Julia's Joy Voice Idol

More Than A Voice Competition

JJVI 2027 Auditions - October 4th • 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM & October 19th • 12:00 PM - 3:00 PM

The Story Behind Julia’s Joy Voice Idol

In 2017, Pillars of Light and Love founder Kathy Opperman created Julia’s Joy with the support of the Morath family to honor 14-year-old Julia Morath and to build confidence in tweens and teens. Inspired by her love of music, Kathy partnered with a local singer-songwriter and youth mentor to create the Julia’s Joy Voice Idol Competition.

The program gives young performers an opportunity to strengthen their voices, develop stage presence and grow in confidence through the audition process, free vocal and performance coaching and two live performances including a finale where the winner in each age group wins $500.00. Ages 11-18 are invited to audition each October, with the live shows planned for January and February.

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2027 Julia’s Joy Voice Idol Competition Audition Information

Thank you for your interest in auditioning for the 9th Annual Julia’s Joy Voice Idol Competition!

Auditions will be held at the Empowering U Center, located at 511 W. Main Street, Trappe, PA 19426, on the following dates:

Sunday, October 4th, from 12:00–1:30PM
Sunday, October 18th, from 12:00–3:00PM

We are excited to meet you and hear you perform for our panel of judges, which will include previous winners and former contestants. Before auditioning, contestants and their parents or guardians must carefully review the competition guidelines and provide permission for photographs and videos taken during auditions, rehearsals and performances.

Please click Read More below to review all important audition information, competition guidelines and requirements, and to access the registration form. The audition registration form must be completed before attending auditions.

For questions, please contact juliasjoyteenempowerment@gmail.com.

Please review all competition guidelines carefully to ensure that you and your child understand the requirements and to provide permission for photographs, video and audio recordings taken during auditions, rehearsals and performances. A parent or guardian—or the contestant if age 18—must acknowledge these terms by entering their name where requested.

The form must be completed in full before the contestant may audition.

GUIDELINES AND PERMISSIONS
1. The contest is for ages 11-18. Contestants must be 11 years old by November 15, 2026, or must still be 18 through February 28, 2027. Proof of age will be required. There will be two age groups eligible to win: 11-14 year-olds and 15-18 year-olds. Contestants who are chosen will receive free vocal and performance coaching from November through to the shows. All rehearsals should be attended endless due to prior commitments. They will be held on Sunday afternoons. All contestants will perform in the opening and closing numbers of each show.

2. Contestants must audition live with a backing track as a single act. The contestant should prepare 2 songs, no longer than 90 seconds each. One song for the audition must be a pop song. The other can be your choice!

3. Contestants must be available for all live show dates/dress rehearsal.
The shows will be held on two Sundays in February, typically the first and last, however we are waiting to confirm the location. PLEASE CONTACT US ASAP if you cannot make the last Sunday in January or any of the Sundays in February excluding Super Bowl Sunday. Dress Rehearsal will be the Saturday afternoon prior to each live show.

4. Songs to be performed for the shows must be popular songs heard on the radio. No opera. Show-tunes must be well-known songs and approved in advance by the Coaches and Directors.

5. Contestants will not play instruments for the show, nor for auditions. Songs for live shows should be no longer than 3:30 minutes, unless approved by Coaches. Top 5 contestants in each age group will sing a fast and a slow song. Judges or Coaches may recommend a list of song choices for each Contestant. Contestant must provide instrumental track.

6. Contestants will be judged on a point-based system in categories including voice quality, pitch, connection to the song, stage presence and more. All categories will be covered in the free group coaching sessions.

7. In the event of snow, performance dates may have to moved. We will do our best to accommodate all contestants.

8. Our goal is to have 20 initial contestants competing in the first show. There will be two age groups with 10 competing in each. The 2 age groups are as follows: 11-14 year-olds and 15-18 year olds. The top 5 in each age group will be announced at the end of the first show and they will go on to compete in the Finale.

9. There is a $50 entry fee for each of the 20 Contestants who are chosen to compete so that we may offer a $500 prize to each of the 2 winners.

10. Contestants who compete are also required to obtain one $50 sponsor for our ad program booklet as this is a fundraiser for Pillars of Light and Love.

11. Guidelines are subject to change, in which case all Final Contestants will be notified.

12. Parent/Guardian (if contestant is under 18), or Contestant (if 18), give permission for photos, video and audio performances, including those from auditions and rehearsals, to be used by Pillars of Light and Love, Kathy Opperman, staff and others involved with Pillars of Light and Love for promotion and marketing during the rehearsals, shows and in future competition promotions, as well as on our website and social media platforms. This permission extends beyond the show dates into the future.

Questions can be emailed to juliasjoyteenempowerment@gmail.com(opens in new tab) or call 484-636-9726 with a detailed message!

Send an email to Staff@PillarsofLightandlove.org(opens in new tab) for any questions or call 484-854-1162 and leave a message and we will get back to you!