FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Rancho Mirage, CA –May 31, 2012 – The Caroline Victoria Coldicutt Arts Foundation (CVCAF) today announced that the Caroline Victoria Arts Award at Idyllwild Academy of the Arts (IAA) will be granted to Mikaela Gerwing, a junior student from Alberta, Canada. Emmanuel Renoir, a director of the CVCAF, will present Mikaela with the CVCAF Arts Award at the school’s presentation ceremony on June 01, 2012.
Mikaela is passionate about musical theatre and is an all-rounded student in academics and the arts at Idyllwild Academy. She performed (dancing and singing) in the musical For the Birds and was assistant stage manager/co-dance captain for the musical Berlin to Broadway. According to Donna Cory, guest choreographer for Berlin to Broadway, “Mikaela is completely invested in the educational process. She wants to learn because she wants to be a better artist and not because she wants to be in the spotlight. That is Mikaela in a nutshell.” “Mikaela’s eagerness, professionalism and positive attitude has set the bar in the theatre department. She is a total joy to have as a student,” said Howard Shangraw, chair of the theatre department. “Without being asked, Mikaela took all the dance notation and filmed the finished choreography (Berlin to Broadway) in order to send it to each cast member so they could review the work over the two week spring break!” Mikaela responded that she was “beyond surprised and excited” to receive the award. “I hope that the work I do in theatre can do justice to Caroline. Thank you for this amazing opportunity.”
The CVCAF endowed scholarship award was established at Idyllwild Arts Academy in January 2011. The annual arts award is based on merit as well as financial need and is in recognition of an Idyllwild Arts student’s outstanding achievement in any creative form – fine art, music, film, photography and dance.
The Idyllwild Arts Academy, Idyllwild, CA provides pre-professional training in the arts and a comprehensive college preparatory curriculum to a diverse student body of 300 gifted young artists from over 40 countries. Idyllwild offers a disciplined college preparatory program for grades 9-12 and post-graduates along with world-class training in creative writing, dance, film & video, interdisciplinary arts, music, theatre and visual art.
The purpose of the CVCAF scholarship award is to inspire students to reach their highest level of achievement in their art discipline and to encourage and support student artists toward their creative endeavors. Since 2006, our foundation has gifted more than 30 art scholarships to students whose passion is painting and fine arts at these schools:
• Emily Carr University, Vancouver, British Columbia
• Idyllwild Arts Academy, Idyllwild, CA
• Marywood-Palm Valley School, Rancho Mirage, CA
• Shawnigan Lake School, Vancouver, Island, British Columbia
• The Academy, Palm Desert, CA
• Since 2009, CVCAF has gifted several grants to benefit students whose passion is filmmaking through the Mary Pickford Institute of Film Education, Los Angeles, CA.
• To foster cross-cultural awareness and understanding through art, since 2011 the CVCAF has provided funds for art materials and supplies to two schools in China – Guanyindang Primary School in the suburbs of Jingzhou, China and the Dandelion School, a boarding school for children of rural migrant laborers located in Beijing.
About the Caroline Victoria Arts Foundation
The Caroline Victoria Coldicutt Arts Foundation (CVCAF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation formed in 2006 to commemorate the artistic passion of Caroline Victoria Coldicutt. The CVCAF offers three main initiatives to inform and assist aspiring student artists about how they can implement their creative ideas that can positively impact their families, schools, communities and the world. Our philanthropic efforts include offering support to young artists through scholarships at various schools in Canada and the United States. The Caroline Victoria Rose for the Arts provides funding of our endowment initiatives as well as provides a lasting reminder of the beauty art brings to the lives of each and every one of us. In late 2012, we will introduce our Caroline Victoria Online Arts Festival (CVOAF), an initiative designed for student artists without boundaries.