Frequently Asked Questions

ITF is especially for:  

• Thespians, Junior Thespians, and their troupe directors  

• Theatre students (grade 6-12) who want to experience the best shows and workshops (chaperones required)  

• Theatre teachers who want to give their students a once-in-a-lifetime experience and earn professional development hours  

• College representatives eager to meet talent for their programs  

• Industry representatives who serve the school theatre market 

ITF is traditionally held the last full week of June and will be held on campus at Indiana University Bloomington in Bloomington, IN the following dates: 
 
June 19 - 23, 2023 
June 24 - 28, 2024 
June 23 - 27, 2025 

Absolutely! If you are working toward your Thespian induction, participating in ITF is a great way to earn points. In general, you can earn one point per day attended. Troupe directors have discretion over the actual points awarded, so talk to your teacher about how to earn the maximum points possible from your participation. You may need to demonstrate which workshops you attended, for example, or new things that you learned as a result of attending. 
 
Download our handy points sheet for more ideas on how to earn Thespian induction. 

Yes! We have a number of unique sponsorship and exhibit opportunities available. Or for more information, contact Angel Wuellner at awuellner@schooltheatre.org.

All attendees will receive a certificate of participation for attending ITF. Because of EdTA’s stature and reputation for high-quality professional learning experiences, many school districts accept these for professional development credit. Please check with your administration to find out whether your attendance will be accepted for continuing education or professional development credit. 

In addition, three Professional Development Intensives are being offered as an ITF add-on for an additional registration fee. All PDI attendees will receive a certificate of completion.  EdTA partners with an institute of higher education to offer graduate credit for these sessions.  

Certificates of Participation Will Be Available After ITF. You'll receive an email from us after ITF with clear instructions on how to access your Certificates of Participation. 

Attendees may inquire about lost and found items at registration and information.  Any items reported to lost and found will be held until registration and information closes on Friday, after which time any unclaimed items will be discarded. ITF is not responsible for any lost, stolen, or damaged items. 

Registration will open in January 2023 and will remain open until May 3, 2023. After May 3, registration for the in-person event will close.

After May 3, 2023, attendees will only be able to register for the Virtual Experience. Registration will remain open until 11:59 PM PT on June 18, 2023. 

We will not be able to make exceptions for in-person registration after May 3, 2023. This is to ensure that all processes related to the in-person event can be completed before the start of the event.  

A complete list of registration fees can be found on the Registration Fees page of this website.

All in-person attendees must be registered by the primary adult chaperone. Chaperones must be aged 21 or older. 

Students who are participating virtually do not need to have an adult chaperone registered with them. However, the registration should still be completed by an adult
 

Students who wish to attend ITF who are not affiliated with a troupe or whose troupe is not attending must be accompanied by a registered adult chaperone, regardless of the student’s age. Adult chaperones must first register themselves, then register the student(s) they will be chaperoning. Chaperones must be aged 21+. 

If you need to make changes to your online registration, you can do so by logging in to the Attendee Service Center using the login credentials in your confirmation email. In the Attendee Service Center, attendees can manage their individual registration and Troupe Directors/Group Chaperones can manage their group registration.? 
 
The deadline to make changes is May 31, 2023.

If you need to add fees for an attendee that is already registered or substitute an attendee that is already registered, you can do so by logging in to the Attendee Service Center using the login credentials included in your confirmation email. In the Attendee Service Center, Troupe Directors/Primary Contacts can manage their group registration. There is no charge to add or substitute students prior to May 3,2023. 

If you need to substitute a registration after May 3, please email events@schooltheatre.org. Any modifications made after May 3 will incur a $15 fee per change. No modifications can be made to registrations beginning May 31, 2023. Registration add-ons cannot be added after May 3, 2023. We are unable to make exceptions.

Cancellation cannot be completed through the Attendee Service Center. Submit via email to events@schooltheatre.org. Full refunds, less a $100 administrative fee per attendee, will be issued for any cancellations before May 3, 2023. Cancellation requests received from May 4 – June 18, 2023, will receive a refund, less a $400 administrative fee per attendee. No cancellation refunds will be issued for no-shows. Exceptions will be considered for COVID-19 travel restrictions.

The primary contact for your group will receive an email confirmation of your registration from events@schooltheatre.org (be sure to add to your safe senders list and check your junk/spam folder!). If you have not received a confirmation within 5 business days after registering, please contact events@schooltheatre.org. 

Additionally, attendees should receive the following information via email: 

• Reminders to complete housing requests – sent to primary contacts periodically between registration submission and May 10 deadline; will not be sent once form is complete; sent from an @schooltheatre.org email address 

• Thespys® and College Audition instructions and reminder emails – sent to primary contacts with attendees registered for these programs periodically from time of registration until submission deadline of May 10, 2023; sent from an @schooltheatre.org email address. 

