Event: 2012/13 Dora Orientation Sessions, Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts

For the past 22 months, the Dora Review Committee underwent a detailed process to review the Dora Awards that involved a series of consultations with TAPA members, and various town halls, to achieve a renewed Dora Awards Program in order to meet the changing needs of the membership.  The TAPA membership voted this past March on the new Dora Award categories. As you know the TAPA membership voted this past March on the new Dora Award categories. The TAPA membership voted this past March in favour of the expansion to the Dora Mavor Moore Awards from 35 award categories to 48 award categories.

As announced these changes have taken effect for the current 2012-13 Dora year. Whether you are a long-time or brand new member of TAPA, you should definitely attend one of these meetings to ensure that your company understands the changes, as well as the new rules and regulations.

• Wednesday July 25 1:00pm to 2:30pm
• Wednesday August 1 10:30am to 12:00pm
• Wednesday September 26 10:30am to 12:00pm
• Wednesday October 17 1:00pm to 2:30pm

Location: All orientation sessions will take place at the TAPA offices located at 215 Spadina Ave Suite 210 (Press 2R on the elevator).

Please RSVP to Alexis Da Silva-Powell, Corporate Partnerships and Membership Manager at alexisdsp@tapa.ca.

Announcement: TheatreBooks New Home Where Entertainment & Fashion Districts Meet, TheatreBooks

TheatreBooks will welcome customers, new and old, to its new location at 101 Spadina Avenue, just a short block north of King Street on the east side of Spadina on July 16.

Co-owners John Harvey and Leonard McHardy, are excited by the prospects of establishing their internationally recognized specialty bookstore in the busy and vibrant section of Toronto which is home to so many of the city’s bustling cultural enterprises.

The move to 101 Spadina Ave. from 11 St. Thomas Street was made necessary due to the develpoment of a commercial condo incorporating the landmark building in which TheatreBooks has been the tenant for almost twenty years.

To achieve the move with the least disturbance to our customers, the current location will close July 12 at 6PM, and will re-open Monday, July 16 at 101 Spadina Ave.

TheatreBooks was established in 1975  where it has operated in three locations in the Yonge/Bay/Bloor area.

The new location is served by excellent transit connections and has the benefit of ample parking in the area.

We look forward to serving our many customers who come from all across Toronto, the GTA and beyond.

More information:
Leonard McHardy
(416) 922-7175
(800) 361-3414

From July 16:
TheatreBooks
101 Spadina Ave.
Toronto, ON M5V 2K2

Workshop: Financial Basics for Artists, Theatre Ontario

FINANCIAL BASICS FOR ARTISTS FREE!
10:30am to 3:30pm, Thursday July 26, 2012
Location: Toronto (address TBA)

Artists, are the creative backbone of our community, yet according to StatsCan they are among the lowest income earners in Canada.  Learning some basic financial skills will enable you to take control of your finances and make the best possible money decisions for now and the future!

Join us for this FREE session to discuss: What Self Employed Artists Should Know

• Setting Financial Goals
• Managing on a Low & Erratic Income
• Making a Spending Plan
• Dealing with Debt
• All About Credit including Credit Cards
• Smart Banking
• Planning for Retirement

This session will be led by Tessa-Marie Schillingford.  Tessa-Marie is the author of Controlling the Debt Monster. She is a Personal Financial Planner with a designation from the Institute of Canadian Bankers and is also a certified Financial Counsellor by the Institute of Canadian Bankers. She is presently a program facilitator of the Financial Literacy program at JVS Toronto. Tessa-Marie was employed by TD Canada Trust for twenty years in the retail section of the bank. During her tenure at TD Canada Trust she held various positions interacting with customers of the bank. As a Financial Advisor and Manager of Financial Services she led a group of Financial Advisors in helping customers of TD Canada Trust successfully manage their finances. Details of her book Controlling the Debt Monster can be found at: http://www.controldebtmonster.com.

Space is limited so we will take registrations on a first come, first serve basis.

To register or for more information contact: Zainab Amadahy, Outreach Coordinator, Zainab@theatreontario.org, 416-408-4556 x16.

This workshop is presented in partnership with JVS Toronto.

Announcement: TAPA launches hipTIX Youth Invasion Video Series in Partnership with BroadwayWorld.com, Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts

Media Refer: Scott Dermody, Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts, 416.536.6468 x 26, scottd@tapa.ca
For immediate release: July 5, 2012.
A new partnership between the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) and BroadwayWorld.com promises to encourage Toronto’s youth to participate in live performing arts events.  The hipTIX Youth Invasion Video Series premieres today, with the release of hipTIX Youth Invasion at the Dora Awards.

