Announcing: This Will Ruin The Tour from the team behind Welcome to Night Vale

October 12, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

"People deserve that." That line, spoken by pop star Chiara Sloane about the way she treats a fan she's just met, is the emotional key to the new audio drama This Will Ruin the Tour, from the team behind Welcome to Night Vale. The episode is a straight announcement and preview, not an interview or discussion. The hosts present the show's premise, its creative team, and then play an extended clip from the first episode. The central argument is clear: this is a romance about the terrifying, exhilarating act of giving yourself completely to another person, set against the backdrop of a single day and night in New Orleans.

The Premise: A Romance of Two Worlds Colliding

The new audio drama is described as a romance in the spirit of Roman Holiday and Before Sunrise. The setup is classic: Neil, a young, aspiring music journalist desperate for his big break, is assigned to interview Chiara, a middle-aged pop star launching a comeback tour. What begins as a reluctant professional obligation turns into a genuine, wandering connection. The story unfolds in real time as the two characters explore New Orleans—from jazz clubs to tarot readers, Jackson Square to a ferry on the Mississippi. The central tension is framed as a search for balance: between career and life, stability and adventure, self-control and the risk of jumping into love, even if it "just might ruin the tour."

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What you'll learn

1 (00:07) **Announcing: This Will Ruin the Tour** - The Night Vale team previews a new romance audio drama set in New Orleans, starring Robin Virginie and Michael John in Prota, releasing October 27th.
2 (01:50) **Clip Begins: Chiara Handles a Fan at Café du Monde** - The audio drama clip opens with Chiara being approached by a fan named Jennifer, demonstrating her method for managing fan interactions.
3 (03:42) **Neil and Chiara Discuss Connection and Authenticity** - Neil observes that Chiara's love for the fan felt real, leading to a debate about giving yourself completely to strangers.
4 (05:28) **Escaping the Crowd and Arriving at Jackson Square** - Chiara and Neil flee the café, and Chiara explains the demoralizing nature of fame, where strangers want autographs even if they don't know what you're famous for.
5 (07:12) **Neil Pushes for the Manhattan Incident** - Neil attempts to steer the interview toward the controversial 2021 Manhattan event, but Chiara deflects by noticing a tarot shop.
6 (09:15) **Neil Directly Asks: "What Happened in Manhattan?"** - Neil asks Chiara to give her side of the story, and she responds by pointing out Lola's Tarot shop and suggesting they get a reading instead.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

From the writers and team behind Welcome to Night Vale, comes a new audio drama.

Kiara Sloan has been one of the world's biggest pop stars since before she could legally drive, but now she is in her forties, and embarking on a big comeback tour after an embarrassing public incident almost ended her career.

Neil Ritter is a small town boy from Texas, still in his twenties, and desperate for his big break as a music journalist. And here it is: spend the day in New Orleans with none other than Kiara Sloan. And maybe get something juicy about the pills and her dwindling ticket sales.

What starts as a reluctant interview turns, to both of their surprise, into a genuine connection, as Kiara and Neil wander the Crescent City through the day and well into the night.

From jazz clubs to tarot readers, from Jackson Square to a ferry on the Mississippi river, This Will Ruin The Tour invites us to listen in real time as Kiara and Neil try to find the balance between career and life, between stability and adventure, between self-control and jumping into love, even if it just might ruin the tour.

For fans of Before Sunrise, Roman Holiday, and Once, This Will Ruin The Tour is twenty four hours in America's most magical city, spent with two people who just might be falling in love…

For more information and to pre-order, click here.

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