Catch Little Amal Drifts Off To Sleep Saturday, September 30 at 6:30 p.m. at Maggie Daley Park

 

Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival invites Chicago to help Little Amal drift off to sleep at her final Chicago tour stop, Saturday, September 30 at 6:30 p.m. at Maggie Daley Park

The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival invites Chicago to meet Little Amal, the 12-foot puppet of a 10-year-old Syrian refugee girl, at the final stop on her upcoming Chicago tour, Saturday, September 30 at 6:30 p.m. at Maggie Daley Park, 337 E. Randolph St. in downtown Chicago. The free outdoor show, a Chicago Puppet Studio-built spectacle performance titled Little Amal drifts off to sleep, imagines Amal finding a place to sleep for the night. When she curls up under the night moon, dreams of her journey awaken in Amal as she battles visions of storms and unruly cities in her dream of finding a safe and happy home. Little Amal drifts off to sleep is the final Chicago stop in the Amal Walk Across America Tour. The piece is conceived, co-designed and co-directed by Blair Thomas, Artistic Director, Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival. Jerrell L. Henderson is co-director, and Tom Lee, Co-Director of the festival’s Chicago Puppet Studio, is co-designer. Original live music is by Mark Messing.

The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival is one of more than 300 artists, museums and cultural institutions nationwide hosting welcome events on the current Amal Walks Across America Tour, one of the largest free public festivals ever created.  Starting in Boston on September 7 and culminating on November 5 in San Diego, Amal will visit more than 37 towns and cities on a 6,000-mile journey through the nation’s capital, the Midwest, the South and along the Southern border. Little Amal has already traveled across 13 countries meeting more than a million people, and watched by tens of millions more online. She walks for the hundreds of thousands of refugees and displaced people roaming the world in search of safety, half of whom are children. Amal does not speak, but she does give voice to marginalized people, and she is welcomed by ordinary people and people of power. Her walk unites communities and refocuses attention on the urgent needs of refugees, immigrants and asylum seekers, and highlights the rich cultures and contributions immigrants bring with them.  For more information and Amal’s U.S. tour schedule, visit walkwithamal.org.

Watch the Amal Walks Across America trailer 

(left) Chicago Puppet Studio Coordinator Zach Sun in one of the cars designed by  Tom Lee that Little Amal will encounter in Little Amal drifts off to sleep. (right) Chicago Puppet Studio builder Emilie Wingate holds two prototypes of the deer puppets that  Little Amal will meet in Little Amal drifts off to sleep.

Chicago Puppet Studio builder Averly Shelstraw paints the native Illinois species of fish that Little Amal will encounter in Little Amal drifts off to sleep.

Amal was designed and built by the Handspring Puppet Company of South Africa, creators of the award-winning puppets for the hit show War Horse. Amal is inspired by a character in Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson’s play The Jungle, about a refugee camp in Calais, France.  Amal Walks Across America is produced by The Walk Productions in association with Handspring Puppet Company. The Walk Productions is led by David Lan and Tracey Seaward. Playwright/Director Amir Nizar Zuabiserves as Artistic Director, Sarah Loader is Executive Producer, and the Associate Artistic Directors are Khadijat Oseni and Enrico Dau Yang Wey.  The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival’s free spectacle is made possible by support from Kristy and Brandon Moran, with in-kind support from Spoke & Bird Cafe. Other local organizations hosting welcome events for Little Amal during her Chicago visit, September 28-30, include Chicago Children’s Theatre, Chicago Humanities Festival, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Silk Road Rising, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, and local community partners Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Chicago Refugee Coalition, Literacy Volunteers of Illinois, Madonna Mission, MedGlobal and New American Welcome Center University YMCA.

About the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival is the largest of its kind in North America, attracting more than 14,000 audience members annually to dozens of Chicago venues large and small to enjoy an entertaining and eclectic array of puppet styles from around the world.  Mark your calendar: the 6th Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival is January 18-28, 2024.  Festival offices are in Chicago’s historic Fine Arts Building, 410 S. Michigan Ave., where the Chicago Puppet Studio also creates puppets for theaters and special events around the U.S., and the Chicago Puppet Lab incubates Chicago artists creating new, original puppetry work through workshops and residencies.  For more, visit chicagopuppetfest.org. Sign up for the festival’s e-newsletter to receive first notice on special events, festival updates, exclusive offers, and behind-the-strings scoop. Or, follow the festival on Facebook and Instagram, hashtag #ChiPuppetFest.