TAPA is dedicated to creating a young and motivated audience for the arts. The popular hipTIX program is targeted to high school and university students ages 15 – 29 years, and helps to make the arts affordable by offering $5 tickets to live theatre, dance and opera performances in Toronto. “This new partnership with BroadwayWorld means hipTIX will have a wider reach and a greater impact that will help grow audiences for the future,” said Jacoba Knaapen, Executive Director at TAPA.  “hipTIX is a terrific audience development tool which enables Toronto’s youth to engage with the city’s vibrant arts community by making theatre more accessible – and we are excited to help promote it!” says Romina Oliverio at BroadwayWorld.

Hosted by Toronto youth Thomas Orwen-Goldhar and Devin Cecchetto and filmed by 17-year-old Shane Feldman, the first video in the hipTIX Youth Invasion Series was shot recently on the Red Carpet at the 33rd Annual Dora Mavor Moore Awards at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts.  hipTIX Youth Invasion at The Dora Awards features a who’s who of Toronto’ s theatre community including Matthew Jocelyn (Artistic & General Director, Canadian Stage), Jeff Madden (Dora nominated actor for I Love You Because), Sharron Matthews (actor and cabaret sensation), Mitchell Marcus (Artistic Director, Acting Up Stage), Brian Goldenberg (Artistic Producer, Angelwalk Theatre) and Michael Levinson (Dora nominated actor, Caroline, or Change).

hipTIX Youth Invasion at the Dora Awards video posted here

Founded in 2003, BroadwayWorld is the largest theatre site on the Internet covering Broadway, the West End and beyond to 100 US cities, and 30 countries worldwide. With over three million monthly visitors, BroadwayWorld delivers complete up-to-the-minute Broadway, off-Broadway, and regional theatre news, in-depth interviews, extraordinary photo coverage, entertaining video features, lively message boards, ticket discounts, reviews, and more.  Click here to view the hipTIX Youth Invasion page on BroadwayWorld Toronto.

The hipTIX Youth Invasion Video Series is produced by TAPA and the TAPA Youth Council and will continue in September 2012. For more information, or to find out how to create a hipTIX Youth Invasion video at your show, please contact TAPA’s Youth Outreach Coordinator Scott Dermody at scottd@tapa.ca

• Thomas Orwen-Goldhar (Youth Correspondent) is 15 years old, currently attending Etobicoke School of the Arts for their Musical Theatre program, and starred in Mirvish’s production of The Railway Children last summer.
• Devin Cecchetto (Youth Correspondent) is 14 years old and won a THEA Award for her performance as Annie with Scarborough Music Theatre. She is starting grade 9 at the Etobicoke School of the Arts Music Theatre program this fall.
• Shane Feldman (Videographer), 17, is a graduate of Arts Westmount’s Advanced Drama Program and is the founder of Canada’s largest youth-led organization promoting volunteerism and positive change, “Count Me In.”

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hipTIX is a program of the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA). TAPA is an arts service organization that represents nearly 200 professional theatre, dance and opera companies in Toronto. In addition to the hipTIX, other programs and services provided by TAPA include: The Dora Mavor Moore Awards, T.O. TIX – Toronto’s Official One Stop Ticket Shop at Yonge-Dundas Square and online at http://www.totix.ca; Toronto’s official Theatre Guide; citySPECIAL offering tickets to at-risk youth and new immigrants; the Commercial Theatre Development Fund; and the Travel Retreat Initiatives Program. For more information visit www.tapa.ca and www.totix.ca

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Event: Tent Talk-TAPA & The Audience Project, The Toronto Fringe

Friday July 6th: TAPA & The Audience Project
5:00-6:00pm

Panel:

• Host = Jacoba Knaapen (TAPA)
• Additional panelists TBD

Inspired by their immersive study on audiences, Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) curates a dynamic panel on audience development. Should we change the way we work, the way we market, the way we “sell” theatre?

Part speak-easy, part soap-box, part art-experiment, the Fringe Club is the beating heart of the Fringe Festival. Located behind Honest Ed’s, the Fringe Club is abuzz with excitement from early afternoon until the wee hours of the morning. Visual artists hock their wares at the Fringe Artist Alley, local musicians showcase their talents on the Artist Alley Outdoor Stage (from 6pm to 7pm nightly),  micro-plays bring tents and sheds to life as part of the AlleyPlays series, industry types argue “Theatre is dead…Long Live Theatre!” at the Tent Talks Series, drinks are on ice and you are in the middle of it all.  ALL EVENTS ARE FREE.  Food service and bar service will be available every evening.

Event: The Business of Being an Artist, Toronto Fringe Festival

The Business of Being an Artist offers artists a chance to talk to specialists about everything from taxes to budgets to finding appropriate work space. If you’ve ever been daunted by the business side of artistic creation, this event is not to be missed.

Saturday July 7, 2012
6:00-9:00pm
The Fringe Club

Organizations in Attendance:

• TAPA
• Actor’s Fund
• STAF
• Theatre Ontario
• Playwright’s Guild of Canada
• Art Books
• Heather Young & Associates
• Star Company
• Canadian Actors’ Equity Association
• Prologue to the Performing Arts