Call for Expressions of Interest: Level UP! Initiative 2025-2026

Balancing Act Canada

Brady Ruyin Yu. Kara Sievewright during a MOTHRA residency

Call for Expressions of Interest:
Balancing Act Canada’s Level UP! Initiative 2025-2026

Submission Deadline: April 18, 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.

In this second year of Level UP! Sector Expansion, we are once again welcoming applications from the Performing Arts, Music, Visual Arts, and Screen-based Media sectors. Balancing Act continues to partner with MOTHRA: Artist-Parent Project (Visual Arts), Women in Music Canada (Music), and Women in Film & Television – Toronto (Screen-based Media Industries) for this Sector Expansion.

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

We invite artists and organizations to apply to become a Level UP! Partner from June 2025 to March 2026 and pilot a project that centres care and caregivers!

We prioritize applications from equity-owed, also known as equity-deserving, artists and organizations.

Within each sector, an advisory group will select ten Strategy Partners to pilot projects between June 2025 and March 2026. 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

Level UP! Strategy Partners receive:

• Financial support up to $3,000
• Complimentary Consultation (legal, HR, policy) as needed (up to 4 sessions)
• Peer Support from other artists and organizations working on similar pilots
• Templates and resources developed by previous Level UP! Partners
• Promotion of pilot project/organization

Level UP! Strategy Partners will be expected to:

• Attend four 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

Parent and child at an exhibition with concurrent children’s programming. Installation view of Tracing Days at Gallery@501, featuring artwork by Shea Proulx (left) and Jennifer Long (right) (Level UP! Partner 2024-2025, Visual Arts Sector)

Submitting an Expression of Interest

Balancing Act invites you to fill out a Google Form under the following sectors:

Performing Arts Expression of Interest Form
English | Français

Visual Arts Expression of Interest Form
English | Français

Music Expression of Interest Form
English | Français

Screen-based Media Industries Expression of Interest Form
English | Français

Deadline for Expressions of Interest: April 18, 2025

Notification of Results: May 23, 2025

Find Out More

Visit the Level UP! 2025-2026 Call page 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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