Arlington Children’s Theatre
Arlington Children’s Theatre, 115 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA 02476
About
Arlington Children’s Theatre offers theatrical events where participants rehearse and perform plays, musicals, and other shows. The program also runs workshops, vacation day programs, vacation camps, and a summer day program that focus on theatre activities.
• Ages: 7–18 years old
• Schedule: Office hours Monday–Thursday, 5pm–8pm
Arlington Children’s Theatre began in 1991 and hired its first Artistic Director in 2006. It settled into a home base at Arlington Center for the Arts in 2008 and moved to Trinity Baptist Church in 2016. Workshops, programs, and productions are led by staff with years of experience and dedication to theatre.
The mission of Arlington Children’s Theatre is to create equitable, quality theatrical events, workshops, and experiences that educate, inspire, and enrich the lives of children ages 7–18, their families, and the community. The organization states that it embraces all who wish to participate regardless of background, experience, or acting, dancing, or singing ability. It describes its environment as a safe, welcoming space where children can be exposed to new experiences and different points of view and be challenged beyond their current selves. It also states that it educates formally through workshops, programs, and high-quality productions, and informally by giving children freedom to express themselves and develop communication, teamwork, and conflict resolution skills needed to bring a complex production to life. Arlington Children’s Theatre describes its productions as excellent, professional-looking and -sounding shows that ACTors, their parents, the artistic staff, and the local community can enjoy and be proud of, and says it encourages everyone in the community to be resilient, humble, and to persevere.
Arlington Children’s Theatre describes itself as providing a unique, quality theatre program for families within the greater Boston area and working to create theatre that inspires. It offers vacation day programs that center on the educational process and the theatrical and interpersonal development of each individual participant. The program has been called the “soccer team for kids who don’t play soccer.” Arlington Children’s Theatre also offers many opportunities for adults and kids of all ages to participate in the creation of each show, with a wide variety of jobs including directors, assistant directors, stage managers, and counselors for vacation camp productions.
The leadership team includes Artistic Directors Emily Garven and Christin Rills. The ACT Board lists Neva Corbo-Hudak as President, Mary O’Neill as Treasurer for scholarships, and Valerie Geary as Development Chair for sponsorships and giving. The Board of Directors includes Neva Corbo-Hudak (President), Kate Williams (Treasurer), Alyssa O’Rourke (Secretary), Nick Bentley, Jennifer Dilts, Valerie Geary, Joanna Lydgate, and ACT Co-Founder and long-time Board Member Deb Butler. Former Artistic Directors include Colleen Rua (first Artistic Director in 2006), Matt Lundeen (2012), Joseph C. Walsh (2018), Anthony Bruno (2020), Christin Rills (2024), and Emily Garven (2025).
Last updated January 25, 2026.
• Ages: 7–18 years old
• Schedule: Office hours Monday–Thursday, 5pm–8pm
Arlington Children’s Theatre began in 1991 and hired its first Artistic Director in 2006. It settled into a home base at Arlington Center for the Arts in 2008 and moved to Trinity Baptist Church in 2016. Workshops, programs, and productions are led by staff with years of experience and dedication to theatre.
The mission of Arlington Children’s Theatre is to create equitable, quality theatrical events, workshops, and experiences that educate, inspire, and enrich the lives of children ages 7–18, their families, and the community. The organization states that it embraces all who wish to participate regardless of background, experience, or acting, dancing, or singing ability. It describes its environment as a safe, welcoming space where children can be exposed to new experiences and different points of view and be challenged beyond their current selves. It also states that it educates formally through workshops, programs, and high-quality productions, and informally by giving children freedom to express themselves and develop communication, teamwork, and conflict resolution skills needed to bring a complex production to life. Arlington Children’s Theatre describes its productions as excellent, professional-looking and -sounding shows that ACTors, their parents, the artistic staff, and the local community can enjoy and be proud of, and says it encourages everyone in the community to be resilient, humble, and to persevere.
Arlington Children’s Theatre describes itself as providing a unique, quality theatre program for families within the greater Boston area and working to create theatre that inspires. It offers vacation day programs that center on the educational process and the theatrical and interpersonal development of each individual participant. The program has been called the “soccer team for kids who don’t play soccer.” Arlington Children’s Theatre also offers many opportunities for adults and kids of all ages to participate in the creation of each show, with a wide variety of jobs including directors, assistant directors, stage managers, and counselors for vacation camp productions.
The leadership team includes Artistic Directors Emily Garven and Christin Rills. The ACT Board lists Neva Corbo-Hudak as President, Mary O’Neill as Treasurer for scholarships, and Valerie Geary as Development Chair for sponsorships and giving. The Board of Directors includes Neva Corbo-Hudak (President), Kate Williams (Treasurer), Alyssa O’Rourke (Secretary), Nick Bentley, Jennifer Dilts, Valerie Geary, Joanna Lydgate, and ACT Co-Founder and long-time Board Member Deb Butler. Former Artistic Directors include Colleen Rua (first Artistic Director in 2006), Matt Lundeen (2012), Joseph C. Walsh (2018), Anthony Bruno (2020), Christin Rills (2024), and Emily Garven (2025).
Last updated January 25, 2026.
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