Michael-Ellen Walden

Teaching Artist, Classes for Little Ones
​Michael-Ellen (Mikey) Walden is an actor, writer, musician, and teaching artist based in Chicago who hails from Kentucky. They began assisting early childhood music classes before they had even graduated middle school and thus discovered their love for teaching artistry early in life. Mikey has always been drawn to the innate sense of play children have and the way that play frees artistic impulses for people of all ages. They studied theatre and gender studies at Northwestern University, serving as Artistic Director and Music Director of Seesaw Theatre Company and Writing Coordinator for the Waa-Mu Show, before graduating in 2021. They have worked as a teaching artist for ImagineU, Stomp & Shout, Jamberry, and Chicago Children’s Theatre. When he is not teaching, Mikey may be found acting in experimental theatre productions, dancing backup in drag shows, or working on one of his many writing projects. Recent artistic projects have included Tambo & Bones (actor, Refracted Theatre Company), A Drama In Rogers Park (actor, Young Krones), and Queering the Canon: Jerry Herman (songwriter, Ring of Keys).