FAQ

Classes take place in the Kaleidoscope Arts Centre located at 613 Pandora Avenue in the heart of Victoria’s Old Town. Click for directions. This facility is also home to our Professional Theatre Company, our production and administrative offices, our Box Office, and rehearsal studios.

Summer and Spring Break Camps take place at 4 locations around Greater Victoria. Please check your registration and confirmation details for the location of your program.

We offer trial classes once each year on a set date. For 2025, Trial Classes will take place on Saturday, May 10th. Outside of Try-A-Class Day there are other great ways to try out our programs with less time and commitment! We have Pro-D Day camps for ages 5-7 and 8-10, where kids can enjoy a 1-day musical theatre experience. You can also explore our spring break and summer camps for more options. If you’d like to visit our facilities and join in some fun theatre activities as a family, come to one of our free Family FUNdays that take place on select sundays throughout the year. 

Most of our weekly classes and camps wrap up with a “Showcase”, an informal sharing where students present what they’ve been working on. It’s a fun way to celebrate everyone’s achievements! These showcases aren’t full productions, but more of a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on in class and camp each week. If your child can’t make it to the showcase, just let their instructor know in advance. Don’t worry—they’ll still be able to fully enjoy and participate in the program, even if they can’t attend the showcase.

Our Mini-Adventures program, Single Day and Pro-D Day Camps do not end in a sharing presentation.

Our Teen Intensive programs culminate in full realized productions. Details on those performances will be provided to families closer to performance dates.

Showcases typically happen during the last class of the term / last day of the program, within regular class hours. You’ll get a reminder a few weeks before, with details on when guests should arrive.

Showcases are held in the same studio where the students have their classes at the Kaleidoscope Arts Centre.

There’s no extra cost for weekly class or camp showcases—no tickets or fees required, however seating is limited. Students will be limited to a maximum of 4 guests each.

For some Teen Intensive Productions tickets are required. Please see your Handbooks, provided during registration, for more details.

Absolutely! No prior experience is needed for any of our programs. Students simply register for the program that fits their age group. We welcome kids with all levels of experience—some have been with us for years, while others are trying theatre for the first time. Our instructors are fantastic at making sure everyone feels included and tailoring the material to suit all skill levels.

At Kaleidoscope, we set age requirements for all of our programs to ensure the best possible experience for every participant. These age guidelines are carefully considered based on program content, group dynamics, and developmental appropriateness.

Students must meet the minimum age requirement as stated in each program description by the start date of the program. We understand that every child is unique, but for the safety, comfort, and success of all participants, we are unable to make exceptions to these age policies.

Our current age requirements are as follows:

• Spring Break Camps: Students must be the minimum age by June 30th of that year.
• Summer Camps: Students must be the minimum age by August 31st of that year.
• Pro-D Day Camps: Students must be the minimum age at the time of the camp.

Please note that for programs for ages 5-7, students must be 5 at the start of the program. If you are having trouble registering your child due to their age, please contact our office.

Class and camp sizes vary depending on the age group and the studio where the program is held. If you’d like details about a specific program, feel free to email us at education@kaleidoscope.bc.ca, and we’ll be happy to provide more information!

You can withdraw up to 7 days before the first class for a full refund, minus the non-refundable administration fee and a cancellation fee ($25). To cancel, please send a written request to education@kaleidoscope.bc.ca. Verbal requests won’t be accepted. Once we process your request, we’ll issue a refund to your original payment method.

If you need to withdraw after that, you have until 24 hours before the second class of the term to request a full credit (minus the admin and cancellation fees). This request must also be submitted in writing. Credits will be applied to your online Active account and can be used for any educational program (weekly classes, camps, etc.) at the Kaleidoscope Arts Centre. Credits are valid for one year from the issue date.

Please note: Credits cannot be applied to programs at Saanich Recreation locations since registration for those is done directly through Saanich.

Spring Break and Summer Camps

• Deadline to Withdraw: 7 Days prior to the start of the first day of the program for full refund (less $50 cancelation fee).
• Transfers:Transfer must be into another camp within that season (ie. one spring break camp to another spring break camp that year) at the Kaleidoscope Arts Centre. Transfers are subject to availability. There is no transfer fee. Deadline to request a transfer is 1 week prior to the start of the program. Transfers cannot be completed through your online account. Please contact our office directly if you wish to transfer programs. Transfer requests must be submitted in writing to education@kaleidoscope.bc.ca

Single Day Camps

• Single Day camp registrations are final and not eligible for a refund. Single Day camps are only eligible for a transfer or credit.
• Deadline to withdraw: 7 days prior to the camp for a full credit. After this time no credits will be issued.
• Deadline to transfer: 7 days prior to the camp. Must be to another Single Day camp within that Season (i.e. Summer). Transfers are subject to program availability.

