Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season 2026-2027 in Pigneto, October 11, 2026 to May 3, 2027

The Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season 2026-2027 opens on October 11, 2026 at Via Alberto da Giussano 58 (00176 Rome): theater for children and families on Sunday afternoons, usually at 16:30, with the resident company Ruotalibera Teatro and children's theater companies from all over Italy. According to the Roma Capitale tourism portal, the season runs until May 3, 2027. The theater is reached by Metro C at the Pigneto or Malatesta stops, by trams 5, 14 and 19 to the Prenestina/Giussano stop, and by buses 81, 112, 113, 213, 312, 409 and 545. Seats are booked on the theater's official website, on the events calendar page, or by phone at 06 27801063. Season prices are published by the theater, and in the previous season the ticket for family Sundays cost €7 for everyone.

Language: a performance based on dance, music or visual acts; no English version is announced, any spoken parts are in Italian.

Centrale Preneste is one of the few Roman venues that openly calls itself a theater for the new generations, and over the years its Sunday series has become a fixture for families in Pigneto and along Via Prenestina. If you have kids between three and 10 and you're looking for a real alternative to Sunday afternoon screen time, this is a safe address.

The Centrale Preneste kids season in brief

The Centrale Preneste Teatro's 2026-2027 children's season is a Sunday series: one show a week, on Sunday afternoon, with a recommended age listed for each title.

Days and times

Family shows are scheduled on Sundays. The usual time is 16:30, and some titles with few seats have two performances, like Sphera on October 25, at 16:00 and 18:00. Each Sunday's time is listed on the show's page in the official calendar.

Booking

You book online from the events calendar on the theater's website, choosing the show and registering your seats. For information and phone bookings the number is 06 27801063, and the email is the Ruotalibera cooperative's. The offices answer Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 17:00. For Sunday, book by Friday.

Price

The 2026-2027 season price is the one published by the theater. For reference, in the 2025-2026 season the family series had a single ticket of €7 for everyone, chosen by the theater to give access to as many people as possible.

The fall program of the kids season

The Centrale Preneste Teatro's official calendar lists four family Sundays for fall 2026 between October 11 and November 1, with puppet and object theater, actor-led theater, shadow theater and the return of a Ruotalibera classic.

October 11: La danse du pied, apriti alla gioia

The season opens at 16:30 with La danse du pied: apriti alla gioia by the Feet Theatre Company, by Monsieur David with Madame Marion, choreography by Federica Gumina and music editing by Sandra Graniti and Danilo Boschetti. It's puppetry, circus and music, recommended from age four. The presentation speaks of an upside-down world where colors are brighter and hearts beat in rhythm: from the title, feet are clearly the stars.

October 18: Blu, il colore della felicità

On Sunday, October 18 at 16:30 the Associazione Pilar Ternera brings Blu, il colore della felicità, "Blue, the color of happiness", by and with Francesco Cortoni and Silvia Lemmi, with artistic collaboration by Claudio Milani. Actor and object theater from age five: a journey in search of happiness among small stage magic, leaps, whispers and dreamlike images, in which Alberto, or Alberta, chasing a hidden secret, learns to face life.

October 25: Sphera

On October 25 Teatri di Carta and Ombre Bianche Teatro present Sphera, by Chiara Carlorosi and Marco Vergati, with Marco Vergati and shadows by Chiara Carlorosi. It's shadow theater with objects, sounds and noises for children aged three to 10, inside a small big top: a maximum of 30 spectators per performance, with two shows at 16:00 and 18:00. A strange gentleman searches for his little friend, who keeps running off to explore the world. With so few seats, it's the title to book first.

November 1: Giufà, il mare e le nuvole

On Sunday, November 1 at 16:30 the home company, Ruotalibera Teatro, returns with Giufà, il mare e le nuvole, by and with Tiziana Lucattini and Fabio Traversa, recommended from age six. Giufà comes from the oral tradition of the Mediterranean: naive and contradictory, half child and half jester, like Pulcinella, poor and bumbling, he lives with his mother in a tender, endless conflict shaped by his father's absence. The theater has been reviving this show for years, and it's the best way to get to know the house style.

The rest of the season

The following Sundays are published gradually on the theater's calendar. The Famiglie a teatro page on the website collects past years' series: it's worth following to see when the winter and spring titles come out.

