Kids Acting | Act-1 | United States

WELCOME TO ACT-1

We have seen theatre transform every single student that has walked through ACT-1's doors (and there have been hundreds)! When a child is accepted, understood and nurtured there is a profound sense of TRUST. On stage, that trust becomes transcendent! Our goal is that every child who completes our program leaves with a passion and respect for Theatre Arts, as well as self-awareness and confidence they have never known before.

Parents and families are a huge part of that success! We love to see parents and siblings around the theatre, creating a wonderful sense of support and memory-making. Our hope is that your children will look back and recall that ACT-1 felt like a loving family - a second home, and a community they can always return to.

ACT-1 FOUNDERS
CHERA & SIERRA
Artistic Director & Managing Director

OUR MISSION & HISTORY

ACADEMY FOR CHILDREN'S THEATRE is located in the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles County but serves children all over the San Fernando Valley. We are an educational organization founded in 2009, dedicated to providing an INCLUSIVE, NURTURING and CREATIVE environment for youth (ages 1-18) to explore the Performing Arts. The Academy's goal is to help develop well-rounded and confident actors, singers and dancers. Equally as important to us is to provide a safe space for our artistic youth to build themselves a supportive community, create a strong work ethic, and grow in compassion and kindness. Not all of our students end up with a career in the arts, but they will take these traits with them into whatever they do!

Something unique about our company is that we prefer to keep our classes limited in size so that we can give individual students more attention and so they won't get lost in the shuffle of a huge production. This way we can recognize and celebrate the uniqueness of each student, and get to know each and every one of them on a very personal basis.

At ACT-1, we promise that providing a high quality and creative learning experience in the theatre arts will contribute to your child's personal growth and carry them through life.

Performing live has affected our students tremendously, by:

Building their self confidence
Teaching them to work as a team and seek connection with (and empathy for) others
Forging self-expression through taking risks in a safe environment
Teaching them to trust and interpret direction from instructors
Practicing professionalism, accountability & responsibility
Strengthening their listening skills
Instructing them how to speak in front of a group and project their voices
Teaching them vocabulary, history, storytelling, subtext, and communication, which helps students in their academic life.

To read personal testimonials from parents and students, click here.

EQUITY, DIVERSITY,
& INCLUSION

We implement the LA Anti-Racist Theatre Standards, and are seeking true equity and looking to create lasting, systemic change in our institutions and community. Our hope is to look for and implement opportunities for growth, creating a foundation of sustained and restorative equity, and establishing standards that solidify the safety and equity of marginalized communities.

We understand that all identities are intersectional, and we will not ignore instances of discrimination based on gender identity, sexual orientation, religious practices, classism, ableism, and/or ageism.