and women can relate to that character. Even as an adult, when you walk into a room where you don’t know anybody, you feel like Junie B. Jones.”

Young fans and their families can follow Junie B.’s adventures in the musical adaptation as she tracks the story of her life in her Top-Secret Personal Beeswax Journal. The hour-long show, performed by America’s leading children’s theatre company, is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday, April 6, in Eisenhower Auditorium.

The musical is based on four volumes—Junie B., First Grader (at Last!); Junie B., Boss of Lunch; Junie. B., One-Man Band; and Top-Secret Personal Beeswax: A Journal by Junie B. (and Me!)—in Park’s series of books illustrated by Denise Brunkus and published by Random House.

The key to successfully translating the ups and down of childhood from the page to the stage, Shenoy says, is making the characters feel real.

“I mean, I love the show, and I’ve seen it literally hundreds of times at this point, and I still find it very fresh and funny. And I think that is due to the fact it is really grounded in reality and really based on real people and real things that happen to people,” she says. “It’s not a cartoon, and it’s not about getting laughs. It’s really about being honest to how it might feel to have any of these experiences.”

The show’s music, including everything from gospel to Motown, is the backbone of the production, moves the story forward, and accentuates what is happening, Shenoy says.

“It’s such a great show,” she says. “There’s something very real and touching and honest to me about it. The whole show is just an hour of non-stop let’s go. It’s just very infectious.”

To spot a Junie B. infection, look no farther than the Oakman family of Bellefonte, Pennsylvania. Three of the four Oakman children—Alea, 11; Jacob, 9; and Zachary, 6—have read many of the books. Who do the siblings know that reminds them of the sometimes loud but equally adored Junie B.? Why, it’s Jolie, their 4-year-old sister.

“Jolie has an interesting attitude sometimes,” Alea says with a grin.

Alea, beginning in kindergarten, was the first to start reading the books, followed by her brothers. All three are home schooled by their mother, René Oakman, and read the books in their free time.

“I thought they were funny, and the way she talks is interesting, like ‘speedy quick,’” Alea says. “They’re fun to read, but also a little educational because she learns to trust her parents.”

Alea’s favorite book in the series is Junie B. Jones and the Yucky Blucky Fruitcake because “the illustrations of her expressions are just hilarious.”

Jacob’s favorite is Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus. He credits his love of Warriors, a series of fiction books about clans of cats by Erin Hunter, in part to the Junie B. Jones series, which helped him enjoy reading and prepare for longer books.

“I like [Junie B. stories] because they’re smaller chapter books and not thick books, but they’re really, really good, and you don’t get scared because you don’t think you can read long books,” he says. “Now I can read 300-page books without being scared.”

With a little input from Alea, Zachary decides his favorite book in the series is Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business. Zachary, who also enjoys the Warriors series, is looking for a good time with his fictional friends when he reads Junie B. stories.

“I read them because the cover looks like it will be very fun,” he says.

While the Oakmans are now fans of the books, parents René and Jason had their reservations at first.

“When we first started reading them, we would cringe because of the language and different situations,” René says. “But as time went on, we saw the humor more, and it gave rise to conversations on proper language. We got into the spirit of the books, and it encourages longer attention spans.”

Kidz Connections, which is free and open to ticket holders, begins one hour before the show and features craft-oriented activities for children.