Cowboy Tempest. Left to right: Ray Hogg, Niall McNeil, and Lucy McNulty. Photo by Dahlia Katz.
Cowboy Tempest. Back, left to right: Brendan Wall, Brandon Antonio, Elm Reyes, Shaemus Swets, Eva Foote, Dylan Harman, Yousef Kadoura. Front: Raquel Duffy. Photo by Dahlia Katz.
As we continue to engage artists and creators from historically underrepresented communities, we must maintain an actively flexible approach to the needs and accommodations that our artists may require.
The Musical Stage Company
The Musical Stage Company
Care and access support for creative team members
Level UP! Strategy Area: Care Solutions
Pilot Project: Providing care and access support for creative team members engaged in the production of Cowboy Tempest.
Project Duration: 2023 – 2024
Continuing to Implement: This initiative was specific to Cowboy Tempest and will continue if/when the project resumes.
Resources Shared: Project Field Notes, Access Rider
The Musical Stage Company
Location: Ontario
Artistic Discipline: Musical Theatre
Operating Budget: More than $1,000,000
Established in 2004, The Musical Stage Company is the largest and leading charitable musical theatre company in Canada. Guided by the belief that it’s better with music, the company is inspired by music’s unique ability to viscerally affect people and committed to cultivating experiences—onstage and off—that transform lives, build empathy and create community through musical theatre.
The Musical Stage Company is a key incubator of new Canadian musicals, supporting projects from development to production. It invests in Canadian musical theatre writers and forges national and international partnerships to amplify their work. Each year, its musical productions—including award-winning contemporary musicals, world premieres, and concerts—reach 30,000 audience members across 80+ performances in both traditional and unconventional venues.
The Musical Stage Company’s Level UP! Project
The Musical Stage Company’s Level UP! project focused on providing care and access support for creative team members engaged in the production of Cowboy Tempest, a new work presented as part of the company’s inaugural Canadian Festival of New Musicals. The project aimed to create a framework for integrating accessibility into the company’s processes, emphasizing the importance of collective care as a key component of artistic excellence.
A key component of the project was hiring a Project Support Worker (PSW) to support a member of the creative team with specific access needs during rehearsals and the tech process. Having a PSW on-site also led to additional benefits and supports for other creative team members engaged in the production.
The project was initiated by the Musical Stage Company’s former Accessibility Manager, Alethea Bakogeorge, and later led by Patricia Cerra, former Program Manager.
Project Highlights:
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- Engaging a “Project Support Worker” to assist artists with access needs.
- Establishing a “Plain Language Protocol” for clear communication.
Resources
The Musical Stage Company | Project Field Notes
About This Resource The Musical Stage Company shared these Project Field Notes in 2024 as part of their Level UP! Pilot Project. Their project focused on providing care and access support for creative team members engaged in the production of Cowboy Tempest, and aimed...
The Musical Stage Company | Access Rider
About This Resource The Musical Stage Company shared this Access Rider following the completion of their Level UP! Pilot Project. Employees, applicants, contractors, volunteers, program participants, and Board Members engaged with the company are encouraged to...
More Information
For more information about The Musical Stage Company, visit musicalstagecompany.com.
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