ONstage Openings for the week of September 30

In South Central Ontario
Oct. 2, The Sunshine Boys at Burl-Oak Theatre Group (Oakville)

In Southwestern Ontario
Oct. 2, Godspell at Drayton Entertainment: St. Jacobs Country Playhouse

In Toronto
Oct. 2, Crash at Theatre Passe Muraille (currently in previews)*
Oct. 3, Venus In Fur at Canadian Stage (currently in previews)*
Oct. 3, Dust Motes Dancing at ACT II Studio Theatre
Oct. 3, The Unexpected Guest at Stage Centre Productions

Upper Canada Playhouse
Lucien
Marshall Button

In Eastern Ontario
Oct. 3, A Trio Of One-Act Plays: The Game / Erica & Me / Plum Hollow at Smiths Falls Community Theatre
Oct. 3, Lucien at Upper Canada Playhouse (Morrisburg)
Oct. 4, The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare (abridged) at Seaway Valley Theatre Company (Cornwall)

For more information on these shows and other theatre playing across Ontario, visit Theatre Ontario’s ONstage theatre listings on our website.

Theatre Ontario individual members can access discount tickets for shows marked with an * asterisk

Read more about our members discount tickets program

Honouring Contribution to Community Theatre in Western Ontario

We are now inviting nominations for Theatre Ontario's 2014 Michael Spence Award for Contribution to Community Theatre.  This award honours an individual for a sustained contribution, generosity of spirit, involvement, and commitment to community theatre within his/her region.  It is presented annually to an individual from the region that is hosting the Theatre Ontario Festival—which in 2014 is Western Ontario.

Joe O'Brien of Ottawa receiving the 2013 Michael Spence Award

Past recipients of the award are Joan McRae, Anne Wilson, Lillian Sievanen, Betty Coates, Sharon Sproule, Arlene Watson, Vince Mathewson, David Glover, Harry Houston, Hans Warmenhoven, Beth McMaster, Val Hadley, Maureen Lukie, Gabe Ferrazzo, Ken Stephen, Margaret Shearman, Lawrie Bonanno, Jo-anne Spitzer, and Walter Maskel.  The 2013 award was presented to Joe O’Brien of Ottawa.

The 2014 award will be presented to an individual from the Western Ontario community theatre region, which includes Bruce County, Grey County, Wellington County, the Region of Waterloo, the City of Burlington, the City of Hamilton, Niagara Region, and all other municipalities southward and westward to the U.S. border.

The award was established in 1997 by Theatre Ontario on the occasion of Theatre Ontario's 25th Anniversary.  Multiple awards were presented on the quinquennial anniversaries of Theatre Ontario until 2012, when it became a single, annual award.  The award is named in honour of Michael Spence, the founding President of Theatre Ontario.  Michael was active in community theatre at Hart House Theatre, London Little Theatre, and the University Alumnae Dramatic Club (now known as Alumnae Theatre.)  He was a member of the Board of Governors of the Dominion Drama Festival, a past President of Arts Etobicoke, and continues to be an enthusiastic supporter of Theatre Ontario.

The deadline for nominations is January 31, 2014.

Read more about Theatre Ontario’s Michael Spence Award for Community Theatre and download award guidelines and nomination form

Browsing The Bulletin Board

Coming Up from Theatre Ontario

• Upcoming workshops include Ask An Agent: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know with Alicia Jeffery on September 30 in Toronto, Crowdfunding Basics: Tips for Artists and Arts Organizations with Nancy Kenny on October 7 in Ottawa, the Adjudicators Symposium on October 19 in Toronto, and Getting Started for Actors with Mairin Smit on October 23 in Toronto.  Check out all of our upcoming courses and workshops, including financial basics, the Ontarians with Disabilities Act, and self-producing
• Upcoming Community Theatre Discussion Forums in Sault Ste. Marie on September 28, London on October 20, and Merrickville on November 9: sharing and identifying opportunities to partner, and provide services and support such as advocacy, training, and resources
• Application deadline for the Professional Theatre Training Program is October 1, offering financial support for unique and flexible training with a chosen mentor in any theatrical discipline except performance
• Application deadline for the Youth Theatre Training Program is October 15, offering financial support for accessible theatre programs involving youth aged 14 to 21 led by professional theatre artists

