Participants must also be Catholic and either from a currently or previously homeschooling family, or from a St. Francis Montessori or Faustina academy family (exceptions can be made at the discretion of SPI board/directress).

The Junior Players are grades 3-7; the Senior Players are grades 8-12.  There is at least one Junior and two Senior Shakespeare productions each season, as well as a Senior musical.  There is also a fall musical that is for all ages, 3rd-12th grade.

In the summer, alumni shows are open to auditions with the adult friends and family members of the St. Paul Institute.

Rehearsals are held on Friday afternoons at Heritage Dance Academy in downtown Irving.  Junior and musical rehearsals are usually from 3:15-5:15pm; Senior rehearsals are from 5:30-8.  Contact the director of a particular production for more detailed information about rehearsals.

Students are both the cast and crew of these productions, and everyone who joins a production will have a job on- or off-stage (and often both!).  Carrying out the duties of their assigned roles faithfully promotes many virtues, including humility, perseverence, courtesy, and magnanimity.  

All students are responsible for attending rehearsals regularly when called, and conducting themselves in a way that is pleasant, mannerly, and shows love to God and others.  

Every student with lines is responsible for memorizing them by the off-book date of the show. This off-book status is demonstrated to Mrs. Irlbeck during an “Italian run” of the show, at which point students will be marked as penalized should they not fulfill their obligation.  This failure to fulfill the obligation they undertake by auditioning for a show will preclude them from auditioning for main roles in the following semester’s shows, and can also include losing the privilege of participating in the shows for an entire season.  

Performances are at Mainstage 222 in downtown Irving.  See the individual production pages for the dates of tech week and performances; students are expected to be available every afternoon (from 4 or 5pm to at least 9pm) during those dates.

Each show has tuition and prodution fees.  Tuition pays the director(s) for their time and expertise, and goes directly to them.  Tuition is usually as follows, but may be higher if there is more than one director:

• $100 1st Child
• $75 2nd Child
• $50 3rd Child
• $35 4th or more children

Production fees are paid to the St. Paul Institute to cover the cost of venue rental, sets, and other production costs.  They are charged on the following schedule, per show, and paid through the website:

• $50 1st Child
• $40 2nd Child
• $35 3rd or more children

Registration fees cover insurance, website hosting fees, and other overhead costs.  They are paid only once per family, per year, through the website.

• $100 (early)
• $150 (regular)
• $200 (late)
• $60 Spring-only

These shows can't happen without help from volunteers!  All families are required to volunteer between 7 and 10 hours for each production.  Parents have the option of paying a $100 fee in lieu of volunteering.

While SPI maintains and shares costume pieces, some or all will need to be provided by the family.  Most can be borrowed or purchased at thrift stores, but occasional items need to be purchased new.

All non-actors pay admission for entry to a show.  Ticket prices vary from $8-$15 per ticket, with a family cap to keep it affordable for larger family groups.