Infanzie in gioco, the family series

The Centrale Preneste Teatro's Sunday family series is called Infanzie in gioco and is organized by Ruotalibera: in the 2025-2026 season it was in its 16th edition, with 26 dates.

A Pigneto fixture

The theater says the series has become a weekend fixture in Pigneto, and that a recent edition topped 1,500 attendees, with children and families from the neighborhood and other parts of the city. For a neighborhood venue, those are remarkable numbers.

The resident company and its guests

The program brings together the resident company, Ruotalibera Teatro, and some of Italy's leading children's theater companies. The choice of themes and the quality of the artists are, according to the presentation, the two criteria behind the programming. The level, judging from the titles and companies, is that of professional children's theater.

A look at last season

The 2025-2026 season's program ranged from a Cinderella for three actors and the Pied Piper of Hamelin to the Sicilian myth of Colapesce, from the African tales of Kirikù with shadow puppets to a Little Red Riding Hood told together with her grandmother, along with music, clowning and witches. A program ranging from classic fairy tales to African stories, from Sicilian myth to music.

Free editions

In 2023 the theater also offered a free family cycle, seven Sundays within the YOU THE YOUng CITY series. It's a sign of the house spirit: affordable access to theater for children is a stated choice, not a detail.

Ruotalibera and Tiziana Lucattini

Centrale Preneste Teatro is run by Ruotalibera, a nonprofit social cooperative active since 1977 in live performance and in social and intercultural activities for children, teens and adults, with Tiziana Lucattini as artistic director.

A cooperative for the new generations

Ruotalibera has worked for more than 40 years with the Ministry of Culture, the welfare and education ministries, the Lazio Region, the City of Rome, schools and libraries. The Sunday family theater is the most visible part of daily work with children, teens and young people, both Italian and of foreign origin.

Tiziana Lucattini

Tiziana Lucattini has led Ruotalibera since 1991. Her Scarpette rosse won the ETI Stregagatto award, was published in France by École des loisirs in 1996 as Les Souliers Rouges, translated into German, English, Spanish and Flemish, and staged in Lille, Lyon, Strasbourg, Avignon, Berlin, Madrid, Antwerp and at the New York Fringe. In 2003 she received a special ETI mention for Il bambino che non c'è, written with Daria De Florian. Since 1998 she has also been a trainer.

Fabio Traversa

Fabio Traversa, on stage with Lucattini in Giufà, has worked with Ruotalibera since 1995. He made his screen debut with Nanni Moretti, worked with Carlo Verdone and toured the company's shows in France, Spain and Ireland, performing in the local languages. Seeing an actor like this in a show for six-year-olds is one of the small privileges of a Sunday at Centrale Preneste.

La Pietra Parla school

The same theater houses the La Pietra Parla theater school, founded in 2000 in Vicolo della Torre in Trastevere and run by Lucattini and Traversa. The name comes from Brecht and the scene in Mother Courage where Kattrin beats the drum to wake the town.

Centrale Preneste Teatro, the venue

Centrale Preneste Teatro is at Via Alberto da Giussano 58, in the Prenestina area of East Rome, in Municipio V, right next to Pigneto, and it presents itself as Centrale Preneste Teatro for the new generations.

A neighborhood venue

The venue's programming goes beyond the children's Sundays: in the evening it hosts contemporary theater, music, series for young artists like YOU THE YOUng CITY, creative workshops and the Art Factory project. In October 2026 the evening calendar includes, among others, Baléni by Francesca Pica, Mi ricordo by Barbe à Papa Teatro, Moby Dick and a concert devoted to the Balkans and the Mediterranean.

The neighborhood kids' theater

The cooperative's mission is to strengthen ties between generations and among the neighborhood's different communities. On Sundays, you can see it in the hall: Italian families and families of foreign origin, grandparents with grandchildren, children who come back every week. It's a theater where the audience knows one another.

Centrale Preneste beyond Sunday

Besides the children's season, the Centrale Preneste Teatro calendar sorts its offerings into five categories: Art Factory, Families, Festivals and events, Creative workshops and YOU THE YOUng CITY.

October evenings

On fall 2026 evenings the theater hosts shows like Alda Merini, una donna sospesa tra il dolore e la gioia, Bambole da collezione, Not here not now, Under 30, Bombe nemiche, Moby Dick, Menù del giorno and Oibò sono morto, plus a concert devoted to the Balkans, the Mediterranean and new musical identities. For parents who want to come back to the hall on their own, it's the same theater.