Upcoming on The Bulletin Board

• Jumblies Theatre’s Oral History and Art-Making workshop in Sudbury for artists from any discipline and tradition with some prior experience, through their own practices, of oral history or interview-based arts projects, and an active professional interest in this work, starts September 26

Jumblies Theatre workshop
Photo by Katherine Fleitas

• Ontario Arts Council upcoming deadlines for Artists in the Community / Workplace, Arts Education Projects, and National and International Residency programs is October 1
• Tarragon Theatre’s Playwriting and Dramaturgy with Brian Quirt for writers and other theatre artists exploring creation through writing starts October 1

New on The Bulletin Board

• Acting Up Stage Company invites applications to audition for One Song Glory, a free professional musical theatre training program for youth 13 to 19; auditions are October 19 and 27
• Applications are now open for the Toronto Fringe Festival; deadline is November 4
• The Toronto Fringe is also inviting applications under the Culturally Diverse Artists Project, encouraging greater participation in the Fringe Festival by artists who self-identify as culturally diverse by removing some of the traditional barriers to participation, including financial concerns, awareness of the Fringe, artistic support and a sense of being excluded from mainstream events; the deadline is also November 4

Check out these items, and other postings from our members of workshops, funding opportunities, calls for submission, free community events, awards, and more—on Theatre Ontario’s Bulletin Board on our website

Theatre Ontario individual members can also access auditions, job postings, and volunteer opportunities on our Theatre Ontario Individual Member Resources on our website

Protecting Our Most Vulnerable

By Carol Beauchamp, Executive Director

The recent second reading of a private members bill – Ontario Bill 71, Protecting Child Performers Act has just brought to top of mind the responsibility we have to protect our most vulnerable people when we are working with them on a volunteer or professional basis.

Regardless of the outcome of the Bill, it is important that theatre companies and theatre groups, theatre schools, coaches and individuals providing training and volunteer opportunities for children and other vulnerable people take the appropriate measures to ensure their safety and well-being.

With the proliferation of youth training programs and youth theatre organizations (professional and volunteer/community), it is important that we understand who is considered to be “vulnerable”, and the responsibility we have to ensure their safety when they work with us, whether on a volunteer or paid basis, or if they participate in workshops or other training programs.

According to the Ontario Provincial Police, a vulnerable person is defined as:

"All children who are less than 18 years of age,
AND/OR persons who, because of their age, a disability or other circumstances, whether temporary or permanent:
(a) are in a position of dependence on others; or
(b) are otherwise at a greater risk than the general population of being harmed by persons in a position of authority or trust relative to them."

For professional theatre companies with paid child performers, there are comprehensive health and safety guidelines provided under the Child Performers Guidelines from the Ontario Ministry of Labour.

For any organization where children and other vulnerable people are members, participants in programs, and volunteers, we strongly recommended reviewing the following advice from the Ontario Provincial Police:

"any organization that hires paid or volunteer individuals who will be in contact with members of the vulnerable sector, such as children, the elderly and persons with disabilities" request a vulnerable sector check.

When you are considering policies for your organization, remember that The Vulnerable Sector Check (VSC) is an organization driven request.  Your group/organization must provide the individuals that you require to have a VSC with a letter which explains that they need a Vulnerable Sector Check.  They will also need to give a detailed description of the specific job they will be hired/ volunteer for, as well as the hiring manager(s), volunteer coordinator(s) names and contact number.

I hope this information will provide some food for thought when discussing and developing policies for your group/organization for working with children and other vulnerable people.  You may want to read information about police checks from the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration.

Theatre Ontario has identified a need to develop theatre-specific resources to assist our members in this area.  If you have expertise or enthusiasm for protecting vulnerable persons, please contact Carol Beauchamp, Executive Director, at carol@theatreontario.org or 416.408.4556 x.11.

