MTA 2026 State Festival

The Gertrude Castellow Ford Center for the Performing Arts

January 15 – 18, 2026 – Oxford, MS on the Ole Miss Campus

The Mississippi Theatre Association State Festival is a four-day event that includes college auditions, scholarship opportunities, one-act play festivals, theatre for youth festivals, individual events for high school students and adults, as well as dynamic workshops. MTA Festival is the one time each year that theatre-makers of all disciplines from across the state can gather together and celebrate each other’s work. Join us for MTA 2026! Mississippi Does Great Theatre!

View The Schedule

Get the details on all of the events taking place within MTA 2026. Refer to the 2026 MASTER SCHEDULE. **PLEASE KNOW THE SCHEDULES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE. THIS IS LIVE THEATRE!**

All festival events will take place at the Ford Center, the School of Music Building, Lamar Hall, the Turner Center Dance Studio, and the Oxford Convention Center.

2026 Tentative Master Schedule

Purchase Festival Passes

Register Online. Your Tickets will be available at the registration desk for pickup in the Grand Lobby of the Gertrude Ford Center.

Buy Festival Passes Here

Festival Passes will be available for $25 for the weekend. This will include play passes and workshops only. This pass does not include adult or youth socials.

Day Passes/Block Passes will be available for $15 per day. This will include play passes and workshops only. This pass does not include adult or youth socials.

Block Passes will be available for $10 per day. This will include play passes only. This does not include youth or adult socials.

General Announcements

Join GroupMe for general announcements, schedule changes, and festival updates! This is LIVE Theatre after all! Anything is bound to change on the tentative master schedule.

MTA 2026 GroupME Channel

Mandatory Weekday Parking Passes

All vehicles attending the festival, including cars, trucks, and vans, must use the off-street parking permit link to register vehicles on the Ole Miss campus during weekdays.

Mandatory Parking Passes

You will be fined if you do not have a permit. There are camera systems that will scan the license plates of vehicles to see if they are registered. Off-Street Permits are $2.50, a discounted rate from general admission. MTA is not responsible for fees or fines incurred for not purchasing a necessary parking permit for weekdays only.

Permit required to park anywhere on campus: All vehicles must have a valid university parking permit to park on campus (except in paid metered spaces where you’ve paid for time).

Enforcement hours for permit rules: Monday–Friday, 7:30 AM – 5:00 PM: Permit zones are actively enforced — you must have the correct permit and park in the correct zone during these hours.

After 5:00 PM and weekends: Zone restrictions are generally lifted (you can park in any valid space without zone restriction), but a permit is still required to be on campus unless you’re in a metered pay space.

Note: Certain reserved/handicap/fire lane spaces are enforced 24/7 regardless of the hour.

MTA 2026 Parking Permit Link: https://www.offstreet.io/events/KXDA1NXJ

Bus Parking

Parking for buses is available on the media lot across from the circle drive in front of the Ford Center. It’s the first lot on the right when coming off University Avenue. Additional parking is also available along Presidential Debate Way, which is the road that cuts through the lot.

Code of Conduct

All students attending the MTA State Festival are required to sign a Code of Conduct form. This is to ensure that all participants are aware of theatre etiquette and behavior expectations throughout the regional and state theatre festivals. The Code of Conduct Form can be found HERE.