Chicago Children's Theatre Fall Enrollment Now Open

Chicago Children's Theatre's education programming, unique in the city for emphasizing student authorship, youth empowerment and community leadership, is growing by leaps and bounds - literally - at the company's new West Loop home, The Station.

Registration is now open for an expanded roster of youth theater classes, from Introduction to Acting to Circus and Aerial Arts with The Actor's Gymnasium, at Chicago Children's Theatre, The Station, 100 S. Racine Ave. in Chicago's West Loop.

Register for the new fall session, September 17-December 22, atchicagochildrenstheatre.org/fallclasses, email education@chicagochildrenstheatre.org, or call Chicago Children's Theatre Guest Services, (312) 374-8835, to enroll your child in one class or many.

NOTE: In addition to multi-class discounts, CCT is also offering an early bird discount of 20% off enrollment fees if purchased by August 26.

Responding to its growing student base, CCT's new fall session will expand from 8 to 12 weeks, with a robust list of classes for kids 0 to 13 offered six days a week, Mondays through Saturdays.

This fall, CCT will also introduce a new focus on sequential learning, with classes in acting and musical theater offered at beginning, intermediate and advanced levels so children can grow all year long under the direction of professional teaching artists.

"Chicago Children's Theatre is committed to training the next generation of actors and performers. Whether a child grows up to be an actor, performer, doctor, lawyer or scientist, the skills necessary to become a great member of the community are the same for everyone," explains Frank Maugeri, Education and Special Events Consultant, Chicago Children's Theatre. "Our classes, camps and workshops strive to reflect the integrity and quality of our mainstage work, so children receive the same skills they see demonstrated on stage by our fabulous performers. In addition to understanding they, too, could become a professional theater artist, CCT's students more fully appreciate the experience of becoming a theatergoer and admirer of storytelling on stage."

Returning fall class favorites include Hip Hop 4 Tots taught by Yuri "The Human Beat Box" Lane, Bubble Jams, Shake the Stage circus arts from Actors Gymnasium, Improv with The Second City, Wiggleworms with Old Town School of Folk Music and more.

Following are just some of the new classes added to what is now the most comprehensive and diverse youth theater arts curriculum found anywhere in the city, available only at Chicago Children's Theatre, The Station, starting this fall:

Bubble Band

Mondays, 4:30-5:15 p.m.

Saturdays, 11-11:45 a.m.

Ages 3-5, parent participation required

Full session: $200

Drop-Ins: $25/session

It's time to start jamming with the band! This evolution of Bubble Jams has bubbles, music and instruments for kids. Children will become part of the live music, enjoyable stories and dancing - all under the umbrella of continuous bubbles.

Learning Lab: KID Talk

Tuesdays, 4:15-5:15 p.m.

Grades 2-4

Full session: $192

Riffing on the well-known TED Talks, students are introduced to the skills required to use green screen technology to make their wild and courageous versions of TED Talk videos. Kids will learn to become confident speakers as they articulate and voice their opinions on camera, stage, and as citizens.

Intro to Musical Theatre

Tuesdays, 4:30-5:30 p.m.

Grades 3-5

Full session: $144

This class is designed to take students through the basics of Musical Theatre - learning to combine song, dance, and story. This training will teach these introductory skills through a short scenes and songs from our mainstage productions.

Indian Dance with Ashita

Tuesdays, 6-7 p.m.

Grades 1-6

Full session: $144

Learn the building blocks of Kathak, the oldest Indian classical Dance in this class, conducted by Aashita Karkare from Language of Expression. Students will learn graceful hand movements, presentation skills, basic footwork and expressions. This class will also introduce different forms of Indian Classical Dances, musical instruments which accompany a dancer, Kathak Dancer's attires and more.

Advanced Acting

Thursdays, 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Grades 4-6

Full session: $216

This acting course explores methods of acting on a professional stage. Students will also learn script analysis skills that are fundamental to any emerging actor in the industry. The class culminates in 3 to 5-minute scenes that challenge children to be part of a small ensemble.

Hip Hop 4 Kids

Saturdays, 10:30-11:15 a.m.

Grades K-2

Full session: $212

Drop-Ins: $25/session

Ideal for graduates of Hip Hop 4 Tots! Chicago's own Yuri "The Human Beatbox" Lane teaches bigger kids to communicate in a new way through beat boxing: making sounds through voice and body. Students will learn new ways to use their bodies to participate in creative play while engaging with stellar musical talent.

Open Play

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Ages 0-5, parent participation required

Full session: $44

Drop-Ins: $10/class

BYOT! (Bring your own toys!) and learn to share. Young ones are invited to play and socialize in an open-play environment out of the cold and the rain, while parents enjoy complimentary coffee and tea and make friends with other neighborhood adults.

Open Gym

Thursdays, 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Grades 3-8

Full session: $192

Drop-Ins: $25/session

Build strength, condition and stretch, and get more instruction on the apparatuses, all under the guidance of an Actors Gymnasium teaching artist. Apparatuses used in Open Gym include lyra, trapeze, silk and Spanish web.

