Johnny Grant: A Rollicking Adventure Story

Written and Performed by Daniel Martin and Dave Mott
Directed by Heidi Taylor

Johnny Grant is an ambitous theatrical and historical undertaking, blending traditional theatrical forms, live video installation, puppetry, and physical performance. Upintheairs' new play takes the audience on a thrilling ride into the intersection of History, the Search for Ancestry, and Good Story.

Daniel Martin's great-great-great grandfather Johnny Grant was one of the foremost figures in the history of 19th century Montana and Idaho - living among the Shoshonee Indians, marrying seven women, fathering or adopting 25 children, and building a small fortune establishing the cattle industry in the region. In 1867, tired of the influx of gold prospectors and government officers into the Montana Territory, he sold his concerns and moved his family to Manitoba, where he would become a leading anti-Louis Riel voice in the Metis community.

Johnny Grant is a Rollicking Adventure Story of Mountain Men, Indian Braves, of Wars and Fortunes won and lost, of Rebellion, Betrayal, Love, Polygamy, and the Death and Birth of a Way of Life. And two guys in a 35 year old van crossing the Continental Divide. Again and again.

“Martin and Mott execute each character and story line with impressive fluidity...
…the acting was phenomenal.” - The Peak

Johnny Grant: A Rollicking Adventure Story premiered for Vancouver audiences as part of the 2009 See Seven Independant Theatre Series.