The Garage
WHERE
Norwich
What it’s like
Drama classes, holiday camps and small-scale family shows in a Norwich theatre with a café and a play corner for babies.
This is a theatre and drama school rolled into one, so what you get depends on the week. There are family shows on weekends and in school holidays, small-scale theatre performances, and drama and dance classes that run across the ages. If your child's more into performing than watching, there are academies for 8 to 18 year olds with proper rehearsals and shows to work towards, plus holiday camps built around team games, arts and crafts and general messing about together.
With a baby or toddler in tow, the ground floor café has a books-and-toys corner where you're welcome to breastfeed, which is a nice touch a lot of theatres skip entirely. There's level access throughout, into the studios and the auditorium, and accessible toilets with baby-changing on every floor. The building also runs an Access Scheme for d/Deaf, disabled and neurodivergent visitors, with free companion tickets and access performance info.
Parking's the one faff here. There's no car park on site, just a drop-off layby right outside, so you're looking at The Forum, Chapelfield or Chantry Road for a proper space. Blue badge parking is on Theatre Street, opposite the Assembly House, which is handy if that applies to you. If you'd rather leave the car altogether, the bus station's a ten-minute walk and the train station's about twenty.
Classes get booked by phone or in person rather than online, and there's a 10% sibling discount for under-18s plus a similar discount for adults 61+ or in full-time education. Worth knowing if you've got more than one child keen on the same class.
Facilities
Need to know
- Parking
- No on-site parking. Drop-off layby outside, nearby car parks (Forum, Chapelfield, Chantry Road)
- Food
- Refurbished cafe bar serving hot and cold drinks, beers, wines, spirits, baked potatoes, toasties, cakes, pastries and snacks
- Getting there by bus or train
- Norwich Bus Station 10-minute walk
- No online booking for classes, it's phone or in person only
- There's no on-site car park, just a drop-off layby outside
- The café bar serves alcohol as well as the usual toasties and cakes
- The Access Scheme lets you book wheelchair spaces online and get free companion tickets
Plan your visit
How do we book classes?
By phone on 01603 283382 or in person at The Garage, not online.
Is there parking?
No car park on site, but there's a drop-off layby right outside and nearby car parks at The Forum, Chapelfield and Chantry Road. Blue badge parking is on Theatre Street opposite the Assembly House.
Is it OK to bring a baby or toddler?
There's a books-and-toys area in the ground floor café where breastfeeding is welcome, and baby-changing facilities on every floor.
Is the building accessible?
Level access into the building, studios and auditorium, with wheelchair accessible toilets and showers on each main floor. There's also an Access Scheme with free companion tickets and access performance information.
What's there to eat?
The café bar does hot and cold drinks, baked potatoes, toasties, cakes and pastries, plus beer and wine if you fancy it.
Are there discounts for classes?
Under-18s get 10% off if siblings book together, and adults get 10% off at 61+ or if in full-time education.
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