ALL TICKET SALES AND DONATIONS MADE DURING PLAYSMELTER 2020 WILL BE DIRECTLY DISTRIBUTED TO LOCAL ARTISTS TO STIMULATE THE CREATION OF A NEW WORK.

Together but Apart – At Home marks our first digital PlaySmelter Festival.  Tough times call for new and innovative measures and our artist have answered the call. All our offering in this, our 8^th annual Festival, illustrate the keen resolve of all that this pandemic cannot keep us down.  PlaySmelter 2020 offers new plays-in-process in several digital forms from podcast, immersive at-home and live-streams – all in the comfort and safety of your home.

Also running during this month and concurrent during the festival is Together But Apart – Conference on Touring Theatre in Northern Ontario. This Conference is a first for Northern Ontario – all online and digital taking place over three consecutive Thursdays in November.

We’re excited to share that all dollars raised at PlaySmelter 2020 will go directly to a program of micro-grants to local artists to instigate and spark the first idea of a new art work. This ‘kick-start’ is essential more than ever during the pause the COVID-19 pandemic has created for local artists who often depend on live gatherings to exhibit and perform their work.  These grants will aide artists in investigation of their practice, with a focus on process, iterative learning, collaboration, and deep thinking. This program is a response to the ongoing pandemic and the necessity for artists to continue to delve into and develop their practice in imaginative and innovative ways. As always, professional development and support to Northern ON  theatre artists is a key mandate of PlaySmelter Northern New Works Festival.

Pat the Dog Theatre Creation and the PlaySmelter Festival would like to acknowledge that we are in Robinson-Huron Treaty territory and the land on which we gather is the traditional territory of the Atikameksheng Anishnaabeg.