What Is the Illinois Theatre Association (ITA) and How Can You Get Involved?
The Illinois Theatre Association (ITA) is a statewide nonprofit that advocates for theatre at every level in Illinois — youth, high school, college/university, community, and professional. It serves artists, educators, students, and audiences through divisions, festivals, awards, and resources. You can get involved by joining as a member, attending or registering for events like the Community Theatre Festival, participating in the Illinois High School Theatre Festival (IHSTF), or using its job board, auditions listings, and event calendars. ITA is an organization, not a venue or a single production, so "joining" means membership or participation rather than buying a ticket to one show.
What ITA Does
ITA describes its purpose as advocating for the values theatre brings to individuals across Illinois, and its mission as inspiring, engaging, challenging, nurturing, educating, and empowering artists and audiences to enhance the state's cultural landscape. In practice, that work shows up in a few concrete ways:
- Divisions organized by theatre type, so members find peers and programming that match their setting.
- Festivals and events, including the Illinois High School Theatre Festival and a Community Theatre Festival.
- Recognition, through Awards of Excellence and a list of past awardees.
- Information and connections, through news, articles, an event calendar, a job board, and auditions.
The Five Divisions and Who They Serve
ITA groups its work into divisions, each with its own calendar of events:
| Division | Who it serves |
|---|---|
| Youth Theatre | Young performers and the adults who work with them |
| High School Theatre | High school students, teachers, and directors |
| College/University Theatre | College and university programs, faculty, and students |
| Community Theatre | Local, volunteer-based and community groups |
| Professional Theatre | Working theatre professionals and companies |
Each division has a dedicated calendar, so you can filter events to the part of the field you care about rather than scanning everything.
Key Programs and Events
Illinois High School Theatre Festival (IHSTF)
IHSTF is ITA's high school festival and has its own section of the site covering teachers, students, vendors and college exhibitors, the festival committee, advertising and sponsorships, important dates and deadlines, participation guidelines, festival history, and festival documents. If you're a high school teacher or student, this is the main entry point — start with the important dates and deadlines and the participation guidelines before anything else.
Community Theatre Festival
The 2026 Community Theatre Festival, themed "Come Together," is scheduled for 11/07/2026–11/08/2026 at Morton College's Jedlicka Performing Arts Center, 3801 S Central Ave, Cicero, IL 60804. Registration is available through the event listing. ITA frames the theme around community theatre as a gathering place — "where strangers become castmates, where castmates become friends and friends become family."
Awards, News, and eFollowspot
ITA runs Awards of Excellence with a published list of past awardees, maintains a news section and articles, and publishes eFollowspot, its newsletter. These are useful if you want to see who's active in Illinois theatre or follow what the organization is highlighting.
How to Join and What You Get
Membership is handled through the Join link in the site's main navigation. ITA doesn't publish pricing or eligibility details in the material available here, so check the Join page directly for current terms rather than assuming a cost or a free tier.
Based on what the site exposes, membership connects you to:
- Division-specific event calendars (Community, Youth, College & University, Professional, High School)
- The member-sponsored events and performance calendars
- The job board and auditions listings under Industry Opportunities
- Festival participation pathways, including IHSTF and the Community Theatre Festival
- News, articles, and eFollowspot
If you're unsure which division fits, pick the one matching where you actually work or perform — a community theatre actor belongs in Community Theatre, a high school director in High School Theatre.
Resources Worth Knowing About
Beyond membership, ITA's site offers several things you can use directly:
- Job Board — postings for theatre work in Illinois
- Auditions — audition notices
- Event calendars — a general ITA calendar plus five division calendars
- Performance Calendar — listings of member-sponsored events
- Festival Documents and Important Resources — practical materials for festival participants
- Board of Directors and Board Information — who governs the organization
ITA vs. a Theatre Venue
A common point of confusion: ITA is a statewide advocacy and membership organization. It is not a theatre building, a producing company, or a ticketing platform. When you see "ITA" attached to an event, it usually means ITA is organizing, sponsoring, or promoting it — as with the Community Theatre Festival at Morton College — not that ITA owns the venue. If you're looking for a specific show's tickets, go to that production or venue; if you're looking to join a statewide network, advocate for theatre, or plug into festivals and job listings, that's ITA.
Getting Started
- Decide your role — student, teacher, community artist, college faculty, or professional.
- Open the Join page and review current membership terms.
- Check your division's calendar for the next event near you.
- If you're in high school theatre, go straight to IHSTF's important dates and participation guidelines.
- Browse the job board and auditions if you're looking for work or performance opportunities.