Workshops

The Creative workshops category gathers the cooperative's hands-on activities, while Art Factory is the project devoted to young artists. For kids who, after a few Sundays in the audience, want to get up on stage, the La Pietra Parla school is the natural next step.

Why Sunday

Sunday afternoon isn't a random choice: it's when families have time, and when the alternative, for many children, is a screen. An hour of live theater, with actors a few meters away, shadows, objects and music played live, is an experience no screen can replace. Theater is what children remember.

How to get to Centrale Preneste Teatro

Centrale Preneste Teatro, at Via Alberto da Giussano 58, is reached by Metro C at the Pigneto or Malatesta stops, by trams 5, 14 and 19 to the Prenestina/Giussano stop, and by buses 81, 112, 113, 213, 312, 409 and 545.

By Metro C

Pigneto and Malatesta are the handiest stations, a few minutes' walk from the theater. From the center, change from line A to line C at San Giovanni: from there Pigneto is a few stops away. With strollers, the metro is the most practical option.

By tram

Trams 5, 14 and 19 run along Via Prenestina and stop at Prenestina/Giussano, at the start of the theater's street. The 5 and 14 come from the Termini area via Porta Maggiore: if you live or are staying near the station, it's the simplest way, with no changes.

By bus

The lines listed by the theater are 81, 112, 113, 213, 312, 409 and 545. On Sundays service is reduced: check times before heading out with the kids.

By car

On Sunday afternoons parking between Pigneto and Prenestina is less difficult than on weekend evenings, but the streets are narrow. If you're driving, arrive a bit early.

Practical tips for a Sunday at the theater with kids

At Centrale Preneste every show in the season lists a recommended age, from three up: respecting it is the first rule for a successful afternoon.

The right age

Sphera is designed for age three, La danse du pied for four, Blu for five, Giufà for six. Taking a younger child to a show meant for older ones often means spending half the time in the hallway.

Arrive early

Arriving a quarter of an hour early helps with everything: the restroom, coats, settling in calmly. Children who rush into the hall find it harder to focus.

Accessibility

For special access needs, including strollers or wheelchairs, let the theater know when you book, so entry and seating can be arranged.

More ideas for families

For more activities with kids in the city there's our guide to Rome with kids, and for an afternoon of play and discovery there's Explora, the children's museum.

Pigneto and Prenestina around the theater

Centrale Preneste Teatro is in the Prenestina area, right next to Pigneto, the part of Municipio V between Via Prenestina, Via Casilina and Via di Acqua Bullicante, now one of the liveliest neighborhoods in East Rome.

Via del Pigneto

Since 2015 Via del Pigneto has been largely pedestrian. On Sunday afternoon, before or after the show, it's a quiet stroll with the kids among bars, bakeries and murals. The neighborhood is part of the Ecomuseo Casilino ad Duas Lauros.

Streets named after warriors

Via Alberto da Giussano is named after a hero of the wars of the Lombard communes, and the surrounding street names follow military themes: Via Fanfulla da Lodi, Via Conte di Carmagnola, Via Romanello da Forlì. A fun game with kids is finding out who these figures were.

Porta Maggiore and the ancient Via Prenestina

At the start of Via Prenestina stand Porta Maggiore, from AD 52, and the tomb of the baker Eurysaces, and nearby is the underground basilica of Porta Maggiore. Farther east, on Via Casilina, is the Mausoleum of Helena. For an afternoon outdoors before the theater, Aqueducts Park is the best choice, reachable by Metro A.

Where to eat before or after the show

Pigneto, a few minutes' walk from Centrale Preneste Teatro, has one of East Rome's highest concentrations of places to eat: bakeries, pizzerias, gelato shops, trattorias and cuisines from many countries along Via del Pigneto and its side streets.

Before 16:30

For a Sunday lunch before the show, sit down by 13:00: with kids, a long lunch followed straight by the theater can be too much. A light lunch and a snack afterward is often the best combination.

A snack afterward

Coming out around 18:00, Pigneto has gelato shops and bakeries for a snack. It's the moment when kids tell you about the show, and it's worth listening. Asking which character they liked best, or what they'd have done in their place, stretches the theater well beyond the hour in the hall.

