Chicago/Toronto Performance Summit: Cultural Ecosystems

Presented by The Theatre Centre in partnership with The Drake Hotel and The City of Toronto

March 24-26, 2012 as part of FREE FALL ‘12

An exchange that brings together cultural players from two cities for a sharing of ideas, trends and experiences. Because of its proximity, its vibrant independent performing arts scene and its architectural and historical connection to Toronto, Chicago is often referred to as a ‘sister city’ to Toronto.

Building on the success of the first city-to-city exchange with curators and programmers from Dublin at FreeFall ’10, The Toronto/Chicago Summit at Free Fall ‘12 will cultivate a meaningful connection between Chicago presenters and Canadian programmers and artists, and provide a platform for discussing concerns, climate, interests and curiosities that drive performance creators and presenters in both cities.

The Summit Schedule

March 24 – Opening:

Welcome Potluck @The Drake Lab, 4pm – 6pm
This is a free public event.

The Toronto community welcomes our guests with a potluck dinner on their first night in the city. Anyone is welcome – bring a dessert and join the meal and the conversation.

March 25 – Day Two:

Artist Breakfast @The Drake Underground, 10.30am

A Free Fall tradition, the Artists Breakfast provides an opportunity for guests to meet the festival’s artists. This event is also a fundraising event for The Theatre Centre. Your $50 tickets gets you exclusive access to festival artists, the Keynote Address at 12.00pm and a tax receipt for your donation. Please contact 416-534-9261 or email info@theatrecentre.org to purchase tickets and for more details.

Keynote Address @ The Drake Underground, noon
This is a free public event.

“The Global Ocean is a single interconnected system that contains 99% of the living space on the planet.”

Award-winning author Alanna Mitchell will talk about the findings of her latest book, Sea Sick: the global ocean in crisis. She travelled around the world over the course of two and a half years doing field research with scientists, piecing together the astonishing tale of humanity’s impact on the global ocean.

The bottom line: humans are setting the table for a mass extinction of life on the planet, and we have a narrow window to pull back from the brink. Alanna’s talk will set the framework for a follow-up discussion about cultural ecosystems, as they exist now and what we imagine them to be in the future.

Panel Discussion with Chris Jones and J. Kelly Nestruck, @The Great Hall Studio 3, 2pm
This is a free public event.

Chris Jones, theatre critic at The Chicago Tribune and The Globe & Mail’s theatre critic J. Kelly Nestruck discuss the independent theatre/performance ecology in their respective cities.

MARCH 26 – Day Three:

Toronto is a city of neighbourhoods. Our Chicago guests will go on a special artist tour of these communities and their cultural landmarks. Tweet us @TheatreCentre if you would like us to visit you, or follow #gettoknowTO.

Watch the trailer for Free Fall ’12

We welcome these prominent cultural producers and presenters from Chicago at The Chicago/Toronto Summit:

Erica Mott – Education and Community Programs Director, Links Hall

Anthony Moseley – Executive Artistic Director, Collaboraction

Allison Peters Quinn – Director of Exhibitions, Hyde Park Art Centre

Will Rogers – Associate Producer, Victory Gardens Theatre

Abigail Satinsky – Director of Programming, threewalls

Tricia Van Eck – Artistic Director, 6018 North