The International Thespian Excellence Awards (or Thespys® for short) recognize the highest level of achievement in school theatre performance, technical theatre, writing, and filmmaking.

This educational program celebrates the work of theatre students, giving them the opportunity to receive constructive feedback on prepared theatrical material, technical design, plays, and short films, and recognizing their achievements on local, regional, and international stages.

An official program of the Educational Theatre Association, the Thespys journey starts at the school theatre level, where Thespians — students who have been inducted into the International Thespian Society — prepare performances, presentations, plays, and films showcasing their talents and skills. Students bring their prepared works to local and regional Thespys events, where they are scored on rubrics that evaluate their skills based on recognized learning standards for the theatre classroom. 

Top-scoring students receive “superior” ratings for various criteria laid out in the rubric, and those who score overall superiors qualify to move on to the next level of Thespy events. Local and regional qualifying events lead to the final international round, which takes place annually as the culminating event of the International Thespian Festival, where the highest scoring students in each category win Thespy Awards and are eligible for scholarship opportunities funded by EdTA and generous sponsors.​

The Thespys are a dream. To see the beautiful performances and presentations, and students opening their hearts and being themselves, is so inspiring. It is obvious the participants are living in their light. I’m truly moved by that."  ~ Broadway’s Michael James Scott