Conservatory

Fall 2026 Open for Registration

Email conservatory@nationalchildrenstheatre.org to join the waitlist for sold out programs

Teaching Artists guide students through creating characters, crafting art projects, and performing stories with friends.
Students must be potty-trained to enroll.
Saturdays: 9 - 10 a.m.
SOLD OUT: Wacky Witches and Wizards
September 19, 26, October 3, 10, 17, 24
Email conservatory@nationalchildrenstheatre.org to join the waitlist
Saturdays: 9 - 10 a.m.
NEW for Ages 4-5 (previous Creative Players class or equivalent experience required)
SOLD OUT: Anansi the Spider
September 19, 26, October 3, 10, 17, 24, (no class 31), November 7, 14, 21, 28, December 5, 12
Email conservatory@nationalchildrenstheatre.org to join the waitlist
Saturdays: 9 - 10 a.m.
Register for: Courageous Kids and Critters
November 7, 14, 21, 28, December 5, 12
Students learn performance and design fundamentals, and collaborate with friends to rehearse and perform scenes from plays.
Saturdays: 10:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
SOLD OUT: The Little Prince
An ensemble-based adaptation of The Little Prince by Rick Cummins and John Scoullar. Adapted from the book by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
Produced by special arrangement with THE DRAMATIC PUBLISHING COMPANY of Woodstock, Illinois.
September 19, 26, October 3, 10, 17, (no rehearsal 31), 24, November 7, 14, 21, 28, December 5, 12
Performance: Saturday, December 12 at 11:00 a.m.
Email conservatory@nationalchildrenstheatre.org to join the waitlist
Mondays: 4 - 6 p.m.
SOLD OUT: Witches and Wizards
September 14, 21, 28, October 5, (no class 12), 19, 26
Email conservatory@nationalchildrenstheatre.org to join the waitlist
Mondays: 4 - 6 p.m.
Register for: Courageous Kids
November 9, 16, 23, 30, December 7, 14
Students learn performance and design fundamentals, and collaborate with friends to rehearse and perform The Snow Queen by Stanton Wood, adapted from the Hans Christian Andersen tale that inspired Disney’s Frozen.
THE SNOW QUEEN (WOOD) is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Playscripts.
Mondays: 4 - 6:30 p.m.
SOLD OUT: The Snow Queen
September 14, 21, 28, October 5, (no class 12), 19, 26, November (no class 2), 9, 16, 23, 30, December 7, 12 (Saturday 3-5:30 p.m.), 14
Performance Cast A: Saturday, December 12 at 4:00 p.m.
Performance Cast B: Monday, December 14 at 5:00 p.m.
Email conservatory@nationalchildrenstheatre.org to join the waitlist
Students of all levels of experience will strengthen their performance skills as they collaborate with friends on scenes from plays.
Saturdays: 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.
FOUR SPOTS LEFT Register for: Whodunit? Murder Mysteries
September 19, 26, October 3, 10, 17, 24, November 7, 14, 21, 28, December 5, 12
Performance: December 12 at 2:00 p.m.
Students of all levels of experience will strengthen their performance skills as they collaborate with friends on scenes from plays.
Thursdays: 4:30 - 6:00 p.m. EST
Register for: Whodunit? Murder Mysteries
September 24, October 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, November 5, 12, 19, (no class 26), December 3, 10, 17

Location: Capitol Hill Presbyterian Church 201 4th Street SE, Washington, DC 20003

In addition to being a fun after-school and weekend activity, here are some great reasons to enroll:

Key Findings on the Benefits of Theatre Education

Prepared by Thalia R. Goldstein, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, George Mason University

Language: Theatre and drama classrooms are highly verbal via the analyses and performance of scripts. Findings include building vocabulary skills, particularly for English language learners, narrative skills, and verbal skills including story understanding and reading readiness.

Social-Emotional Development: Across age groups and settings, theatre has been linked to a large variety of social and emotional skills and abilities. These include empathy, self-esteem, emotional control and regulation.

Creativity and 21st Century Skills: All theatre involves some improvisation, but specific classes and interventions using improv skills have shown improvements in 21st century skills and increases in divergent thinking and uncertainty tolerance, a necessary skill to make informed decisions, and a correlate of mental health.

Acting Habits of Mind: A recent nationally representative study of acting classes showed teachers are giving students opportunities to practice body awareness, imagination, self-confidence, meta-cognition, empathy, collaboration, decision making skills, and cognitive flexibility.

Class Details: will be emailed to registered students the week prior to the class start date. Full tuition is due at registration. There is a non-refundable deposit of $50 per registration. If you need to withdraw your registration, refunds (minus the deposit) will be available up until the week before the class begins. A limited number of need-based scholarships will be awarded on a rolling basis. Please email info@nationalchildrenstheatre.org to request a scholarship application.

Generously supported by:

Photos of Creative Players, Young Performers, She Kills Monsters: Young Adventurers Edition, and Matilda The Musical Jr. by Randall Pike