Childsplay

Daughter took her first class here and it was great. The classes are small and only last a few weeks, so the investment is not intense. The instructors are talented and enthusiastic. The final performance is nice and short and everyone gets a moment to shine. Highly recommended.

My daughter attended one of the summer programs and hated it. It just didn’t fit her personality and I understand that is not the fault of Childsplay. However, the location/​neighborhood is terrible. Also, there were no chairs for the kids to sit on all day — not even for lunch. I can’t imagine sitting on a floor all day, even for lunch. She had to set her food on the floor or in her lap. For the cost (non-​refundable) I would have expected better accommodations.

Awesome programming for children’s theater! They also run acting classes for children on weekends and during summer camps. My child has participated numerous times and we’ve seen incredible progress in his talent and skills.

Outer space camp for a week during summer. Nice experience for your child if he is interested in an acting camp. This was a little different than I expected after being at other theater camps, but this place emphasized imagination and creativity which was really good.

I have never been to a show I didn’t like! Childsplay is the crème de la crème of children’s theatre. The actors are phenomenal and the bees knees at their craft. Their costumes and sets hypnotize me and reel me in from the get go. I love their Q&A sessions at the end of each play and the fact that they have a set of questions you can take home with you for the car ride back.
They use literature for the majority of their plays and have new shows every single year.
But what is even better is their traveling shows they send to schools around the valley and country. If you are lucky enough to get a grant for them to come, you get shows that are just as good as those in the Tempe Performing Arts Center. Their sets are smaller, but they have their amazing costumes, props, and music along with them. They still do Q&A sessions after these traveling shows and give us teachers those same questions that they do at the TPAC shows.
It doesn’t matter if you are an adult without kids… everyone should attend at least one Childsplay show in their lifetime. You are missing out if you don’t!

I went to see a show at The Tempe Center for the Arts with my son few weeks ago. Rock the Presidents was showing and it was highly entertaining! The venue was incredibly beautiful. The music was fantastic, the cast was incredible, and the presentation was just phenomenal. We loved it! My son learned so much about the leaders of our country in a 70 minute show. There were students screaming and dancing, fist-​pumping, having a blast rocking with the presidents. Thank you for providing such great entertainment! Deserves 5 stars!

There’s no business like show business. As any of my friends will tell you I am a theater junkie. I could sit in a theater all day, all week, all year long and do nothing but gaze at live performances of theatrical talent. lol! Well in actuality, hmmmmmmm I really could. I am not even joking on that. I probably would if someone brought me water every now and again. LOL! Ok, seriously now, Childsplay is my favorite organization in Az for a host of reasons.
My dear friends of Childsplay know who they are. This is children’s theater at it’s best! The Q and A sessions after each show is a plus. The kids love it. I have to admit I do too since I get to go say hi to my friends after each stage-​show. I also learn more techniques that I can steal when I teach drama to my inner city students. Teehee! (Yes I am a teacher and yes I would die to have some of their costumes and sets)
I have seen so many wonderful plays, literature remakes, and original scripts performed At TCPA and by Childsplay. Fernidad, BFG and New Kid were only some of the most amazing masterpieces I have had the distinct pleasure of viewing from these talented actors. Debbie, Scott, Katie, Jodi; well all of them! LOVE YOU!
Childsplay also has an artist in Residence program for schools. We have had an artist at our school for several years. It is wonderful to note that the teaching techniques classroom teachers are learning are helping tomorrows future. Time after time I have seen struggling kids blossom under their tutelage.
Of importance to note, TCPA is a beautiful facility. You can enjoy a nice venue along with the superstar talent. What more can you ask for?
The only negative I can possibly imagine is that in today’s hard times the cost may be inhibiting to some families. But if you like them on Facebook they sometimes have discounted tickets and contests to win free tickets. A great way to start viewing them and get involved.
I do hope everyone continues to support the arts here in Az. As I have stated in my other «ARTS» reviews, I do worry about cultural program survival in Az with recent state budget cuts. Soooooooo, as a famous circus/​rodeo person once said, «Go, On With The Show».

The plays that they perform for children are entertaining and fun. The children’s classes, however, do not live up to the performances’ high standards. Two of my kiddos took their Saturday classes. One was so bored during the first class that she begged me not to go the next week. The other one stayed in class, but did not want to do the second session. No true performance is developed in these classes. The last class ends with a few minutes of informal scenes.
Unfortunately, Childsplay refuses to give refunds for classes, even far in advance of the next session! You have to ask yourself, what kind of organization refuses to give someone’s money back long before the course begins? If you are going to register your children for acting classes, be sure to pay for only one session. Better yet, consider going to Ahwatukee Children’s Theater and have your children perform in a real production.

How can only one other person have reviewed Childsplay? Are Unilocalers not parents as well? Ok, technically, I’m not a parent by biological means. I’m a Step-​Mom. The friggin’ best Step-​Mom you’re ever gonna meet! I’m recommended by 100% of my step-​children and their father as well.
Sorry, enough about me. Let’s talk about how great I am to have taken my youngest Steppie to see «Peter and the Wolf.» Thanks to her Music teacher, who teaches to the only class of redeeming value being taught in the «Excelling» Scottsdale Unified School District, dear Steppie has fallen in love with Sergei Prokofiev’s «Peter and the Wolf.» She will hum the different instruments’ parts while riding in the back seat of the car and will yell out, «Guess which animal that was!» She’s adorable.
There I go on another tangent. Apologies. When I saw that Childsplay was offering this adaptation of PATW, I figured it was time to expose the child to a little culture and the great world of… The Stage! It was presented at Tempe Center of the Arts (which will receive a positive review from me when time allows) in their Studio. This offered an excellent, up-​close view of the little stage from pretty much and seat in the house.
The actors and their costumes really made this a treat for both kids and adults. As any Muppet Movie of the 1980s will exemplify, the presentation must be entertaining more to the children’s parents than to the children themselves. Why? If we A-​dults sufficiently hate the means of entertainment that our little ones enjoy ever so much, we will find ways for said means to be accidentally, say, sucked up by the vacuum, or buried in the litter box, or somehow otherwise rendered unplayable. Even if it means seeing the pall of disappoint envelop their cherubic faces, it also means never hearing that damn, purple dinosaur sing another creepy, mind-​consuming ditty.
The cast was made up of truly talented and enthusiastic artists. Sure, there was a bit of «over-​acting,» but this was a Childsplay production, not a staging of «Remains of the Day.» The costuming was brilliant, detailed, and full of color and texture. And the Q and A session held after the performance allowed for the children to come up to the stage to speak to their favorite characters, ask questions about method-​acting and stage production, etc.
Completely affordable and a fun afternoon that my step-​daughter is still talking about six weeks later.

The Tempe Center for the Arts @ 700 W Rio Salado Parkway is where I went to see Childsplay last weekend. What a beautiful venue!
Ferdinand the Bull was showing & it was fabulous! Kudos to the entire cast!
Folks, this place is really a treasure. I know you’ve heard people say that nonchalantly about stupid stuff but this is for real!
Like all of our other theatres in town, this place deserves our patronage and support.
If you don’t have kids, go alone or take your niece or nephew! You won’t be disappointed.