Children's Theater Company

Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) is the nation’s largest theatre for young people, serving 200,000+ people each year, and it’s the only youth-focused theatre to receive the Special Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. Their summer camp lineup (Theatre Arts Training) is designed to build curious, creative, confident young artists—and it’s intentionally process-based (more about what kids learn and try than a perfectly polished final product).

For parents, CTC’s 11 weeks of summer camps span rising Grades 1–12 with multiple camp styles you can match to your child: Discovery Theatre (Grades 1–3, imaginative play + original performance-making), Summer Studio (Grades 4–6, exploring elements of theatre with student-centered teaching artists), plus options like Musical Theatre, Triple Threat, Stagecraft, World Premiere, and more specialty tracks depending on week/theme. They also offer four weeks of St. Paul camps at Macalester College (rising Grades 2–4, 9am–4pm, final performance).

CTC also shares a clear statement of inclusion (welcoming across identities/abilities and open to working with families on individual needs).

June 8 - August 21, 2026

Weekly camps are  on average $450/week (some as low as $360, some as high as $800). Multi-week production camps are $900/show.

Financial aid is available, see more info and apply here.

Programs can be registered for online here.

612.872.5100

education@childrenstheatre.org

Before and/or after camp, your child can participate in free play and organized activities with CTC’s education staff.

• Morning Extended Care is offered from 8-9:30am, AM Only $75/week
• Afternoon Extended Care is offered from 3:30-5:30pm, PM Only $75/week
• AM and PM Extended Care is $125/week

Extended Care is not available for camps held in St. Paul.

What Parents Like

• It feels like “real” theatre training, not just a themed craft week. Families who’ve been around CTC for a while consistently describe Theatre Arts Training as a strong pipeline for skill-building (and even call out the student productions as surprisingly high-quality for the price). (1)
• Great value compared to other programs (especially with scholarship support). A local parent writer shared that Theatre Arts Training ended up being a better deal than smaller programs once they compared what kids got for the cost—and they strongly recommended applying for CTC’s ACT Pass scholarship if budget is a factor. (2)
• A “special” overall experience at CTC (environment + professionalism). While many public reviews are about performances rather than camps, families repeatedly rave about the quality, creativity, and “core memory” feel of CTC—helpful context since camps take place inside the same well-run institution. (3)

‍What Parents Think Could Be Improved‍

• Most of the publicly indexed feedback is about CTC shows, the venue, or broader training programs—not detailed day-by-day summer camp reviews (counselor ratios, daily schedule flow, behavior supports, etc.).

‍Our Take

‍The strongest, verifiable parent signals online point to CTC camps as a high-quality, skill-building arts experience with strong value—especially for families who use ACT Pass financial aid or are comparing multiple theatre programs side-by-side. Since camp-specific reviews are relatively sparse publicly, the most MomBrains move is a quick fit-check before enrolling: How are kids grouped (age/experience)? What’s the daily schedule (creation vs rehearsal vs games)? What’s the support approach for shy/anxious kids?