A Spotlight on Inspiration – Mr Evans and Miss Green at the MTI Junior Theatre Festival!
Last weekend, Mr Evans and Miss Green had the absolute pleasure of attending the MTI Junior Theatre Festival in Birmingham – a full day bursting with energy, creativity, and the kind of inspiration that only musical theatre can bring!
Held annually, the Junior Theatre Festival is a celebration of youth theatre at its finest. Groups from across Europe gathered to showcase their performances of MTI’s Broadway Junior musicals – and what a show it was! From the very first moment, the talent on display was nothing short of incredible. Each group brought something unique to the stage: bold choreography, soaring harmonies, and performances full of heart and storytelling power. It was a reminder of what young performers are capable of with the right guidance, passion, and teamwork.
For Mr Evans and Miss Green, it wasn’t just about watching the performances – it was a chance to learn, too! Throughout the day, they took part in a range of professional development workshops led by West End creatives and teaching artists from MTI and iTheatrics.
🎶 Harmony Singing Workshop
They explored techniques for teaching harmonies to young performers – even those new to part-singing. They came away with ideas for layering vocal lines, building confidence, and helping children hear and hold their parts more clearly. Expect to hear some richer harmonies in future Sefton Spotlights performances!
💃 Choreography Workshop
Led by an energetic and inspiring choreographer, this session focused on movement that’s exciting and achievable for young casts. Mr Evans and Miss Green learned new ways to use choreography to create rich settings and characters, as well as fun tricks to make transitions slick and storytelling shine through every step.
🎭 Warm-Ups and Ensemble Staging
From energising games to vocal and physical warm-ups that really prepare a group for rehearsal, this workshop was packed with useful tools. They also explored ensemble staging – ways to involve every cast member meaningfully. Perfect for making sure every Spotlight gets their moment to shine.
It’s been so inspiring to see what other groups are doing. The creativity and quality on show was just amazing – and we can’t wait to share what we’ve learned with our brilliant Spotlights! The workshops were so practical and packed with ideas we can use straight away. We are already thinking about how we can use some of the warm-up games in our next session.
The whole day was a wonderful opportunity to connect with other youth theatre leaders, pick up fresh ideas, and bring back a renewed excitement to our own rehearsals.
✨🎭🎶
