Continuing the legacy: 'Donkey Hodie' welcomes 'Mister Rogers' characters for the second season

Aug. 11—Kristin DiQuollo is all about embracing change.

As the supervising producer on the PBS series, "Donkey Hodie," the new season brings crossover from "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" and "Daniel Tiger."

"When we first incorporate the legacy characters, we think about the possibilities and storytelling and build on the legacy of Fred Rogers," she says. "With Trolley, this was the first time we had a full-size puppet that is able to carry other puppets on set."

Trolley appeared in "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" during its 30-plus year run.

The second season of "Donkey Hodie" premieres on New Mexico PBS with the first five episodes of the season airing daily at noon from Monday, Aug. 14 through Friday, Aug. 18. It is also available to stream on the PBS app.

DiQuollo says Trolley, beloved by generations of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" fans, is coming down the tracks for the very first time as a real, moving vehicle character — one that Donkey and her friends can climb aboard.

She says five "hee-hawsome" new episodes reimagine Trolley, whose distinctive "dings" were created with the exact same celeste (a small piano-like instrument) used in "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood."

"Donkey Hodie" is inspired by the funny, quirky side of Fred Rogers, and the series features lots of cool nods to the children's television pioneer.

In this new season, in addition to Trolley, kids and families will meet Turtle-Lou, a "Speedy Delivery" turtle modeled after the beloved Mr. McFeely. Turtle-Lou will even sing the well-known "Speedy Delivery" song in an episode premiering on Wednesday, Aug. 16.

"One of the things that we did to help the connection point in the nostalgia was about connecting the world with 'Daniel Tiger,' " she says. "There's the cobblestone path that exists in all three worlds. The Trolley can travel down that path. We wanted to make sure Trolley was represented in 'Donkey Hodie.' He has slightly exaggerated features. Trolley also interacts differently."

DiQuollo says one of the biggest challenges was bringing Trolley to life because the puppet is so big.

The production designer had to fully realize a trolley that works for the camera, as well as working for the puppeteers that are riding below the trolley with their arms bringing it to life.

"The full-size trolley is mounted on a cart with wheels," she says. "There are two benches for the characters to sit."

DiQuollo says the vision for Trolley is to be the conduit in helping.

"He uses dings to speak," she says. "So we developed stories around each message. It's great to have a character who has a different way of doing things. Trolley is all about problem-solving along with the characters, and he's an awesome opportunity to tell those stories."