Centre des auteurs dramatiques (CEAD)

General Reference 7 of 21

"In the mid-sixties, Québec playwrights, feeling the need to band together, formed an association, known as the Centre d'essai des auteurs dramatiques (CEAD). Though the term "essai" was later dropped, the mandate established by the founding members - to promote Québec plays and playwrights - remains pertinent and valid after 38 years of existence. Operating as a service to playwrights, to the professional and amateur theatre communities, as well as to the academic milieu, CEAD is representative of all professional francophone playwriting in Quebec and throughout Canada. Membership, currently more than 220, is constantly on the rise. The artistic and philosophical direction of the organization, and the practical decisions which stem from it, are determined by the board of directors, made up exclusively of artists elected at the annual general meeting. All activities and services organized by CEAD serve its mandate, be they dramaturgical support, public readings, the Semaine de la dramaturgie (a week of new play readings, the 17th edition of which took place in December 2002), the resource centre with its online database, national and international exchanges, promotion in English and in other languages, the Quebec Playwriting Residency, the Carte blanche aux auteurs (cabaret-style evenings where playwrights take the stage) or the Fonds Gratien Gélinas (a fund set up to support emerging playwrights)."