Note: many returning and new classes now accept Drop-Ins, an ideal recommendation for visitors to Chicago looking for something fun to do with their kids while visiting the popular West Loop community. Drop-In fees can also be pro-rated into the cost of a full session enrollment.

Looking ahead, in addition to classes, Chicago Children's Theater's education department will continue to offer:

Fall Free for All Open House! Chicago Children's Theatre, The Station, periodically throws open its doors for a Free For All Open House. Up next is the Fall Free For All onSunday, November 9. Bring the kids for an interactive day of free sampler classes, delightful spectacle and tasty food including Stan's Donuts. Activities targeting the pre-K set are from 9 to 11 a.m. Bring the older kids from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. This event is free, but space is limited. Pre-register now at chicagochildrenstheatre.org.

Workshops that tie directly to Chicago Children's 2018-19 season productions being presented in the Pritzker Family Studio Theater. These workshops, lead by actors featured in the shows, empower young audiences with the skills of professional performers and are inspired by the themes and content of the season's work. Up first: the FrederickMusical Theatre Workshop, for ages 6 to 10, Sunday, November 4, from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Frederick cast member and CCT teaching artist Nicole Laurenzi (Mamma Mia! national tour) will teach students a song and dance scene from the show, which will then be performed for family and friends on the Pritzker Family Studio Theatre stage. The fee is $59. Visit chicagochildrenstheatre.org/leo-lionnis-frederick to register.

Birthday Bashes, with three different packages for families including activities lead by CCT's talented teaching artists. Whether you're looking for a space to decorate, a fixed package, or a custom party where the sky is the limit, learn more atchicagochildrenstheatre.org/birthday.

Winter and Spring Break Camps are full-day adventure camps held over winter and spring school breaks, totally fun for kids, and life-savers for working parents.

Summer Adventure Camps for children ages 3-1/2 to 10. This series of week-long summer camps have been carefully designed to grow children's skills in acting, songwriting, choreography, collaborative story development, scene and prop construction.

Camp Red Kite is CCT's annual, three-week summer arts camp tailored specifically to the unique interests and needs of young people on the autism spectrum.

In-school residencies. Over the course of 2017-18 season, Chicago Children's Theatre teaching artists were in residence in 13 schools throughout Chicago, serving nearly 900 youth. CCT is excited to continue programming in West Loop schools and beyond during the 2018-19 school year with new curriculum for preschoolers to high schoolers.

College Apprentice Program. CCT has also launched a year-long apprentice program for Chicago area college students. The apprenticeship provides students the opportunity to participate in classroom training with CCT's master teaching artist team including Nicole Laurenzi, Liz Chidester, Yuri Lane, Allison Grischow, Abby Pierce, Levi Holloway, and Matthew Shimel to name a few.

Chicago Children's Theatre has transformed the former 12th District Police Station, located in the heart of Chicago's West Loop neighborhood at 100 S. Racine Avenue, into its first permanent home. The new Chicago Children's Theatre, The Station, celebrated its grand opening in January 2017, and now serves as a beautiful, mixed-use performing arts, education and community engagement facility that welcomes all Chicago families.

Chicago Children's Theatre kicks off its 13th season this fall with its own, smash hit family musical Leo Lionni's Frederick, based on Lionni's Caldecott Award-winning book about Frederick the mouse, October 9-November 11.

Next up is Chicago's newest holiday family tradition, The Beatrix Potter Holiday Tea Party, a trunk-style puppet show starring everyone's favorite Beatrix Potter characters, this year with two new stories, coupled with a festive tea and cocoa party, December 8-24.

With the New Year comes the world premiere of X-Marks The Spot, a new, inclusive sensory work conceived by Artistic Director Jacqueline Russell highlighting the experience of blind and low vision audiences, January 22-February 24.

Next, New York's Spellbound Theatre arrives to teach kids one to five about their bodies in the world premiere of The World Inside of Me, February 9-March 3.

Next spring, CCT will also present the Chicago premiere of Red Kite Green Mountain, an interactive, immersive theatrical production designed for young people on the autism spectrum. CCT's 2018-19 season finale is an all-new, world premiere staging of The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963, directed by Wardell Julius Clark, based on the groundbreaking book by Christopher Paul Curtis, adapted by Cheryl L. West, who also adapted CCT's 2018 smash hit, Last Stop on Market Street, March 26-April 28.

Book early and save on a variety of subscription packages, on sale now atchicagochildrenstheatre.org, or call CCT Guest Services at (312) 374-8835.

In addition to presenting live shows in The Station's intimate 149-seat Pritzker Family Studio Theatre, Chicago Children's Theatre continues to grow its education and community programs. The city's most diverse roster of performing arts classes, workshops and camps, unique in Chicago for emphasizing student authorship, youth empowerment and community leadership, are now offered year-round at The Station for children ages 0 to 13.

Chicago Children's Theatre is led by Co-Founders, Artistic Director Jacqueline Russell and Board Chair Todd Leland, with Board President Eric Neveux. The company is supported by a dynamic Board of Directors comprised of dedicated individuals from the fields of entertainment, philanthropy and business. Chicago Children's Theatre's season is sponsored in part by Goldman Sachs Gives and ComEd.

For more information, visit chicagochildrenstheatre.org.