A curious fact about the Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season 2026-2027 in Pigneto, October 11, 2026 to May 3, 2027

The loveliest curious fact concerns Scarpette rosse, "Little red shoes", the show by Tiziana Lucattini, the theater's artistic director. It won the ETI Stregagatto award and then became a book for French publisher École des loisirs, as Les Souliers Rouges, translated into four languages. From a neighborhood venue on Via Prenestina, a children's show made it to festivals in Avignon, Berlin, Madrid and all the way to the New York Fringe.

Second curious fact: Sphera, on October 25, takes place inside a small big top, with a maximum of 30 spectators. It's a show that turns a theater into an even more intimate place: for three-year-olds, a first contact with theater on an almost homelike scale.

Third: Giufà, the character in the November 1 show, comes from the oral tradition of the Mediterranean, and the presentation likens him to Pulcinella. An ancient, popular character for today's children.

Something nobody tells you about the Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season 2026-2027 in Pigneto, October 11, 2026 to May 3, 2027

What nobody tells you is that children's theater done well is theater for adults too. Ruotalibera's shows, and those of top-level guest companies, often have a second layer: Giufà also talks about an absent father, Blu about the search for happiness. Parents often come out as moved as their kids.

The second thing concerns seats. A series with more than 1,500 attendees a season in a neighborhood venue means the Sundays fill up. Sphera has only 30 seats per performance: if you wait until Sunday morning to decide, you risk being left out.

Third: always check dates on the official calendar. Last season the theater moved a show from March to April, announcing the change at the top of the page. It happens in every long series, and it's better to know.

My tip for the Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season 2026-2027 in Pigneto, October 11, 2026 to May 3, 2027

My tip is to start with Giufà, il mare e le nuvole, on Sunday, November 1, if your kids are at least six. It's the home company's show, with the two actors who run the theater, and it gives you the measure of what Centrale Preneste is. After that, you can choose the guest shows with more insight.

For the little ones, from three, the right title is Sphera: shadow theater in an intimate space, with few spectators, sounds and objects. It's the ideal setting for a first show, because no child feels lost in a big hall.

Second tip: make Sunday at the theater a habit, not an event. Series like this one give their best when kids come back, recognize the hall, the faces, the ritual of going in. Three or four shows in a season are worth more than one.

Third: book online as soon as a title is on the calendar, and call the theater with any questions about the recommended age.

Another well-known fact, yet one rarely mentioned

Everyone knows theater is good for kids. Less often remembered is that Rome has a solid tradition of professional children's theater, with companies working for decades and winning national awards. Ruotalibera, active since 1977, is one example: a cooperative that for almost 50 years has made theater for and with the new generations, with honors like the Stregagatto and mentions from ETI, the Italian theater agency.

Another well-known but rarely mentioned fact: Fabio Traversa, who to kids appears as the Sunday Giufà, has a film career that began with Nanni Moretti and passed through Carlo Verdone. In serious companies, children's theater is made by real actors.

And again: Pigneto, now a neighborhood of bars and nightlife, has a daytime life of families, schools and markets. A Sunday afternoon at Centrale Preneste tells this other side of the neighborhood, less known but deeper.

The right photo to take at the Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season 2026-2027 in Pigneto, October 11, 2026 to May 3, 2027

During the show no photos and no lit screens: for the children in the hall a phone's light is a huge distraction, and for the actors a disturbance. The right photo is taken beforehand, at the entrance, ticket in hand or in front of the day's poster: the memory of a first theater show is worth more than any image of the stage.

After the show, if the actors come out to say goodbye, the photo with the characters is the one kids will remember. Always ask first: in many children's theater companies the final greeting is part of the ritual.

Outside, the fall afternoon light on pedestrian Via del Pigneto, with its murals and café tables, completes the story of the Sunday.

Some important events that happened here in history

The area's history begins with Via Prenestina, an ancient road leaving Rome to the east, lined with tombs and mausoleums. At its start stand Porta Maggiore, from AD 52, and the tomb of the baker Eurysaces, from 30 BC, at the second mile the Torrione prenestino, and at the third the tomb of Largo Preneste.

For centuries the area was countryside, vegetable gardens and vineyards, and the name Pigneto is recorded as early as the 17th century. After 1870 the first settlements appeared, and between 1886 and 1891 the depot of the Società Romana Tramways Omnibus was built in Piazza Caballini, becoming a tram depot in 1904. In 1923 a viscose factory opened on Via Prenestina, active until 1954. In 1943 and 1944 Allied bombing hit the neighborhood.

