SHOWTIME: Kids’ Theatre Classes from Age 3 in Vienna (English & German)

Every Saturday morning we head to Josefstadt: since autumn 2025, our middle son has been taking a class at SHOWTIME, the theatre school of Vienna’s English Theatre. He started at three in the “Bring a Big Buddy” group, where a parent joins in. And because he doesn’t want to stay in the group on his own yet, he is still there at four – which is completely fine.

For us, SHOWTIME has become a lovely weekend routine: half an hour of stories, movement and play in English and German, followed by a coffee and a playground just around the corner.

The essentials

• What: term-long classes in acting, dance and singing, once a week, for children from age 3.
• Language: English, with the groups for the youngest in English and German. “Bring a Big Buddy” needs no English at all – handy if your child is just starting with one of the two languages.
• Saturday: “Bring a Big Buddy” (ages 3–4, with an adult) 9:30–10:00 am, Stage 1 (ages 4–5, on their own) 10:15–11:00 am, Stage 2-B (ages 5–6) at 11:15 am and 12:45 pm.
• Cost: per term €110 (Big Buddy), €170 (Stage 1) or €280 (Stage 2); siblings get 20% off.
• Prams: the classroom is on the first floor, up a flight of stairs with no lift. You can leave the pram on the ground floor.

What a class looks like

At the heart of every class is a story: the teacher reads from a picture book, always in both German and English, and draws the children in with little questions along the way. Around that, the children talk about what they got up to during the week and whether they had fun.

Then come freeze dances and other games and dances in which the children move around, act out feelings or pretend to be animals. The kids love it. Some do need a while before they want to join in, and mostly watch during the first few sessions – that’s how it was for our son, too. That’s explicitly allowed, and at some point you find yourself right in the middle of it after all.

💡 Our tip: take your time. If your child only watches for the first few classes, that’s perfectly normal. In “Bring a Big Buddy” you’re there anyway, and if your child isn’t ready to join a group alone yet, they can simply stay with a grown-up for another term.

Which group is right?

In “Bring a Big Buddy” (ages 3 to 4) an adult accompanies each child, and the class lasts 30 minutes. From Stage 1 (ages 4 to 5, 45 minutes) the children are in the group on their own. Stage 2 (ages 5 to 6, 75 minutes) has an English-only group, which requires good English, and a bilingual group with no prior knowledge needed – the bilingual one also runs on Saturdays. For older children and teenagers there are classes up to age 18, on Saturdays for example the Standard Course from 10 am to 1 pm.

Classes follow the school year, with two terms and around 30 class days a year, and there are no classes during school holidays. At the end of each term, the Juniors groups from Stage 1 upwards put on a small presentation for parents and siblings. Whether a trial class or joining mid-term is possible is best asked directly at SHOWTIME.

At the Bezirksmuseum Josefstadt

The Saturday classes take place at the Bezirksmuseum Josefstadt (the district museum) in Schmidgasse. SHOWTIME’s address in Josefsgasse is their studio, where only a few weekday classes are held. The classroom is on the first floor and can only be reached by stairs; there is no lift. You can leave the pram downstairs on the ground floor. If you’re not taking part in the class, you wait inside in front of the door. There is no baby-changing table, so it’s best to change nappies beforehand.

It’s rather lively: small children, movement, music and games are all part of it. If your child needs a lot of calm, it’s good to know this in advance – but watching and settling in first is always fine.

Afterwards: coffee and a playground nearby

☕ Our coffee tip: Café Merkur. After class, Hilary often sits with two of our boys at Café Merkur (Florianigasse 18, 1080 Vienna), a Viennese coffee house right by Schönbornpark, just a few minutes’ walk from the district museum. She loves going there: the staff are really friendly, and the coffee is very good – classic rather than third wave, but genuinely good. She also likes the food with its Middle Eastern touch, such as the hummus.

There are two steps up into the café. Inside, there’s a larger area at the back with plenty of space, including for prams, plus high chairs and a baby-changing table. The café opens daily at 9 am; according to Falter, breakfast is served until 5 pm, and there’s also a lunch menu and hot food. When the weather is nice, the Schanigarten (outdoor seating) is tempting, although smoking is allowed out there – inside it’s smoke-free.

Hall photo: Markus

To let off steam afterwards, head to Schönbornpark (between Lange Gasse and Florianigasse), right next to Café Merkur and a few steps from the district museum. The playground is big and has pretty much everything: a sandpit, swings, a fenced area for the youngest – and a ground-level trampoline in front of a colourful graffiti wall that one of our boys especially loves. We’ve noticed that lots of English-speaking families come here, which fits nicely after a class in English and German.

If you fancy walking a little further, you’ll reach the Altes AKH, the university campus in the 9th district, in about ten minutes. There’s a second large playground right in the middle of the campus, also with a sandpit and swings, and the courtyards with their lawns and old trees are great for children to run around in.

Getting there

The district museum is right in the middle of Josefstadt and easy to reach by public transport. Closest are bus 13A (stop Theater in der Josefstadt), tram 2 (Lederergasse or Rathaus) and the U2 (Rathaus), each just a few minutes’ walk away. Trams 5 and 12 stop a little further away (Laudongasse). Parking in Josefstadt is scarce, so we’d take public transport. The route link in the box above shows you the exact connection.

Information as of 7 November 2026, based on SHOWTIME’s website and timetable (winter term 2026/27). Class times and prices may change – please check before signing up.