Press Release: Saratoga Performing Arts Center Accepting Submissions for the 2026 Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists
December 17, 2025
Calling all Young Artists!
Saratoga Performing Arts Center Accepting Submissions for the
2026 “Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists”
Selected students to have work featured in online exhibit and live event,
entered to win $500 “Outstanding Artist Award”
Saratoga Springs, NY (December 17, 2025) – Saratoga Performing Arts Center announced that it is accepting visual art, literary art, and performing art submissions to be featured at “The Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists” online exhibit and live event on May 31, 2026. Numerous works will be selected with one student in each category receiving the “Outstanding Artist Award” and $500 to support the further development of their craft.
SPAC is also once again partnering with Empire State Youth Orchestra (ESYO) to offer the Student Composition Contest, selecting one student composer to have their work premiered by the ESYO Symphony Orchestra during the festival.
Returning for its 9th annual event, The Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists will celebrate the collaborative creativity of more than 700 of the Capital Region’s brightest young dancers, musicians, singers, poets, and visual artists all in support of SPAC’s mission to provide free access to enriching arts programs for local youth.
This year’s event will follow the theme Seasons celebrating cycles of growth, transformation, reflection and renewal, while also commemorating 60 years of SPAC and its blossoming into a vibrant, year-round organization.
High school students, middle school students, and youth ensembles who reside in or are part of a school or organization based in the following NY counties are invited to submit photos of artwork, digital copies of literary compositions, and videos of performances: Albany, Essex, Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Rensselaer, Warren, Washington.
The deadline for submissions is January 31, 2026. Visit spacfoya.org for details.
###
SPAC Education
Saratoga Performing Arts Center’s education programs reach over 58,000 individuals, offer more than 1,500 classes and events, and partner with 120+ schools and nonprofit organizations across the Saratoga, Adirondack, and Capital Regions
of New York State. SPAC Education provides arts access to people of all ages, abilities, and demographics, while prioritizing historically marginalized groups and identities. Flagship offerings include the “Classical Kids” in-school music and dance program; “SPAC Dance Project” in-school dance residencies; “Access the Arts” weekly classes for adults from local day habilitation programs; the “Creative Connections” Saturday program for children from local youth-serving organizations; the “Summer Nights at SPAC” outreach initiative, providing transportation, meals, and performance tickets to families from under-resourced communities; and the “Festival of Young Artists,” an annual event that brings together and celebrates hundreds of student dancers, singers, musicians, poets, and visual artists. Additional music, theater, and dance programs are offered year-round at SPAC School of the Arts, a state-of-the-art educational facility dedicated to furthering SPAC’s mission to promote inclusion, equity, and access.
Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), located in the historic resort town of Saratoga Springs in upstate New York, is one of America’s most prestigious outdoor amphitheaters. Its exquisite setting in a 2,400-acre park preserve surrounded by hiking trails, geysers, and natural mineral springs draws lovers of arts, culture and nature for performances by resident companies New York City Ballet, The Philadelphia Orchestra, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Saratoga Jazz Festival, and concerts by Live Nation. SPAC also hosts imaginative programming such as Caffè Lena @ SPAC and initiatives in culinary, literary, healing and visual arts.
SPAC is a 501c3 charitable organization. Donations and proceeds from fundraising events benefit the Center’s thriving education program, community outreach efforts, and the vibrancy of its programming. For more information visit spac.org.