3rd Annual Great Chicago Egg Hunt in Maggie Daley Park 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Friday, April 19, 2019

Chicago Park District and Medieval Times 

Shell Out Festive Fun at 

3rd Annual Great Chicago Egg Hunt in Maggie Daley Park

Everything it’s cracked up to be, this event – now in its third year – just keeps getting bigger and better!

Eggs mark the spot at Maggie Daley Park, as the Chicago Park District and Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament today announced plans for the 3rd annual Great Chicago Egg Hunt. The city-wide event will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Friday, April 19, on the park’s central lawn, for children ages 2-12. Check-in for pre-registered families and, pending availability, walk-up registration will begin at 9 a.m.

From hunting for more than 25,000 candy-filled eggs with the assistance of chivalrous Knights in full regalia, to photo opportunities with Medieval Times’ monarch, Queen Maria Isabella, the Great Chicago Egg Hunt is all it’s cracked up to be and more. Outside of four waves of colossal egg-hunting (10:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 12 p.m.), families are invited to participate in interactive knights-in-training drills (for children ages 6-12), crafts, including donut decoration with Stan’s Donuts, story time with Big City Readers, entertainment by Mary Macaroni, games and more. Discounted tickets to Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament performances will be available on-site for purchase.

In response to growing demand and back-to-back, sold-out egg hunts, this year’s registration cap has been raised to 1,500 children. Advance registration is highly recommended and available at maggiedaleypark.com. The registration fee is $10 per child, when purchased in advance online, and $15 on-site, day-of. Walk-up registration will be limited and cash-only.

“The Chicago Egg Hunt garners massive interest from families throughout the greater Chicago area, with each year building upon the successes of those previous, said Chicago Park District Superintendent and CEO Michael P. Kelly. “We’re thrilled to partner with Medieval Times to transform the park into a truly unique and memorable experience that brings families together.”

For additional information regarding The Great Chicago Egg Hunt, presented by Medieval Times and Maggie Daley Park, visit maggiedaleypark.com or call (312) 552-3000. Maggie Daley Park is located at 337 E. Randolph St., Chicago. Parking is available in the Millennium Lakeside Garage, accessible from South Columbus Drive, or at metered spaces on upper Randolph Street.


About Chicago Park District
The Chicago Park District is celebrating its 85th year anniversary, and is the 2014 Gold Medal Award winner, recognized for excellence in park and recreation management across the nation. For more information about the Chicago Park District’s more than 8,800 acres of parkland, more than 600 parks, 26 miles of lakefront, 12 museums, two world-class conservatories, 16 historic lagoons, nearly 50 nature areas, thousands of special events, sports and entertaining programs, please visit www.chicagoparkdistrict.com or contact the Chicago Park District at 312/742.PLAY or 312/747.2001 (TTY). Want to share your talent? Volunteer in the parks by calling, 312/742.PLAY. 

Follow us at facebook/chicagoparkdistrict, on Instagram/chicagoparks and on Twitter @chicagoparks.

About Medieval Times
Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament was founded in 1977 in Spain. It launched in North America in 1983 and has since opened nine castles across the United States and in Toronto, Canada, entertaining more than 69 million guests over the past 34 years. Medieval Times’ Schaumburg, Ill., castle, which opened in 1991, is the only entertainment venue of its type in the Midwest. Medieval Times is located at 2001 N. Roselle Rd., Schaumburg, Ill. For tickets, visit www.medievaltimes.com/chicago

Behind the Scenes at Redmoon Theatre's Skelebration 2014 #ChiILPicksList

REDMOON’S FAMILY-FRIENDLY SKELEBRATION

RETURNS TO ENGINEER SEASONAL WONDER

Fire-Shooting Carnival Game, UFO Ride, Mini Movie Set, Diabolic Comedy Club, Devilish Cooking Class and Haunted Attic Maze “The Nest”

among the many interactive experiences

At Redmoon’s Pilsen home, October 18-19 & 25-26

Here at ChiIL Mama/ChiIL Live Shows we've been watching Redmoon Theatre grow and evolve since their beginnings in the early 1990's. So we were super stoked to be invited down for an exclusive behind the scenes build tour with Frank Maugeri (Producing Artistic Director) for the 2nd year.







Frank is a large-scale public art spectacle maker and we were thrilled he took time out from his busy day at T-minus 2 days with "20 weird interactive oddities to finish" to personally show us the ropes. His excitement is contagious and we can't wait to see this year's Skelebration come to fruition.

Wack a fly room!



As much as we dig actually enjoying their spectacles, there's something magical in the process too. We love to see the process and the progress. Check out our full behind the scenes slide show right here and our favorites embedded below.



Click here for ChiIL Mama's Photo Filled Feature on the Inaugural Skelebration last year.

