2024-25 CWRU Theater Scholarship Events
November 2024 – Fall Scholarship EventÂ
Thank you to everyone who attended the November Scholarship event!Â
February 2025 – Spring Scholarship Events – Registration opens January 5
Virtual Event: President’s Day, Monday, February 17: Candidates can audition or present their portfolio on Zoom for CWRU theater faculty, as well as talk with current CWRU Theater students about their experiences here at CWRU.
In-Person Theater Weekend: February 21 & 22, 2025: Come to CWRU for the weekend! Sit in on classes, tour the facility, attend workshops with faculty, see a show, and audition or present a portfolio for the CWRU Theater Scholarship.
For more information regarding the scholarship and to be added to our mailing list, please email: christopher.bohan@case.edu
About the CWRU Theater Scholarships
CWRU Undergraduate Theater Scholarships
Case Western Reserve University has made merit-based scholarships available for prospective theater students. Each year, the Department of Theater awards four full-tuition scholarships to students who intend on majoring in theater, and two $10,000 scholarships to students who intend on minoring in theater, or those interested in pursuing theater as an extracurricular activity at CWRU.
FOUR FULL TUITION SCHOLARSHIPS for THEATER MAJORS
For students intending to major in theater at CWRU, we have FOUR FULL TUITION SCHOLARSHIPS to award. Each scholarship is a full-tuition, four-year scholarship (room and board not included). To retain the scholarship, the student must declare theater as a major by the end of their freshman year, as well as maintain the stipulated GPA.
TWO $10,000 SCHOLARSHIPS for THEATER MINORS
For students intending to minor in theater, or pursue theater as an extracurricular activity, we have two $10,000 SCHOLARSHIPS to award. Each scholarship is a four-year scholarship. To retain the scholarship, students must contribute to theater productions in either a performance, design, or technical capacity on an annual basis, as well as maintain the stipulated GPA.
HOW TO APPLY FOR THE SCHOLARSHIPS
To compete for one of these scholarships, the prospective student must submit an application for admission to CWRU, as well as make an appointment to audition and/or present a portfolio with CWRU theater faculty. There are several avenues a student can submit for the CWRU theater scholarship – see below for details. Audition and Portfolio requirements are the same for both scholarships. See specific audition and portfolio requirements below.
Please Note: The audition and portfolio presentation process is for scholarship consideration only. You are not applying to be admitted to the theater program. Any student admitted to CWRU may choose their field of study. If you are admitted to CWRU and want to study theater here, but do not receive one of the theater scholarships, we would love to have you join our program!
HOW TO SCHEDULE A SCHOLARSHIP AUDITION OR PORTFOLIO PRESENTATION
ATTEND IN-PERSON THEATER WEEKEND
Prospective students will have the opportunity to audition and/or present a portfolio for the scholarship, participate in an acting or design workshop, attend an undergraduate theater production, meet with faculty and students, and ask questions about the program. In-person events are held in November and February.
ATTEND VIRTUAL EVENT
On President’s Day, we hold a virtual event from 9am to 5pm. Scholarship applicants can present their scholarship application materials to CWRU theater faculty on Zoom, as well as chat with current CWRU students.
INDIVIDUAL CAMPUS VISIT
Schedule an Individual On-Campus Audition and/or Portfolio Presentation: If you are unable to attend the Scholarship Weekend or Open House events, you may contact Professor Bohan to schedule a time to come to campus for an audition or interview. Deadlines listed below. Individual auditions and/or portfolio presentations are only held during the school week. If you would like to make an appointment, please contact Professor Bohan at christopher.bohan@case.edu
ARTS SUPPLEMENT SUBMISSION
If you are unable to attend an in-person event, schedule an individual visit, or attend the virtual event, you can submit your materials for consideration to the Arts Supplement portion of your CWRU application. Once you submit your application to CWRU, you will receive a notification asking if you would like to submit an ‘arts supplement’ to your application. Once you have uploaded your materials to the Arts Supplement, please email christopher.bohan@case.edu to let us know to review your materials.
