Thinking about applying for a Theatre Scholarship?
Excellent! Though an audition or interview is not required to study theatre at Muhlenberg, it is how you get considered for a Talent Scholarship. It's also a great way for us to get to know you, and for you to get to know the Theatre Program. A strong Talent Scholarship interview or audition can also improve your admissions profile — and you don't have to major in theatre to be considered for a Talent Scholarship.
Your Talent Scholarship meeting will always include an interview with a member or the theatre faculty, who will talk to you about your interests, ideas, and experience. If you have samples of your theatrical work or artwork, we'd love to take a look them. And if you're a performer, you can audition for us with a monologue and, if you'd like, a vocal selection. (Guidelines to prepare for all this can be found below.)
You have two options for your Talent Scholarship interview or audition: Schedule an individual campus visit, or attend a Theatre Open House event.
Individual Talent Scholarship Interviews & Auditions
If you're interested in Theatre at Muhlenberg, we invite you to spend a day with us, either by scheduling an individual visit or attending our Spring Theatre Open House. Either way, you can experience our training firsthand by attending a class, as well as tour our world-class facilities and sit down with a member of the faculty. If you’re a high school senior, you can also arrange for a Theatre Talent Scholarship interview or audition. (See below.)
If our Dance Program is also on your radar, you’re welcome to schedule a Dance audition/interview too, either during an individual visit or by attending our Spring Dance Open House on Saturday, February 8, 2025. Just let us know!
Students interested in acting, directing or playwriting:
- To request an on-campus visit to interview/audition for Theatre Talent Scholarship, please complete this form. We'll be in touch soon afterward to set things up!
- To request a Zoom Theatre Talent Scholarship interview/audition, please email Prof. Troy Dwyer: [email protected].
Students interested in design, technical theatre or stage management:
- To sign up for a Theatre Talent Scholarship interview or portfolio review, please use this online scheduler.
Spring Theatre Open House
An all-access day giving high school seniors, juniors and their families a deep-dive into the ‘Berg Theatre experience, the Spring Open House is our most dynamic on-campus event for prospective theatre students. Seniors may also interview/audition for a Theatre Talent Scholarship. The date of this year’s Spring Open House is:
Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025
Open House / Audition Day Schedule
| 9:30 am | For those attending the campus tour: check-in at the Baker Center for the Arts |
| 9:45 am | Campus Tour |
| 10:30 am | For those not attending the campus tour: check-in at the Box Office Lobby, Trexler Pavilion for Theatre & Dance |
| 10:45 am | Backstage tour of the Theatre & Dance facilities |
| 11:15 am | Theatre faculty & student Q&A Panel in the Baker Theatre |
| noon | Lunch with current students |
| 1 pm | Performance Workshops with Theatre faculty members |
| 2-5 pm | Theatre Scholarship Auditions/Interviews |
Scholarship Portfolio Reviews/Interviews for Theatre design/tech students will be by appointment. Please contact [email protected] to schedule.
Please wait until your senior year to schedule a Talent Scholarship meeting — but younger students are welcome to come visit us! Details on the Campus Visit page.
Timelines
Early Decision 1:
application deadline: Nov. 15
best to audition before: Dec. 1
admissions decision: mid-December
Early Action:
application deadline: Dec. 1
best to audition before: Dec. 15
admissions decision: Feb. 1
Early Decision 2:
application deadline: Feb. 1
best to audition before: Feb. 15
admissions decision: mid-February
Regular Decision:
application deadline: Feb. 1
best to audition before: Feb. 15
admissions decisions: mid-March
These are the deadlines to have your Talent Scholarship interview or audition reflected in your initial financial aid offer; however, you may still be considered for a Talent Scholarship after you have been admitted, until Feb. 15.
For more information on admissions and timelines, visit the Admissions website.
Please note that a Talent Scholarship Interview with a member of the Theatre & Dance faculty does not take the place of an Admissions Interview. Students should also schedule an Admissions Interview with the Office of Admissions.
Transfer Student applicants are welcome to audition after Feb. 15. See the Transfer Student web portal for more information on timelines and processes.
Audition/Interview Requirements
All students interested in being considered for a Talent Scholarship in any area are welcome to submit up to two letters of recommendation from teachers or theatre professionals, attesting to the quality of your talent, leadership qualities, and work ethic. Letters are not required. Please ask your references to email letters directly to the Department, at [email protected].
For students interested in acting:
For the acting audition, prepare either …
- two contrasting monologues, memorized, totaling not more than four minutes in length. It is recommended that no accents be used, and you read the plays that the monologues are from. OR…
- one monologue and one song (32 bars), selected from the musical theatre repertoire. Students with classical voice training have the option to sing an additional 32-bar section of an art song or aria.
Students who plan to sing are required to bring recorded accompaniment. You can send us your vocal track ahead of time or bring it along and play it over a Bluetooth connection or headphone cable.
We encourage you to tell us about all your theatrical interests in your Talent Scholarship interview. If you are interested in pursuing any of the fields below in addition to performance, please let us know, and feel free to bring along samples and materials!
For students interested in directing or playwriting
Please send us your résumé and any portfolio materials that you'd like to share, including playwriting samples, prompt books, production photos, programs, etc. A portfolio isn't required — but we'd love to take a look at any materials you'd like to show us!
You may submit materials electronically, through the pre-audition/interview form, or just bring them along to your Talent Scholarship interview. Playwriting samples should be one or two excerpts, between 5-10 total pages.
You're welcome to perform an acting audition in addition to your interview. See above for acting audition information.
For students interested in stage management or design and technology
You're welcome to submit portfolio materials, but it's not necessary. If you do wish to share materials, feel free to include drawings from art classes, photos of work presented on stage, light plots, costume renderings, photos of creative art projects, or other materials that show visual artistic ability and imagination.
If you're interested in an acting audition or directing/playwriting interview in addition to your design and tech interview, please email [email protected] and let us know!
If you have any questions about the audition/interview process, please don't hesitate to contact us at [email protected] for more information.
