Performing Arts Residencies
Programs are offered in
Dance, Theatre, Opera, Music Theatre, and Interdisciplinary Forms.
Through this program, professional artists can utilize the unique resources of the Theatre Arts Department in developing and refining new work. Applications are accepted from individuals, groups and companies. An important feature of this artist-driven program is the potential for access to The Banff Centre’s professional theatre facilities for studio and onstage rehearsal periods with some technical support.
To find out more about our Residency program, scroll down or click on the headings below.
Deadline * Timeframe * Performance Opportunities * Preliminary Application * Final Application and Acceptance * Current Residency Profiles * Past Residencies
Application Deadline: six months prior to the beginning of the residency.
Timeframe
It is possible that a residency could occur at any time during the year;
however, the Theatre Arts Department has dedicated resources available
specifically to this program during the months of October, November,
February, and March.
Performance Opportunities
Residency participants may request a non-ticketed, studio/workshop showing
of their work for The Banff Centre community and other invited guests. In
some cases, public, paid performances may be negotiated in advance through
Theatre Arts and presented in conjunction with the department’s Playbill
Series.
Preliminary Application
All applicants to the Performing Arts Residencies Program must submit a
short letter of intent (ideally no more than two pages) at least six
months before the start of the proposed residency.
Include in the letter:
a short description of the project;
preferred and alternate dates for the residency;
a list of required resources;
a list of all personnel who would be in residence.
Please attach brief resumes or biographies for the principle
artistic personnel and, if appropriate, your company’s mission
statement.
NOTE: Additional materials may be requested.
Letters of intent should
be addressed to:
artistic director/executive producer, Theatre Arts
Performing Arts Residency Program
The Banff Centre for the Arts
Box 1020, #21
Banff, AB
T0L 0C0
An initial review of the proposed residency will be made by the
department’s artistic director/executive producer and the Theatre Arts
Planning Committee. This will determine the viability of the project on
the basis of artistic merit and available resources. The Program Co-ordinator
will then contact the applicant to clarify details of the project.
Final Application and Acceptance
For final application, all applicants must submit:
- A completed registration form for each residency participant. Forms to be provided by the Program co-ordinator.
- A non-refundable application processing fee of $25 per participant, payable to The Banff Centre.
- A revised description of the proposed residency — informed by discussions with the Program Co-ordinator — outlining timing, allocation of resources, any planned performances/tours, and a list of artistic personnel.
To view or save a pdf file of the residencies brochure click here.
Final acceptance in the
Performing Arts Residencies Program is at the discretion of the Theatre
Arts Department, and is made on the basis of availability of resources, as
well as on the artistic merit of the applicant’s project/proposal.
Other residency opportunities exist at The Banff Centre for the Arts
through Aboriginal Arts, Music & Sound, Writing & Publishing,
Creative Electronic Environment, Media & Visual Arts, and Leighton
Studios programs. Contact the Office
of the Registrar for more information.
A residency which culminated in the production of The Faerie Queen, choreographed by John Alleyne. The company finished the choreography while in Banff and utilized the Eric Harvie Theatre to complete all technical aspects of the production. The sets and costumes were constructed by Theatre Arts. The preview of The Faerie Queen took place in Banff as part of our 2000 Playbill Series. The premiere in Vancouver met with critical acclaim and The Faerie Queen went on to tour North America.
Resource Contribution
- Ballet British Columbia – dancers' salaries, set, props and costume construction costs
- Theatre Arts – rehearsal space with technicians, performance space with technicians
- Canada Council – dances' and production staff room and board, travel costs
The residency of this Alberta-based theatre company resulted in the creation of a new theatre/cabaret production An Eye For An Eye. The concentrated time in residence enabled the group to work primarily on the creation of material for the production. In the intimate Margaret Greenham Theatre, the company presented a free staged reading for The Banff Centre community.
Resource Contribution
- Ghost River Theatre – actors salaries and travel
- Theatre Arts – rehearsal space, office space with computer, accommodation and meals, theatre with technician
This residency resulted in the creation of The Almond And The Diamond, with choreography by Marie Chouinard. Premiered at the Canada Dance Festival, in June 1996, the production toured that summer and has received strong reviews in Montreal, Ottawa and Europe. The residency in Banff accommodated the company’s plans for an extended rehearsal period in a professional theatre venue. The company presented a free "workshop showing" to The Banff Centre community.
Resource Contribution
- Compagnie Marie Chouinard – dancers salaries and benefits.
- National Arts Centre/Canada Dance Festival – travel and shipping.
- Theatre Arts – rehearsal space, 3 technicians for the length of the residency, and room and board.
Other Performing Arts Residencies at Theatre Arts have included:
Pam Boyd, writer, February 2001
Project: Missionary in a Tree – a multi-media text based
theatre piece
Partners: Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Canada Council, The Banff
Centre for the Arts and Calgary Regional Arts Foundation
Lorena Orozco, composer, 2000 -
2001
Project: The Waiting Room, a chamber opera
Theatre Calgary/Theatre Nomad, May
2000
Project: Sick Heart River
Partners: Theatre Calgary, Theatre Nomad and The Banff Centre for the
Arts
Haman/Navas Project, March 2000
Project: development of a new work
Partners: Compagnie Flak, The Banff Centre for the Arts
Suzanne Miller & Allan Paivio
Productions, March, 2000
Project: Jewels
Partners/co-producers: The Banff Centre for the Arts
Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, March
2000
Project: Evanescence
Partners/co-producers: The Banff Centre for the Arts
Kevin Ogilvie (independent
performance artist, lead singer of Skinny Puppy), February 2000
Project: Ogre; Mark Walk (producer)
Partners: The Banff Centre for the Arts, The Doomsday Festival
(Dresden), Weltsmertz Digital Labs
The Holy Body Tattoo, January 2000
Project: Circa
Partners:: Vancouver East Cultural Centre, Canada Dance Festival and
The Banff Centre for the Arts
Les Productions Recto-Verso,
January 2000
Project: Un Paysage/Ein Landshaft/A Landscape
Partners/co-producers: One Yellow Rabbit, The Banff Centre for the
Arts
Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland,
January 2000
Project: development of a new work
Partners/co-producers: One Yellow Rabbit and The Banff Centre for the
Arts
Companie Flak (Haman/Navas
Project), November 1999
Project: Stops
Partners: Compagnie Flak, The Banff Centre for the Arts
Half/Angel, September 1999
Project: development of a dance theatre performance and installation The
Secret Project
Partners/co-producers: Arts Council of Ireland, The Banff Centre for
the Arts
Producciones La Manga, Gabriela
Medina, choreographer, July/August 1999
Project: Once Upon a Time, dance
Partners: Fondo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes (FONCA), The
Banff Centre for the Arts
Decidedly Jazz Danceworks,
May, 1999
Project: Development of a new work, Soul Jugglers
Partners/co-producers: The Banff Centre for the Arts
Company Dominique Porte, May
1999
Project: Cortex
Partners/co-producers: The Canada Council for the Arts and The Banff
Centre for the Arts
