Spotlight Performing Arts

08/19/2026

Spotlight Performing Arts has a brand new little member to welcome. 💛

Ezra John made his arrival on August 10, and after a short stay in the NICU, he is doing wonderfully and is now right where he belongs with his family.

We are so grateful for everyone in our SPA family who checked in, prayed for us, encouraged us, and showed our family so much love throughout this pregnancy and Ezra’s arrival.

We’ve spent the last week settling into life as a family of six, soaking up the newborn days, and enjoying a little time away before everything gets moving again.

We’re excited to be easing back into the swing of things, now with one more little member of the SPA family along for the ride. 💛

Welcome, Ezra John!

08/05/2026

Our first week of The Wizard of Oz rehearsals is officially in the books! 🌈

We kicked things off with our cast read-through before diving into music rehearsals with our Munchkins, Emerald City Players, and both Emerald and Ruby principal casts. It has been so exciting to hear the music come to life and watch our cast begin bringing these beloved characters to the stage.

We’re off to a wonderful start, and we can’t wait to continue the journey down the Yellow Brick Road! 💚❤️🌪️

08/03/2026

Our Squishy & Sensory Basket Raffle has officially come to an end!

Congratulations to our winner, and thank you to everyone who participated. 29 people purchased tickets, helping us raise $500 for Spotlight Performing Arts!

We also want to give a huge thank you to everyone who donated items for the basket. Your generosity made this fundraiser possible and helped us create such a fun prize package filled with squishies, sensory items, and other goodies.

The funds raised will go directly toward helping us provide quality theatre experiences for local children through productions, costumes, sets, props, scholarships, and educational programming. Every fundraiser like this helps us continue growing and serving our community.

Thank you for believing in our mission and supporting Spotlight Performing Arts. We can’t wait to share everything we have planned for The Wizard of Oz and beyond! 💙

08/01/2026

We had such a great time sponsoring Ambucs Friday Nights last night!

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth to spin the prize wheel, chat with us, learn more about Spotlight Performing Arts, and support our Squishy & Sensory Box Raffle Fundraiser. We loved meeting so many new faces and seeing familiar ones too!

A huge thank you to some of our amazing Wizard of Oz cast members for coming out in costume and helping represent Spotlight. They brought so much excitement to the evening and were a huge hit with everyone who stopped by!

We are so thankful to Danville Illinois AMBUCS for inviting us to be part of such a fun community event. We can’t wait to see many of you again this fall as we journey down the Yellow Brick Road together! 💙✨

07/30/2026

We’re excited to be part of AMBUCS Friday Nights tomorrow evening!

A huge thank you to AMBUCS for inviting Spotlight Performing Arts to be one of this week’s evening sponsors. If you’re planning to be at Friday Nights, be sure to stop by and say hello!

You may even spot a few special visitors from The Wizard of Oz wandering around throughout the evening. We can’t wait to share a little Oz magic with the community!

See you tomorrow! 💚👠🌪️

THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SPONSORS!

07/28/2026

Don’t forget about our Squishy + Raffle Basket Fundraiser!

There’s still time to get your entries in, but not much. We’ll be drawing the winners THIS SUNDAY!

If you’ve been meaning to grab a squishy or get your name into the raffle basket drawing, now’s the time!

Thank you so much for supporting Spotlight Performing Arts! Every purchase and entry helps support our programs and our kids. 💚

🩵✨ SQUISHY & SENSORY BOX RAFFLE FUNDRAISER! ✨🩵

We’re excited to kick off our Squishy & Sensory Box Raffle, packed with squishies, NeeDohs, sensory toys, and more! Winner will be drawn August 2nd.

🎟️ Tickets:
• 1 for $5
• 5 for $20

➡️ Purchase your raffle tickets here: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/squishy-and-sensory-bin-raffle

All money raised will help support our next two productions, Shrek Jr. and The Wizard of Oz: Youth Edition, helping us continue creating unforgettable theatre experiences for local children and families.

