Classes for Ages 4 – Adult

Friday Funday • Second Saturday • Storytelling

Scout Activities • School Matinees

Summer Classes for K-12

Playhouse Education Philosophy
Iowa has long been known for its exemplary educational opportunities, and The Des Moines Playhouse is proud to mirror that emphasis. Our education program is one of the most extensive of any community theatre in the United States, directly serving more than 30,000 students each year with performances, on-site classes and outreach programs.   That gives us one of the biggest classrooms in Iowa!

We have several programs that are traditional mainstays of education, so much so that parents are bringing children to classes that they themselves once attended! Sometimes it makes us feel old, but we are glad to add that kind of value to family life. And we are always adding new programs to fill needs within the community and to enhance the experience of attending performances.

You may wish to join us for a performance in The Kate Goldman Children’s Theatre, founded in 1995, or perhaps you’d rather join in! Auditions are open to the public and nearly 50% of our performers are newcomers. And if you want to learn more about creative drama or theatre arts, there are ongoing winter and spring terms of classes for ages 4 to adult, with a special program for elementary school children during Winter and Spring Breaks. Our summer classes for kindergarten through adult boast more than 50 offerings, taught by area professional teachers, directors, choreographers and actors. We also now offer classes for those 50 years and older, curious about the history of Broadway or how a theatrical review is written, in conjunction with the Senior College at the Pappajohn Center. 

If you were at Meredith Middle School in January 2006, you would have seen actors from the Kate Goldman production of Number the Stars visiting classrooms and distributing more than300 books as a part of a new outreach effort aptly called, Spotlight on Literacy. This new literacy program has also spawned Playbill, Jr. (PBJ), which is a take-home program full of kid-friendly information and activities available at every Kate Goldman Children's Theatre performance.  

But that's not all.

• Every month, we open our doors to more than 70 area teens for a popular drop-in night of improvisation, Second Saturday. 
• An overnight stay, built around seeing a show and working on badges, can be arranged for Girl Scouts, Brownies and Boy Scouts.
• Our youngest patrons enjoy a monthly interactive performance called Friday Funday. Each season, more than 5,400 pre-schoolers come to The Clubhouse at The Playhouse.
• The Playhouse also offers outreach to pre-readers at Head Start locations around the city with our interactive story-telling program, Kinderdrama. 
• And, during the summer, we also offer teacher training, college internships, and high school apprenticeships to those who are interested in teaching theatre or incorporating dramatic arts into the classroom. 

There’s a place for anyone with a curiosity about theatre! Welcome!

Kathy J. Pingel

Director of Education and Youth Programming  

For more information on Playhouse educational offerings, contact Robin Spahr, Playhouse education registrar,

515-974-5356.