Theatre Presenting Program: Festival Co-production Assistance
Deadlines
1 May or 1 December 2007
The Theatre Presenting Program provides support to presenters whose activities reinforce Canada's professional theatre touring and presenting infrastructure, contribute to the development of increasingly appreciative and knowledgeable audiences for theatre in Canada, increase the touring and presentation possibilities for Canadian theatre artists, and increase their visibility and production quality. The program assists presenters of theatre for young audiences as well as theatre for adult audiences.
Festival Co-production Assistance
The festival co-production assistance provides project support to Canadian theatre festivals that have a track record of enhancing the national and international visibility of participating artists and that wish to co-produce with Canadian theatre companies and artists. These co-productions may be intended for young or adult audiences.
The objectives are to:
- encourage co-production between theatre festivals that offer high visibility and theatre producers who are developing work of exceptional quality;
- enhance the production values and possibilities of new Canadian works;
- enhance the visibility and impact of new Canadian works nationally and internationally;
- increase national and international touring and co-production opportunities for Canadian theatre companies and artists;
- increase audiences for Canadian theatre companies and artists.
Project grants for festival co-productions contribute generally to the cost of co-producing an original work with a Canadian company or artist. There can be several co-production partners, but the producing company must be Canadian. Project grants normally contribute a maximum of 50 percent of the direct production costs. Participating festivals must engage in a presentation agreement with the co-producing partner separate from the co-production agreement. A festival can request one co-production assistance grant per fiscal year.
Eligibility
Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada and Canadian groups, collectives or organizations may apply. All Canada Council for the Arts programs are accessible to Aboriginal artists or arts organizations and artists or arts organizations of diverse cultural and regional communities of Canada.
Festival Co-production Assistance
Professional Canadian theatre festivals that are directed by a permanent artistic vision responsible for all curatorial decisions, moulding the event into one artistic whole, are eligible. The festivals must be legally constituted, artistically mandated, independent, non-profit arts organizations, with a track record of presenting professional theatre in professional facilities, with professional technical support. Their programming should contain a variety of content that is not otherwise available in the region. The festivals must have a proven ability to pay reasonable fees and support productions with adequate promotion and publicity. The festivals must be able to demonstrate that they have contributed to the touring possibilities of companies that they have programmed in the past.
Priority will be given to festivals that network with other presenters on a regional, national and international level and that are involved with their immediate artistic community to tangibly increase the dissemination and collaboration opportunities of the companies they present. Priority will be given to festivals that articulate the artistic vision behind their programming choices and their link with the public and the local theatre community.
Grant Amount
Grants normally have a maximum value of $30,000 per co-production. These project grants contribute a maximum of 50 percent of the direct production costs.
Retroactive funding is not available.
Assessment of Applications
Theatre Presenting Program applications will be reviewed by a peer assessment committee made up of theatre peers knowledgeable about touring and presenting. Every effort is made to ensure balanced representation of gender, regional and cultural diversity, Aboriginal peoples, genres and both official languages on the committee. Suggestions of peer assessors are always welcome and should be directed to a Theatre Section Officer.
The peer assessment committee establishes funding priorities based on the overall merit of the project in comparison with those of other applicants, in a national comparative context and subject to the availability of funds.
The assessment criteria for the festival co-production assistance are as follows:
- Artistic interest of the proposed creative team.
- Impact of the collaboration on the proposed production.
- Impact of the project on the art of theatre and on theatre artists.
- Public impact and enhanced visibility afforded through the proposed co-production and presentation, including potential future touring or co-production opportunities on a regional, national and international level.
- Relative importance of the needs identified, given the resources of the co-producing partners and the financial risk involved in the production.
Special consideration will be given to projects from the Aboriginal theatre community and the culturally diverse theatre community.
Applicants will be notified of the results following the meeting of the peer assessment committee and, depending on the size of the grant, approval by the Canada Council’s Director or Board.
Application Form
Theatre Presenting Program: Festival Co production Assistance (pdf, 101 KB)
This form can only be printed and cannot be filled out on-line.
Further Information
This program summary provides an outline of the Theatre Presenting Program. For further details or to obtain an application form, contact the Theatre Section.
Telephone: 1-800-263-5588 (toll-free) or (613) 566-4414, ext. 4480
TTY (TDD) machine, for hearing-impaired callers: (613) 565-5194
Fax: (613) 566-4410
Theatre Section
Canada Council for the Arts
P.O. Box 1047, 350 Albert Street
Ottawa, ON K1P 5V8
March 2005