The Best Theater Scholarships with 2025 Deadlines

About theater scholarships

College in the United States costs an average of $35,331 a year and this cost has risen by 6.8% a year. While many colleges offer financial assistance to their students, this is not enough to cover the thousands of dollars students must pay in tuition each year.

As a result of this gap in student aid, many college students feel forced to take on student debt in order to achieve their goals of higher education.

Undergraduate students might be dissuaded from getting a theatre education because of inflated tuition prices, but thankfully, many theatre scholarships exist for students interested in degrees in theatre arts.

Theater scholarships provide students interested in all aspects of theatre, including design, production, musical theatre, directing, and playwriting, with the financial aid to further their creative passions.

Theatre is a versatile and important field. The skills learned through a theatre education are becoming increasingly important in the workplace. Degrees in theater allow students to hone their creative skills and become talented professionals. Studying the performing arts is a great way to improve skills of oral communication, improvisation, and cooperation.

A degree in the theatre arts is not out of reach with a theatre scholarship. Bold.org gives students access to hundreds of scholarships, so they do not have to take on the burden of high student debt to access higher education. Theatre scholarships are crucial to breaking down barriers in education.

What is a theater scholarship?

A theatre scholarship is a form of educational financial assistance offered to undergraduate students studying theater or a related field. Theater scholarships are helpful for students who want to avoid student debt as they do not have to be paid back. Most theater scholarships are merit-based scholarships intended to award talented students.

Theatre scholarships might be geared to students who are concentrating in a specific area like stage design or acting. Other theatre scholarships like a director's scholarship might be intended for students who have specific career aspirations.

There are many scholarships in theater that make higher education more accessible for anyone from high schoolers to recent college graduates.

Can you get a scholarship for theater?

There are plenty of scholarships out there to help you get a college education. Whether you're a high school, undergraduate, or graduate student, it's possible for you to get a theatre scholarship.

On bold.org, you can find many fine and performing arts scholarships as well as more general scholarship opportunities for students in any program of study. Bold.org makes finding and applying for scholarships easy, so you can focus on winning scholarship awards.

How to apply for theater scholarships

The scholarship application process is easy. To begin applying for theater scholarships, you can click any of the links below or go directly to bold.org and create a free profile. To create your profile and access hundreds of exclusive scholarships, all you need to do is fill out some brief biographical information.

Once your profile is complete Bold.org will begin recommending scholarships to you or you can begin searching through all available scholarships by keyword, category, and education level. Filtering searches by the "arts" and "humanities" categories will allow you to find many relevant theater scholarships.

When you find a scholarship you are interested in applying for, be sure to read through the description to ensure you meet all eligibility requirements. Many scholarships will require applicants to meet certain criteria to apply. For example, there might be a drama scholarship that only allows Native American students who participate in community theatre to apply.

What application materials a scholarship wants will vary. Most scholarship applications will require students to submit a short essay, but many fine arts scholarships will ask for other materials like a digital portfolio or a taped scholarship audition.

There are even no-essay scholarships that only require the click of a button to apply. No-essay scholarships are great options for busy students who do not have much time to spend creating application materials, but applying for a scholarship with stricter eligibility requirements will increase your chances of securing a scholarship award.

How to get a theater scholarship

Whether you are in high school, college, or graduate school, the only way to get theater scholarships is to apply for them. Applying for the scholarships on bold.org is easy so you only have to focus on creating the best application materials possible.

It's also important to find scholarships that match your talents. If you are not a particularly skilled writer but you are talented at filmmaking, try applying for scholarships that accept submissions from video or visual arts.

Finding scholarships with narrow eligibility requirements can also help you succeed at getting scholarship awards. Having a more limited applicant pool can make your application stand out more.

However, don't be discouraged if you don't win a scholarship award right away. Remember that it is impossible to know exactly what a donor is looking for in award-winning applicants. Applying for as many scholarships as you can gives you the best chance of securing financial assistance for your education.

Best theater scholarships

Finding the money to attend college does not have to be a struggle. Many theater scholarships exist to help students afford higher education.

Magidson Memorial Theater Scholarship

This $5,000 theater arts scholarship supports first-generation low-income high school seniors, undergraduate, or graduate students who are passionate about theater and keeping art alive.

Chang Heaton Scholarship for Music Excellence

This $2,525 scholarship award seeks to make pursuing an education in the performing arts less challenging for a BIPOC first-generation undergraduate or graduate student majoring in music or theater.

Theater scholarships for high school students

Students in high school often find it easier to apply for scholarships before they have the abundance of responsibilities that college can bring. Students can begin applying for scholarships on Bold.org as early as their freshman year.

