The Rock And Roll Playhouse Kicks Off 2026 As Leader In Live Family Entertainment

Credit: Evan Mann

Monday, March 2 - National family concert series The Rock and Roll Playhouseis kicking off 2026 with more shows than ever. To date, they have performed in 33 states, 114 cities and are continuing to expand. With beginnings at their homebase in New York at Brooklyn Bowl in 2014, they have since expanded to become the largest national family-friendly live concert series in the US. Just last weekend they sold out iconic venues First Avenue, Bluebird Theatre, Ardmore Music Hall, Neighborhood Theater, and ACL Live!

Want to bring The Rock and Roll Playhouse to your town? The Playhouse is ready to rock any stage, from your favorite local venue to outdoor festivals and everything in between. Reach out to bring the magic to your community. These shows are memory making experiences, creating a space for kids and parents to rock out to the classics and beyond. For many young ones, this will be their first ever concert experience. Even children as young as one have come to rock out (safe earmuffs provided!).

Founded by concert promoter Peter Shapiro (Grateful Dead's 50th anniversary “Fare Thee Well” tour, Brooklyn Bowl, The Capitol Theatre), the Playhouse is now entering their 12th successful year. The first ever show was Grateful Dead for Kidsfeaturing the one and only Phil Lesh. Today, families can catch shows ranging from Taylor Swift to The Beatles, Prince to Harry Styles, Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen, Dolly Parton, Chappell Roan, Fleetwood Mac, Beyoncé, Talking Heads, Phish, David Bowie and counting!

The playhouse has played main stay rock venues like Lodge Room (LA), The Capitol Theatre (NY), Brooklyn Bowl (Philly, Nashville, Las Vegas & NY), ACL Live (Austin, TX), Higher Ground (Burlington, VT), First Avenue (Minneapolis) and many more. They’re now expanding to larger venues and cultural institutions like Chase Center (SF), Grand Central (NY), Edge at Hudson Yards (NY) and more. The playhouse also has a presence at family friendly music festivals like Hot Summer Nights (Austin, TX), Hudson River Music Festival (Croton-On-Hudson, NY), Touch of Brews (Nashville, TN & Athens, GA), Vermont Reggae Festival (Burlington, VT) and even the Tribeca Film Festival.

Credit: Kristen Drum

In 2024, The Rock & Roll Playhouse expanded to at home entertainment, releasing their debut album Friends Rock! via Republic Records. Since then, they have released four total records on the imprint including Love Rocks!, School Rocks!and Holidays Rock!. Founder Peter Shapiro tapped kids entertainment luminaries Angela C. Santomero (Blue’s Clues, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood) and music producer Stef Fink (Nickelodeon’s Monster High). The albums feature a five kid rock band covering beloved classic rock songs, celebrating the music of The Beatles, Stevie Wonder, Grateful Dead, Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, Prince, Queen, Tom Petty and more, as well as some original tunes. Read more in Variety.

Stephen Grybowski is the Executive Director of The Rock and Roll Playhouse. With over a decade of experience in the live music industry and in close partnership with Shapiro, Grybowski has been instrumental in the marketing endeavors of all ventures under the Dayglo Presents umbrella: including Brooklyn Bowl (Las Vegas, Nashville, Philadelphia, and Williamsburg,) The Capitol Theatre, Garcia's (New York, Chicago), FANS.live, Fare Thee Well, LOCKN', Relix Media Group,and the Relix Live Music Conference, among others. 

Moreover, Grybowski’s work experience demonstrates his compassionate, forward-thinking vision for the music industry at large. In addition to bringing families together for shared musical experiences at The Rock and Roll Playhouse, Grybowski is also a founder of Backline—a non-profit devoted to connecting musicians with mental health and wellness resources.

Over the years, the playhouse has also donated portions of their ticket sales for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Earth Day shows to organizations like Femme House, UNICEF, Oceanic Global, The International Sports & Music Project,and The Rex Foundation, the non-profit charity organization of the Grateful Dead.

 

ABOUT THE ROCK AND ROLL PLAYHOUSE

The Rock and Roll Playhouse is the largest national concert series for families where kids can “move, play and sing while listening to works from the classic-rock canon” (New York Times). The Rock and Roll Playhouse was founded in 2014 at its flagship venue, Brooklyn Bowl, by industry pioneer Peter Shapiro, and Amy Striem, a certified Early Childhood and Elementary teacher, who were looking to create opportunities for families to experience live music together in historic music venues. The Rock and Roll Playhouse has since performed to hundreds of thousands of kids and their families in over 42 venues across 33 cities, playing music from the most legendary musicians in history to inspire the next generation of children. Its core audience of kids under 10 explore their creativity dancing to live music from curated local bands, listening to stories and playing interactive activities. The program has raised funds for the Can’d Aid Foundation’s Tunes Programs, VH1 Save the Music Foundation, The Rex Foundation, UNICEF, and Keep the Music Alive, as well as thousands of ticket donations to local school fundraisers and charity auctions around the country. 

 

Follow The Rock and Roll Playhouse:

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 For more information on The Rock and Roll Playhouse, please contact:

Rebecca Shapiro (rshapiro@shorefire.com)

MC Miskell (mcmiskell@shorefire.com)

Anna Billy (abilly@shorefire.com)