THE NIGHT HERON Joins Chicago Children's Theatre's Walkie Talkies Play Series

Pop in your ear buds and lace up your sneakers, because Chicago Children's Theatre is adding three new episodes to its Walkie Talkies podcast series of self-guided, story-based audio-tours of different Chicago neighborhoods for kids and families

Walkie Talkies, available for free download via chicagochildrenstheatre.org, debuted last fall with three episodes guiding young urban adventurers through audio tours of Little Village, South Shore and North Park Nature Center in Lincoln Park. This summer, in partnership with the Chicago Park District's Night Out in the Parks program, Chicago Children's Theatre is dropping three new Walkie Talkies adventure tours, each featuring a different Chicago park: Horner Park on Chicago's Northwest side, Ellis Park in Bronzeville and Humboldt Park in Chicago's Humboldt Park community.

First up, and already available for free download, is The Night Heron starring the wildlife of Chicago's Horner Park, a 54-acre park in the Irving Park neighborhood. Who is the mysterious avian interloper who spooked Horner Park's crickets and grasshoppers last night? And who invited him? The Grackle? The Skunk? Sounds like a case for...the Night Heron.

Kids, families, and Horner Park day campers will be solving this noir-style mystery all summer, starting their tour at the Night Heron's favorite perch, the top of "The Hill." Explorers will follow clues and meet hilarious characters along the park's beautiful new riverside path, then back to The Hill where they'll learn the surprising truth about their curious visitor, and a little bit about nature in the heart of the city. i??

Chicago-based theater artists, birding enthusiasts, and husband and wife Shawn Pfautsch and Jessica Ridenour co-created this fun, funny, totally original audio mystery about a strange new bird that has all of the other animal inhabitants of Horner Park a 'twitter. Pfautsch is familiar to Chicago audiences for his stage appearances at The House Theatre, The Hypocrites and in Chicago Children's Theatre's A Year With Frog and Toad and Frederick. Ridenour has performed at Second City and on television shows including Chicago PD. The Night Heron features voice work by Pfautsch, Ridenour, Journei Gavin, Dana Omar, Kevin Stangler and Kathy Pfautsch. Artwork is by Jessica Ridenour. Walkie Talkies episode 5, Sankofa-A Journey of Bronzeville's Poppin' Past by Tina Fakhrid-Deen, drops Thursday, July 1. This audio tour features Bronzeville's Ellis Park and dives deep into the community's rich history. Learn about famous African-American Chicagoans like Sam Cooke, Ida B. Wells and Gwendolyn Brooks. Listen to the stories behind landmarks like Mt. Pisgah, the largest African-American Arts District in the country, and The Sunset Cafe, a once-famous jazz club.

Walkie Talkies episode 6, a new walking tour of Humboldt Park by Luis Tubens, a.k.a "Logan Lu," drops on August 1.

All Walkie Talkies run under one hour and come with a walking map to guide kids, families and field trips on their journey. Bringing a Bluetooth speaker or wireless headphones so everyone can tune in together is highly recommended. Each pod also comes with supplemental resources like photos of top tour highlights, vocabulary keys, recommended reading and song lists, and other fun activities.

Go to chicagochildrenstheatre.org to stream Walkie Talkies directly to your smart device via podcast platforms including Apple iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud and Google Podcasts. Downloads are free with a suggested donation.

Each Walkie Talkie episode was commissioned and produced by Chicago Children's Theatre and devised by local theater artists. CCT Co-Founder and Artistic Director Jacqueline Russell conceived the audio adventure series in response to the pandemic, both to create paid work for Chicago theater artists, while encouraging kids and families to get outside, have some fun, release a little stress and create happy shared family memories together.
i??Russell co-produces the series with Chicago Children's Theatre's Director of Production, Will Bishop. Series announcer is Anthony Lombard.

In addition to its new Walkie Talkies podcasts, Chicago Children's Theatre offers a robust roster of free, virtual theater and storytelling resources on its YouTube channel CCTv: Virtual Theatre and Learning from Chicago Children's Theatre, including a play list of short "how to" videos hosted by CCT teaching artists on theater crafts like costume design, prop making and puppetry.

Meanwhile, in-person summer adventure camps are back and filled to capacity at Chicago Children's Theatre, 100 S. Racine St. in Chicago's West Loop. For information on camps and classes, including the soon-to-be-release fall session of performing arts classes, visit chicagochildrenstheatre.org/family-programs.

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