Playhouse Square’s Family Theater Day presented by University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital offers children and families the opportunity to experience unique live performances and activities and enjoy the excitement of a visit to downtown Cleveland in a fun, welcoming environment.
Family Theater Day takes place on Saturday, April 30. In addition to the ticketed theater performances, Playhouse Square offers crafts and additional experiences free of charge. There will be balloon and caricature artists, a strolling magician, appearances by Priscilla the Dinosaur and Djapo Drum and Dance, and more, waiting to delight and entertain.
$15 tickets for Family Theater Day performances are available online at playhousesquare.org/familytheaterday or by phone at 216-241-6000.
Tickets for free activities are not required.
2022 Family Theater Day Performances
Dino-Light
presented by Kathy and Jim Pender and the Michael Pender Fund
produced by Lightwire Theater
In this original storyline, a famous scientist with magical powers brings a friendly dinosaur to life. When the dinosaur wanders away from home, he discovers a wonderful world of full of creatures that light up the darkness and help him find the true meaning of love. This electroluminescent, glow in the dark adventure is visually amazing and has been praised for its cutting-edge blend of puppetry, technology and dance by audiences all over the world.
Doodle POP
produced by BRUSH Theatre
A mischievous duo starts to doodle… and ends up creating a whole imaginative world! They invite us along on their sea adventure with a tiny little turtle. What will happen as we follow their vivid drawings into this beautiful watery world, and will they return the turtle to the sea safely? This touching and playful non-verbal show uses live musicians who perform the accompanying score and sound effects, stunning interactive animation projections and live whiteboard drawings, and an abundance of theatrical imagination.
SNAP
produced by GRUE JARM
Poof! Presto! Snap! Playing with space, time and the otherworldly, this eclectic ensemble of South Korean illusionists will boggle your mind with their impressive powers of prestidigitation. Mixing dexterous sleight of hand, Chaplin-esque vaudevillian comedy and ingenious visual effects, SNAP conjures a marvelous, magical cabaret perfect for the whole family.
Dan and Claudia Zanes’ Sensory-Friendly Concert
presented by Denise G. and Norman E. Wells, Jr.
Streaming On-Demand April 25-May 1
Free but registration required
Newlyweds Grammy Award winner Dan Zanes and Haitian-American jazz vocalist Claudia Eliaza perform Dan’s greatest hits as well as folk and blues classics from their popular new songbook entitled “Dan Zanes’ House Party!: A Family Roots Music Treasury.” Concerts also include selections from their Kennedy Center commissioned folk opera, “Night Train 57,” which premiered in 2017. During these highly interactive shows, the audience is invited to dance and sing along in what might be called a casual –and subversively educational –party atmosphere. The music is homespun, joyful, sophisticated, and artful. These performances appeal to audiences of all ages.
Family Theater Day at Playhouse Square is supported in part by the residents of Cuyahoga County through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.
The Ohio Arts Council helped fund Family Theater Day at Playhouse Square with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.