Prize: $5,000
This award is generously supported by the family, friends, and colleagues of John Palmer.
THE VISION:
An award-winning playwright, theatre director, and filmmaker, John Palmer was never afraid to shake things up. As one of the first champions of home-grown Canadian theatre, he made a career out of it. As a teacher and mentor, John was drawn towards young artists who rejected conventional ideas and he inspired them to make art that agitated the mainstream. He was generous with knowledge sharing, respected alternate perspectives, and was interested in ideas of importance to different groups and generations.
Family, friends, and colleagues hope to carry on John Palmer’s legacy of using theatre as a medium to challenge and change conventional thinking. As a senior and experienced playwright and director in theatre, John also nurtured friendships and mentorships with the next generation of theatre artists.
THE PURPOSE:
This award will help the next generation of storytellers for the stage to push boundaries and foster intergenerational collaboration and friendships within the theatre community.
THE PROCESS:
An experienced PGC Member will nominate a new generation artist to be recognized as a (future) change-maker in theatre. A Jury will consider all applications and determine a shortlist and recipient in the same manner as PGC’s other awards.
THE AWARD SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
- The Nominator must be a member in good standing with Playwrights Guild of Canada.
- The Nominator is an experienced theatre creator with 25+ years of experience.
- The Nominee does not need to be a member of Playwrights Guild of Canada.
- The Nominee is someone who identifies as a storyteller for the stage, is practicing (primarily) in Canada, and has less than 10 years of experience.
- The Nominee has been involved in at least one staged production as a playwright or director.
- The Nominee is someone who uses their artistic practice to disrupt the status quo.
- The Award package must include:
- A nominator’s statement with a 250-word limit
- A bio for the nominator
- An artistic statement from the nominee with a 500-word limit
- A CV for the nominee
- A bio for the nominee
- Two letters of artistic reference for the nominee based upon the criteria of the award (these two letters of reference are an addition to the nominator’s letter)
- The Nominator and Nominee should each address how the candidate mirrors the vision of the award.
- The award is not tied to a specific project or artistic work. It is intended as career support, with no budget or reporting requirements.
- Complete nomination packages must be submitted as per PGC’s online awards guidelines.
- The winner of this award, and the nominator, will be asked to join PGC for a recorded interview/discussion in October 2024, to chat about their artistic practice and to celebrate intergenerational collaboration or friendship in the theatre community. Highlights may be aired during PGC’s 2025 Tom Hendry Awards events.
Please note: This form cannot accept files larger than 10 MB. If your files are larger than 10MB, please send through WeTransfer to marketing@playwrightsguild.ca
Questions? Contact Mindy Doherty Griffiths, Public Relations Manager for Playwrights Guild of Canada at 416-703-0201, or email marketing@playwrightsguild.ca
DEADLINE: Completed application forms must be submitted by March 21st, 2024 before 11:59pm Pacific Time.
Entry Fee
The entry fee is $24.50 per nomination entered. No refunds for incorrect submissions.
PGC cannot provide feedback for applications submitted to this award.
There are two steps for the submission process this year.
Step 1: Please click on the link to access the registration form with details pertaining to your submission. Once your membership has been verified, you will then move onto step two.
Step 2: You will receive a link to the email address you provided in your submission form for uploading your play and paying the submission application fee.
Submissions open February 5th, 2024 and close March 21st, 2024 at 11:59pm Pacific time. Late applications will not be accepted.
Incomplete submissions will not be considered for an award. Once an entry has been submitted, it cannot be changed, updated, or otherwise altered in any way. Entrants seeking to correct errors or provide updates must re-submit again using the same process as the first entry (including the fee).
If this form does not meet your visual or accessibility needs, or if you require a different format, we are happy to assist with a different process. Please call our office at 416-703-0201, or email marketing@playwrightsguild.ca.
Not a Member of PGC? Click HERE for Membership.
