Looking to head to LaughFest with the Family? Here are the best bets for Families from grkids.com. Before you go, read our Tips for Families headed to LaughFest enter our ticket giveaways for Laurie Berkner, the Verve Pipe and More!
Baby Loves Disco
Back by popular demand from LaughFest 2011, here’s your chance to groove with toddlers, pre-schoolers and parents!
The fun spills out from all corners of the club: bubble machines, baskets of scarves and egg-shakers, a chill-out room (with tents, books and puzzles), diaper changing stations, a full spread of healthy snacks and dancing, LOTS of dancing. But at its core, Baby Loves Disco is a community event that brings kids together with kids and parents together with parents.
Friday, March 9 Content Guidelines: FAM
10:30a & 2:00p $10 Adult/$7 Child (General Admission)
The BOB
Saturday, March 10
10:30a & 2:00p
The BOB
Super Saturday Kids Zone
Saturday, March 10 Content Guidelines: FAM
10am – 2pm $7 (General Admission)
GRCC Ford Fieldhouse
Fun for kids, and kids at heart! This year’s event will include tons of exciting activities for kids of all ages, including:
- Laser Tag
- Extreme Obstacle Course
- Boulder Dash
- Ahoy Matey
- Full Court Press
- Dragon Hide-n-Slide
- Moon Bounce
- Face Painters
- Micro Reality Race Track
- Video Game Systems
- Sand Art
- Spin Art
- And More!
Showcase- Family Improv
Saturday, March 10 & 17 Content Guidelines: FAM
11:ooa FREE/ Fast Pass
Dog Story Theater
Gather the family and have a great time with host Mary Jane Pories of Fishladder, Inc.
Saturday Nite Teen Zone
Saturday March 10 Content Guidelines: FAM
7-10p $7 ($1 off by using code “MEIJER” on Ticketmaster.com)
GRCC Ford Fieldhouse
THE Saturday night hangout for teens and tweens! Enjoy laser tag, inflatables, and a live DJ with dancing, ride the mechanical bull, and try your hand at a variety of casino games while earning chips towards prizes!
Download the flyer!
The Surprising Story of the Three Little Pigs
Saturdays March 10 & 17 Content Guidelines: FAM
2:00p FREE/ Fast Pass
Grand Rapids Civic Theatre
Join us to see how classic fairy tale characters question and change their fate.
Laurie Berkner Band
Sunday March 11 Content Guidelines: FAM
1:00p $22.50-$32.50 (Reserved Seating)
DeVos Performance Hall
These days critics widely acknowledge Laurie’s major contribution toward launching what is now dubbed the progressive “kindie rock” movement – i.e. less saccharine, more rocking music that is not dumbed down for children. But it wasn’t simply an enormous amount of talent that helped create an entire genre and skyrocketed Laurie to her current position as “the queen of children’s music” (People Magazine). It was an ability to gain parents’ enthusiasm for the songs as well. According to Laurie, “When I’m writing a song, I’m thinking about whether the kids will like it and whether I’m going to connect to them through it. I’m also thinking about whether I want to sing it over and over again, so I guess that’s the part that connects with adults. ‘Old MacDonald Had A Farm’ is a great song for kids, but I couldn’t sing it 100 times!”
Barrel of Mondays – That’s Weird Grandma
Tuesday, March 13 Content Guidelines: FAM
10:00a & 1:00p $10 (General Admission)
St. Cecilia Music Center
Sponsored by Glenn Family Foundation and The Royce Family
Take in this play written by Chicago school children and performed by Barrel of Monkeys, an arts education theater ensemble who has worked with under-served children in the Chicago Public Schools since 1997.
Kids Joke Night
Tuesday, March 13 Content Guideline: FAM
6:00p – 8:00p FREE
Grand Rapids Children’s Museum
Ever wonder what it would be like to be a comedian? Or would you prefer to just sit back and laugh? Well come to the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum for the Laugh Fest event Kid’s Joke Night and you can do both! Kids can come up on stage and tell their own jokes, use the jokes we will have provided, or just sit back, eat popcorn, and laugh! So bring the family, share some laughs and have a great time!
Taylor Mason – in Holland
Friday, March 16 Content Guidelines: FAM
7:30p $17.50 (Reserved Seating)
Knickerbocker Theatre, Holland
LaughFest comes to Holland for the first time with Taylor Mason!
Taylor Mason’s quick wit, flawless delivery & polished material make him a hit with audiences of all ages. He is a ventriloquist, musician & stand-up comedian.
People and Pets
Saturday, March 17 Content Guideline: FAM
9:00a FREE
GRCC Ford Fieldhouse
We all know that animals can be seriously funny – so come on our and bring your furry friend for contests, games, entertainment, giveaways and treats!
Seriously Funny Adventure Challenge- ages 13+
Saturday March 17 Content Guidelines: FAM
Noon Register today!
Starts at GRCC Ford Fieldhouse
Join your fellows in a fierce competition, pitting man against woman, child against parent, friend against friend, competitor against rubber chicken. This fun-filled challenge will involve teams* (of two or four) racing across the downtown areas of Grand Rapids to engage in fun and exciting timed challenges requiring fast thinking, fast acting, and reckless abandon. The adventure will culminate in the final “joke showdown” where competitors will lay all their cards on the table as they vie for prizes and bragging rights.
Schedule:
Thursday, March 15 and Friday, March 16
9:00am-9:00 pm
Pre-Race Registration and Packet Pickups at LaughFest Central
Saturday, March 17
11:30 am Competitor Report Time
12:00 pm Team Send Offs
2:00 pm Awards and Celebration
LOCATION – GRCC Ford Fieldhouse
Verve Pipe
Saturday, March 17 Content Guidelines: FAM
1pm and 3pm Reserved Seating
St. Cecilia Music Center
After an eight year hiatus, founding members Brian Vander Ark and Donny Brown (and a roster of great musicians) were approached to submit an original song for a compilation album of children’s music. That session inspired their latest release, the critically-acclaimed A Family Album, a collection of ten songs intended for the entire family, with fun and inventive lyrics set to the memorable melodies the band is known for.
