Call for Expressions of Interest: Level UP! Initiative 2024-2025

Balancing Act Canada

Kara Sievewright during a MOTHRA residency. Photo: Brady Ruyin Yu

Call for Expressions of Interest:
Balancing Act Canada’s Level UP! Initiative 2024-2025

Balancing Act, a national initiative to support parents and caregiving in the arts, is calling for applications to participate in their Level UP! Initiative!

Balancing Act’s Level UP! Initiative

Balancing Act’s Level UP! Initiative supports artists and arts organizations/collectives as they explore the development of policies and practices that create more employment opportunities and better work/life balance for artist parents and caregivers.

Participants in Level UP! join as Strategy Partners for one season, piloting projects that will help move our sector toward a more care-centered culture of work. Balancing Act welcomes your ideas about how to create caring communities within the arts!

Strollers in the lobby for a Babes-in-Arms performance at Canadian Stage (Level UP! Strategy Partner 2023-2024, Care Solutions)

To date, Balancing Act has collaborated with 76 Strategy Partners in the Performing Arts sector from across the country. This year, we are inviting applications from Visual Arts, Music, Screen-based Media Industries, as well as the Performing Arts.

Balancing Act is partnering with MOTHRA: Artist-Parent Project (Visual Arts), Women in Music Canada (Music), and Women in Film & Television – Toronto (Screen-based Media Industries) for Level UP! 2024-25. Within each sector, an advisory group will select eight Strategy Partners to pilot projects between October 2024 and April 2025. The call is open to organizations, companies, collectives, project-based initiatives, and individual artists across the country.

The Toronto Fringe Festival Team 2022 (Level UP! Strategy Partner 2021-2022, Flexible Working Models)

Level UP! Participation: Strategy Partners

Level UP! Strategy Partners receive:

• Financial support up to $3,000
• Complimentary Consultation (legal, HR, policy) as needed (up to 4 sessions)
• Peer Support of a Strategy Group made up of other organizations working on similar pilots
• Templates and resources developed by previous Level UP! Partners, and mentorship from these partners

Level UP! Strategy Partners will be expected to:

• Attend bi-monthly online Strategy Group meetings
• Participate in one public-facing roundtable event
• Engage in an evaluation process
• Collaborate on creation of templates/resources to be shared through the Balancing Act website at the end of the season

Pictured (left to right): Deviani Andrea, Rebecca Sawdon (on screen), Alida Kendell, Alison Kause and Ainsley Hillyard from Good Women Dance Collective (Level UP! Strategy Partner 2022-2023, Pathways to Agreement). Photo: Armand Bladon.

Submitting an Expression of Interest

Balancing Act invites you to fill out a Google Form:

• For Performing Arts, please click here
• For Visual Arts, please click here
• For Music, please click here
• For Screen-based Media Industries, please email Balancing Act

Deadline for Expressions of Interest: September 20, 2024
Notification of Results: October 15, 2024

Find Out More

Visit the Level UP! 2024-2025 webpage for Frequently Asked Questions and details on Information Sessions.

Balancing Act Canada
1 Wiltshire Avenue, Unit 127
Toronto, ON M6N 2V7
balancingactcanada.com
balancingact@theatredirect.ca

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