Kids' theater in and around Wilmington
Kids' theater around Wilmington is a handful of companies plus whatever tours into The Grand's stages — not a year-round children's-theater circuit. One theater here is built specifically for kids; the rest are general-audience companies whose kid-facing work is mostly education programs, student matinees, and summer camps, and a couple of them program for adults only. So this is a watch-the-calendars situation rather than a there's-always-something-on situation. Ages vary enormously by show: a fairy-tale matinee and a touring Broadway musical ask very different things of a five-year-old, and a full production can run an hour and a half to two hours. Check the recommended age and the run time before you book. Everything below comes from each company's own page, linked so you can check the dates yourself.
1. Delaware Children's Theatre
Wilmington
The one stage here built specifically for kids — full productions of classic children's stories in a historic Delaware Avenue playhouse, at about $10 a ticket. The building opens at 1:00 PM and the theatre at 1:30 PM on performance days, so plan it as an afternoon. Summer workshops are the way in if your kid would rather be in the show than watch it.
2. Penn Cinema Riverfront
Wilmington
Not theater — this is the movie option, and it's here because it's often the honest answer when nothing live is on the calendar. Fourteen screens on the Riverfront, free parking, and the summer Kids Camp Wednesdays run $4 with a sensory-friendly option at the 10:00 am show.
Good to know
- • The Grand Opera House, at 818 N. Market Street in Wilmington, lists Copeland Hall, The Baby Grand, and The Playhouse among its venues, and its own calendar tags shows by genre, including a Family category. Its education and community listings include Stages of Discovery, Summer Explorers, and Sensory-Friendly Family Shows. Playhouse listings include The Wiz (October 23-25, 2026) and SIX (November 27-29, 2026), alongside a 2026-2027 Broadway in Wilmington season subscription. Grand box office 302.652.5577; Playhouse box office 302.888.0200. source
- • Delaware Theatre Company is at 200 Water Street on the Wilmington Riverfront. Its posted 26/27 season — The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Steel Magnolias, Other World, Clyde's — is a general-audience professional season rather than children's programming. Box office 302.594.1100. source
- • Delaware Theatre Company's Education & Outreach page lists acting classes, student matinees, summer programs, the Totally Awesome Players, relaxed performances, the Delaware Young Playwrights Festival, senior playwriting, and youth-at-risk programming. source
- • OperaDelaware (4 S. Poplar Street, Wilmington) describes Pop-Up Opera in Schools as accessible programming for grades K-12, performed in a school's theater or auditorium or outdoors from a portable stage, and the Neighborhood Choir Initiative as an after-school beginning-choral program for 3rd through 5th graders run with the Wilmington Children's Chorus at sites including Kingswood Community Center, Browns Boys and Girls Club, and Las Americas Aspira Academy. Its listed 2026/27 season includes Amahl and the Night Visitors. source
- • OperaDelaware's education page says students, teachers, and chaperones have access to free or low-cost tickets to dress rehearsals at The Grand Opera House for certain productions, arranged through the company's VP of Engagement. The same page describes a tuition-free youth Rock Opera summer program — Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat — hosted at the OperaDelaware Studios from July 20 to August 16, with two public performances on August 15 and 16; tickets are listed at $15 for students and $25 general admission. source
- • First State Ballet Theatre calls itself Delaware's professional ballet company and school, based at The Grand at 818 North Market Street, Wilmington. Its posted 2026-2027 season at The Grand lists The Nutcracker along with Don Quixote, Up Front on Market, Carmen, and Swan Lake. The School of First State Ballet is at Whitehall, 727 Mapleton Avenue, Middletown. Phone 302-652-5503. source
- • Wilmington Drama League is at 10 W. Lea Blvd., Wilmington. Its listed programs include a Summer Stock Camp — whose production of Frozen Jr. was posted at $5 general admission with children under 10 free — plus the Chrysalis Players, Pillow Plays, and the Jeff Walker One Act Festival. A show running September 4-13 is posted as up next, and auditions for Shrek the Musical are posted for September 8 and 9. Box office 302.764.1172; office hours Tuesday and Thursday 1-3 PM. source
- • City Theater Company performs at The Delaware Contemporary, 200 S. Madison Street, Wilmington. Its posted shows are adult-oriented — a Fearless Improv night at Wilmington Brew Works is listed as Age 18+, and its own release describes the mainstage comedy POTUS as bawdy. Its classes menu lists improv classes and an improv camp. source
- • Bootless Stageworks describes itself as adult contemporary theater, and its site currently carries a sign-off message saying the website and social pages are being kept active so people can check in to see if the company rises again. Not a kids' option as things stand. source
Questions parents ask
Where can I take a young kid to see a play in Wilmington?
Delaware Children's Theatre on Delaware Avenue is the one built for them — full productions of classic children's stories, tickets around $10, with the building opening at 1:00 PM and the theatre at 1:30 PM on performance days. Parking is in the Bellevue lot directly opposite the theatre, first come first served, with more behind the building. Beyond that, watch The Grand's calendar, which tags shows with a Family genre and lists Sensory-Friendly Family Shows.
Is there a Nutcracker near Wilmington?
Yes — First State Ballet Theatre's posted 2026-2027 season at The Grand (818 North Market Street) includes The Nutcracker, alongside Don Quixote, Up Front on Market, Carmen, and Swan Lake. Dates and tickets are on the company's own site.
Can my kid be in a show, not just watch one?
Several companies run youth programs. Delaware Children's Theatre holds summer theater workshops and posts open auditions. Delaware Theatre Company's education roster includes acting classes, summer programs, and the Totally Awesome Players. Wilmington Drama League runs a Summer Stock Camp. OperaDelaware has run a tuition-free youth Rock Opera summer program at its studios. City Theater Company lists an improv camp, and First State Ballet Theatre has its own school.
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Checked against each place’s current info.
Admission and hours come straight from each place’s guide. Last reviewed August 21, 2026. Confirm anything dated on the source before you go.