URBAN CURVZ AND DOWNSTAGE PRESENT

HEROINES A New Series Co-Produced with Emerging Female Artists

her·o·ine n.

1. A woman noted for courage and daring action.

2. A woman noted for special achievement in a particular field.

3. The principal female character in a novel, poem, or dramatic presentation.

Are you an emerging female artist who would like to be able to wear many hats? Fancy yourself a jill of all trades? Would you like to see the project you’ve dreamed of be produced with the help of Urban Curvz, Downstage and a team of professional mentors from the Calgary theatre community?

Urban Curvz and Downstage present Heroines, a series of works co-produced with emerging female artists. This opportunity will guide the selected emerging artist through all elements of production so that she comes out of the process with the knowledge, confidence and abilities she needs to self-produce. From grant writing to curtain call our team will work closely with the artists to hone practical skills for self-producing.

“It is the mandate of the series to foster a new generation of empowered females who know how to produce their own projects. The focus of the series will be on the process of producing and the professional development of the emerging artists selected.” – Jessica Dollard, Artistic Director, Urban Curvz

The top priority of Heroines is to first find emerging females who are interested in producing their own projects. We’re not producing your project for you! We are going to guide you through all elements of production and provide you and your project’s participants with access to mentors.

Here is how it will work:

Please see the submission guidelines below and submit your proposal.
If selected, you and the members of your team will be taken through a series of workshops with the mentors to give you the knowledge and information you need to produce your show.
All emerging artists will benefit from the practical hands-on guidance of a team of mentors chosen from within the working theatre professionals in this community. The mentors will fall into these categories: Vanessa Porteous will be the Director/Dramaturge Mentor, Kate Newby will be the Acting mentor, there will be a Design Mentor, the Urban Curvz and Downstage team who will be Production Mentors.
Urban Curvz and Downstage will provide the infrastructure you need to ensure your production comes to fruition! This will include access to the mentors, constant guidance, support, and the space. Please note that all selected projects will submit two mandatory grant applications: one to the Alberta Foundation for the Arts and one to Calgary Arts Development. Although we will not provide the funding for your project, we will guide you through the processes of fund development.
Three different projects will be selected for the series, all of which will see three separate runs in birds & stone. The first show in the series will run October 5th – 18th, the second will be March 1st – 14th, and the final show in the series will be June 7th – 20th. Please indicate clearly on your submission if there is a date that is better for you and your team. We will try to accommodate schedule requests as best we can.
Criteria:

All applicants must be female.
First and foremost, all applicants must have a project they want to see produced and have a desire to acquire the skills and knowledge that comes with self-producing.
The projects: can be self-written, can be a new work by a female playwright you know, or be a collective collaboration in process. The project CANNOT be from an existing script/work where acquiring rights from an outside party will be necessary. Please note that scripts that support and fall loosely within the Urban Curvz Theatre mandate to tell women’s stories are ideal submissions. Please see our website for a full description of our mandate at www.urbancurvz.com.
The director, actors and designers on these projects need to be made up of emerging artists. Equity members may apply as producers, playwrights or designers without any question. If Equity Members wish to apply as Directors, Stage Managers or Actors then there are guidelines that Equity has set out. Equity would likely approve an application by one of their Artists to do one of the following with Heroines:
a) If the majority of the group is non-Equity and they want to include one or more Equity members, they could apply to engage under Guest Artist. The Guest Artist fees would apply, but pro-rating of rehearsal is always a possibility.

b) If the principal member(s) of the group are Equity, but they are NOT hiring any other Equity members, they could self-engage under Guest Artist. This means that they pay their dues and benefits in advance, but Equity never sees the actual cheque they pay themselves for the fees.

c) If the majority of the group is Equity, they could apply to produce under the INDIE (Independent Artists Projects Policy). This is a much more complicated process, and would require a lot more mentoring support simply to get the application done.

d) And if the majority of the group is Equity and they have lots of grant money, they could even produce under the ITA.

5. The Producer, Playwright and Director on all projects must be female. In regards to all other roles within the project, gender is irrelevant.

WHAT WE NEED:

A full copy of your project in script form or a very thorough description of a piece you are creating.
A production and cast list. Please note that although the submissions committee will entertain projects that may be lacking in one or two members of their artistic team, priority will be given to projects with complete teams already committed to the project.
A budget for your project (This does not need to be finalized, we will use it as a starting point).
A complete and thorough history of the piece (if the piece has seen other productions/incarnations/workshops please include all production and press details).
Your CV
A Cover Letter
APPLICATION DEADLINE: MONDAY JUNE 2ND, 2008 @ 4 PM

(In an effort to save trees, it is preferable to receive all materials in electronic form by e-mail to jessica@urbancurvz.com) If necessary, snail mail submissions can be addressed to:

36044 Lakeview RPO

Calgary, AB T3E 7C6

*All inquiries and questions can be directed to the above e-mail address