After relocating in 2020 to its first purpose-built facility since being founded in 1987, South Carolina Children’s Theatre is hitting its stride as the largest children’s theatre in South Carolina. The happy voices that reverberate through the halls are a highlight of CEO Katie O’Kelly’s day.
Located at 153 Augusta Street, SCCT serves an estimated 30,700 children and their families each year through performances, education programs, residencies, community engagement partnerships with Camp Courage, YouthBASE, and Greenville County Schools among others, and other events like Tell Me A Story and Once Upon an Orchestra. All programming is focused on its mission to empower and inspire a new generation of changemakers through theatre.
“Our core values of curiosity, collaboration, inclusivity and joy inform everything we do at SCCT,” said O’Kelly, who became chief executive officer in December 2024 after two years as managing director.
With the new facility, SCCT has made accessibility a priority. “Our goal is to be the most accessible theatre in the state—physically, technologically, and financially,” said O’Kelly. “As one way to remove financial barriers, three years ago we began offering ‘pay what you can’ performances, allowing patrons the opportunity to pay as little as one dollar per ticket in order to experience live theatre.”
In 2023, a Capacity Building Grant from the Community Foundation of Greenville helped fund upgrades to SCCT’s website. A 2024 grant from Greenville Women Giving was used to create an inclusive theatre experience with assistive technology for individuals with sensory sensitivities.
“The website update made it easier for the public to connect with us to buy tickets, volunteer, donate, or learn more about our programming,” O’Kelly said. “The Greenville Women Giving grant helped us create sensory friendly viewing areas with live feeds from the stages so that everyone can enjoy the show. Both of these major grants help us be more accessible for our patrons and partners.”
For the future, O’Kelly said she hopes that the theatre will continue to grow its impact in Greenville and beyond in its vision to bring transformative theatre experiences to every young person and family in the Upstate. “We rely on our partnerships, patrons, and donors to continue this work,” she said.
The Community Foundation of Greenville and some of its fundholders are proud to support the work of SCCT through philanthropic gifts.