in the grove: a play for toddlers and their caregivers
commissioned by Filament Theatre, Chicago, IL

Here’s some of what you can expect so you can best prepare for your experience!

• – The performance will take place at Eggers Grove located at 11251-11249 S. Ave B, Chicago, IL 60617. Enter “Eggers Grove Comfort Station” in to Google Maps for the most accurate directions!
• – Check-in is located near the Comfort Station, near the second parking lot.
• – IN THE GROVE is a play that moves! Toddlers and caregivers will be invited to play, explore, sing, and even get a little bit messy. Dress comfortably for the weather. Blankets for seating are provided.
• – Pillow seating is provided for the audience. You’re welcome to bring a chair if you would be more comfortable. If you have mobility or seating concerns, please reach out by replying to this email, texting, or calling 773-270-1660.
• – Bathrooms are available for use at the Comfort Station. We strongly encourage you and your young ones to use the bathroom prior to the show.
• – The performance itself runs about 45 minutes, with 30 minutes of guided nature play before and after the performance. Please plan for a 75-90 minute outing.
• – If a performance must be canceled due to weather, you will be notified by email and/or text two hours prior to showtime. You can then rebook your tickets at no cost to any remaining performances.
• – Lastly, free parking is available at Eggers Grove. There is a parking lot directly adjacent to the performance location and overflow parking available within the preserves a 3 minute walk north.

We highly recommend reserve your free tickets ahead of time (even while you’re on your way!) That way we can update you with any important information about that day’s performance.

If you are no longer able to attend for any reason, please email boxoffice@filamenttheatre.org or text 773-270-1660 so that we may release your tickets for someone on our waitlist.

Learn more about the creators: 

Julie Ritchey she/her (Co-creator/Director) is, until recently, a Chicago-based international Director focusing on theater for young and family audiences and is the Founding Artistic Director of Filament Theatre. A passionate advocate for anti-adultist frameworks in theatre and art making, she continually advocates for young people’s right to access the most innovative, challenging, relevant, creative, authentic art that can possibly be created. Critics describe Julie’s work as a director as “pinpoint” (Chicago Tribune), “captivating” (Chicago Reader) and “incredibly imaginative” (Time Out Chicago).

With Filament, Julie has also created The Van Gogh Cafe, an adaptation of Cynthia Rylant’s book of the same name (staged in Fannie’s Bakery and Cafe with an accompanying a five course meal); a Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Portage Park (an original mystery that took the audience on foot and by bicycle throughout the neighborhood in search of clues); The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles (a play in a sandbox); and Forts: Build Your Own Adventure (an audience-driven performance installation).

Eleanor Kahn she/her (Co-creator/Designer) is a Chicago-based interdisciplinary artist, with a focus on scenic and installation design. Her work is centered around the idea that the where, when, and how we receive information is as important as what that information is; context is everything. She received her Bachelor of Architecture degree from Iowa State University with a second major in performing arts. She has designed over 100 shows and worked on countless others. She continues to expand her work and has branched out into experience design and installation work (including public art featured in Millennium Park) to further her passion in the design of immersive + narrative driven spaces.

Katie Norregaard she/her (Co-creator/Composer) is a children’s songwriter, filmmaker, and teaching artist based in Chicago. She runs a creative studio under “Miss Katie Sings”, where she produces videos for children online with an emphasis on social-emotional learning, empathy, and justice. Katie also leads virtual music exploration classes through libraries, schools, and her own studio. She recently studied at the American Montessori Society for their educator-based ABAR (Anti-Bias Anti-Racist) certificate program. Her work through “Miss Katie Sings” has been seen by tens of thousands of children across the world.

Filament Theatre (Producer): Filament Theatre’s mission is to create a more equitable society by celebrating & amplifying the perspectives & experiences of young people through the performing arts. Filament does this by creating ambitious anti-oppressive, theatrical experiences for family audiences.

Founded in 2007, Filament has produced dozens of original, innovative, and ambitious, and site-specific theatrical experiences for multigenerational audiences across Chicago. In 2013, the company established their permanent artistic home in Portage Park, where they continue to serve as an anchor small business for the Historic Six Corners Commercial District.

A national leader in anti-adultist theatre making, Filament’s current programming initiatives invite young people in as not only patrons, but essential collaborators throughout the artistic process. Intentionally engaging audiences as artistic collaborators in real time, Filament audiences experience “play” as both a verb and noun.

In 2015 the Chicago Community Trust awarded Filament with a SMART Growth Grant, in 2020 the Illinois Theatre Association awarded Filament with the Award of Excellence in Theatre for Young Audiences and in 2022 the Bayless Family Foundation awarded Filament with their competitive Stepping Stone grant.

Filament’s production process welcomes young people into the room as essential collaborators, working alongside adult professionals to craft and explore the world of each play, elevating young people as experts and positioning adults as allies.

The creation of in the grove began in Spring 2022 when Friends of the Forest Preserves commissioned Filament Theatre to create an original piece of theater that could engage Southeast side Chicago families at Eggers Grove in a new way. 

After a few bird walks, conversations with local ecologists, and a lot of “work” trips to play outside in the forest preserve, it was time for the Creators and Filament to test out our ideas with the play’s intended audience – toddlers! 

During the summer of 2023, dozens of young people from 9 months old to 8 years old attended free playtests where we learned what is means to engage very young audience members authentically with sensory nature play. 

In September 2022, a workshop production of in the grove ran for 5 free performances, incorporating the feedback and lessons we learned from our summer of playtests. During the September run, we learned even more from the toddlers and their caregivers who attended those performances, which are now incorporated into our June 2023 production. 

To participate in Filament’s next youth collaborator process or learn more, contact education@filamenttheatre.org.