Kids & Family

SAT, NOV 23, 2024 / 10 AM - 5 PM (Member preview at 9 AM)
SUN, NOV 24, 2024 / 12 - 5 PM

Free for Museum Members and Ages 17 and Under
$5 Single-day Admission for Non-Members / $8 Two-day Pass

Check off your holiday shopping list this season at the 44th annual Holiday Art Fair at Midland Center for the Arts. This Midland Center tradition is an indoor festival that showcases artist booths featuring handmade gifts and artworks. Enjoy local entertainment, children's crafts, and more! Discover something special for everyone.

Proceeds from the fair benefit Center's art and science exhibitions, adult Studio School and youth STEM classes, workshops, outreach, and other educational programs.

FRI & SAT, DEC 6 - 7, 2024 / 8 PM
SAT & SUN, DEC 7 - 8, 2024 / 2 PM

Visions of sugar plum fairies will dance across the stage in this treasured holiday classic! The Grand Rapids Ballet returns to perform their re-envisioned production of The Nutcracker, played by our own Symphony Orchestra. Experience the holiday magic with Clara as she journeys to the Land of Sweets with the Nutcracker, a gift from her mysterious uncle. Featuring choreography from world-renowned Val Caniparoli, with the dancing set against a distinctive and lush storybook set created by celebrated The Polar Express author/illustrator Chris Van Allsburg and designed by Tony® Award winner Eugene Lee.

Sponsored by  

SUN, DEC 8, 2024 / 2 & 7 PM
Located at Trinity Lutheran Church, 3701 Jefferson Ave, Midland

Get ready to be serenaded by the incredible talents of the Men of Music as they perform songs of the season! There will be a freewill offering to benefit the Midland County Food Assistance Network.

Grace A. Marra / Director
Joan Kinnett / Accompanist

Sponsored by  

THU, DEC 12 - SAT, DEC 14, 2024 / 7:30 PM
SAT, DEC 14 - SUN, DEC 15, 2024 / 2 PM

Adapted by Joseph Robinette
from the novel by L.M. Montgomery

Directed by Samantha Glasse

This exciting new adaption from Joseph Robinette captures the charm and excitement of Lucy Maude Montgomery's enduring classic about an orphan girl, Anne Shirley, from her first encounter with her austere guardian to her thrilling graduation from Queen's Academy. The play faithfully recreates the memorable events and characters from the brilliant novel. All the tragedies and triumphs that mark Anne's growth from adolescence to early adulthood are here: her friendship with Diana, her feuds with Gilbert, her adoration of Matthew, the mistaken wine bottle, the cake disaster, the broken leg, the scholastic achievements, and the saving of Green Gables. Whether the playgoer is an "old friend" of Anne's or meeting her for the first time, this play will solidify a lasting friendship between the audience and one of literature's most unforgettable characters.

Sponsored by Grace A. Dow Memorial Library

SAT, DEC 14, 2024 / 4 PM
RELAXED PERFORMANCE / SAT, DEC 14, 2024 / 1 PM (Learn More)

The caroling Choirs of the Center, accompanied by the Midland Symphony Orchestra, will be joined by Broadway talent Kevin Massey and 2024 Jimmy Awards winner Gretchen Shope for an evening of holiday celebration! Gretchen, a local talent and recent graduate of H.H. Dow High School, made her Broadway debut this summer as Michigan's first winner of the Jimmy Awards, a national competition for high school musical theatre. She’s thrilled to return to one of her hometown stages, where she recently performed with Center Stage Theatre as Natalie in NEXT TO NORMAL and Amy March in LITTLE WOMEN. Kevin Massey performed on Broadway in TARZAN, BIG RIVER, MEMPHIS, and A GENTLEMAN’S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER, as well as in numerous touring and regional roles. Don’t miss this signature event of the Great Lakes Bay region’s holiday season!

Sponsored by 

FRI, JAN 17, 2025 / 6:30 PM
Recommended for students in grades 2 - 6 and their families

Grab your lab coats and safety goggles! Doktor Kaboom's one-man show reminds us that science is for everyone! Explore the wonders of the scientific method with laugh-out-loud humor and dynamic demonstrations. Audience members of all ages can prepare for laughter, learning, and an unforgettable scientific adventure!

