VERTIGO THEATRE launches THE AGENCY, a creative incubator for the Calgary theatre community.
Vertigo Theatre is excited to announce the launch of their new program THE AGENCY, exploring new forms of genre theatre and embracing a wide range of ideas and talent in Calgary’s artistic community. Vertigo Theatre will support artists, companies and creative experimentation through The Agency’s four different departments:
The Investigations Unit focuses on new play creation and development. An annual call will select playwrights through a commissioning process, from pitch to production. Vertigo Theatre commits to providing necessary resources (workshops, designers, dramaturgy, etc.) to creators. Five new plays are currently in development, including new works from Karen Hines, Michaela Jeffery, Aaron Bushkowsky and Jovanni Sy as well as a collective creation from Kevin Corey, Christian Goutsis, Craig Hall, Allison Lynch, Julie Orton and Mike Tan.
Field Training is a mentorship and training initiative, specifically targeting early career arts professionals by providing on the ground experience, direct access to professional mentors and career advancement opportunities. The number of positions available through this program will vary from year to year, but will include assistant directors, assistant designers, production assistants, stage management apprenticeships, and administrative internships. Calls for these positions will primarily be released in the spring.
Foreign Relations offers local artists and companies theatrical space and production support on select projects. These projects may range from short workshops to full productions. Our 2019-2020 resident companies are Handsome Alice Theatre and Verb Theatre.
Special Operations prioritizes research and innovation as necessary for the ongoing artistic growth. This initiative carves out a place to experiment with form and expand Vertigo Theatre’s aesthetic in order to break new artistic ground in the mystery genre.
“The Agency will allow us to inject new life and relevance into the theatrical mystery genre,” says Artistic Director Craig Hall. “This will further cement our reputation as the world’s preeminent mystery theatre company, a company that all Calgarians can take pride in.”
The Agency emphasizes Vertigo Theatre’s core values of excellence, mentorship, collaboration and accessibility. For more information on The Agency or on Vertigo Theatre’s 2019/2020 Agency works in progress please visit our website at:
https://www.vertigotheatre.com/artistengagement
