The mission of Rose Children’s Theatre (RCT) is to strengthen our community by empowering children and their families through the experience of performing arts and the magic of theater.

The Rose Children’s Theatre has been serving children and families in the greater Eugene and Springfield area for more than 37 years. In furthering our mission, we have three primary objectives:
– To reach and inspire children who have the dream to perform on the stage;
– To help build family relationships through direct participation in the process of play production; and
– To provide the community with top quality children’s theatre.

In the delivery of its services to the public, Rose Children’s Theatre does not discriminate for or against any person on the basis of ethnicity, nationality, place of origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, familial status, economic status, age, or mental or physical disability.

RCT is a community-based theatre founded by Celeste Rose in 1978 to help introduce the performing arts to the youth of Lane County. RCT became a non-profit organization in 1989. Since then, RCT has operated independent of city funding and has supported its work with funding from private donations, grants, and volunteer based fund-raising. In 2002, after Celeste retired, Michele Schimmer Pound took over as the Artistic and Executive Director of RCT. Michele was an excellent teacher and helped RCT continue to grow as a children’s theatre under her direction until 2006.

Currently, RCT draws from a talented pool of local directors and musical directors whose dedication has been shown through a long history of personal accomplishments in the theater both for themselves and the youth. Our directors select scripts that are enjoyable and with positive messages that kids connect with and understand. They also help children learn about themselves and community in a respectful, fun, and collaborative atmosphere.

The theater operates under a board of directors that is composed of local professionals and parents who volunteer their time and dedicate their skills to the enrichment and continued success of the theater. RCT has performed at a variety of venues including the Hult Center for the Performing Arts, the Wildish Community Theater, area high schools, and community centers.

The Rose Children’s Theatre is widely supported by this community’s families, schools, and businesses. Each year more than three hundred children participate on stage in our plays, musicals, Acting Academies, and Workshops. This is a children’s theater performed predominately by children for children. Parents, grandparents and siblings also participate as actors, on the set crew, creating costumes, doing stage makeup, designing and constructing sets, supervising actors, ushering and as musicians! This provides a unique opportunity for youth and their parents to work together on a highly cooperative and challenging team project. During the process of producing the plays, families grow stronger through working together, new friendships and a sense of community are forged. As the performers and supporters become enriched through the experience, the community audience in turn benefits from the opportunity to see affordable, professional quality theater.