1. WCEJ Thornton Foundation Music & Art Scholarship
2. Christian ‘Myles’ Pratt Foundation Fine Arts Scholarship
3. 1st Generation People Of Color Patrick Copney Memorial Music/Arts Scholarship

Theater scholarships for high school seniors

Finding scholarships as a graduating senior will save you from future financial burdens. High school seniors who are finalizing their college plans can ensure they have enough financial support for their education by applying for the scholarships below.

1. Marcarelli Community Spirit Scholarship
2. Noah Yohannes Academic Scholarship
3. 100 Women Giving Back Northwoods Up-and-Coming Giver Scholarship
4. Cardel Love Scholarship

Theater scholarships for college students

While there are many scholarships for younger students, students already enrolled at a college or university can still find scholarships. The scholarships below are perfect for college students currently studying performing arts.

1. Glider AI-Omni Inclusive Allies of LGBTQ+ (GOAL+) Scholarship
2. Matt Preziose Creative Scholarship
3. Carlynn’s No-Essay Coming to America Scholarship
4. KBK Artworks Scholarship
5. Alexis Potts Passion Project Scholarship

Theater scholarships for Asian American college students

Many Asian American and other minority students find it difficult to afford higher education. Scholarships like the ones featured below help make attending an accredited college or university more accessible for these students.

1. HRCap Next-Gen Leadership Scholarship
2. Filipino-American Scholarship
3. Small Seed Big Flower Scholarship
4. Carlos F. Garcia Muentes Scholarship

Frequently asked questions about theater scholarships

How to find theater scholarships

When searching for theater scholarships, students should first reach out to the financial aid office at their college or university to see if any institution-specific scholarships are available to them. Students can also utilize Bold.org, a scholarship platform that makes finding other theater scholarships easy.

Creating a free Bold.org profile allows students exclusive access to hundreds of scholarships. Students can search through scholarships by category to find the most relevant scholarships.

Bold.org also has many scholarship pages to help students find the best scholarships. Theater students interested in other performing arts like music can check out the Exclusive Music Scholarships page, while a general arts scholarship can be found here.

What colleges offer theater scholarships?

Most colleges will offer some form of financial aid to students, and many do so through departmental scholarships. If a college or university has a theater or performing arts department, then it is very likely they will offer theater scholarships to meritorious students.

From New York University to the University of Kentucky, schools across the nation offer plenty of theater scholarships. No matter where a student chooses to attend school, they'll likely be able to find a theater scholarship.

While many colleges offer theater scholarships, students will often find that schools with larger theater departments have more theater scholarships available. The University of Central Florida offers 4 scholarships specifically for theater students compared to the 145 awards offered by the Theater, Film, and Television department at the University of California, Los Angeles.

When can I start applying?

You can begin applying for scholarships as early as your freshman year of high school. It's best to begin applying for scholarships as early as possible to maximize your scholarship potential. By applying for scholarships while in high school you can save yourself from future financial stress.

Though it is never too late to begin applying for scholarships. Current college students, as well as recent college graduates, can find many scholarship opportunities on Bold.org. No matter what stage of life you're in, you can still find financial support for your college education.

How do I know if I'm eligible for a scholarship?

Scholarships will have a range of different eligibility requirements set by the donor. A scholarship might specifically be for Black students pursuing musical theater, while another might be for a student enrolled full-time that successfully demonstrates leadership abilities. The only way to determine if you meet the criteria to apply is to read the description of the scholarship you are interested in.

On Bold.org, each scholarship will have the eligibility requirements clearly presented in a list at the top of the page. Bold.org will even restrict you from applying to certain scholarships if your profile information is incompatible with the eligibility requirements.

What do I have to do to apply?

Every scholarship will have its own application process but the instructions will always be listed in the description and easy to follow. For most scholarships, you will have to write a short essay to apply, but videos, images, and other documents can also be required. Many arts scholarships will ask students to submit videos or images of their work.

How many scholarships can I receive?

There is no limit to how many scholarships you can receive, so you should apply for as many as you can. Pursuing an arts education can be expensive, but there are numerous scholarship opportunities out there to support your educational goals.

Can scholarships be used towards student loans?

Many people think that scholarships are only meant for current students, but this is not the case. If you've already graduated college, finding scholarships to help pay off your student debt is a great option.

Are scholarships counted as income?

Scholarships are not usually counted as income. Scholarship awards are sent directly to the college or university a student attends to pay off their educational expenses, so they are not included in a student's income. If a student receives an excess amount of financial aid, then the scholarship awards might be refunded to the student and counted as income.