ONstage Openings for the week of September 23

In South Central Ontario
Sep. 26, Renovations at Mississauga Players

In Southwestern Ontario
Sep. 25, Lend Me A Tenor at Drayton Entertainment: Dunfield Theatre Cambridge
Sep. 25, The Mousetrap at Theatre Aquarius (Hamilton) with a preview on Sep. 24

Theatre Passe Muraille - On The Rocks
Louise Pitre
Photo by Kimberly Butler

In Toronto
Sep. 25, The Best Brothers at Tarragon Theatre (currently in previews)
Sep. 25, On The Rocks at Theatre Passe Muraille – world premiere*
Sep. 26, The Flood Thereafter at Canadian Stage (currently in previews)*
Sep. 26, Crash at Theatre Passe Muraille (in previews)*
Sep. 27, The Norman Conquests – Table Manners at Soulpepper Theatre (in previews)
Sep. 28, The Norman Conquests - Round And Round The Garden at Soulpepper Theatre (in previews)
Sep. 28, The Norman Conquests - Living Together at Soulpepper Theatre (in previews)
Sep. 29, Venus In Fur at Canadian Stage (in previews)*

In Northeastern Ontario
Sep. 26, Our Town at Sudbury Theatre Centre

For more information on these shows and other theatre playing across Ontario, visit Theatre Ontario’s ONstage theatre listings on our website.

Theatre Ontario members can access discount tickets for shows marked with an * asterisk
Read more about our members discount tickets program

Ontario Off Stage

by Brandon Moore, Communications Coordinator

Culture Days
Culture Days invites everyone to explore, discover and participate in arts and culture in every community across the country.  Culture Days runs September 27 to 29.  Some of our members activities that we’ve heard about include:

• An interactive play reading at Aluna Theatre in Toronto
• A poetry festival at Children’s Peace Theatre in Toronto
• An open house at Domino Theatre in Kingston
• A backstage tour at The Grand Theatre in London
• An acting workshop for 6-12 year olds at Great Canadian Theatre Company and OYP Theatre School in Ottawa
• A “backstage pass” at Mississauga Players
• Physical theatre workshops with Andy Massingham at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa
• An open house at Oshawa Little Theatre
• A backstage tour at Ottawa Little Theatre
• An art gallery at the Rose Theatre in Brampton
• An evening of Plays in Cafes at Shadowpath Theatre in Vaughan
• A backstage tour and a Sunday coffee concert at the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake
• Shakespeare text classes at the Stratford Festival

(We'll update this list if we hear about more opportunities)

Unearthed at Theatre Passe Muraille

Behind The Scenes At Ontario’s Theatres

• Unearthed at Theatre Passe Muraille: What they found when they decided to spruce up their lobby
• Past members of Scarborough Music Theatre: They are looking for some past show programs to scan for their archives
• Stu Cox, flying director for Soulpepper’s production of Angels In America, was profiled in Torontoist’s I Want Your Job

Conversations

• A campaign is underway to ensure drama and dance education is part of Ontario teacher education programs: find out more on the Advocate for Drama and Dance wiki
• The arts are not in trouble—it’s the institutions that are failing: Devon Smith proposes three possible solutions arising from an Arts Dinner-vention Party
• What could theatres accomplish with Big Data?  Gwydion Suilebhan explores the question on HowlRound
• Does the arts need an Anti-Defamation League?

From The Wire

• The Playwrights Guild of Canada’s Tom Hendry Awards will be held on October 28 in Toronto

Migrations

• Patrick Gauthier is the new Festival Director of the Ottawa Fringe Festival
• John McHenry is the new Director of Marketing & Development at the Blyth Festival (PDF)

TO Toasts

• To Vinetta Strombergs, our former Professional Theatre Coordinator; her Toronto Fringe hit production of Musical Of Musicals: The Musical! will be part of the Mirvish season this December

You can also receive news from Theatre Ontario every month by email.  Our archives are online and the September issue is now available.

