While summer may already feel like a distant memory for some, Kids Week is still basking in the warm seasonal glow, having enabled more than 107,000 family members to enjoy West End shows during August.
The figures for the 16th Kids Week were announced by the Society of London Theatre, the not-for-profit company that runs both Official London Theatre and Kids Week, with President Mark Rubinstein commenting: “Kids Week is my favourite promotion in the West End calendar; providing families across the UK with great seats to fantastic shows and treating the audience of tomorrow to the best that London Theatre has to offer.”
This year’s return of the hugely popular kids go free initiative, which for the second year running ran for the whole of August, saw families given the chance to attend more than 1,200 theatre performances of 34 top West End shows, ranging from classic musicals like The Phantom Of The Opera to hilariously silly educational fun from Horrible Histories and award-winning dramas including The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time.
Alongside the numerous productions offering one free children’s ticket for every adult ticket purchased, plus up to an additional two tickets half-price, Kids Week also offers children the chance to take a glimpse backstage and turn their hand to performing in a series of incredible activities.
This year saw hundreds of children take part in workshops offering them the chance to go backstage at the homes of top West End shows, learn to dance or sing with musicals including Billy Elliot The Musical, Jersey Boys and We Will Rock You, attend a hands on puppetry experience with War Horse, join the barricade with Les Misérables and enjoy storytelling with Matilda The Musical.
In a survey of more than 5,000 2013 Kids Week bookers, a massive 99.4% of responders said they would recommend the annual ticketing campaign to a friend, with 93% saying Kids Week had inspired them to take their family to the theatre more often.
Designed to do just this and introduce as many families as possible to the magic of London theatre, Rubinstein commented, “It is gratifying to see how this initiative has grown and been embraced by audiences and productions alike. We’re looking forward to next year already!”
If you can’t wait until 2014 for your next Kids Week fix, keep in the loop by joining the 19,000 existing fans on Facebook and Twitter or sign-up for our fortnightly Family Bulletin that offers competitions and ticket deals all year round.