For the third consecutive year, the Sesame Street/USO Experience for Military Families – a free, traveling USO tour based on Sesame Workshop's award winning Talk, Listen, Connect initiative – redeployed overseas and is scheduled to visit 11 different countries by November 2011. Officially announced by First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, Phase V of the tour will kick off at a community event on April 14 in Columbus, Ohio. Unveiling a brand new Sesame Street character designed exclusively for the USO tour, the show also boasted a new theme, a new set design and new music with familiar faces to connect with military kids of all ages.
Tour Highlights
The Sesame Street/USO Experience for Military Families made its debut in July 2008 to help families deal with the challenges of deployments and homecomings. Since its inception three years ago, the tour has taken its message to more than 240,375 troops and military families and performed more than 415 times on 122 military bases in 33 states and ten countries. Additionally, the tour has logged more than 106,585 miles and distributed more than 1,616,265 giveaways, TLC kits, twirly lights, USO brochures, bandanas, Post-it® Notes, Picture Me® Books, t-shirts, magnets and buttons.
Re-examining the challenges of deployments, Phase V of the Sesame Street/USO Experience for Military Families focuses on their impact on military kids. During the half-hour character performance, Elmo and his Sesame pals will help Katie – a new military friend relocating to a new place – open up about her fears and excitement in dealing with change and making new friends. To complement the experience, special giveaways and helpful outreach materials will be distributed and made available to military families who attend.
The tour, which is produced in partnership with the VEE Corporation, also kicked off in Alaska in late April and is scheduled to wrap up in Japan in November. To date, the tour’s fifth installment has performed 100 shows on 46 bases in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Korea, Turkey, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Spain and Japan for 47,821 service members and their families.
Tour Schedule
Learn more about upcoming showtimes, tour dates and venues on our Sesame Street/USO Experience for Military Families 2011 Tour Schedule page.
Character Bios
Get to know more about the characters behind the Sesame Street/USO Experience for Military Families tour.
Leadership Bios
Learn more about the leaders who stand behind the Sesame Street/USO Experience for Military Families tour.
Media Resources
Press Release, April 11, 2011
If you are a member of the media and want to learn more about the Sesame Street/USO Experience, please contact Karen Hart with your request and deadline.
Related Links
Tour FAQs
Official Sesame Workshop Site
Relocation Tips for Military School Children
USO's Flickr account
USO Military Family Programs