Congratulations to the 2014 Shaw Festival Intern Directors

Congratulations to Alistair Newton of Toronto and Rachel Peake of Vancouver who have been chosen as the Intern Directors for the 2014 Neil Munro Intern Directors Project at the Shaw Festival.  Each season, the Shaw Festival hires two Intern Directors.  They look for promising professional directors at a point in their career where an extended residency with a company like the Shaw Festival will be of benefit to their professional development.  The interns have a good amount of professional experience, but will not have had an opportunity to work on the scale of production that is characteristic of The Shaw.

Alistair Newton is a Toronto-based playwright, director of theatre and opera, and founding Artistic Director of Ecce Homo Theatre.  Alistair’s work has been seen at the SummerWorks, Rhubarb and Next Stage Festivals, and he recently served as director/dramaturge for Bella: The Color of Love (Philadelphia Theatre Company/Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts) and writer/director for Of a Monstrous Child (Ecce Homo/Buddies in Bad Times) which received four Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations. Alistair was Apprentice Director for the Ensemble Studio of the Canadian Opera Company during the 2009/10 Season where he directed Pergolesi’s La Serva Padrona, and he recently completed a residency as Apprentice Artistic Director at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. Alistair is a member of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab and holds a BFA from The University of Victoria.

Rachel Peake has directed for companies from Newfoundland to Victoria including the Belfry Theatre, Théâtre la Seizième, Alley Theatre, Pacific Opera Victoria, Studio 58, and Solo Collective Theatre, for whom she was the Artistic Director from 2008-2013.  Rachel spent two years as part of an inter-arts collective as resident director of Gros Morne Summer Music and has worked extensively in new play development.  In 2011 Rachel won the Jessie Richardson Award for Outstanding Direction and the Ray Michal Award for Outstanding Body of Work by an Emerging Director.  Upcoming, Rachel will dramaturge and direct the opera Stickboy by Shane Koyczan for the Vancouver Opera.

The Intern Directors work under the mentorship of the Directors of the Academy—the Shaw Festival’s professional development and public education wing.  Each Intern is assigned to two or three successive shows as an Assistant Director.  The “Director’s Project” is the culmination of the Intern Director’s season, and consists of a double-bill of two one-act plays directed by the two Intern Directors, chosen from the period of The Shaw’s original mandate.

Since its inception in 1988, the project has been sponsored annually by Sun Life Financial and Theatre Ontario.

Read more about the Neil Munro Intern Directors Project at the Shaw Festival on the Theatre Ontario website

Browsing The Bulletin Board

Coming Up from Theatre Ontario

• Struggling with funding for your project?  Check out our free Grant Writing Information Session for Theatre Individuals and Groups with Pat Bradley on September 23 in Toronto, and our Crowdfunding Basics: Tips for Artists and Arts Organizations with Nancy Kenny on October 7 in Ottawa (ICYMI: Read Nancy's "Free Money" post on our blog)
• Upcoming Community Theatre Discussion Forums in Sault Ste. Marie on September 28, London on October 20, and Merrickville on November 9: sharing and identifying opportunities to partner, and provide services and support such as advocacy, training, and resources
• Are you an actor wondering about what an agent does and why should you have one?  Join us for Ask An Agent: Everything You’ve Always Wanted To Know with Alicia Jeffery on September 30 in Toronto
• Application deadline for the Professional Theatre Training Program is October 1, offering financial support for unique and flexible training with a chosen mentor in any theatrical discipline except performance
• Application deadline for the Youth Theatre Training Program is October 15, offering financial support for accessible theatre programs involving youth aged 14 to 21 led by professional theatre artists

Check out all of our upcoming courses and workshops, including our Adjudicators Symposium, the business of acting, financial basics, the Ontarians With Disabilities Act, and self-producing

Upcoming on The Bulletin Board

• Tarragon Theatre’s Audit The Season starts today, for professional and aspiring theatre-makers, as well as engaged audience members, interested in observing and unpacking elements of the creative process from the inside
• Application deadline for Buddies In Bad Times’ Young Creators Unit, for queer-identified artists 25 and under is September 20
• Alameda Theatre Company’s Playwriting Masterclass with Guillermo Verdecchia for emerging and established theatre artists seeking the opportunity to engage with the craft of playwriting begins September 21
• Jumblies Theatre’s Oral History and Art-Making workshop in Sudbury for artists from any discipline and tradition with some prior experience, through their own practices, of oral history or interview-based arts projects, and an active professional interest in this work, starts September 26
• Ontario Arts Council upcoming deadlines for Artists in the Community / Workplace, Arts Education Projects, and National and International Residency programs is October 1