 
IMPORTANT: Many school firewalls block external emails, especially to students. If you are not receiving emails about ITF, this may be the reason why. If you have registered with a school email address and are not receiving emails from us, please contact events@schooltheatre.org for assistance.

Those add-ons are only available to members, so if you didn't see those options during registration, you were most likely registering as a non-member. If you have not yet completed registration, make sure your myedta.schooltheatre.org account is up to date and that you entered the correct email address in the registration search box. If you completed registration already and this was an error, please email events@schooltheatre.org for assistance. 

Students may attend ITF as part of a Thespian troupe or individually with a parent/guardian chaperone. All chaperones must be registered and consent to a background check, whether staying on campus or off site in a hotel, regardless of their relationship to any students they might be accompanying (i.e. a parent staying off site must still complete a background check). Registration must be completed by the parent/guardian chaperone.

As a chaperone, your registration selection depends on the registration type of the student you will be chaperoning. 

If the student(s) you are chaperoning will be staying on campus, then you must also stay on campus for the duration of the event. Both the student(s) and chaperone must register for an All-Access Pass.

If the student(s) you are chaperoning will be staying off campus, then you must also stay off campus in an official host hotel. The student(s) must register for an Activities-Only Pass. Chaperones can register for either an Activities-Only Pass or a Chaperone Pass, depending on the level of access the chaperone desires during ITF.

• Activities-Only Pass: Includes access to all ITF activities except late night events in dorms. Does not include housing or meal plan.
• Parent/Guardian Pass: Includes access to exhibit hall opening ceremony, Thespys® Awards Showcase, and ticketed performances. Does not include access to other ITF activities, housing or meals. Available to non-member adults only.

ITF 2023 programming will officially begin on Monday, June 19, so we encourage all attendees to arrive and check in on Sunday, June 18. There is no additional fee associated with checking in on this date.

Troupes participating in Main Stage and Chapter Select Showcase must arrive on Sunday, June 18 to participate in production meetings.

Attendees participating in Thespys are highly encouraged to arrive on Sunday, June 18 in anticipation of adjudication which will begin in the morning on Monday, June 19. 

Primary Contacts must submit the On-Campus Housing Form by May 10, 2023, and no changes can be made to roommate assignments after this date. If the form is not completed, our team will assign roommates based on the floor preference submitted for each attendee at the time of registration.

Please note: if the On-Campus Housing Form is not completed, you will not be able to make Main Stage ticketing selections. 

All adult attendees will be housed in single-occupancy dorm rooms. There is not an adult registration option that allows for roommates. 

All students will be housed in double-occupancy rooms. If a group contains an odd number of students, the student who does not have a pre-determined roommate will be housed with a student from another school wherever possible. 

ITF involves minors and therefore must follow IU’s program involving children (PIC) policy. Per IU’s PIC policy, attendees must be separated by floor based on gender binary. Attendees may be housed on either a masculine or feminine identifying floor; primary contacts must select floor preference for each attendee when registering their group. We recognize that not all attendees identify as masculine or feminine, and the floor preference should reflect where they would be most comfortable.  

The following properties are official host hotels: 

• Biddle Hotel & Conference Center (located at the Indiana Memorial Union) 
• Hyatt Place Bloomington
• The Graduate Bloomington

You can review an existing hotel reservation by logging in to the Attendee Service Center. Login credentials can be found in your registration confirmation email.

Please note: all hotel reservations will be listed as "pending" until the final weeks leading up to the event. Please do not contact the hotel directly about your reservation information. Instead, email events@schooltheatre.org for assistance. 

The nearest airport to Indiana University is the Indianapolis International Airport (IND). The airport is 50 miles north of Bloomington and serviced by most major carriers.

Options include shuttle or rental car (bus and train services are not available).

Shuttle: GoExpress offers shuttle service between the Indianapolis International Airport and various stops in Bloomington for $29 per person each way. Reserve online to guarantee your seat.

Car Rental: The following car rental companies offer on-site pickup options at the Indianapolis International Airport Ground Transportation Center, located on the first floor of the Terminal Garage:

There are a number of important reasons why attendees staying off campus must book reservations at one of our host hotels:

• In an effort to secure special reservation rates for our attendees, EdTA negotiates contracts with each of our host hotels. If our contracted housing obligations are not met, EdTA will pay significant penalty fees. Such fees may result in increased registration costs over time.
• We are able to monitor attendance through our hotel room blocks. This enables us to be better prepared in any given circumstance and helps with cost containment.
• Each of our host hotels is selected with our attendees in mind. In addition to curbing costs, some key factors include:
  • Proximity to campus (each hotel is less than one mile from the Indiana Memorial Union)
  • Hotel amenities (may include complimentary breakfast, pool, fitness center, etc.)
  • Parking (which is often cheaper and less challenging than on campus.

If staying on campus, the primary contact for the group will receive the dorm assignment via email no more than one week before the start of the event. Specific room assignments will be provided upon check in.

