What To Name Your Group

When we first started our theatre group in 1994, we named it Easton Children’s Theatre because we were located in Easton, Massachusetts, and we wanted to work with kids. It seemed the logical choice. 

Some years later we were told that a “children’s” theatre usually is made up of adults who perform for kids and that a theatre made up of kids under 18 was a “youth” theatre. I don’t know if that’s true or not because I know of a number of other “children’s” theatres that have only actors under 18. Nevertheless, probably “youth” theatre would have been a better choice because teenagers don’t like to be called children, and our group definitely included a lot of teenagers.

Another thing I somewhat regret is naming it after our town. We have kids from all the local towns who participate in our shows. They would probably prefer if the group were not named after a town they didn’t live in. That said, if most of your participants are going to be kids from your town and your actors will be middle school age or younger, go ahead and name it after your town and call it a children’s theatre. The positive aspect of naming it after your town is that the businesses and other organizations in your town will identify with it and possibly be more likely to support it financially.

Other options would be to name the group after your state, or something special about your state, for instance “The Lone Star Youth Theatre” (I’m originally from Texas). Or you could give it a creative name like “Rising Stars Junior Theatre.” (If you want to use one of those names, you might Google it first to make sure it's not taken.)

Whatever you choose, take your time and think about what you want the name to say about your group, because once you establish yourselves, it’s kind of hard to change the name.

Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show