Inappropriate Monkey Business This multimedia collaboration between director Chen Shi-zheng, indie rocker Damon Albarn (of Blur and Gorillaz fame) and artist Jamie Hewlett (who did all those cool Gorillaz videos) is billed as family-friendly but wasn't created for kids. I've heard some parents complain about the Monkey King's bad behavior—he scratches his crotch with abandon and gets into all kinds of mischief. Honestly my child actually found that funny. The problem with taking younger kids is that it's long (an hour and 45 minutes with no intermission) and has subtitles. Even if your child is old enough to read, the story is pretty incomprehensible and sort of beside the point. The stunning visuals are the main event. My daughter and I were particularly taken with the underwater Crystal Palace scene, featuring all kinds of fantastical floating aquatic creatures, and the Heavenly Peach Banquet with colorful fairies singing and flying through the air. My kid was a little freaked out by the zombie-like White Skeleton Demons, not so much because they wanted to eat the heroes' flesh but because they looked naked (they were actually in painted anatomically correct body suits). The show gets more plot and opera-heavy as it goes along and we were definitely fidgeting toward the end.

Familiarize yourself with the story in advance Although Journey to the West, the 16th-century novel on which the show is based, is a cornerstone of Chinese literature, I had never heard of it. And I suspect that will be true for many families going to see the show. While it's a standard hero's journey, about a monk named Tripitaka who goes on a quest for holy scriptures with the help of his animal pals, including the Monkey King, it's worth reading a synopsis in advance. The Asia Society has a cute online version for children you can look through before you go, so at least your kids will know what's going on. Trust me, they won't figure it out from the action and the subtitles.

There's not much animation The biggest disappointment for my family was that the animated sequences were so brief. There are only a handful and they're used as interstitials to fill in gaps in the story and allow the set to be changed. Hewlett's style is really playful and engaging and I wish there were more of it. You can get a taste of his Monkey work online.

Some of the most impressive circus feats take place during the curtain call Be sure to stick around through the bows if you want to see some of the best acrobatics of the night. There are circus and martial arts elements throughout the show—the fight sequences featuring the fierce Princess Iron Fan are definitely a highlight. But I felt like the performers really let loose at the very end when they were unencumbered by crazy costumes.

Don't pay full price Tickets cost $25-$250 but there are a lot of discounts out there. If you buy four tickets to any performance you can save 25% and BroadwayBox also has a discount code.

Even though we didn't love it as much as we had hoped to, I'm glad we went since my kid and I had never experienced anything quite like Monkey before. We'll certainly never forget it!

Wondering where to eat after the show? Check out our roundup of family-friendly restaurants near Lincoln Center.

Monkey: Journey to the West is playing at the David H. Koch Theater, 20 Lincoln Center Plaza through Sunday, July 28.

Find out about other cool seasonal activities in our Summer Fun Guide.

Photos by Stephanie Berger