A huge thank you to everyone who donated items for this basket and helped make this fundraiser possible! Your generosity means so much to us.

Thank you for supporting Spotlight Performing Arts and helping our young performers shine! 💙💛🎭

07/26/2026

🌈 Congratulations to the cast of Spotlight Performing Arts’ The Wizard of Oz: Youth Edition!

We were overwhelmed by the talent, preparation, and enthusiasm at auditions. With more than 70 performers joining us for this production, we are excited to bring the Land of Oz to life!

This year, several principal roles have been double cast as our Emerald Cast and Ruby Cast, allowing even more young performers the opportunity to grow in leading roles. We are also thrilled to feature an incredible company of Munchkins, Flying Monkeys, Emerald City Players, Ozians, Dance Ensemble, and more.

Congratulations to everyone who auditioned! We can’t wait to begin rehearsals and share this magical journey with all of you.

07/23/2026

🎤 AUGUST 1ST - SATURDAY NIGHT WITH SPA: KARAOKE NIGHT🎶

Our ONLY Saturday Night with SPA in August is coming up, and we’re making it a good one… KARAOKE NIGHT! 🌟

Grab the mic, pick your favorite song, and get ready for a night of singing, music, snacks, and time with friends at SPA! Sing a solo, grab a friend for a duet, get a group together, or just come hang out and cheer everyone on!

🗓️ August 1st 6:00-8:30
✨ $20 per child
🎶 Family-friendly song choices only
🎤 You do NOT have to sing to attend!

We expect this one to be POPULAR, and spots are limited! Sign up early to save your spot!

⬇️ SIGN UP HERE ⬇️
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A44ACA62BA5FDCF8-64866352-saturday

07/21/2026

We’ve added audition prep times from 7:00-8:30 on Wednesday night (tomorrow!)

If you didn’t get a chance to sign up for a prep you have another chance.

We can’t wait to see all of these new and returning kiddos.

🎭 Wizard of Oz Audition Workshop 🎭

Preparing to audition for The Wizard of Oz? Join Tyler Thompson, Music Director for The Wizard of Oz, for a free audition workshop designed to help performers prepare their audition song, build confidence, and receive personalized feedback before auditions.

This workshop is intended for performers who are not current Thompson Music Studio students, as audition preparation is already included in regular lessons.

Members of the Wizard of Oz production team will also be available to answer questions about auditions, rehearsals, and the production before audition weekend.

📅 Tuesday, July 21 or Thursday, July 23
🕡 6:30–8:30 PM
📍 Spotlight Performing Arts

🎵 Please come with an audition song in mind.

This workshop is offered free of charge. Goodwill donations are appreciated but never expected. Spotlight Performing Arts will be taking a brief pause from programming in August as Executive Director Bailey Thompson welcomes the newest member of the Thompson family. Donations from this workshop help cover operating expenses during that time and help Spotlight return ready for an exciting fall season.

Reserve your 10-minute time slot here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A44ACA62BA5FDCF8-64779820-wizard

07/19/2026

A small group of our SPA students had the opportunity to take a field trip to Indianapolis today to see Ride the Cyclone at the Phoenix Theatre Cultural Centre!

We love giving our students opportunities to experience theatre outside of SPA and see other artists at work. There is so much to learn and be inspired by simply sitting in the audience and experiencing live theatre together.

Today was an especially fun full-circle moment for Miss Bailey! One of the actors in the production was actually a student she taught while student teaching theatre at Warren Central High School in Indianapolis. Years later, she got to sit in the audience with some of her current SPA students and watch a former student perform onstage!

The cast was incredibly talented, and our group had such a fun afternoon experiencing this unique, funny, moving, and wonderfully done production.

Thank you to the cast and creative team of Ride the Cyclone for a fantastic afternoon of theatre and for inspiring the next generation of young performers! 🎭