Guillermo Verdecchia, Alameda Theatre's
Playwriting Masterclass instructor

New on The Bulletin Board

• Théâtre Action’s 2013 Happening Théâtral Communautaire (HTC) will take place at Toronto’s Collège français in partnership with the amateur theatre troupe Les Indisciplinés.  French Ontario theatre lovers can gather to discuss, exchange and learn. The participants will be invited to collaborate and create collective work during the weekend. Every amateur theatre troupe in attendance will have the opportunity to present a ten minute excerpt from their season’s production. A professional director, Pierre Simpson, will be rehearsing with all the groups to link the excerpts and create flow for this collective production that will take place Saturday evening.  Participants will also have the chance to take part in training offered by professional theatre artists Luc Thériault, Lisa L’Heureux and André Perrier, will participate in a round table consultation on the subject of amateur theatre troupe management and will see a production by Les Indisciplinés de Toronto.  Theatre Ontario members are eligible for the discount rate.  The conference is October 18 to 20.
• Tarragon Theatre invites applications for Urjo Kareda Residency Grant for an Emerging Theatre Artist.  The residency grant supports the training and artistic residency of an emerging theatre artist.  The successful applicant will spend twenty weeks at Tarragon Theatre working in collaboration with professional artists to pursue training and artistic goals.  The first deadline is October 21.
• Want to fast-track your play to success at the 2014 Toronto Fringe Festival?  Apply to the Toronto Fringe Festival New Play Contest.  The contest closes October 25.
• Buddies in Bad Times Theatre is accepting submissions for Theatre Creators’ Reserve grants through the Ontario Arts Council.  Buddies wishes to support the variety of needs and approaches individual creators or collectives may have in creating original work; interested in projects that are in all stages of development; supporting theatre creators who are working on new play texts and performance creation-based models.  Deadline is November 29.
• Theatre InspiraTO's Ten-Minute Playwriting Contest is open to everyone without age or geographic restriction.  There are no submission fees.  The creative challenge for the contest is that the staging of the play must involve two or more dimensions.  Deadline is December 18.

Check out these items, and other postings from our members of workshops, funding opportunities, calls for submission, and more—on Theatre Ontario’s Bulletin Board on our website

Theatre Ontario individual members can also access auditions, job postings, and volunteer opportunities on our Theatre Ontario Individual Member Resources on our website

ONstage Openings for the week of September 16

In South Central Ontario
Sep. 20, On Golden Pond at The Curtain Club (Richmond Hill) with a preview on Sep. 19*

London Community Players - Metamorphoses
Photo by Ross Davidson

In Southwestern Ontario
Sep. 17, Legally Blonde [High School Project] at The Grand Theatre (London)
Sep. 19, Waiting For Godot at Kitchener-Waterloo Little Theatre
Sep. 20, Side By Side By Sondheim at Theatre Ancaster (Hamilton)
Sep. 20, Metamorphoses at London Community Players, with a preview on Sep. 19

In Toronto
Sep. 17, The Best Brothers at Tarragon Theatre (in previews)
Sep. 19, PIG at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre (currently in previews) – world premiere
Sep. 20, The Underpants at Alumnae Theatre Company
Sep. 20, Bone Cage at Hart House Theatre*
Sep. 22, The Flood Thereafter at Canadian Stage (in previews)*
Sep. 22, The Company We Keep Cabaret Series at Theatre 20

In Central Ontario
Sep. 17, The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare (Abridged) at Orillia Opera House*
Sep. 18, Same Time, Next Year at Theatre Collingwood
Sep. 20, Double Talk: The Zoo Story / Counting The Ways at Peterborough Theatre Guild

For more information on these shows and other theatre playing across Ontario, visit Theatre Ontario’s ONstage theatre listings on our website

Theatre Ontario members can access discount tickets for shows marked with an * asterisk

Honouring Innovation in Arts and Culture

Theatre Ontario is now inviting nominations for the 2014 Sandra Tulloch Award for Innovation in Arts and Culture.