One of our favorite elements of Redmoon shows is the reappearance of past props, costumes and sets, morphed into new configurations. Frank laughed when I brought that up as a plus and confessed that it's more a matter of budget and necessity than nostalgia, and that he'd love to make every show entirely new. Yet, it's recycling at it's best, and fun for Redmoon regulars to reminisce on past productions and enjoy the creative new twists on old favs. You'll recognize some sets and costumes from last season's Bellboys, Bears and Baggage and Skelebration, but this interactive extravaganza has plenty of all new features, too, and it's different for every unique individual who comes through.



We're excited to see their second year of their family friendly Halloween/Day of the Dead/fall Skelebration growing and expanding as well. This time around they're slated for this weekend AND next. 

I love to geek out on the plans, the gazillion man & woman hours that go into "engineering wonder" as Redmoon's mission states. It's mind blowing what goes on under the radar and behind the curtain.

So here is our take on the compelling little secret bits, to get you stoked for the real deal.

**ChiIL Fact: The walls of the upstairs haunted maze were dug up from the new downtown site of the Maggie Daley Park, now under construction.**

Skelebration's fun for all ages with a little bit scary maze for ages 7+ in the upstairs for a donation and plenty of scare free zones to explore at your leisure in their gargantuan Pilsen space.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"Are my cables on the floor there making an artistic shot for you?" 

Yes... yes they are. Like I said, I do dig the composition of things in progress. But it's also incredible to me that all the individual pieces are creating a whole much greater than the sum of it's parts. These cables aren't just going to end as an artsy photo. They'll go on to power the magic, run the bells and whistles, inspire creativity and joy, and blow people's minds.



When I see a line of welders' masks, they not only look cool as is, but they make me think spark, energy, pieces coming together, inspiration, and a creative collective of talented people... 

Get your tickets and bring the whole family out to experience the wonder that is Redmoon's Skelebration. 

• We're getting "Fired Up" about it! 
• Who wouldn't want to watch movies in a crypt all night?! (vintage cartoons along with some stunning artist made originals by one of Redmoon's first interns from waaaaaaay back in the day. 
• You can even get a tattoo (that won't freak your mom out or last far past Halloween)!

Check back with ChiIL Mama like we vote in Chi, IL... early and often. We'll have a full set of Skelebration show shots up after next weekend and more.

REDMOON’S FAMILY-FRIENDLY SKELEBRATION

RETURNS TO ENGINEER SEASONAL WONDER

Fire-Shooting Carnival Game, UFO Ride, Mini Movie Set, Diabolic Comedy Club, Devilish Cooking Class and Haunted Attic Maze “The Nest”

among the many interactive experiences

At Redmoon’s Pilsen home, October 18-19 & 25-26

This fall, Redmoon’s family event Skelebration, which debuted with great success last year, returns for its second annual installment of experiential exploration.  Redmoon invites families into its otherworldly playground inside its Pilsen home (2120 S. Jefferson Street) for a re-invention of the seasonal rituals of Halloween.  Creativity, imagination and a sense of adventure are celebrated with interactive experiences, immersive encounters, creative snacks and imaginative music, this year directed by Kasey Foster under conceptual direction by Redmoon Producing Artistic Director Frank Maugeri.  Redmoon extends the event over two weekends, Saturdays and Sundays, October 18-19 and 25-26.

Redmoon’s Skelebration 2014 promises an all-new array of multisensory delights, including:

·        Redmoon’s Celestial Swing, an eerie mausoleum on the outside with a peaceful, ethereal swing inside.

·        The UFO Carousel where children can climb inside one of three gigantic flying saucers and spin off into space.

·        Redmoon’s Spectacle Hall features a massive series of interactive possibilities including, among many other things, a live-animation cinematic experience with a pair of 200-foot-long scrolls unfolding to tell a dynamic adventure story.

·        Redmoon’s “Cartoon Adventure,” a mini movie theater where children and adults don headphones and enjoy five original short animated films by Laura Heit, Joseph Hodgson and Franck Aubrey, Hannes Vartianien and Pekka Veikkolainen, Selina Wagner and PES.

·        Families can “picnic” in The Man-Made Lagoon, an intimate space where music fills the air in designer/composer Jake Ruttenberg’s sonic adaptation of Orson Welles’ radio drama War of the Worlds.

·        Redmoon premieres its newest food service device The Pastry Wheel, which whimsically pairs the iconic image of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair Ferris Wheel with urban pedal power, serving cupcakes, brownies and other enticing sweets. 

·        Performers roam the space serving delightful treats, including signature Redmoon mechanical marvels such as The Floating Trays, The Libation Machine, The Monkey Butlers and The Fish Bubble Man.