Sponsored by Horizon Bank

SUN, MAR 9, 2025 / 4 PM
Recommended for ages 3 - 8

Timbalooloo is an interactive and educational musical party that introduces children to melodies, rhythms, and instruments used by musicians across the globe. The concerts start with a problem… Etkin’s friend Clara (who later turns out to be Clara Net - his clarinet) fell asleep and came to the concert in her bed! The children help Etkin wake her up, and Clara Net calls for her mother, Big Mama Tuba, who answers from the back of the audience with a rumble! Together with the full band, Etkin takes the children on a journey around the world, exploring different instruments and cultures and discovering how vibrant global cultures form the backbone of American music and society.

THU, APR 10 - SAT, APR 12, 2025 / 7:30 PM
RELAXED PERFORMANCE / SAT, APR 12, 2025 / 2 PM (Learn More)
SUN, APR 13, 2025 / 2 PM

AUDITIONS / DETAILS AVAILABLE Q4 2024

Inspired by the ingenious Roald Dahl, the Tony Award-winning Matilda The Musical is the captivating masterpiece about the power of imagination, anarchy of childhood, and the inspiration of a girl who dreams of a better life. Recently turned into a movie-musical, Matilda has won 47 international awards and continues to thrill audiences of all ages around the world. Matilda is a little girl with astonishing wit, intelligence, and psychokinetic powers. Unloved by her cruel parents, tormented by headmistress Miss Trunchbull, and encouraged by her teacher Miss Honey, Matilda has courage and cleverness in equal amounts, and could be the school pupils' saving grace! Packed with high-energy dance numbers and catchy songs, audiences will be thrilled and delighted by the story of a special little girl with an extraordinary imagination.

SAT, APR 19, 2025 / 6:30 PM
Recommended for Families of All Ages

Calling all brave heroes! Enter a magical world of myths and legends in this interactive show for the whole family. Unveil a myriad of dark secrets and come face to face with some of the most magnificent monsters and terrifying beasts ever to walk the earth. Take your place among legendary heroes, just don't wake the Dragon…

FRI, APR 25, 2025 / 7:30 PM

STEP AFRIKA! blends percussive dance styles practiced by historically African American fraternities and sororities, traditional West and Southern African dances, and an array of contemporary dance and art forms into a cohesive, compelling artistic experience. Performances are much more than dance shows; they integrate songs, storytelling, humor, and audience participation. The blend of technique, agility, and pure energy makes each performance unique and leaves the audience with their hearts pounding.

Sponsored by  and The Dr. Andrea Louise Jenkins Endowed Fund for Cultural Enrichment

WED, APR 30, 2025 / 6:30 PM
Recommended for all ages

From the moment the lights fade, you are transported into another world … where the music moves you and the visuals are unlike anything you’ve ever seen. Welcome to the world of iLuminate, named “Best New Act in America” by America’s Got Talent in 2011. Experience the electrifying spectacle of the country's best dancers, wearing customized LED suits as they dance to vibrant music, creating extraordinary lighting effects that take viewers on an exhilarating ride!

Sponsored by 

WED, JUN 25 - FRI, JUN 27, 2025 / 8 PM

AUDITIONS / DETAILS AVAILABLE IN 2025

When an overworked mother and her teenage daughter magically swap bodies, they have just one day to put things right again. Disney’s Freaky Friday, a new musical based on the celebrated novel by Mary Rodgers and the hit Disney films, is a hilarious, heartfelt, and contemporary update of an American classic. By spending a day in each other's shoes, Katherine and Ellie come to appreciate one another's struggles, learn self-acceptance, and realize the immeasurable love and mutual respect that bond a mother and daughter. With a score by the Pulitzer Prize-winning composers of Next to Normal and If/Then and a book from the writer of TV’s Friday Night Lights and Parenthood, Freaky Friday is a delightfully entertaining new musical for anyone with a perfectly imperfect family.

The 2025 Rising Stars program is sponsored by