The award is presented annually to an individual or a collective whose leadership, activism, and service has contributed to the development and strengthening of arts and culture in Ontario through innovative and practical initiatives.  While Theatre Ontario administers this award, it recognizes achievements in all artistic and cultural disciplines.  The award is sponsored by Marinucci & Company.

Past recipients of the award are Tim Jones & Susan Serran, Angela Rebeiro, Jane Marsland, Myles Warren, Jini Stolk, Claire Hopkinson, Peter Honeywell, Janis Barlow, Winston Morgan, Judy Harquail, and Heather Young.

The nomination deadline is November 30, 2013.  The jury for the 2014 award is Winston Morgan (Chair), Jini Stolk, and Myles Warren (as past recipients of the award) and David Caron and Micheline McKay (as representatives of the arts and culture sector at-large.)

Read the full guidelines for the Sandra Tulloch Award for Innovation in Arts and Culture on the Theatre Ontario website

Browsing The Bulletin Board

Coming Up from Theatre Ontario

• Upcoming workshops include Playwriting: Idea to First Draft with Lindsay Price on September 14 in Toronto, Playwriting: How to Self-Edit and Critique with Lindsay Price on September 15 in Toronto, Smart Marketing: Adapting to the New Reality with Cheryl Ewing on September 21 in Toronto, and a Grant Writing Information Session with Pat Bradley on September 23 in Toronto—future workshops include ask an agent (Toronto) and crowdfunding (Ottawa)
• Upcoming Community Theatre Discussion Forums in Oshawa on September 12, Sault Ste. Marie on September 28, London on October 20, and Merrickville on November 9: sharing and identifying opportunities to partner, and provide services and support such as advocacy, training, and resources
• Application deadline for the Professional Theatre Training Program is October 1, offering financial support for unique and flexible training with a chosen mentor in any theatrical discipline except performance

Upcoming on The Bulletin Board

All The Ladies by Sasha Kleinplatz
from Buddies In Bad Times' Rhubarb Festival 2013

• The submission deadline for Buddies In Bad Times’ Rhubarb Festival is September 13, for new, not previously produced performance projects (30 minutes or less) and performative experiments; established and emerging creators; of particular interest this year are projects, approaches and ideas that are process-driven, consider the theatre as a laboratory and explore the possibilities of Rhubarb as a testing ground and place for research and development
• Grant deadlines are coming up for both the Canada Council (Sep. 15 for Grants to Theatre Artists, Support to Theatre Service Organizations, Theatre Production Projects, and Artists and Community Collaboration Program) and Ontario Arts Council (Sep. 16 for Aboriginal Artists in Communities, Aboriginal Arts Projects, Ontario Touring, National and International Touring)
• The nomination deadline for the 2013 Siminovitch Prize in Theatre is September 16; awarded to professional directors who, in the preceding 10 years, have made a significant creative contribution to no fewer than three noteworthy theatre projects in Canada
• Tarragon Theatre’s Audit The Season starts September 18, for professional and aspiring theatre-makers, as well as engaged audience members, interested in observing and unpacking elements of the creative process from the inside

New on The Bulletin Board

• Toronto Fringe Festival invites applications under the OAC Theatre Creators Reserve.  Their funding area of interest / priority is supporting unique, innovative, and unexpected methods of storytelling; considering artists and artist collaborations using any range of creative processes (scriptwriting or otherwise) in the development of new theatre or dance.  The deadline is October 7
• Tarragon Theatre invites applications under the OAC Theatre Creators Reserve.  Their funding priority is open to plays of all forms and in all stages of development, and a wide variety of play creation processes; there are no restrictions with respect to form and content; drawn to creators and plays that demonstrate a talent for the medium of theatre, possess a strong and unique voice or point of view, probe the human condition, and evoke rich and complex worlds.  The deadline is October 11

Check out these items, and other postings from our members of workshops, calls for submission, funding opportunities, awards, and more—on Theatre Ontario’s Bulletin Board on our website

Theatre Ontario individual members can also access auditions, job postings, and volunteer opportunities on our Theatre Ontario Individual Member Resources on our website

Funding Youth Theatre Training Programs

Does your organization want to undertake a unique youth training project, led by professional theatre artists?  Theatre Ontario's Youth Theatre Training Program may be for you.

