Digital Junior Theatre Festival features exclusive West End performances and workshops
Hattie Fisk
Friday, May 7, 2021
In partnership with iTheatrics, the Junior Theatre Festival from Music Theatre International (MTI) is transitioning to a virtual format on 8 May, featuring West End workshops and panels for students, teachers and directors.
Remaining Europe’s biggest celebration of musical theatre for schools and youth groups, the day-long programme will include panel discussions with West End performers and creatives, exclusive performances and collaboration across mediums.
Over 870 young performers from 33 schools and youth groups will be taking part, tuning in from across the United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, Malta, Georgia and the Czech Republic.
The event will include representatives from Hamilton, Disney’s The Lion King, & Juliet, Mary Poppins, and the award-winning authors of Matilda the Musical.
There will also be an exclusive ‘Matilda Takeover’ segment where authors of the show, Tim Minchin and Dennis Kelly, will take part in a unique Q&A with attendees. Matilda the Musical alumni Kerry Ingram and Tom Brown will join associate director Lotte Wakeham in conversation about the show, screening specially created performances from Belfast School of Performing Arts.
MTI will be giving priority access for attending schools and groups to access the performing rights to Matilda the Musical JR. – a specially-created one hour version of the musical designed for young performers – before the show is released publicly later in May.
A special performance of ‘When I Grow Up’ from Matilda the Musical will close the event, uniting students from across Europe.
Originally an in-person event, the festival has moved to a virtual format on 8 May, with an in-person festival planned for 24 October at the ICC, Birmingham.
The event costs a fee of £250 per group, with an additional individual fee of £55.