Helen Hayes Youth Theatre
Helen Hayes Studios, 142 Main Street, Nyack, NY 10956
About
Helen Hayes Youth Theatre offers a range of theater activities, including Lollipop Kids, Junior Company, Intermediate Company, Senior Company, Musical Theater Classes, Improv Class, Voice Technique Class, One Day Broadway Master Class, Preschool Broadway, Audition Workshops, On Camera Workshop, and Summer Theater Camp. The program also runs themed camps such as High School Musical - Two Week Camp, The SpongeBob Musical - Two Week Camp, Mamma Mia Cabaret - One Week Camp, The Greatest Showman Cabaret - One Week Camp, and KPop Demon Hunters Cabaret - One Week Camp.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Summer options include two-week musical camps and one-week cabaret camps, meeting Monday–Friday with daytime hours.
• Price: High School Musical - Two Week Camp: $825; The SpongeBob Musical - Two Week Camp: $825; Mamma Mia Cabaret - One Week Camp: $400; The Greatest Showman Cabaret - One Week Camp: $400; KPop Demon Hunters Cabaret - One Week Camp: $400.
In 1998, Danielle Rudess founded the Helen Hayes Youth Theatre as a division of the Helen Hayes Theatre Company in Nyack, NY. In 2003, when the Helen Hayes Theatre Company closed, the Helen Hayes estate gave Danielle permission to keep the name. Since 1998, Helen Hayes Youth Theatre has been a place where young performers ages 5–22 can express their individuality and learn the craft of theater in a creative, safe and supportive environment, and over the past 20 years many students have gone on to Broadway, film and television careers.
The Helen Hayes Youth Theatre states that it offers the ultimate arts experience and that its team of theater professionals is dedicated to creating high-quality theatrical productions. The program states that it is committed to giving each child the special attention they need to grow both artistically and personally, and that although they take pride in the performances, they take the most pride in the process, including learning, community building, and fun.
Helen Hayes Youth Theatre produces the Metropolitan High School Theater Awards — The Metros. Helen Hayes, known as the “First Lady of the American Theater,” lived down the street from the Nyack studios for much of her adult life, and it was her dream to see children in the community have the opportunity to perform in a theater bearing her name. Helen Hayes is counted among only 12 “EGOTs,” having won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony Award, and her contributions to American arts and community service earned her both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Arts.
The High School Musical - Two Week Camp and The SpongeBob Musical - Two Week Camp each involve spending two weeks rehearsing a musical that culminates in a full production. The Mamma Mia, The Greatest Showman, and KPop Demon Hunters Cabaret one-week camps each focus on learning songs and choreography from their respective shows and finish the week with a cabaret showcase on the final day of camp. The refund policy states that 75% of tuition will be refunded if written notice of cancellation is received no later than eight weeks before the session start date, and that cancellations fewer than eight weeks before the start date forfeit all tuition paid, with no refunds for reasons such as personal issues or dissatisfaction with casting decisions.
Broadway, television, and film actor Skylar Astin shares that he got his start in musical theater and spent many years performing at Helen Hayes Youth Theatre, beginning when Danielle Rudess met him at a piano recital, recruited him, and cast him as Jesus in Godspell.
Last updated May 28, 2026.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Summer options include two-week musical camps and one-week cabaret camps, meeting Monday–Friday with daytime hours.
• Price: High School Musical - Two Week Camp: $825; The SpongeBob Musical - Two Week Camp: $825; Mamma Mia Cabaret - One Week Camp: $400; The Greatest Showman Cabaret - One Week Camp: $400; KPop Demon Hunters Cabaret - One Week Camp: $400.
In 1998, Danielle Rudess founded the Helen Hayes Youth Theatre as a division of the Helen Hayes Theatre Company in Nyack, NY. In 2003, when the Helen Hayes Theatre Company closed, the Helen Hayes estate gave Danielle permission to keep the name. Since 1998, Helen Hayes Youth Theatre has been a place where young performers ages 5–22 can express their individuality and learn the craft of theater in a creative, safe and supportive environment, and over the past 20 years many students have gone on to Broadway, film and television careers.
The Helen Hayes Youth Theatre states that it offers the ultimate arts experience and that its team of theater professionals is dedicated to creating high-quality theatrical productions. The program states that it is committed to giving each child the special attention they need to grow both artistically and personally, and that although they take pride in the performances, they take the most pride in the process, including learning, community building, and fun.
Helen Hayes Youth Theatre produces the Metropolitan High School Theater Awards — The Metros. Helen Hayes, known as the “First Lady of the American Theater,” lived down the street from the Nyack studios for much of her adult life, and it was her dream to see children in the community have the opportunity to perform in a theater bearing her name. Helen Hayes is counted among only 12 “EGOTs,” having won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony Award, and her contributions to American arts and community service earned her both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Arts.
The High School Musical - Two Week Camp and The SpongeBob Musical - Two Week Camp each involve spending two weeks rehearsing a musical that culminates in a full production. The Mamma Mia, The Greatest Showman, and KPop Demon Hunters Cabaret one-week camps each focus on learning songs and choreography from their respective shows and finish the week with a cabaret showcase on the final day of camp. The refund policy states that 75% of tuition will be refunded if written notice of cancellation is received no later than eight weeks before the session start date, and that cancellations fewer than eight weeks before the start date forfeit all tuition paid, with no refunds for reasons such as personal issues or dissatisfaction with casting decisions.
Broadway, television, and film actor Skylar Astin shares that he got his start in musical theater and spent many years performing at Helen Hayes Youth Theatre, beginning when Danielle Rudess met him at a piano recital, recruited him, and cast him as Jesus in Godspell.
Last updated May 28, 2026.
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