Teens 4 Young Audiences Performances Of JUNGLE BOOK (Kids) Open June 2

Windy City Performs, Chicago's fastest-growing professional theatre and school, is pleased to present an innovative new take on the Theatre for Young Audiences genre. The Company's new "Teens 4 Young Audiences" or "TeenYA," is an exciting new program designed to give high-school-age students the opportunity to design, direct, produce and create educational activities for Disney's The Jungle Book - presented over two weekends in June.

Teens will be mentored by a professional creative team during the process. All teens in the program will also be performers in the show, resulting in a 360-degree view of how theatre and theatre education are brought to life - from the page to the stage.

And children, many of whom are first-time theatre-goers, will be the beneficiaries of the end-product: a high-quality educational theatre and family entertainment experience.

Artistic Director Jerry R. Soria-Foust said about TeenYA: "This program was born out of a desire to give WCP teens, many of whom have been studying and performing with the Company since its start in 2012, additional training beyond performing on-stage. And when the Company calendar got too crowded to do both more teen programming and Theatre for Young Audiences shows, we developed this beautiful idea of combining the two. We think no one else is doing anything quite like it."

Molly Brennan, known as 'Chicago's Mistress of Mischief and Mayhem', is directing the show. Brennan has performed with nearly all the major theatre companies in the Windy City, including Lookingglass, The Goodman, and Steppenwolf. Her creative team includes Lindsay Cummings, Music Director & Mentor; Amy Chmielewski, Costume Designer & Mentor; Isabella Coelho, Puppetry Creator & Mentor; Jeff Chesebro, Lighting Designer & Mentor; and Bri Wolfe, Stage Manager & Mentor.

Rehearsals are going on now, and tickets are on-sale to the public at the Company website: www.windycityperforms.org

Performances take place at Windy City Performs' main venue, The Playhouse @ Jefferson Park, 4766 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60630, at the following dates & times:

• Saturday, June 2 @ 12pm, 2:30pm and 5pm
• Sunday, June 3 @ 12pm & 2:30pm
• Saturday, June 9 @ 12pm, 2:30pm and 5pm
• Sunday, June 10 @ 12pm & 2:30pm

Kids 12 & under are free. Adult tickets are $10.

The show runs 55 minutes, including a 5 minute stretch breaks for kids to "get the wiggles out."