Elmo's Virtual Playdate

Attention parents of little ones. Sesame Street's Elmo is having a "virtual playdate" and everyone is invited to watch. Sesame Workshop and WarnerMedia have teamed up with Lin-Manuel Miranda to produce the half-hour special that will air on April 14.  The special will air on HBO, HBO Latino, TBS, TNT, truTV, Cartoon Network, and Boomerang. It will also air on PBS Kids. Elmo's Virtual Playdate will air on April 14 at 7:00 p.m. ET/PT.

What's it going to be about? WarnerMedia and Sesame Workshop put out a joint statement to fill us in:

The half-hour special follows Elmo, Grover, Cookie Monster, Abby Cadabby, and a few famous friends as they find new ways to play and learn together. Celebrating everything from the EMTs, doctors, and other everyday heroes who are helping families through the health crisis to the simple pleasures of baking cookies at home, the playdate takes the form of a cozy video conference that will feel very familiar to today’s viewers. Celebrities and Sesame Street friends will sing songs, play games, and take silly dance breaks. Tracee Ellis Ross plays a game of “Elmo Says,” Lin-Manuel Miranda pops in for a few rounds of “Old McDonald Had a Farm,” Anne Hathaway and Elmo get moving with “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes,” and more. Kids will love getting a visit from their Sesame Street friends, and caregivers will appreciate how the special models playful learning opportunities they can use at home.

Elmo's Virtual Playdate is part of Sesame Workshop's Caring for Each Other program which is designed to help families deal with the coronavirus pandemic and the shelter-in-place orders around the country. This has been a very stressful time for all of us and for families with small children, it's sometimes a challenge to explain what is going on without causing stress and anxiety. the Caring for Each Other program helps explain to kids what is happening.

If you miss the initial airing on April 14, it will be available on HBO Now, HBO Go, and HBO On Demand after the show airs on the multi-network platform.