We are excited to announce that ‘Shrek’ is the title for our next Summer Youth Project at the Palace Theatre in Southend, for its 18th year! SYP is for young people aged between 9 and 19 with a passion for performing, or a keen eye for backstage. We take over the Palace Theatre for 2 weeks over the summer holidays where we create, rehearse, and perform unforgettable performances of a well-known and loved musical to live audiences! To secure your space in this year’s production of Shrek The Musical, you will need to apply and audition.
Participants and their parents/carers are required to fill in the application form and look through our audition pack, prior to attending our audition on Sunday 26 April 2026. You can download the audition pack, with the application form below: Shrek The Musical Audition Pack
SYP Technical Youth Team interview slots will be held on Thursday 9 April 2026. Please see application form and audition pack for more information on these.
If you're unable to attend our main audition day on Sunday 26 April 2026, there is now an option to send us in a self-tape audition. This will be for a specific song and piece of choreography shared with you. The purpose of a self-tape is to audition participants in a very similar style to how our main, in person, audition will take place. If you would like to submit a self-tape, please contact our Creative Learning Manager (), to register your interest. In early April 2026, you will receive an email with what is required for a self-tape audition.
Please note, we do encourage as many people as possible to attend our in person main audition on Sunday 26 April 2026, however, if there is a genuine reason you cannot attend, a self-tape option is now available. If you wish to send in a self-tape, please also be aware that we may need you to be available for an extra call back audition at a later date (we will not accept self-tapes for the call back - if you are asked to attend, this must be in person).
Project Information Our project dates for SYP 2026 will be Sunday 26 July 2026 - Sunday 9 August 2026, at the Palace Theatre. Our live performances of ‘Shrek The Musical’ will take place from Thursday 6 to Sunday 9 August 2025, involving both matinee and evening performances. Tickets for these performances will go on sale after our audition day. We would love to have you join us at our Summer Youth Project auditions. If you have any further questions that are not answered in our audition pack, please do not hesitate to contact Emma, our Project Producer and Creative Learning Manager on Testimonials:
“Summer Youth is an amazing company to be a part of as we are all one big family. My life wouldn’t be the same without it!” Eve – Summer Youth Project Participant.
"I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for your hard work this past couple of weeks. This was our son's first time taking part in the SYP and he has loved every minute of it. The show was outstanding. To all the chaperones, the wardrobe people and all the people who taught or directed and helped in any way, thank you for giving him this opportunity and for making it such a wonderfully, memorable experience for him!" - Participant and Parent of a Summer Youth Project 2025
"Bursary scheme fantastic making it means tested so those on benefits can afford to participate" - SYP 2023 Participant
"Thank you so much for your kind email and for sharing the pictures of the superb Wizard of Oz perforamnce. As you may already know, my wife and I attended all six performances, and each time we noticed new details to enjoy. The final show on Sunday truly deserved its standing ovation. The entire cast performed beautifully, paying attention to every detail. Our daughter has greatly appreciated being part of the Summer Youth Project for the past three years. The SYP production offers each young participant the chance to learn from professional, build confidence in perfoming, and socialise with other children." - Parents of SYP 2025 Participant