Festivals

Community Theatre Festival

The Community Theatre division is a dynamic and vital part of the SETC organization. SETC hosts an annual adjudicated festival for Community Theater participants that are advanced by their state. Advancement is usually determined during a state festival, but theatres may advance by other means if their state does not hold a festival. 

Every other year, in odd-numbered years, SETC serves as a sanctioning festival for advancing to the American Association of Community Theatre national festival. Because SETC is the largest region in the nation and has such enthusiastic participation, two companies are eligible to advance to AACTFest. To maintain continuity and to assure eligibility to advance, SETC follows AACT guidelines and rules even in non-national years. Those rules may be found at AACTFest 2025 Handbook | AACT - American Association of Community Theatre. 

SETC is proud of their national reputation for producing great theatre. Companies advancing from the SETC festival to AACTFest have always been well received.  In the past, many companies from SETC have received numerous awards. 

SETC also provides access to workshops at the convention every year and to other online learning opportunities throughout the year. Come be a part of SETC and play with us! 

Secondary School Theatre Festival

The Secondary School Theatre Festival is SETC’s largest and most high-energy event for high school theatre programs. Schools from across the southeastern U.S. are invited to present one-act or shortened productions for a panel of professional adjudicators, offering students a chance to perform on a major regional stage. 

Key Features

• Designed for high school students (grades 9–12)
• 45-minute performance limit with 10-minute setup/strike
• Professional adjudication with written and verbal feedback
• Exposure to college recruiters, vendors, and theatre professionals
• Encourages excellence in ensemble work, directing, technical design, and storytelling
• Festival culminates with an awards ceremony recognizing outstanding achievement

This festival is not just a competition—it's a stepping stone. SSTF fosters discipline, collaboration, and pride, giving students the chance to grow artistically and personally.

Fringe Festival

A Platform for the Bold. A Celebration of the Unconventional.

The SETC Fringe Festival is a non-competitive performance festival held annually during the SETC Convention. Dedicated to fostering bold, innovative performances, Fringe offers artists a platform to explore the edges of their creativity. 

We showcase dynamic, original work that challenges traditional forms and resonates with culturally adventurous audiences. From devised theatre and solo performance to experimental genres and new musicals, Fringe is where boundaries blur and new ideas take shape. 

Our goal is to curate unforgettable experiences that expand minds and open hearts, embracing a diverse range of styles, voices, and visions. We invite artists and ensembles to bring their most daring, genre-defying work to this vibrant, ever-evolving festival. 

How the Fringe Festival Works 

The SETC Fringe Festival is curated to represent a wide range of performance types, artistic intentions, and geographic voices, offering opportunities for anyone from college/university students to seasoned professionals to share work in a dynamic, supportive space. 

Behind the scenes, our festival organizers coordinate efforts in four key areas to make the experience possible: 

• Participant Recruitment
  Festival artists are invited through professional networks, student recommendations, social media, SETC memberships and promotions, and outreach to local artists in our region. Participants will apply in advance for consideration and know if they are selected well before earl-bird registration for the convention.
• Festival Space
  Fringe performances typically take place in a shared venue used by other SETC events. Due to space limitations, storage is minimal and only available immediately before your scheduled performance. Artists should plan to work flexibly within this collaborative environment.
• Technical Setup
  Technical support is intentionally minimal—think low-tech, high-creativity. Performers must use what’s available in the room (usually chairs, possibly a table). No costumes, sets, or props are provided. Fringe Guidelines sent upon acceptance will outline any further details. 
• Communication
  Organizers maintain close communication with performers and ensure all festival records are submitted to the SETC Central Office post-event. Our goal is a smooth, inspiring, and connected experience for all. 

Who Should Be Involved 

The SETC Fringe Festival welcomes a wide spectrum of artists—from college and university students to independent professionals—who are eager to share performances that challenge, provoke, delight, and disrupt. We encourage applications from individuals and ensembles who bring bold vision, collaborative spirit, and diverse perspectives. 

Selection Process 

Participants are selected through a committee review of fully completed applications. Submissions are evaluated using a rubric that considers: 

1. Artistic Merit – Overall quality and clarity of the performance vision 
2. Originality & Innovation – Uniqueness and creative risk-taking 
3. Feasibility & Practicality – Realistic execution within the festival’s technical and spatial constraints 
4. Relevance to Festival Goals – Alignment with Fringe’s mission to push boundaries and invite new forms 
5. Audience Engagement Potential – Anticipated impact on and connection with the audience 
6. Professionalism & Preparedness – Clarity, completeness, and care in the application 
7. Collaboration & Diversity – Projects that encourage collaboration or reflect a range of styles, cultures, and identities 

We are committed to curating a varied and vibrant lineup. The final selection ensures a dynamic mix of genres, themes, performance sizes, and voices—avoiding repetition and celebrating range. 

Join us at SETC’s Fringe Festival!

Theatre for Youth Festival

Theatre for Youth (TFY) is focused on productions created for and with young audiences. This unique festival features performances from professional TYA (Theatre for Young Audiences) companies as well as educational institutions showcasing work geared toward children and teens.

Key Features

• Open to youth theatre companies, universities, and professional TYA ensembles
• Focused on educational value, engagement, and age-appropriate storytelling
• Encourages interactive, imaginative, and message-driven content
• Adjudicated performances with a focus on storytelling clarity and audience impact
• Strong emphasis on literacy, social-emotional development, and inclusive casting

TFY strengthens the bridge between theatre and youth development—highlighting how storytelling can inspire empathy, growth, and critical thinking in young minds.

Short Play Festival

Are you looking for an exciting and fast-paced opportunity to publicly showcase your theatrical talents at SETC? Look no further than the Short Play Festival, a high-energy 24-hour event that invites all SETC attendees—from emerging students to seasoned professionals—to dive headfirst into the creative process.  

This unique festival brings together playwrights, directors, and actors to collaborate on the creation and performance of original 10-minute plays, all developed from a basic prompt within a single day. Emphasizing creativity over spectacle, the festival features minimal design elements to keep the spotlight on the work of the performers and writers.  

Directors and playwrights are chosen from a pool of pre-registered participants who indicate their interest in advance, ensuring they have time to prepare for this intense but rewarding challenge. The event kicks off on the first night with actor auditions, during which playwright-director teams cast their ensembles. Once the actors are selected, the playwrights get to work writing through the night to bring the prompt to life. By morning, scripts are completed and handed off to directors, who immediately begin rehearsals with their newly formed casts. Over the course of the day, the teams bring these fresh plays from page to stage, culminating in a live performance just 24 hours after the first audition.  

With 70 to 100 participants involved annually, the Short Play Festival is not only a challenging theatrical playground but also a vibrant community-building event where talent, collaboration, and imagination take center stage. Whether you're hoping to test your skills, meet new collaborators, or simply be part of something spontaneous and fun, this festival offers a one-of-a-kind experience! Don’t miss your chance to take part in one of SETC’s most anticipated and creatively electric events!