IMPORTANT DEADLINES for 2025 Scholarship Eligibility:
January 15, 2025: Deadline to submit your CWRU application
- You must submit a CWRU application to be eligible for consideration
- All Early Action and Regular Decision applicants are eligible
- You may audition/present portfolio for scholarship before submitting CWRU application
- International students ARE eligible for the CWRU theater scholarship
February 20, 2025: Deadline to submit CWRU Theater Scholarship application materials
Ineligibility: This scholarship is intended for students who are seeking admission to college for the first time. Therefore, transfer students, as well as those who have already completed, or begun, an undergraduate degree are ineligible.
Detail of Submission Requirements for each discipline
PERFORMANCE CONCENTRATION
ACTING:
Candidates interested in focusing on the acting concentration are asked to select, memorize, and prepare ONE monologue of their choosing. Selection can be from a contemporary or classic play and should not exceed two minutes in length. Each candidate will be asked to submit a headshot or current photo, as well as a theater resume or short bio of their theater experience. You may also prepare and present 16 bars of a musical, but this is not required. There will not be an accompanist, so you may sing a cappella or with a device. For Arts Supplement, please upload your audition videos, as well as a short video telling us about your journey as an actor, and how CWRU theater might help you continue that journey.
DESIGN/STAGE MANAGEMENT CONCENTRATION
Design:
For the design concentration scholarships, a portfolio demonstrating skills in theater is required (which can include some or all of the following: renderings, sketches, paperwork, scale drawings, production photos, etc.). Students may also include experience in a related field, such as art, architecture, cosplay, graphics, or photography. The portfolio may be in scrapbook format or on an online platform. Art projects or model making could substitute or be included with the other requirements. The material should be organized into some kind of cohesive presentation, with identifying labels for references. Arts Supplement submission: Please upload your presentation and or links to the Arts Supplement in ONE pdf document.
Stage Management:
Students interested in stage management should bring in their SM binders, copies of scripts they have worked on (with cues written in), paperwork related to the show, and any other evidence of skills related to stage management such as organization, managing/coordinating large groups of people, multitasking, and communication. Arts Supplement submission: Please upload your presentation and or links to the Arts Supplement in ONE pdf document.
DIRECTING/WRITING CONCENTRATION
DIRECTING:
For candidates interested in the directing concentration, a portfolio presentation is needed.
Your portfolio should consist of the following:
- 1) A one-page resume documenting your theater experience (directing, acting, playwriting, design, stage management, etc).
- 2) A 1-2 page Director’s Concept for a published play or musical that you would be interested in directing, detailing your vision for the show (characters, moods and tones, visual aspects) and what you would want the audience to take away from the production in terms of its central themes and ideas.
- 3) Production photos from previous projects you have directed (if applicable, not required). Candidates should be prepared to speak about their interest and passion for directing, as well as their previous directing and/or theater experience. For Arts Supplement, please upload any documents and/or photos that represent your work. Please include a short video of you describing your work, as well as how you feel CWRU theater would help you in your journey as a director.
Dramatic Writing/Playwriting:
Students interested in the dramatic writing/playwriting concentration should submit a 10 page sample of their work in either playwriting or screenwriting (or both) at least one week prior to your interview date. This can include either an excerpt from a full-length work or a combination of shorter pieces, such as 10 minute plays or short film scripts. While dramatic writing is preferred, you may also submit other examples of your creative writing, such as short stories, poetry, essays, etc. For arts supplement, please upload your 10 page sample.
SCHOLARSHIP AWARD NOTIFICATION
The department of theater will make its scholarship award selections in the first week of March. Award selections will be sent to the CWRU department of admissions. Awardees, regardless of application submission (Early Action, Early Decision, Regular Decision) will be notified by CWRU admissions during the second or third week of March when admission notifications are sent out to Regular Decision candidates. If you are awarded the theater scholarship, it will be indicated in the Financial Aid portion of your admission letter. Those who were admitted Early Decision/Action will receive an updated financial aid package at that time which indicated the Theater Scholarship. The CWRU Department of Theater is not authorized to notify awardees.