Please join us in creating meaningful experiences in the lives of Minnesota youth by donating to Hennepin Arts! DONATE NOW

Image 100

Through the Production Assessment process, Spotlight sends trained theater professionals and educators to watch and assess participating schools’ theater productions. Schools receive educational feedback and honors based on the merit of their show.

Schools participating in the Production Assessment Track submit one (1) full-length musical or play per school year for evaluation, and Spotlight sends trained performance and technical evaluators to the production. Participating schools are eligible to be featured at Spotlight Showcase.

Spotlight Schools 2025-2026

Andover High School – TBD – 4/24/26-5/3/26

Anoka High School – TBD – 5/2/26-5/9/26

Apple Valley High School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 11/7/25-11/15/25

Armstrong High School – Brigadoon – 2/27/26-3/7/26

Barnesville High School – The Hunchback of Notre Dame – 11/13/25-11/16/25

Becker High School – Mamma Mia! – 11/14/25-11/16/25

Belle Plaine Jr. Sr. High – The Addams Family – 11/14/25-11/23/25

Bemidji High School – The Addams Family – 11/6/25-11/8/25

Benilde-St. Margaret's School – Once Upon a Mattress – 11/13/25-11/16/25

Blaine High School – Big Fish: School Edition – 4/30/26-5/2/26

Breck School – Mamma Mia! – 11/15/25-11/22/25

Burnsville High School – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – 11/6/25-11/15/25

Cambridge-Isanti High School – The Prince of Egypt – 11/8/25-11/23/25

Centennial High School – Mary Poppins – 4/30/26-5/3/26

Champlin Park High School – Anything Goes (2022 Revision) – 5/1/26-5/10/26

Chanhassen High School – Mean Girls: High School Version – 11/7/25-11/15/25

Chaska High School – High School Musical: On Stage – 11/14/25-11/22/25

Chisago Lakes High School – The Wizard of Oz – 11/14/25-11/23/25

Columbia Heights High School – Newsies – 12/4/25-12/7/25

Concordia Academy – Disney’s Frozen – 3/13/26-3/22/26

Coon Rapids High School – Cinderella – 4/24/26-5/2/26

Creative Arts Secondary School – TBD – 4/30/26-5/3/26

Cretin-Derham Hall High School – The Little Mermaid – 5/1/26-5/10/26

Delano High School – Kiss Me, Kate – 4/10/26-4/18/26

DeLaSalle High School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 4/9/26-4/19/26

Duluth Denfeld High School – Kiss Me, Kate – 4/16/26-4/18/26

Duluth East High School – Alice by Heart – 10/23/25-10/26/25

Eagan High School - non-assessment school

East Central Senior High School – Wizard of Oz – 11/21/25-11/23/25

East Ridge High School – Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical – 11/7/25-11/16/25

Eden Prairie High School – The Little Mermaid – 11/7/25-11/15/25

Edina High School – Mean Girls: High School Version – 11/7/25-11/9/25

Farmington High School – Mean Girls: High School Version – 4/24/26-5/2/26

Forest Lake Area High School – Anastasia – 11/14/25-11/23/25

Fridley High School – Tuck Everlasting – 11/13/25-11/22/25

Glencoe-Silver Lake High School – Mamma Mia! – 11/6/25-11/9/25

Great River School – Sweet Charity – 2/27/26-3/8/26

Hand in Hand Christian Montessori – Twelfth Night – 3/27/26-3/28/26

Hill-Murray School – The Secret Garden – 5/1/26-5/9/26

Hopkins High School – TBD – 4/24/26-5/3/26

Houston High School – Aladdin Jr. – 10/24/25-10/26/25

Hutchinson High School – Water for Elephants – 10/29/25-11/2/25

Irondale High School – The Litter Mermaid – 10/30/25-11/2/25

Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton High School – Mamma Mia! – 11/6/25-11/8/25

Kasson-Mantorville Senior High School – The Addams Family – 10/24/25-10/26/25

Kennedy High School – The Addams Family – 10/30/25-11/2/25

Lakes International Language Academy – Mamma Mia! – 2/27/25-3/1/25

Lakeville North High School – Anything Goes – 12/5/25-12/14/25

Lakeville South High School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 4/24/26-5/3/26

Legacy Christian Academy – Disney’s Newsies – 10/31/25-11/8/25

Little Falls Community High School – Mamma Mia! – 4/30/26-5/2/26

Mahtomedi High School – Into the Woods – 11/14/25-11/23/25

Mankato East High School – Grease – 11/6/25-11/8/25

Marshall School – Guys and Dolls – 4/16/25-4/19/25

Math and Science Academy – The Addams Family – 11/7/25-11/9/25

Mayo High School – A Christmas Carol – 11/20/25-11/23/25

Minneapolis Washburn High School – Chicago: Teen Edition – 11/7/25-11/16/25

Minnehaha Academy – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – 4/16/26-4/18/26

