January 23, 2003 -

Ottawa (Canada) - The National Arts Centre (NAC) today announced the launch of its Theatre Renewal Campaign, a three-year effort to raise $3 million from donors and patrons to support creators and performers in theatre and dance. It was also announced that the NAC has chosen to allocate $1 million from its capital budget to the Campaign and to the first-ever renovations to the NAC Theatre.

"The Theatre Renewal Campaign will allow the NAC to fund new play development, quite possibly discovering that playwright who will write tomorrow's classic or again a bright young dancer, a talented choreographer or an electric performance," said Peter Herrndorf, President and CEO of the National Arts Centre.

The Honorary Chairs of the Theatre Renewal Campaign are veteran stage actors Martha Henry and Albert Millaire. The Chair of the Campaign is Janet Yale, President and CEO of the Canadian Cable and Television Association.

"Presenting unforgettable performances show after show, season after season, not only requires a dedicated artistic team with remarkable creative vision, but also solid financial backing," said Ms. Yale. "This Campaign will provide the artistic leadership of the National Arts Centre's Dance and Theatre departments with the means to pursue their dreams, and to continue to bring to Canada's national stage the very best in performing arts."

The Theatre Renewal Campaign is divided into four distinct funds:

• The $850,000 New Works Fund will go towards the creation of new theatre and dance works, commissions of Canadian playwrights, script development, the NAC's On the Verge Festival (where scripts are showcased by playwrights) and to assist the development of talented Canadian choreographers and performers.

• The $650,000 Performance Fund will help the NAC attract the best Canadian and international performances to the Theatre. The fund will allow the NAC to co-produce more works with other organizations, invite cutting edge, international works to perform in the Theatre, as well as enable the NAC to attract projects with larger casts, lengthen rehearsal time and provide more flexibility to its artistic team.

• The $500,000 Behind the Scenes Fund will assist artistic teams with set design, production, lighting and wardrobe development. The Fund will also provide training and experience for tomorrow's technical directors through apprenticeships.

• Finally, the $1 million Capital Fund will be used for renovations, beginning in July 2003, to the Theatre, including more spacious seats with more leg room, new carpet and improved sightlines. This part of the Theatre Renewal Campaign is being funded by the NAC through its capital budget. It will be the first time the Theatre has been renovated since the NAC opened in 1969.

Individuals or groups who give a one-time gift of $3,000 - or $3,600 over three years - to the Theatre Renewal Campaign, will have their name or that of a loved one placed on a seat in recognition of their generosity. Any donation to the Theatre Renewal Campaign, big or small, will be welcomed.

Janet Yale added: "Patrons to the Theatre will associate the names of supporters and those of our donors as visionaries - people who believe in the creative potential of theatre and dance in Canada."

Joining Ms. Yale as part of the Theatre Renewal Campaign Cabinet are respected and influential community members of the National Capital Region. So far they include:

Hicham Adra, Vice President, CGI Group, Carrie Lee Chung, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Xavier Furtado, Economist, Canadian International Development Agency, Robert Gould, Chair, Friends of English Theatre and Partner Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Darrell Louise Gregersen, CEO of the NAC Foundation, Christina Lubbock, Executive Director, Watercan, Stefan Opalski, NAC Foundation Board member, Harvey Slack, President of Canadiana Club, Debbie Weinstein, Partner, LaBarge Weinstein, and Lori Loeb.

For over 33 years, the NAC Theatre stage has been the site of artistic excellence as a result of countless performances in dance, English and French theatre, featuring some of the world's best.

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For more information, please contact :
Carl Martin
Communications Advisor, National Arts Centre
(613) 947-7000, ext. 560

Theatre Renewal Campaign Biographies

Janet Yale
Chair of the Theatre Renewal Campaign
Janet Yale is President and CEO of the Canadian Cable Television Association. Prior to joining CCTA, Ms. Yale was Senior Vice-President Integration, AT & T Canada. As well as a member of industry-related boards, Ms. Yale serves as Chair of the Canadian Television Fund. She is past-Chair of Canadian Women in Communications and was named CWC Woman of the Year for 2001. Ms. Yale is also active in community philanthropy, having served as the 2001 Campaign Chair for the United Way of Ottawa-Carleton and member of its board of directors, and on the boards of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute Foundation and the Ottawa Hospital. She enjoys theatre, music and dance at the National Arts Centre.

Honourary Chairs of the Campaign:

Martha Henry
Martha Henry is an acclaimed actress and director who has worked at the Stratford Festival for over 20 years. One of the National Theatre School's first graduates, she has portrayed Shakespeare's greatest roles for women, as well as memorable characters from the plays of O'Neill, Williams and Chekhov, among others.

She was also Artistic Director for the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario from 1988 to 1995.

Ms Henry holds several Gemini and Genie awards for her film and television performances, as well as a Toronto Drama Bench Award for Outstanding Contribution to Canadian Theatre. In 1990, she was named to the Order of Canada and in 1996, she received a Governor General's Award. She holds a number of honorary doctorates, an Order of Ontario and a World Theatre Award.

In February, she will be appearing in an NAC-Neptune Theatre co-production, Copenhagen.

Albert Millaire
Albert Millaire, one of Quebec's greatest actors, has performed in classical and contemporary theatre for nearly 50 years. Since graduating from the Conservatoire d'art dramatique de Montréal, he has appeared in major roles at the Théâtre du Rideau-Vert, Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, UBU and, more recently, Théâtre de l'Opsis. He is also a well-known director.

At the National Arts Centre he has appeared in, among many other works, La Céleste bicyclette and Riel (a role he created). In the 1990s, this bilingual artist acted in or directed a number of plays at Stratford.

M. Millaire has also performed many theatrical roles on television.

He has been Assistant Artistic Director at the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde and Artistic Director at Théâtre populaire du Québec and Théâtre du Bois de Coulonge.

In 1982, he received the Victor-Morin prize awarded by the Société Saint-Jean Baptiste. He was named a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1989 and a Chevalier de l'Ordre national du Quebec in 1995.