Bear with me as I reminisce about a time almost seven years ago. I was fairly new to calling Chicago "home" after a few years of splitting time between here and Florida. I had an active, and shy, four-year-old and a baby on the way, and one mom friend in Chicago. On this day my husband was traveling for work and I was in need of connection with another adult and called on my only mom-friend, Kelly, to see if she was available for a play date.
"Oh man, I have some appointments and won't be able to meet up with you today."
And as I was saying "no problem, another time maybe" she stopped me and said, "but my friend Hallie was asking about a play date too and I think you guys should meet up. Her son is the same age as H and she has a daughter who is about two years old".
Now, for those who don't know me personally, let me tell you, I was not a "blind (play)date" kind of person, not because I don't want to meet new friends, or because I think the other person will be horrible, but just because I, like our son, can be a little shy. Plus I was hoping for a day where I didn't have to present any particular version of myself to someone new. As all of the reasons to say no were running through my head, for some reason I decided to say "Yes" and step outside of my comfort zone. Plus, there was still a chance that it wouldn't happen - who was to say that this mom, Hallie, would even want to meet up with me? Right?
Wrong.
Perhaps Hallie was in need of mom-to-mom connection too, or maybe she is a "blind (play)date" kind of person because within moments of ending my call with Kelly I heard the telltale PING of an incoming text message. Hallie had jumped on the momentum and with a couple of texts, we had a plan to meet up at a playground near the lake later that morning. H and I were on the Red Line and heading out of our comfort zone before we could come up with a reason to cancel. It was a beyond lovely play date, Hallie was so gracious and the kids were getting along so we left the park to have lunch at her house (she made me a beautiful, restaurant-worthy salad) while the kids played some more and the youngest got ready for a nap.
Soon school schedules and my pregnancy took over and while we would cross paths a handful of times over the years, usually at Kelly's orchestration, that was our one and only play date. But from that moment, I added Hallie to my growing community in Chicago.
So why am I sharing this? This year, I received an email from Hallie, who wanted to reintroduce herself and share with local parents what she has been working on recently. She is a writer, a wonderfully skilled writer, with Prop Thtr and is debuting a play she has written called "The Cleanup" this fall at the Athenaeum on Southport. One guess what this play is about?
"The Cleanup", described as "hilarious, sexy and soapy", is all about parenthood and the importance of building community and friendship with other parents. I personally can't think of a better person to write this story than Hallie Palladino, the very person that helped me realize this so many years ago and taught me to not be so quick to turn down a blind (play)date ever again.
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About "The Cleanup", written by Hallie Palladino and directed by Jen Poulin
Seeking community post-quarantine, Nicole enrolls her toddler at The Learning Co-Op, a parent-run DIY preschool, where she’s assigned to Sunday night clean-up crew. There she meets Logan, a swoon-worthy super dad. To get close she becomes the school’s star volunteer causing the burnt-out founders to tap her as their replacement.
"The Cleanup" is a tale of love, friendship, and the messes we make in their pursuit. "The Cleanup" runs October 21 – November 19, 2022, and like any great parent-created endeavor they will have two family events:
- A baby-friendly matinee on November 6th at 3 pm where infants are welcome in the house on an adult's lap and there is additional babysitting with Jovie in the activity room for all kids 0-6.
- November 13 at 3 pm teaching artists from American Eagle Production will host kids' theater games in the activity room during the performance
| Grab your parent community and make a date to check out this new show this fall! Use code MACKID for a special savings |