In 1977 the Ruotalibera cooperative was born, led since 1991 by Tiziana Lucattini, and in 2000 the La Pietra Parla school opened. In 2015 Via del Pigneto became largely pedestrian. The Centrale Preneste family series reached its 16th edition in 2025-2026, and from October 11, 2026 it starts again with the new season.

Who has passed through the Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season 2026-2027 in Pigneto, October 11, 2026 to May 3, 2027

An important part of Italian cinema has passed through the streets around Centrale Preneste: Pier Paolo Pasolini set Accattone in Pigneto, with Franco Citti, and Anna Magnani shot scenes of Roberto Rossellini's Rome, Open City here. Before becoming a neighborhood of theaters and bars, Pigneto was a film set.

For decades the theater has hosted Ruotalibera's shows, directed by Tiziana Lucattini and performed with Fabio Traversa, and generations of students from the La Pietra Parla school. With the family series, children's theater companies from all over Italy come through every year.

In fall 2026 come the Feet Theatre Company with Monsieur David and Madame Marion, the Associazione Pilar Ternera with Francesco Cortoni and Silvia Lemmi, with Claudio Milani's collaboration, and Teatri di Carta and Ombre Bianche Teatro with Chiara Carlorosi and Marco Vergati. And above all come hundreds of children, for many of whom this will be the first theater of their lives.

Fall in Rome with kids

From October, with the return of the cold and the short days, a Sunday afternoon at the theater becomes a precious alternative to the parks for many Roman families.

The weather

In October the days in Rome are still mild and you can pair the theater with a walk, and from November the afternoon gets shorter and the hall becomes the best place to spend it. A jacket for the 18:00 exit always comes in handy.

A well-built Sunday

A light lunch, a stroll along pedestrian Via del Pigneto, the 16:30 show, a snack at a neighborhood gelato shop and home on Metro C before dinner. Simple, cheap and, for kids, memorable.

Frequently asked questions about the Centrale Preneste kids season

When does the Centrale Preneste Teatro kids season start?

The Centrale Preneste Teatro Kids Season starts on Sunday, October 11, 2026 at 16:30 with La danse du pied by the Feet Theatre Company. Shows are on Sunday afternoons and, according to the Roma Capitale tourism portal, the season runs until May 3, 2027.

What time are the kids' shows at Centrale Preneste?

Family shows at Centrale Preneste Teatro are usually on Sundays at 16:30. Some titles with few seats have two performances: Sphera, on October 25, 2026, is at 16:00 and 18:00, with a maximum of 30 spectators.

How much is a ticket for the kids season?

The price for the Centrale Preneste Teatro's 2026-2027 season is published by the theater on its events calendar. In the 2025-2026 season the Sunday family series had a single ticket of €7 for everyone, adults and children.

How do you book at Centrale Preneste Teatro?

At Centrale Preneste Teatro you book online from the events calendar on the official website or by phone at 06 27801063. The Ruotalibera cooperative's offices answer Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 17:00, so for Sunday it's best to book by Friday.

What ages are the shows suitable for?

Each show in the Centrale Preneste kids season lists a recommended age: in fall 2026 they range from Sphera, for children aged three to 10, to Giufà, il mare e le nuvole, from age six. La danse du pied is from age four, Blu from five.

Where is Centrale Preneste Teatro?

Centrale Preneste Teatro is at Via Alberto da Giussano 58, in the Prenestina area of East Rome, near Pigneto. It's reached by Metro C at the Pigneto or Malatesta stops and by trams 5, 14 and 19 to the Prenestina/Giussano stop.

Who runs Centrale Preneste Teatro?

Centrale Preneste Teatro is run by Ruotalibera, a nonprofit social cooperative active since 1977 in theater for the new generations, with artistic director Tiziana Lucattini, who has led the company since 1991.

Can I bring a child younger than the recommended age?

At Centrale Preneste Teatro the recommended age for each show is listed on its calendar page, and it's best to respect it. If in doubt, call the theater at 06 27801063: for children under four, Sphera, designed from age three in a small big top with 30 spectators, is the best fit in fall 2026.

In closing

I recommend the Centrale Preneste kids season to every Roman family with children between three and 10, and also to those who live far from Pigneto: Metro C puts it within reach of half the city. It's theater made by professionals, with a clear idea of what it means to perform for children, at a price designed for everyone. Choose the show by age, book early, and make it a habit.

Article written by the editorial team of Tour Leader Pro, contact them for Private/Corporate/V.I.P. Tours and Experiences.

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