Theatre Ontario is now inviting applications for the October 15, 2013 deadline for the Youth Theatre Training Program (YTTP), funded by the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.

YTTP provides training dollars to fund accessible theatre programs involving youth aged 14 to 21.  YTTP assists Ontario organizations that wish to undertake projects providing training to youth in various theatrical skills and disciplines, led by professional theatre artists.

Read all about the Youth Theatre Training Program on the Theatre Ontario website

After reading the YTTP guidelines, applicants are encouraged to contact Mairin Smit, Program Coordinator (mairin@theatreontario.org or 416.408.4556 x.12) regarding your application.

Read about the most recent youth training (Spring 2013) funded by this program

ONstage Openings for the week of September 9

In Eastern Ontario
Sep. 10, Skin Flick at Ottawa Little Theatre
Sep. 11, Six Dance Lessons In Six Weeks at Stirling Festival Theatre
Sep. 12, Proud at Great Canadian Theatre Company (Ottawa) with previews from Sep. 10
Sep. 14, No Great Mischief at Thousand Islands Playhouse (Gananoque) with a preview on Sep. 13

In Southwestern Ontario
Sep. 12, The Melville Boys at Elmira Theatre Company

Scarborough Players - Looking
(Clockwise) Erin Jones, Daryl Marks, Steve Switzman, Meg Gibson

In Toronto
Sep. 13, Looking at Scarborough Players
Sep. 14, PIG at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, in previews (world premiere)

For more information on these shows and other theatre playing across Ontario, visit Theatre Ontario’s ONstage theatre listings on our website

Ontario Off Stage

by Brandon Moore, Communications Coordinator

Behind The Scenes At Ontario’s Theatres

Jim Mezon in Faith Healer at Shaw Festival.
Photo by David Cooper.

• Buddies In Bad Times Theatre participated in the “first-ever international queer youth theatre exchange” with Chicago’s About Face Theatre and one participant reflected on conversation itself as a work of art
• Among the productions announced in Toronto Fringe’s Next Stage Festival is the Praxis Theatre production of Rifles: Nicolas Billon’s new adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s Senora Carrar’s Rifles.  I had the pleasure of seeing Michael Wheeler’s production of the Brecht play on the 2012 Directors Day as part of the Neil Munro Intern Directors Project at the Shaw Festival—I’m excited to see this new adaptation
• Meanwhile, 2011 Shaw Intern Director alum Craig Hall talks about his experiences directing Faith Healer this past season, “in search of truth (whatever that may be)” on In The Greenroom

Conversations

• Melissa Hillman writes about rejection in theatre: “Don’t you want me, baby” (my earworm for the past two days now)
• Digital organization: five invaluable tips from Stage Manager Lois Dawson

From The Wire

• The Toronto Theatre Trivia Game Show is coming on October 7, from our colleagues at the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts
• Arts Day on Parliament Hill 2013 has been “prorogued”

Migrations

• Leslie Francombe, our former Board Treasurer, is the new Development Officer at The Grand Theatre in London
• Antonio Sarmiento is the new General Manager and Artistic Director of Port Hope Festival Theatre

In Case You Missed It

• Bringing playwrights into communities at our Summer Theatre Intensive 
• Why do we do community theatre, from Festival Adjudicator Bea Quarrie

Bringing Playwrights into Communities at our Summer Theatre Intensive

By Cornelia Persich, Education Coordinator

As part of our Theatre Ontario Summer Theatre Intensive, participants and guests were enriched with a special reading given by Maja Ardal from two of her plays.  Playwright-in-Person is made possible by a grant from the Playwrights Guild of Canada, funded by the Canada Council.

