Ontario Off Stage

by Brandon Moore, Communications Coordinator

Conversation Starters

"Disappearing Act: A Public Forum on
Canadian Theatre and Toronto Audiences"

• Mitchell Marcus, Artistic and Managing Director of Acting Up Stage Company, reflects on the low income of artists, and how artists subsidize our own industry
• The Title Block podcast’s recent episode included “Disappearing Act: A Public Forum on Canadian Theatre and Toronto Audiences” - the event's organizers invite people to respond to a survey
• “Audience Instructions for Our Immersive/Experimental Theatre Production in an Abandoned Middle School in Bushwick.” by Rachel Klein

Behind the Scenes at Ontario’s Theatres

• The Capitol Theatre in Port Hope—home of the Port Hope Festival Theatre—is being evaluated for an historic site designation
• The Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts has launched a new website

Migrations

• Ontario’s loss is New Brunswick’s gain: Thomas Morgan Jones (a Professional Theatre Training Program alum) is the new Artistic Director of Theatre New Brunswick

In Case You Missed It

• Profiling projects from the Professional Theatre Training Program

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

Browsing The Bulletin Board

Happy World Theatre Day!  This year, the 2013 Canadian World Theatre Day message is written and read by Micheline Chevrier in both English and French.  The Canadian WTD message is commissioned each year by the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres, the Playwright's Guild of Canada, and l'Association des théâtres francophones du Canada.

Registration is still open for these upcoming Theatre Ontario workshops:

• Social Media Connecting with an Audience Online tomorrow in Blyth – This is your opportunity to learn the whys and hows of a successful web presence, and how to market yourself and your organization effectively.  The morning session presented by Paul Snepsts will explore the Why and How of a Successful Web Presence, including some practical tips for getting your website started or upgraded.  The afternoon session presented by Michael Wheeler, will explore Social Media and Online Engagement and how best to engage with your audience, which social media options are best for you, including the latest in live blogging and tweeting.
• Playwriting: How to Self-Edit and Critique on April 5 to 7 in Toronto – Plays are not written in the first draft. Plays come to life in rewrites. But re-write how? What if we don't know how to move our work forward? What if we don't know how to critique our own work? What if we aren't sure how to process feedback from others? This workshop offers tools and techniques for playwrights who have a play “under construction.”
• PTTP Talkback and Mixer on April 8 in Toronto – Looking to further or change your career?  Develop a new skill?  Mentoring through Theatre Ontario’s Professional Theatre Training Program—funded by the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario—is a valuable way of learning from experienced professionals, benefiting from one-to-one guidance, making valuable connections and expanding your network and enhancing your career opportunities.  Come meet with past recipients Laura Nanni, Peter Pasyk, Tanisha Taitt, and Tim Chapman, our Professional Theatre Coordinator (and a past recipient himself.)
• Self-Start: The Basics of Producing on April 10 in Toronto – If you want to do a show but have never produced professionally before, and if you want to know what questions to ask first, this session is for you!  Self-Start is a practical seminar facilitated by Tim Chapman, Professional Theatre Coordinator.
• Check out all of our upcoming courses and workshops, including accessibility, our directors intensive, our summer courses, and more.

Upcoming on The Bulletin Board

• Driftwood Theatre proudly announces its first Creative Roots Intensive for Young Artists. This summer program will provide nurturing experiences for young artists to train in the three areas of performance particular to Driftwood’s work: classical text, a capella musical performance, and movement-based theatre.  The application deadline is April 1.
• The Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts invites nominations for the Dora Ancillary Awards (Silver Ticket Award; Barbara Hamilton Memorial Award, honouring excellence and ambassadorship for the arts; George Luscombe Award for Mentorship in Theatre; Leonard McHardy and John Harvey Award for Outstanding Leadership in Administration; and Pauline McGibbon Award for Unique Talents and Potential for Excellence); nomination deadline is April 1.

