Productions submitted for evaluation must categorize as one of the following:

• A published musical, play, operetta or revue (either currently held by a licensing house or in the public domain) that is presented with the approval or permission of the original creators or their representatives.
• An original musical or play, which features an original script, music and/or lyrics, and is covered under a valid copyright that is presented with the approval or permission of the original creators or their representatives. Schools must communicate with Spotlight Education if they choose to produce a show of this nature to ensure Spotlight can provide all the resources needed. Productions of this nature must be performed in one of the following formats:
  • 90 minutes, no intermission
  • 2+ hours, one intermission
• An original theatrical compilation of musical/text material from other sources that is presented with the approval or permission of the original creators or their representatives. Excludes: show choir, choral or vocal jazz arrangement.
• Junior productions will be considered upon review of the length and difficulty of the material. Please contact Spotlight Education if you have any questions regarding show submission. To be eligible for assessment, a production must have at least one (1) weekend of performances within one of the following windows:
  • Fall semester: October 9 – December 17, 2023
  • Spring semester: January 29 – May 5, 2024

All of our evaluations (Pre-, Technical, and Performance) are conducted by our Spotlight evaluators. These evaluators are professional artists and educators with a strong theater background who have worked extensively in theater performance, technical theater, and or/educational theater. All evaluators are required to participate in an annual training, and those interacting directly with students complete a background check.

Spotlight  evaluators’ primary responsibilities and duties are:

• Attend mandatory pre-season evaluator orientation each year of evaluating services
• Be available to evaluate school productions (as per evaluator’s availability) and provide a written evaluation through the online form between 1-3 days after viewing production.
• Provide professional, detailed feedback when completing all evaluation forms with the intention to promote educational growth of individuals and high school programs.

Interested in serving as a Spotlight evaluator for the 2023-2024 season? Email us at [email protected].

The purpose of the pre-evaluation is to provide feedback prior to the opening of a production and give an informal congratulations to the students on their hard work. Spotlight Education offers two models for a pre-evaluation that a school can choose from:

A Spotlight pre-evaluator visits during the rehearsal process of a production to workshop or engage with students in an area of the school’s choosing.

A Spotlight pre-evaluator visits during a final technical or dress rehearsal for a production and provides verbal feedback following the run.

The purpose of the technical evaluation is to observe the work of student technicians and student- led technical work for a school production based on what students have been given. Spotlight Education offers two models for the technical evaluation that a school can choose from:

A Spotlight technical evaluator visits during a final technical or dress rehearsal of a production and observes technical students at work onstage and offstage.

A Spotlight technical evaluator visits during a performance of a production and observes technical students at work.

The performance evaluation is designed to give students educational feedback on performance elements. Three (3) Spotlight performance evaluators attend the production as audience members. Each show is evaluated in several categories, including ensemble and individual performance, as well as execution of student-led technical aspects of the production.