Children's Theatre of Charlotte

Children’s Theatre of Charlotte (CTC) creates exceptional theatre experiences, inspiring generations to explore the wonder of their world. As the largest and most comprehensive North Carolina theatre company devoted to serving youth, CTC is an integral part of the Southeast's theatre and arts education landscape.

At Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, we are inspired to serve over 230,000 young people and families each year. We create world-cl ass theatre productions for public and school audiences and provide wide-ranging arts education classes at our home in ImaginOn and at satellite locations throughout the area.

Our touring company travels throughout the Southeast delivering live theatre to schools and community venues. In-school programs take Children’s Theatre teaching artists into classrooms, using drama as a vehicle for teaching core curricula subjects. We are dedicated to developing the potential in all young people, holding ourselves to the highest artistic standards and embracing inclusivity to serve audiences that are broadly diverse. .

As a fully-producing theatre, we select scripts, hire directors and designers, and cast our own shows with professional adult actors and musicians. Our 550-seat McColl Family Theatre and 250-seat Wells Fargo Playhouse are equipped to deliver an exceptional quality theatre experience. Costume, set, lighting and sound designs are created by artisans we hire from around the country and shows are constructed onsite in our shops. Scripts are selected based on artistic merit, age appropriateness and their ability to create an emotional link to the story. Classic tales are paired with new scripts we develop in conjunction with nationally-known playwrights. All are designed to delight our audiences, create conversations, and help them explore the wonder of the world around them.

For school performances during the week. This season, our 70th, more than 60,000 school students from a 17-county region will join us here at ImaginOn to experience the magic of a live theatre performance. At a time when schools place increasing emphasis on rote memorization to achieve test results, theatre provides the opportunity to explore and enhance curiosity and creativity. Study after study has shown that exposure to the arts and arts education helps children – especially low-income children – succeed in school. A recent study conducted by the University of Arkansas published in the Winter 2015 issue of Education Next demonstrates that seeing a live theatre performance leads to improvements in vocabulary, literary knowledge, and plot understanding in ways that merely reading or watching a movie cannot. In addition, research conducted by Americans for the Arts shows that low-income students who are highly engaged in the arts are more than twice as likely to graduate from college as their peers with no arts education.

At CTC, we believe the arts are paramount to the well-being and development of young people. When stories come to life, literary connections are fused and imaginations are sparked, young people are inspired, enriched and empowered. Theatre education infuses life skills and strengthens social relationships, teamwork, independent decision making, verbal and non-verbal skills, self-confidence and vocabulary – skills needed to thrive academically and, later, in the competitive global marketplace.