Jake Griffith

I am a Chicago based actor, writer, and comedian. Graduating from the University of
Minnesota Guthrie Theatre Program with a BFA in Acting and a Minor in Creative
Writing, I have a passion for exploring nonfiction formats in storytelling. Even in
fictional scenarios, I am interested in investigating what happens when someone
claims to be telling the truth despite evidence of the contrary. My writing has been
seen on stages across Chicago and New York City at venues including The Second
City, The Upright Citizens Brigade, Brooklyn Comedy Collective, and the Shattered
Globe. One of my solo show’s, Ripstickin and Burpin is set for a three week run at the
Second City this September. My poetry has been published in online magazines, and I
have written and performed in storytelling events across...

I am a Chicago based actor, writer, and comedian. Graduating from the University of
Minnesota Guthrie Theatre Program with a BFA in Acting and a Minor in Creative
Writing, I have a passion for exploring nonfiction formats in storytelling. Even in
fictional scenarios, I am interested in investigating what happens when someone
claims to be telling the truth despite evidence of the contrary. My writing has been
seen on stages across Chicago and New York City at venues including The Second
City, The Upright Citizens Brigade, Brooklyn Comedy Collective, and the Shattered
Globe. One of my solo show’s, Ripstickin and Burpin is set for a three week run at the
Second City this September. My poetry has been published in online magazines, and I
have written and performed in storytelling events across Chicagoland-from winning
the Moth Story Slam this past January at Lincoln Hall to performing in First Person
Live at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights.

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Scripts

Angels Falling

by Jake Griffith

Cast Size
6—8
Genre
drama,
horror,
mystery/thriller

When a young boy in the south blames an angel for the death of his girlfriend, Emma Stranton, a documentary filmmaker, attempts to uncover the truth despite the communities hope to end the investigation.
Angels Falling explores the question of "how do we know what is true?" by investigating the supernatural. It forces audiences to ask themselves questions of how they relate to faith, culture, and humanity.

When a young boy in the south blames an angel for the death of his girlfriend, Emma Stranton, a documentary filmmaker, attempts to uncover the truth despite the communities hope to end the investigation.
Angels Falling explores the question of "how do we know what is true?" by investigating the supernatural. It forces audiences to ask themselves questions of how they relate to faith, culture, and humanity.

Ripstickin' & Burpin'

by Jake Griffith

Cast Size
1
Genre
comedy

When confronted with a cancer diagnosis, Jake Griffith found himself looking back for any semblance of meaning in his short short life; from intense oversharing while making out, to a 13 year old trying to convince everyone he has Polio, to religious girlfriends leaving him for Jesus, or simply the joy of ripstickin’ & burpin’. This show explores how Jake’s perspective changed and blossomed when it was almost...

When confronted with a cancer diagnosis, Jake Griffith found himself looking back for any semblance of meaning in his short short life; from intense oversharing while making out, to a 13 year old trying to convince everyone he has Polio, to religious girlfriends leaving him for Jesus, or simply the joy of ripstickin’ & burpin’. This show explores how Jake’s perspective changed and blossomed when it was almost taken away.
Ripstickin’ is a deep dive into a cancer scare Jake had in the summer and fall of 2020. It examines loneliness at a time when loneliness was a given. How do you reach out for help when it seems like everybody needs it? How do you tell someone else you’re scared without having to feel it first?
Woven throughout the meditations on loneliness and the absurdity of modern life, Jake plays us a deep cut 1975 song possibly too many times, and poses the question of why we insist on adding meaning to suffering? Because does the two minute silence in “You” by the 1975 really mean something or is it just a way for us to get to the other side?

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It was Always the Music

by Jake Griffith

Cast Size
1
Genre
drama

Visiting his grandfather alone in the ICU, Jake attempts to reach him through their mutual connection to music. It Was Always the Music is a meditation on grief, what we lose when someone we love passes away and how we remember.

Visiting his grandfather alone in the ICU, Jake attempts to reach him through their mutual connection to music. It Was Always the Music is a meditation on grief, what we lose when someone we love passes away and how we remember.