Praxis Blog and Website pre-relaunch blackout

Photo by stuartpilbrow licensed under Creative Commons 2.0

The integration of the Praxis blog and website will likely cause some problems over the weekend. Regular programming will resume on Tuesday June 16, 2009.

One url to rule them all!

Praxis Theatre blog is moving

The new address of the Praxis Theatre Blog is: 

praxistheatre.com

Our integrated website with a much more functional blog on the homepage will be up and running June 16th.

Please take the time to update your blog rolls and bookmarks.

See you on the flipside!

Indie Dora 2009 nominees

INDEPENDENT THEATRE PRODUCTION DIVISION

OUTSTANDING NEW PLAY/MUSICAL
Layne Coleman Tijuana Cure
Brendan Gall, Mike McPhaden, Rick Roberts & Julie Tepperman The Gladstone Variations
Tara Beagan Miss Julie: Sheh'mah
David Yee lady in the red dress
Anton Piatigorsky Eternal Hydra


OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION
You Fancy Yourself Produced by Contrary Company in association with Theatre Passe Muraille
The Gladstone Variations Convergence Theatre
lady in the red dress fu-GEN Asian-Canadian Theatre Company in association with the Young Centre for the Performing Arts
Eternal Hydra Crow's Theatre
Appetite Volcano in association with the Exchange Rate Collective


OUTSTANDING DIRECTION
Mary Francis Moore You Fancy Yourself
Rebecca Benson, Alan Dilworth, Ruth Madoc-Jones & Aaron Willis The Gladstone Variations
Nina Lee Aquino lady in the red dress
Chris Abraham Eternal Hydra
Sarah Sanford Appetite


OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE
David Ferry Someone Who'll Watch Over Me
R.H. Thomson Someone Who'll Watch Over Me
Steven McCarthy Norway.Today
Ins Choi lady in the red dress
David Ferry Eternal Hydra


OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE
Maja Ardal You Fancy Yourself
Janet Amos The Gladstone Variations
Christine Horne Miss Julie: Sheh'mah
Karen Robinson Eternal Hydra
Liisa Repo-Martell Eternal Hydra


OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN
Victoria Wallace Mourning Dove
Teresa Przybylski Miss Julie: Sheh'mah
Camellia Koo lady in the red dress
John Thompson Eternal Hydra
Gillian Gallow Appetite


OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
Shawn Kerwin Miss Julie: Sheh'mah
Julia Tribe + Reva Quam Wise.Woman
Gillian Gallow Appetite
Barbara Rowe Eternal Hydra
Victoria Wallace And Up They Flew


OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN
Andy Moro Miss Julie: Sheh'mah
Trevor Schwellnus minotaur
Michelle Ramsay lady in the red dress
John Thompson Eternal Hydra
Rebecca Picherack Appetite


OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN/COMPOSITION
Christopher Stanton minotaur
Romeo Candido lady in the red dress
Richard Feren Eternal Hydra
Robert Perrault Appetite
Waylen Miki An Inconvenient Musical

Congrats to all!

Actors’ Equity adjusts rules to further empower NYC Member-Creators

Actors' Equity Association has announced significant changes to the NYC Showcase Code.

The agreement, which is not technically an Equity contract, but is "promulgated by Actors' Equity Association to allow its members to participate in productions in small theaters without the benefit of an Equity Contract."

Members receive no salary or benefits and the performance and rehearsal schedules are limited in number. The terms of the code, created by and for the members, are designed to protect both the Equity actors and the interests of those theatres in New York City that operate under an Equity contract.

Approximately 1000 productions went on in NYC last year under this agreement, which does not forbid producers and actors coming to a sub-Equity standard agreement on pay. This code can only be used by Equity actors working in theatres with less than 99 seats in two types of situations:

A) The Basic Showcase Code for use on independent one-time productions.
B) The Festival Showcase Code that allows actors to work for not-for profit producers who create a season of work.

 Some of the recent changes include:

• Maximum ticket prices have been increased from $20 to $25.
  
• Maximum rehearsal time has been increased from four to five weeks.
  
• Maximum budget to fall under the basic code is increased from $20,000 to $35,000.
  
• Performances may now be held over a six-week period.
  

These changes were the result of the Off-Off Broadway Committee, which is made up of members of Equity who have worked under the code and producers who have produced under the code.

Will this significant shift by AEA towards allowing its membership greater ability to leverage their labour to kick-start careers and productions have an impact in Canada?

Members of Canadian Actors Equity Association voted 96-1 to express dissatisfaction with the options currently available to Member/Creators at the 2009 AGM. [Click here for full info and more photos on the CAEA website.]   

The 2009 CAEA AGM held on February 24th in Toronto saw a massive turnout to support a Member Resolution calling for Equity to provide a Showcase-type agreement for use by its membership. The final vote in support of this motion was 96-1. The issue brought out so many members, that the minutes to several previous AGMs were passed by an assembly that had finally achieved quorum. Clearly CAEA has a mandate to come up with a new system that supports members that want to hustle to get something off the ground, but no one knows what will be proposed.

What do you think? Should CAEA adopt a Showcase-type code? Should the rules in the U.S. have anything to do with Canadian rules? Are these agreements “the thin end of the wedge” that will spell the end of reasonable protections for performers? Has that been the case in New York? Is this a good way to facilitate artists creating their own work?