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Three Opportunities to Shine

To apply, students must be High School Seniors, inducted Thespians and members of an active troupe. No more than 3 performance applicants per troupe may apply. There is a $10 non-refundable fee. Students will complete their data information and make payment through the OpenWater online software. The actual audition will be in person at the PA Conference.

Note: The Scholarships are only open to students planning to major or minor in some area of the performing arts. Cash Awards are open to all students. (A student who applies for but does not win a scholarship will automatically be considered for a Cash Award.). Cash awards will be granted directly to the recipient. Scholarships will be paid directly to the college or university.

Winners must send the chapter director their transcript showing successful completion of their first semester with a major in the performing arts. Winners must also include information about whom checks need to be made payable to and where they are to be sent. PA Thespians will then make payment directly to the college or university. The deadline to submit materials for payment of the scholarship is March 31st of freshman year.

AWARD INFORMATION
Each applicant may only audition in ONE of the following areas (if you select a scholarship category and do not win the scholarship, you will automatically be considered for a Cash Award):

Performance Scholarship - up to three $1,000 scholarships will be available only to students who are planning to major or minor in some area of the performing arts.
Performance Cash Award - $250 performance awards will be available to any senior who may or may not be planning to major or minor in the performing arts.
Tech Scholarship - up to two $1,000 scholarships will be available only to students who are planning to major or minor in some area of the performing arts.
Tech Cash Award - $250 tech awards will be available to any senior who may or may not be planning to major or minor in the performing arts.

RESUME EXAMPLES:

Application Due November 1, 2026

WATCH THESE VIDEOS to help prepare for your in person scholarship audition/interview...

Click Here for TECHNICAL RUBRIC

PA Thespians OpenWater Information

Junior College Performance and Tech Showcase

JUNIOR (Grade 11) COLLEGE SHOWCASE: PERFORMANCE

The Junior College Showcase program is designed for junior students to be able to showcase themselves for colleges. This will not replace a formal college audition, but it does give students a chance to get themselves seen by the colleges and universities participating in our conference. Colleges and university reps may then ask to see students at conference or further follow up.

To participate, students must be High School Juniors, inducted Thespians and members of an active troupe. There is a $10 per person non refundable fee.
(There is no limit to the number of students that can register from each troupe.)

Students will complete their data information and make payment through the OpenWater online software. The actual audition will be in person at the PA Conference. All Performance, Dress, and Audition requirements are the same as SENIOR SCHOLARSHIPS, but junior students will NOT be scored by judges.

JUNIOR (Grade 11) COLLEGE SHOWCASE: TECHNICAL

Technical Theatre applicants should present a technical portfolio that best illustrates their area(s) of expertise. Each student will have 5 minutes for their presentation. This presentation will be in person. You may chose to use a physical or digital portfolio. No presentation technology will be provided. (You must bring whatever you need for your presentation.)

- Technical portfolio presentations and requirements, dress code, and time restrictinos are exactly the same as the senior technical portfolio requirements. Students will not be scored on site by judges, but they will have the opportunity to present in front of and be questioned by the judges.

Please read the "Problems that are Common" section to avoid tech portfolio pitfalls.

Senior Technical Scholarships

Technical Theatre applicants should present a technical portfolio that best illustrates their area(s) of expertise.

Each student will have 5 minutes for their presentation. This presentation will be in person. You may choose to use a physical or digital portfolio. No presentation technology will be provided. (You must bring whatever you need for your presentation.)

Technical portfolio presentations should be rehearsed ahead of time. You will be given a signal when you are at 4 minutes and 45 seconds and will be stopped at the 5-minute mark to begin the question and answer section of the interview.

Students should focus their portfolios and presentations on the work that they are responsible for and/or completed. Showing proof of their own contributions to their school programs and their development as they worked as technicians should be the focus of the scholarship audition.

- There will be a 5-minute Q & A with the judges after the portfolio presentation.

Dress: Dress neatly in simple, modest outfits in black or dark colors. To understand styles that constitute this “business casual” tone, see these examples or search the web for “business casual for students.”

No theatrical makeup is allowed. Costumes are not allowed. Students should refrain from wearing anything that might distract the judges, thus lowering their score.

The Portfolio Process:

Here is a link to info on how to build and present a design and production portfolio. Another article can be found here.
Problems/issues that are Common:
- Disorganized portfolios that have no focus. You need to be able to talk your way through the portfolio in 5 minutes or less. Photographic evidence should be ordered, large enough to see, and complementary to the rehearsed speech.
- Students who have NOT prepared their presentations to be in the time limit and rambled on about nothing or who spent the whole time on the first two pages of their portfolio and neglected the rest. PRACTICE YOUR PRESENTATION MANY, MANY TIMES. This happens every, single, year.
- Students who present work that THEY DID NOT DO. What your team did at school is not what YOU were responsible for. What the designer who worked with your school director created is not what YOU did. Your portfolio must showcase YOUR OWN WORK-- what you were responsible for ON YOUR OWN (you may have had guidance, but they did not complete, execute, or design the work you are presenting).
- Students who cannot talk about their process, or the significance of what they individually created in terms of its impact on the whole production.

Senior Performance Scholarships

Choose one option...
1. ACTING - Perform 2 one-minute contrasting monologues.
or 2. MUSICAL THEATRE - Perform one two-minute vocal selection.
or 3. COMBINED ACTING/MUSICAL THEATRE - Perform two pieces for a total time limit of up to two minutes: one acting and one vocal.

IMPORTANT: Please remember that your TOTAL performance time is 2 minutes.

Dress: Dress neatly in simple, modest outfits in black or dark colors. To understand styles that constitute this “business casual” tone, see these examples or search the web for “business casual for students.”