School holidays survival guide: Winter edition
Beating the cold and your kids’ boredom
Winter is here and it feels like we’ve all gone into hibernation. But when you find yourself itching for the outside world, take yourself and your kids for an amazing day out at the House. We promise it’ll warm you up.
These winter school holidays are set to be particularly tasty. There’s a giant peach making a landing at the House, thanks to a live on-stage adaptation of James and the Giant Peach. It’s big. It’s juicy. It’s Dahlicious. Plus more interactive performances, workshops and free foyer experiences to get your kid’s creative juices flowing.
Shows your kids will love
James and the Giant Peach
5 - 21 July 2024
Ages 6+
Roald Dahl’s classic story about the world’s juiciest fruit rolls off the page and onto the stage this July. Follow James and a collection of curious critters as they soar across the Atlantic on the biggest peach you’ve ever seen. Bursting with magic, mischief, and mayhem, this extraordinary production features an enchanting set and vibrant costumes at every turn.
The adaptation is brought to you by Shake & Stir, one of Australia’s leading touring theatre companies. They work closely with Roald Dahl Story Company and have brought to life many of Dahl’s classic stories including The Twits, Fantastic Mr Fox, George’s Marvellous Medicine, Revolting Rhymes and Dirty Beasts.
Three words to sell your kids on it are… peachy delicious mayhem
A Forest in the City
16 - 19 July
Ages 4+
Give your kids the chance to be architects of a better world through projections and play. Children are invited to join two dancers on stage to build the green city of their dreams. This comes to life through immersive full-scale colourful projections, digital technology and dance. Join in this interactive performance direct from Italy.
The city of their imagination will grow by combining architecture – houses and streets, color and light – with the living environment, like grass, trees and insects. Thanks to digital technology, the scenery becomes interactive, helping your kids to become immersed further in a world of their own making.
Three words to sell your kids on it are… magical interactive futuristic
Shows outside of the school holidays
The River That Ran Uphill
25 - 27 July
Ages 8+
This moving tale about a community facing adversity will not only entertain your kids, but leave them with a powerful message. In 2015, Cyclone Pam ravaged the South Pacific. Edgell Junior, a Ni-Vanuatu man from Pentecost Island created The River That Ran Uphill based on his lived experience surviving that cyclone. It explores the power of co-operation and resilience, especially when you’re right in the eye of the storm.
Three words to sell your kids on it are… true story hope powerful
Little Murmur
9 - 10 August
Ages 7+
From award-winning choreographer Aakash Odedra, comes Little Murmur. A dance theatre performance that explores what living with dyslexia is like. It features groundbreaking projections, an extraordinary soundscape and a blizzard of paper and confetti to show the reality of living in a world you struggle to process. Odedra draws upon his own experiences to tell this heartwarming, uplifting and sometimes humorous tale.
Three words to sell your kids on it are… confetti technology dance
Get hands-on with workshops and free foyer activations
Make-Believe Masters: Young Theatre Designers
15 & 16 July
Ages 12 - 16
This workshop will see your teens peeking behind the curtain to learn about theatrical design, including creating designs for set and costumes for live performance. They’ll be taken on a journey from brainstorming ideas to final production.
Free Western Foyer Activations: Seed Bracelet Workshop
16 - 19 July
Ages 4+
Free did you say? Every school holidays, we welcome a Creative Play activation to our Western Foyer. This winter, to compliment A Forest in the City, you and your kids can create your very own living seed bracelet. Connect with nature by adding seeds and flowers to your bracelet. Plant it in your backyard or balcony and watch it grow into beautiful flowers, attracting bees, insects and butterflies.
Alien Rescue Mission
9 July
Ages 6+
Aliens have visited the Sydney Opera House! A fun interactive theatre play experience from theatre artist Alison Bennet. As part of the (very brave) Alien Rescue Team, your kids will have to find the left-behind aliens and return them to their families As part of their search, they’ll weave their way throughout the Opera House, looking right and left for those missing aliens.
Book tickets to Alien Rescue Mission
Dance Mania
Two-day workshop: 11 & 12 July
Ages 9-11
Make your young dancer’s dreams come true by dancing in one of the most iconic buildings in the world. In this 2-day workshop, budding beginners and more experienced dancers will learn simple improvisation, composition and how to make a dance performance. Kids will learn new movement skills from a range of dance styles, including hip hop, capoeira, contemporary dance and classical ballet.
The Magic Garden
17 & 18 July
Ages 4+
Your kids will become rockstars when they join the Vegetable Plot for a berry wonderful music-making songwriting workshop. They’ll learn about vocal warm-ups and sweet harmonies from Ru Barb, feast on songwriting secrets from Aspara Gus, get groovy with Sir Paul McCarrotney, and then use what they’ve learnt to help the band write something fresh and new. The workshop will plant a seed of musical inspiration that will blossom for years to come.
While you’re here:
House Canteen
If you have worked up an appetite don’t forget to visit… House Canteen!
Enjoy the best view of Sydney Harbour while tucking into a delicious feast, from dumplings to kids’ bento boxes, at our Asian-inspired restaurant House Canteen. As a bonus there will be free school holiday entertainment so the fun never has to stop!
Pick up a souvenir
If you would like to get a souvenir to remember your special day check out… the Sydney Opera House shop!
Visit our shop at the Lower Concourse or Box Office (or jump online) to explore our range of gifts and souvenirs including our playful toys, games, backpacks, colouring-in books and much more!
Join from home
Arty Farty Podcast
If you are needing a day at home and want to get a bit creative you’ll love listening to… the Arty Farty podcast!
Our podcast series Arty Farty – A Podcast for Kids has been created especially for Kid Creatives. We’re excited to share special moments, insights, tips, tricks and more from kids themselves, and creative types who appear here at the House.
Find more about Kids & Families at the Opera House