The audience sat transfixed as we heard the characters come to life in Maja's play called You Fancy Yourself.  The main character Elsa spans in ages from four to eleven, and is a very optimistic and imaginative child.  She arrives in the new city of Edinburgh, Scotland (in post-Second World War time) to discover her new school, boys, the "cool girls," and a new best friend.  Maja read each role in character seamlessly, giving us the pleasure of imagining the scene played out in front of us.

We heard from Elsa again as a teenager when Maja read from The Cure for Everything.  Elsa has a big crush on Brian Baxter who barely notices her.  While she is not one of the popular girls, she happens to befriend Sheena, the leader of the cool girls, while sneaking off to have a smoke on a found cigarette butt and wearing the latest in "Beatles tights."  With Sheena at her side to coach her, she knows that Brian Baxter will fall in love with her.

Both plays are available through Playwrights Canada Press.  Playwright-in-Person has been part of Theatre Ontario Festival and Theatre Ontario Summer Courses for nearly fifteen years, featuring playwrights like Norm Foster, Yvette Nolan, David S. Craig, and Allan Stratton.

Read more about Theatre Ontario’s Courses and Workshops on our website

Browsing The Bulletin Board

Coming Up from Theatre Ontario

• Struggling with funding for your project?  Check out our upcoming workshops: a free Grant Writing Information Session for Theatre Individuals and Groups with Pat Bradley on September 23 in Toronto, and our Crowdfunding Basics: Tips for Artists and Arts Organizations with Nancy Kenny on October 7 in Ottawa
• Community theatre members: Are you interested in sharing and identifying opportunities to partner to receive services and support such as advocacy, training, and resources?  We have an upcoming Community Theatre Discussion Forum in Oshawa on September 12, with future sessions in Sault Ste. Marie, London, and Merrickville
• Are you an emerging playwright?  Do you have an emerging play?  Join us for Playwriting: Idea to First Draft on September 14 in Toronto, and Playwriting: How to Self-Edit and Critique on September 15 in Toronto, both workshops lead by Lindsay Price
• What do your patrons expect from their night at the theatre?  How can you help them to meet their expectations?  How do you use your existing audience to help you find a new audience?  Find out at Smart Marketing: Adapting to the New Reality with Cheryl Ewing on September 21 in Toronto
• Are you an actor wondering about what an agent does and why should you have one?  Join us for Ask An Agent: Everything You’ve Always Wanted To Know with Alicia Jeffery on September 30 in Toronto

Upcoming on The Bulletin Board

Alexis Gordon, one of the Acting Up Stage Company
2012 Syd & Shirley Banks Prize recipients

• Deadline for submissions for Acting Up Stage Company’s Syd & Shirley Banks Prize for musical theatre artists under 30 years of age is September 9
• Grant deadlines are coming up for both the Ontario Arts Council (Sep. 16 for Aboriginal Artists in Communities, Aboriginal Arts Projects, Ontario Touring, National and International Touring) and Canada Council (Sep. 15 for Grants to Theatre Artists, Support to Theatre Service Organizations, Theatre Production Projects, and Artists and Community Collaboration Program)

New on The Bulletin Board

• Tarragon Theatre has an early bird registration deadline of November 1 for two 2014 workshop series: Playwriting with Paula Wing (starting January 9) and Directing with Richard Rose (starting May 12)

Check out these items, and other postings from our members of workshops, calls for submission, funding opportunities, awards, and more—on Theatre Ontario’s Bulletin Board on our website

Theatre Ontario individual members can also access auditions, job postings, and volunteer opportunities in our Theatre Ontario Individual Member Resources on our website

ONstage Openings for the week of September 3

In Eastern Ontario

Upper Canada Playhouse -
The Cemetery Club
Linda Goranson, Doug Tangney,
AnnaMarie Lea, Patti Kazmer

Sep. 3, Hal & Falstaff at A Company of Fools (Ottawa)
Sep. 7, The Cemetery Club at Upper Canada Playhouse (Morrisburg) with previews from Sep. 5

For more information on these shows and other theatre playing across Ontario, visit Theatre Ontario’s ONstage theatre listings on our website.