Attendees staying off-campus will receive confirmation numbers ia email within 72 hours of check-in date. 

We accept the following payment methods:  

• Credit Card (American Express, Mastercard, Visa)  
• Check

To pay your balance, log into the Attendee Service Center (login credentials are in your registration confirmation email). Select either “Make an Individual Payment” to pay for your registration only, or “Make a Group Payment” to pay for all the attendees in your group. You can then enter your credit card information, or mail a check with a copy of your invoice to: 
 
International Thespian Festival
PO Box 7410258
Chicago, IL 60674-0258

All registration fees must be paid in full no later than June 9, 2023.

Log in to the Attendee Service Center and click either “Individual Payment & Invoice” or “Group Invoice & Payment.” Then scroll to the bottom of the page and click to open the PDF. Download or print accordingly. 

Click here to download a completed W-9 form for the 2022-2023 program year. 

Yes! International Thespian Festival grants are available for troupes as part of our annual grant cycle. View more information on grants. 

Any Thespian troupe can submit its production to be considered for the ITF main stage. View the full Main Stage Guide.

Please complete the adjudicator application here: https://edta.secure-platform.com/a/solicitations/166/home 

College auditions are open to inducted Thespians who are in the class of 2024. You must purchase the audition add-on during registration by May 3, 2023 and submit your audition materials by May 10, 2023. All auditions will be virtual; callbacks will be held either in-person or virtually at the discretion of each college. College representatives will follow up directly with students to request a callback. 

Thespians who are in the class of 2024 can participate in college auditions for the chance to wow reps from 60+ college theatre programs nationwide. Colleges who attend ITF award admission and scholarships to ITF attendees each year. 
 
Thespians can earn scholarships through the Thespy Awards program. Top-scoring participants at the international level will be automatically eligible for nearly $40,000 in Grace Kelly Scholarships and the Amy Bennett Musical Theatre Scholarship. Those eligible will participate in an interview process to determine the winners. 
 
If you do not qualify for the Thespys, EdTA offers several merit-based scholarships. Learn more about other EdTA scholarship opportunities. 

The best resource for Thespys questions can be found on the official Thespys website. Please refer to the FAQ and additional pages for more info. Specific questions may also be emailed to thespys@schooltheatre.org.

We are currently awaiting the arrival of additional Thespy materials to send out to participants. Once received by us, materials will be shipped to the troupe director's attention at the school's address. It is our goal to send an email to troupe directors once shipments are on their way.

EdTA seeks proposals in theatre and technical theatre which reflect a broad spectrum of standards-based learning covering all five of the theatre framework categories (acting, producing/directing, designing, writing, and dramaturgy) and which model best thinking in the field, informed by theory, experience, and practice.

The Education Committee will accept proposals beginning September 1, 2022 until November 1, 2022.
 

What constitutes mature content varies widely among school districts and communities. EdTA will never tell ITF audiences what they can and cannot watch, understanding that some people are uncomfortable watching mature content and/or that they would not be allowed to view such content in their schools. To ensure that all attendees are fully informed, all Main Stage shows featuring mature content are noted as such in the schedule. With the schedule published in advance, attendees can decide whether to see the performance in question, attend another show, or choose a different activity. The full schedule is posted before ITF begins to allow audience members to make choices about which shows to see. 

We will have ASL interpretation available for both the Opening Ceremony and Thespy® Awards Showcase for the in-person event. 

For the virtual experience, we will have ASL interpretation and/or live captioning available wherever possible. Please email events@schooltheatre.org if you have any other accessibility needs. 

Promoting an inclusive environment is a top priority at ITF. Pronouns can be indicated during the registration process for all attendees, and if shared, they will be included on the official ITF name badges. System limitations prohibit us from printing more than one set of pronouns on a badge, and we highly encourage attendees to write in any additional pronouns that they use.

Housing accommodations will be made in the dorms if requested and dorms and many public buildings on campus have gender-neutral bathrooms. View a map of all-gender restrooms on the IU Campus. We are more than happy to work with any attendee to address specific concerns. Please email events@schooltheatre.org with any questions.

The use of service animals such as guide dogs is covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). With a few exceptions (due to health and safety concerns), service dogs are allowed anywhere the handler is allowed on the IU Bloomington campus. 

The use of emotional support animals is not covered under the ADA. Emotional support animals are allowed on campus only with prior approval in the residence halls. 

For attendees staying on campus, primary contacts will be asked to include service animals in the On-Campus Housing form. 

Accessible parking can be found in a number of places across campus. Please refer to this interactive map for specific locations and details. 

Students attending with their troupe (not chaperoned by a parent or other relative) should follow their school’s policies for carrying and administering medications. Chaperones and/or parents of students who normally take required medications outside of the school day should check with administration to ensure the necessary forms and protocols are in place prior to ITF.

For students who are attending ITF separately from a Thespian troupe, parents and/or adults acting as chaperones are responsible for their own students’ medications.