The Y-Arts crew is heading to Atlanta again.

The group of 29 kids from the Boothbay area, aged 7 to 18 will be competing for the fifth time in the Junior Theater Festival. It will take place on January 17, 18 and 19 in Atlanta, Ga.

The annual festival, which is produced by iTheatrics and Theater of the Stars, is a three-day event celebrating musical theater with groups of young theater enthusiasts coming from all over the country.

Each group will be performing a musical in a competition that will be judged by a team of theater experts from New York — directors, stage managers, choreographers, performers and children's theater professionals.

The Boothbay Region YMCA Y-Arts has been the only group from New England to enter the competition. It's also the only one that doesn't come from a structured theater background.

Emily Moore, the director and choreographer of the Y-Arts group, said they are the only YMCA group attending the festival. “Most of the other groups are from either a school, children's theater or a community theater,” she said.

Moore, who has worked for the YMCA since 2005, said she is very proud of the group, which was awarded first place in 2009, 2010 and 2011 in the competition.

“In past years, our judges have commented that while we give a stellar performance time and again, they truly appreciate how our group is made up of real kids,” Moore said. “They love the fact that our kids participate in other activities and still find time to love theater and attend the festival.”

Moore's mother, Ginny Bishop, has played a big part in the success of the group. Moore took over as director after Bishop retired last year. “Ginny (my mom) has been with me every step of the way,” Moore said. “Even though she is now retired, she has still helped out and given notes to help better our performance. The kids and myself all respect her opinion and love having her involved.”

In 2009, the first year the Boothbay group entered the contest, they wowed the audience and judges alike with their rendition of “Godspell Jr.”

“Our first year at the festival was very overwhelming,” Moore said.

“Our kids got up there and you watched them, and you just knew. It was awesome. But you didn't know you were going to win anything,” said Meagan Hamblett, Membership & Marketing Director of the Boothbay Region YMCA.

“And ... when everybody in that room got up and gave a standing ovation you knew this was good,” she said. The Boothbay group was the only one to get a standing ovation.

That night when the winners were announced they found out they had placed first. “We didn't know what to expect and when we won for Outstanding Performance we were overjoyed,” Moore said.

In 2010 they won the same first place award for their rendition of “Seussical Jr.”

And in 2011 they won, again, for their performance of “Once on This Island Jr.”

In 2012 they received a perfect score for their adjudication and were given an award for excellence in acting. They skipped 2013.

But this year the 29 young actors will be heading to Atlanta for another go. The group of 7 boys and 22 girls, aged 8 to 18 will be performing “My Son Pinocchio Jr.”

Moore said the kids are psyched. “We have quite a few new performers this year so I'm sure the excitement will surpass that of years past,” she said.

For five of the seasoned performers though, who have been on the team since they were seventh graders, it will be their last chance for stardom at the festival.

Sophia Thayer, Ben Dewey, Nate Friant, Courtney Chaney and Devin Domeyer are all seniors, and the event will be bittersweet for them.

“I'm happy to be going back to Atlanta, but at the same time it's hard that this will be my last time performing down there,” Dewey said. He said he'll miss the experience. “It's always such a blast to meet new people who share the same interests as you.”

Courtney Chaney said she's glad she had the chance to participate in the festival. “Being able to learn, meet new people and do what I love — performing — is something I'm passionate about. I will definitely miss it.”

Though Hamblett said that as talented and enthusiastic as the kids are, the program wouldn't be what it is without Moore and Bishop. “There's clearly talent but if you look at any program that runs really well at the Y it's generally the people who run the program.

“I attribute a lot to Ginny and Emily. The kids have got to have talent, but if they didn't lead this program it wouldn't be what it is. They demand a lot.”

And it's not just their musical direction that makes the kids from Boothbay stand out.

“You also get judged on how well you behave as an audience member,” she said. “Ginny and Emily are strict. They keep the kids in check. You behave. You don't fool around. You clap but you don't clap too loud. Emily trained the kids (to be good audience members).”

Hamblett believes the Boothbay community is a great one to raise kids. She said that each year they have participated, the judges have been impressed not only with the talent displayed, but also the interaction among the group.

“What the judges have commented on every year we've gone is that nobody tries to steal the show,” she said. “It doesn't matter if you're the lead, or the kid who's dancing and never gets a chance to say a word. It's a real team. There are no clicks. I think the Y-Arts arts program helps them become well-rounded.”

Moore is feeling positive about the event taking place this weekend.

“I think our competition piece this year has great potential to bring back the grand prize,” she said. “I am very proud of our group and the work they have put into ‘My Son Pinocchio Jr.’”

We'll keep you posted.