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Kid-Friendly Vancouver: Taking Kids to the Theatre

Kid-Friendly Vancouver: Taking Kids to the Theatre

Living in the city offers the incredible opportunity to experience the arts with your kids. Affordable, accessible, kid-friendly Vancouver performances about. Recently I took my kids to their first theatre performance and at ages three and six I knew that it was going to be manageable. However, I was also surprised to see how much younger the audience was than I expected it to be. There were families of all varieties enjoying the afternoon out with babies and toddlers, and looking like they were enjoying every second of it! On this particular day we were going to see the Backyardigans. Both my kids had seen the show and were somewhat familiar with the characters, which helped in keeping them engaged and excited.

Off to See the Show

kid-friendly vancouver theatrePreparing to go to the theatre started the morning of. I didn’t want to hype them up too much in advance so I only told them about an hour or so before we needed to leave. Personally, I find that sometimes too much notice can work the opposite way I want. It actually wears them out, and by the time we are headed out the door it’s meltdown city. The kids got to pick out what they wanted to wear, and since the show was at the Orpheum downtown we knew that we could have a little fun getting a bit more dressed up than normal. The show was early afternoon so with that in mind we made sure to leave with enough time to get good parking, and go have a bite to eat first. I knew that there would be concession and tables of toys to buy at the theatre and both the kids and I would fare much better on full bellies. We made eating out simple by taking a votes and picking something simple.

Centre Stage

Once we finished it was onto the theatre to get our seats, go to the washroom and explore this gorgeous venue. I prepared the kids on the car ride over. We talked about expectations, manners and what would happen once we were inside. The theatre goes dark for a performance and that can be a bit of a surprise for kids, however once the performance starts, all eyes were glued to the stage. The length of the show was ideal for kids at just 90 minutes start to finish, including intermission. There was singing, dancing, and a storyline that kept my older one interested. It was completely acceptable for the kids to be out of their seats and dancing around and towards the end of the show it was obvious that these kids wanted to get up and dance.

Encore

Spending money on tickets can be a bit of investment so consider where you’re sitting during the show. Front and centre isn’t always the best spot for a kid-friendly Vancouver theatre experience. Little ones often don’t like it loud or get scared easily. Something a little further back from the stage can make more sense for a younger viewer and it was generally the older kids sitting front and centre. They seemed to be content to stay in their seat and watch the show. It was learning opportunity in how to experience something new like a live performance and with the the lessons on how to behave in a more formal setting. The great thing about these matinee performances at the Orpheum is that their staff is well suited to direct your family to their seats and patient enough to make sure everyone is having a good time.

More Kid-Friendly Vancouver Theatre

Looking for a kid-friendly Vancouver theatre experience? This month, Carousel is running Busytown on Granville Island. For more theatre attractions in the city check out:

Carousel Theatre

www.carouseltheatre.ca
vancouvermom.ca/tag/carousel-theatre

See Also
Kid wearing a green hat and shamrock glasses for St. Patrick's day

Waterfront Theatre

www.waterfronttheatre.ca

Orpheum Theatre

vancouver.ca/parks-recreation-culture/the-orpheum.aspx

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