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

Browsing The Bulletin Board

There's still a few spaces left in our workshops coming up in the next week:

• Do You Want To Make A Difference? with Brenda Worsnop is on Friday, November 16 at 2pm–Is being a Board member of a theatre or cultural organization for you?
• The Why and How of a Successful Web Presence with Paul Snepsts is on Monday, November 19 at 6:30pm–Helping individual theatre practitioners be online; to market yourself, to show off your talents, and to brag about your accomplishments
• Professional Theatre Training Program Talk Back and Mixer with Tim Chapman and past PTTP Grant Recipients on Tuesday, November 20 at 5:15pm – Can you benefit from mentorship?  Looking to further or change your career?  Develop a new skill?  Mentoring through Theatre Ontario’s Professional Theatre Training Program might be for you
• Check out all of our upcoming workshop opportunities on the Theatre Ontario website

Upcoming on The Bulletin Board

• Deadline to apply to Alameda Theatre’s 2013 De Colores Festival of New Work is November 15.  The De Colores Festival of New Works is a playwrights’ unit/festival, which focuses exclusively on the development of Latin American playwrights in Canada.

New on The Bulletin Board

• WorkInCulture and ArtsBuild Ontario are pleased to announce a third round of its mentoring network to the cultural sector.  This year’s focus will be on strengthening the business and management skills needed for arts facilities.  The Arts Facility Mentoring Network provides established leaders in Ontario’s non-profit arts community who are responsible for managing, improving and developing facilities with the unique opportunity of one-to-one learning with experienced topic experts.  Deadline to apply is November 30.

Check out these items and all of our postings of workshops, calls for submission, and opportunities for recognition on Theatre Ontario’s Bulletin Board on our website

Upcoming Workshop Opportunities in November

The Theatre Ontario office will be a hub for learning and networking opportunities this November, with a variety of exciting workshops on the calendar.

Do You Want To Make A Difference? with Brenda Worsnop on November 16 – Is being a Board member of a theatre or cultural organization for you?

Keeping Your Theatre/Arts Board Healthy with Cheryl Ewing on November 17 – Assisting organizations and their Boards in safeguarding their legacy through succession planning

The Why and How of a Successful Web Presence with Paul Snepsts on November 19 – Helping individual theatre practitioners be online - to market yourself, to show off your talents, and to brag about your accomplishments

Professional Theatre Training Program Talk Back and Mixer with Tim Chapman and past PTTP Grant Recipients on November 20 – Can you benefit from mentorship?  Looking to further or change your career?  Develop a new skill?  Mentoring through Theatre Ontario’s Professional Theatre Training Program might be for you.

Getting Started for Actors with Tim Chapman on November 21 – For actors beginning their professional careers, answering the most frequently asked questions about the business of acting

Social Media: Live Performance and Community Engagement for your Theatre Community with Michael Wheeler on November 27 – Helping organizations identify where your social media content comes from, what voice you should use, what are the latest trends, and how it can assist rather than distract from the work

Self-Start: The Basics of Producing with Tim Chapman on November 28 – If you want to do a show but have never produced professionally before, and if you want to know what questions to ask first, this session is for you!

Ask an Agent with Alicia Jeffrey on November 28 – A session for new performers covering the basics of the agent/performer relationship and some general business information

Read more about all of the training opportunities at Theatre Ontario on our website

Browsing The Bulletin Board

Many individual artists may not have a web presence at all.  Many organizations have a presence, but struggle with online engagement.  Theatre Ontario is pleased to announce two new workshops to help you with these challenges.

Are you an actor?  Set designer?  Production manager?  Technician?  If you work in theatre, and you don't already have one, you've probably asked yourself "Do I really need a website?"  Paul Snepsts will help you answer this question.

What are the pitfalls and opportunities that organizations encounter when they integrate with the internet?  Since 2006, praxistheatre.com has been a key hub for live performance and online engagement in Canada.  Join us for this workshop with Praxis Theatre Artistic Director Michael Wheeler and explore various ways existing and new technologies can be adapted.

Our grant writing workshops with the Ontario Arts Council and Toronto Arts Council for organizations and collectives and individuals are now full, but we are keeping a waiting list in case spaces become available.

Upcoming on The Bulletin Board

• Deadline for the submissions for the 34th Rhubarb Festival at Buddies In Bad Times in Toronto is Friday, September 7

New on The Bulletin Board

• Signs of fall: Leaves starting to turn, children back in school, theatres sending out their calls for applications for their OAC Theatre Creators Reserve programs.  The Toronto Fringe Festival is the first out of the gate (perhaps inspired by their own frantic poster sprint); their application deadline is October 3.

Check out all the latest postings of workshops, calls for submission, opportunities for recognition on Theatre Ontario’s Bulletin Board (including information on how to submit) on our website