Minnetonka High School – Monty Python’s Spamalot – 5/2/26-5/10/26

Minnewaska Area High School – Mary Poppins – 11/14/25-11/16/25

Mora High School – Mamma Mia! – 3/26/26-3/28/26

Mounds View High School – Mamma Mia! – 4/30/26-5/3/26

New Life Academy – Mary Poppins – 10/31/25-11/9/25

New Prague High School – Bye Bye Birdie – 11/21/25-11/30/25

North Branch Area High School – TBD – 4/30/26-5/3/26

North High School – The Little Mermaid – 11/7/25-11/25/25

Orono High School – Tuck Everlasting – 11/14/25-11/22/25

Owatonna High School – Les Misérables – 2/26/26-3/7/26

Park High School – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dreamcoat – 4/10/26-4/19/26

Perpich Arts High School – Once Upon a One More Time – 4/30/26-5/2/26

PiM Arts High School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 2/27/26-3/7/26

Prior Lake High School – Rogers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella – 11/20/25-11/23/25

Randolph High School – Little Shop of Horrors – 11/14/25-11/15/25

Richfield Senior High School – TBD – 4/30/26-5/3/26

Rock Ridge High School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 11/13/25-11/16/25

Rogers High School – Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical – 11/7/25-11/15/25

Rosemount High School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 4/30/25-5/3/25

Roseville Area High School – The Spongebob Musical – 11/7/25-11/9/25

Rushford-Peterson High School – Mamma Mia! – 11/13/25-11/15/25

Saint John's Preparatory School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 4/10/25-4/18/25

Sartell High School – The Drowsy Chaperone – 4/23/26-4/25/26

Shakopee High School – Legally Blonde the Musical – 11/20/25-11/23/25

Simley High School – Leading Ladies – 11/31/25-11/16/25

South St. Paul Secondary School – Bright Star – 11/14/25-11/16/25

Southwest Christian High School – You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown – 4/23/26-4/25/26

Spectrum High School – Pride and Prejudice – 11/21/25-11/23/25

St. Croix Preparatory Academy – High School Musical: On Stage – 2/27/26-3/6/26

St. Francis High School – Once Upon a Mattress – 4/16/26-4/19/26

St. Louis Park High School – String – 11/13/25-11/22/25

St. Michael-Albertville High School – Pippin – 11/6/25-11/9/25

St. Paul Academy and Summit School – The Dining Room – 11/14/25-11/15/25

St. Peter High School – The Little Mermaid – 11/21/25/11/23/25

Stillwater Area High School – The Drowsy Chaperone – 4/3/26-4/12/26

Tartan High School – She Kills Monsters – 4/17/26-4/26/26

Tech High School – Little Shop of Horrors – 11/14/25-11/16/25

The Blake School – Hadestown: Teen Edition – 11/21/25-11/23/25

Thomas Edison High School – The Lightning Thief – 3/12/26-3/15/26

Thomas Jefferson High School – Once Upon A Mattress – 4/17/26-4/25/26

Totino-Grace High School – Elf! – 12/10/25-12/14/25

Triton High School – TBD – 3/26/26-3/28/26

Two Rivers High School – Little Women – 4/23/26-5/2/26

VISTA Productions/Theatre Department of Visitation School and Saint Thomas Academy – The Music Man – 4/24/26-5/3/26

Wabasha Kellogg High School – TBD – 4/30/26-5/3/26

Waconia High School – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – 10/9/25-10/12/25

Wayzata High School – Anything Goes – 11/14/25-11/22/25

Westonka High School – Chicago: Teen Edition – 11/20/25-11/23/25

White Bear Lake Area High School – Cinderella – 11/14/25-11/22/25

Woodbury High School – Mean Girls: High School Version – 11/1/25-11/8/25

Show Eligibility

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 6 - December 14, 2025

  • Spring Semester: February 9 - May 3, 2026

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

Published Musical, Play, Operetta or Revue

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.

Original Theatrical Compilation

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.

Original Musical or Play

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

Junior Productions

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.

Spotlight Evaluators

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.

Assessment Types

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.

For more information, contact Spotlight Education.

Spotlight Education helps nearly 8,000 students annually build confidence, critical thinking, empathy, a sense of community, knowledge, and appreciation of theater.

Connect

Connect with Spotlight Education

Stay Informed

Sign up to receive Spotlight Education updates

Donate

Help us continue to develop great programs

Donate Now