US theatre students to benefit from Andrew Lloyd Webber initiative

American Theatre Wing has announced today that their Andrew Lloyd Webber Initiative has launched its first annual application period for its 4-Year Partial University Scholarships.

Funded by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, ATW will give exceptional public high school seniors, with an economic need, financial support to study theatre or musical theatre. The ATW scheme hopes to ‘create a strong pipeline to the professional theatre for promising artists of all backgrounds’.

The students’ areas of focus can be from any aspect of theatre from performance, to design, to writing, to stage management, and others.

The scholarships can be used at an accredited private or public university or college in the United States. Each of the scholars will be provided with scholarships of up to USD10,000 (€9,479) towards their course fees, renewable for four years on the basis of achievement.

ATW president and CEO Heather Hitchens said: ‘Thanks to Andrew’s generosity we will be able to offer talented and passionate students who face financial barriers the chance to pursue a theatre degree and career. This is simply thrilling for the American Theatre Wing, and critical to the future of the American theatre.’

‘I have always been a passionate supporter of young talent. It is crucial that proper training is available for the performers of the future and it fills me with great joy that my Foundation can help in this way,’ added Lloyd Webber.

ATW’s Andrew Lloyd Webber Initiative is a major new national initiative which received USD1.3 million in seed funding from the ALWF, and will support theatre education opportunities for underserved young people and under-resourced public schools around the United States.

andrewlloydwebberfoundation.com  / AmericanTheatreWing.org