Families can enter Redmoon’s haunted sideshow-like series of rooms known as “The Devil’s in the Details,” which hold experiences both eerie and humorous, including:

·        “The Chocolate Bar,” a delectable room of dip-able treats.

·        “Heck’s Kitchen,” a cooking class with the Devil where families participate in making Deviled Eggs.

·        “The Bedroom Swat-a-Fly,” a larger-than-life human fly swatting game.

·        “The Cinematic Cemetery” film studio, where families can be the star of their own scary movie.

·        “Satan’s Cackle Shack,” where Matt Demon, voted “Hell’s Most Humorous Devil” 1998, entertains the audience with his killer stand-up routine. 

By spinning a wheel to determine a nominal additional fee, which could range from $5 to $10 to a silly physical act, children and adults gain access to two more experiences:

·        A chance to play “Fired Up,” Redmoon’s newest carnival game where children shoot a target and are rewarded with a spectacular surprise.

·        Visitors brave enough to enter “The Nest” will ascend into Redmoon’s frightening attic maze.  An adventure into a vampire nest inspired by Bram Stoker’s gothic tale of Dracula, “The Nest” creates an eerie, mystical and enigmatic world that’s chilling without resorting to horror or gore, instead playing on the sounds, shadows and corporeal experience of encountering the supernatural in everyday life.

Additional food and beverages throughout Skelebration provided by Food Should Taste Good, Chicago Root Beer, Cool Mountain Beverages and Eli’s Cheesecake.

Skelebration Entrance Times & Tickets

Audiences can enter Skelebration at staggered entrance times as follows:  Saturdays and Sundays at 1 pm & 4 pm

Adult tickets are $20 (age 18+), youth tickets are $12 (age 4-17) and children are free (age 3 and under).  Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more.  Tickets are available in advance online at redmoon.org/box-office or by calling 312-850-8440 ext. 123.  Tickets will also be available at the door, subject to availability. 

Upcoming Party for the Adults: Boneshaker

Following the two weekends of family fun, mom and dad – and the rest of the 21+ party crowd – can escape into Redmoon’s fifth annual Halloween event Boneshaker, taking place at 2120 S. Jefferson St. Friday, October 31 (Halloween night) beginning at 9 pm. 

Many of the creative installations from Skelebration get the grown-up treatment for Boneshaker.  The UFO Carousel, Celestial Swing, “Fired Up” game, devilish cooking class, “Bedroom Swat-a-Fly” game, “Satan’s Cackle Shack,” “The Cinematic Cemetary” and attic maze “The Nest” all remain.  Joining them will be an outdoor Fire Garden, Redmoon’s signature fire-spouting and music-pumping Fire Organ, a cigar-rolling room and specialty Mezcal tasting salon, in addition to multiple bars and gourmet dessert stations.

Early Bird tickets for Boneshaker are $75, available until October 24, and $100 as of October 25, which include food and open bar. Group tickets for 10 or more receive a 10% discount.  Boneshaker is for patrons age 21 and up.

About Redmoon

Redmoon's mission is to transform the experience of Chicago through free large-scale theatrical events that promote community, creativity and an empowered democracy.  Redmoon burst into Chicago’s cultural consciousness with its award-winning production of Moby Dick in 1995.  While the indoor productions continued to receive critical acclaim and popular support, Jim Lasko chose to focus the theater’s energy outdoors, where Redmoon sought to deploy spectacle to bridge difference and transform the ways that people see and understand public spaces.  Over the past 24 years, Redmoon has become a highly valued Chicago institution with its high-profile collaborations, vibrant outdoor performances and authentic community partnerships.  In 2009, Lasko joined forces with long-time collaborator Frank Maugeri to co-lead Redmoon as it garnered international attention for its unique productions, site-specific performances and participatory events.  Since 1991, Redmoon has performed for more than 350,000 people in 49 different neighborhoods in 186 public spaces.

Generous funding for Redmoon’s 2014-15 programming has been provided by The 1111 Foundation; Alphawood Foundation; The Amgis Foundation: The Cookie Jar Fund; The Efroymson Family Fund, a CICF Fund; The John R. Halligan Charitable Fund; The Marshall Frankel Foundation; The Illinois Arts Council, a state agency; The Irving Harris Foundation; Lagunitas Brewing Company; Mardi Gras Fund; The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince; Sahara Enterprises, Inc. and The Thanksgiving Fund.

For more information on Redmoon and its programs, visit www.redmoon.org.

Here's our gallery of build favs:

Get creative. You're allowed to write on the walls here!

Make a vintage movie melding modern tech with a classic look... staring YOU!

ChiIL out in the Chill room.

Write your confession and get a task to do!