We had a fantastic time at Junior Theater Festival 2026! Our troupe took home the award for Excellence in Ensemble! If you want to join us for next year, auditions are Sunday, April 24th, 2026, from 3:30-6 pm.

The Advanced Training Troupe (Troupe for short!) is Firefly Theatrical’s year-long experience for passionate young performers ready to grow, challenge themselves, and shine on bigger stages.

The year begins in May 2026 with weekly rehearsals for a fully staged production of Matilda Jr. on August 14-15th, bringing together dedicated performers for an exciting summer rehearsal process and performances. After a couple weeks off in the fall, students continue their training in acting, voice, and dance while creating a special performance cut of the show to represent Firefly at the Junior Theater Festival in Atlanta January 15-17, 2027.

After another short break (recovery is important!), the year concludes with a never-before-seen collaborative showcase in early April that is tailored to that year’s Troupe members, celebrating a year of growth and creativity!

For students ready to work hard, build lasting friendships, and truly step into the next level of training, Troupe is where Firefly’s brightest young artists come to shine!

What is JTF? — The Junior Theater Festival (JTF) is an annual conference of 7,000 students and directors from youth theatre companies across the world! Every troupe shares a 15-minute cut from a junior musical for adjudication with awards being given on the final day. Participants also take workshops in singing, dancing, and acting plus see interviews and performances with Broadway performers and famous musical composers. Parents can come as well; we need a chaperone for every four students. Parents will pay the $385 ticket fee for the weekend conference (and food and hotel if they so choose). (If we don’t get enough parent chaperones, everyone will pay a small chaperone fee so we can bring more Firefly staff members to be chaperones.)

Auditions: Please sign up for a one-hour time slot to sing (3:30-4:30 pm or 5:30-6 pm). Everyone will need to attend the dance call from 4:30-5:30 pm. Be prepared to sing a one-minute cut from a musical theatre song. Please bring jazz shoes (tennis shoes are also fine for the audition but student will need black jazz shoes for the festival).