Pro-D Day Camps

• Pro-D Day camp registrations are final and not eligible for a refund. Pro-D Day camps are only eligible for a transfer or credit.
• Deadline to withdraw: 7 days prior to the camp for a full credit. After this time no credits will be issued.
• Deadline to transfer: 7 days prior to the camp. Must be to another Pro-D Day camp within that school year. Transfers are subject to program availability.

Yes, all group classes continue over long weekends, including Thanksgiving, Family Day, Easter, and Victoria Day, unless mentioned otherwise.

Private Voice Lessons do not run on Stat Holidays such as Family Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, and Victoria Day.

You can check the full list of important dates HERE.

Please give us a call at 250-383-8124 and leave a message with the student name and program they will be absent from if you do not get through to a staff member. If you child is in a program at a Saanich Recreation facility, please contact Saanich Recreation. 

No! A this time, we are unable to provide before / after camp care or supervision. Sign-in begins promptly at your program start time, and programs end at their scheduled end time. Early Drop-Off and Late Pick-up is not permitted.

We discourage registering for both sessions (morning / afternoon) of a half day program. Kaleidoscope is unable to provide lunchtime supervision between the morning and afternoon camps (12pm-1pm). Additionally, both sessions typically follow the same programming and use the same materials—meaning students would be repeating the same content in a single day. For the best experience, we recommend choosing either the morning or the afternoon session.

Class, workshop, and camp fees are due at the time of registration and can be paid using Visa or MasterCard through our online system. We also offer payment plans for most classes and some camps, which have pre-set payment dates for your convenience.

To add additional names to your child’s authorized pick-up list after you have completed registration, please contact our Education department by phone or email. Children will only be released to adults whose names have been provided in advance by the primary account holder.

Yes, we have several discount opportunities:

• Early Bird Discount: Save up to 15% on Fall programming when you register between May 1st and July 15th.
• Full Year Discount: Additional savings are available if you register for a full year of the same program.
• Multi-Child Discount: Save 5% when registering two or more children from the same family (living at the same address) for group classes or camps in the same term. The discount applies only when you register all children at the same time. It doesn’t apply to multiple registrations throughout the year.
• Multi-Session Discount: Save 5% when registering the same child for more than one program in the same term (e.g., both Teen Acting and Teen Musical Theatre classes in the Fall). This discount is available only when registering for both programs at the same time.

Please note that discounts cannot be applied retroactively.

Yes, we do! The Kaleidoscope Performing Arts Studio Annual Bursary Fund offers financial assistance to help as many kids as possible explore their creativity on stage. Bursaries are available for families in need and are applicable only to programs at the Kaleidoscope Arts Centre in downtown Victoria. Bursary funding is provided through an application process.

Learn more about our bursaries here.

If severe weather or emergencies affect our classes, we’ll post updates on our Facebook page, School Instagram, the main page of our website (kaleidoscope.bc.ca), and on our main voicemail. We’ll also send e-broadcasts to all affected classes.

As a general rule, if schools in the Victoria School District (SD#61) are closed due to weather, Kaleidoscope classes will be canceled and rescheduled for a later date.

Please check our communication channels to confirm class status, as we do not make individual phone calls for weather-related closures.

We encourage students to dress comfortably in clothing that they can move around in and that won’t restrict their participation in class (i.e. active wear). Clothing that restricts movement (such as tight jeans) are discouraged. Clothing with offensive language or logos is not acceptable.

Students must wear clean closed-toed and flat shoes to class. Sandals, Flip-Flops, Rain Boots, or any shoe with a high heel are unacceptable. Indoor runners are a great option for class! Please do not send your child to class in shoes that are muddy!

We understand that starting a new program can be a bit daunting. However, for the privacy and focus of all students, our classes are closed to observation, and parents/guardians are not permitted in the studio during weekly sessions. You’ll have the opportunity to see what your child has been working on during our showcase at the end of the term. If you have any concerns or need support, please feel free to reach out to us!

You can find all of the policies pertaining to programs at the Kaleidoscope Performing Arts Studio HERE.

All of our primary community is done by email. Please add the following emails to your Safe Contact list:

info@kaleidoscope.bc.ca

education@kaleidoscope.bc.ca

For weekly programs, Monthly Newsletters are provided by email and physical copies distributed in class. Families are also encouraged to follow us on Instagram @ktypeducaiton for specific updates pertaining to our theatre school programming.

We can only provide birthday parties at the Kaleidoscope Arts Centre (613 Pandora Ave.). Due to our studio capacity, we can accommodate a maximum of 15 guests for each party. If you have any questions or need to make arrangements, feel free to contact us, or learn more on our Birthday Party Page.