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<body class='hmmessage'><div dir='ltr'>Hello Fellow CanDramers,<BR> <BR>I would like to draw your attention to the national launch of a new Equity in Theatre (EIT) initiative. The press release is included below. <BR> <BR>Please note that we have an online action going on today. We are asking people to temporarily change their Facebook
cover and/or profile photos to the EIT red logo, and to share that with their
friends and networks. So, if you get a chance, please participate in our action
today. Visit us on <a href="http://playwrightsguild.us1.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=2ca5b5e280d1f81507240586d&id=fd919c917c&e=ec92036fa1"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Facebook</span></a>
(Equity in Theatre - <a href="https://www.facebook.com/EquityinTheatre?ref=hl"><font color="#0563c1">https://www.facebook.com/EquityinTheatre?ref=hl</font></a>),
and/or follow us on Twitter (@EquityInTheatre). <BR> <BR>We are hoping this simple
action will go viral and help call attention to the project.<BR> <BR>Many thanks in advance for your participation!<BR> <BR>Best Wishes,<BR> <BR>Rebecca<BR> <BR>Rebecca Burton,<BR>PGC and EIT<BR> <BR>---<BR> <BR><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><font face="Times New Roman"><b><span lang="EN-US">Playwrights Guild of Canada </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US">Partners with the Theatre
Sector’s Major Players to <o:p></o:p></span></b></font><BR><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><font face="Times New Roman"><b><span lang="EN-US">Proudly Announce Equity in
Theatre (EIT)</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></b></font><BR><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><b><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></font></span></b><b><span lang="EN-US"><o:p><font face="Times New Roman"> </font></o:p></span></b><BR><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none;"><b><u><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">For Immediate Release<o:p></o:p></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 248.1pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">(TORONTO, ON – September 19, 2014)
Playwrights Guild of Canada, in partnership with some of the arts industry’s
most vital organizations, is proud to announce the launch of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Equity in Theatre (EIT)</b>. Thanks to
funding from Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Trillium Foundation, and
the Ontario Arts Council, EIT will roll-out a campaign to help redress gender
inequities in the theatre sector.<o:p></o:p></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">Led by Rebecca Burton, PGC’s Membership and Contracts Manager, and
Laine Zisman Newman, Dramaturgical Associate with Pat the Dog Theatre Creation,
EIT involves different components: a preparatory <b>research</b> study, a <b>Symposium</b>
held in Toronto in April 2015, a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: rgb(46, 116, 181);"><a href="http://www.eit.playwrightsguild.ca/"><span style="color: rgb(46, 116, 181);">website</span></a></span></b> dedicated to Canadian women
in theatre, live<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> curated performance
events</b>, including play readings, and more. <o:p></o:p></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 248.1pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">EIT’s Steering Committee and stellar cast
of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">partners</b> includes Artists Driving
Holistic Organizational Change, Associated Designers of Canada, Canadian
Actors’ Equity Association, Cultural Pluralism in the Arts Movement Ontario,
Indigenous Performing Arts Alliance, Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the
Americas (Canada), Pat the Dog Theatre Creation, and the Professional
Association of Canadian Theatres. Also joining the team is Jennie Egerdie, who
successfully garnered a Metcalf Foundation Performing Arts Internship to work
alongside Rebecca Burton on the EIT project. <o:p></o:p></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 248.1pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">With this initiative, the EIT team hopes
to foster dialogue on an (inter)national scale, develop social actions that
will help effect change, and generate greater awareness of and exposure to
Canadian women in theatre, all the while drawing attention to the systemic
discrimination that permeates the industry still. <o:p></o:p></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><font face="Times New Roman"><span lang="EN-US">Although women form the vast majority of
theatre school graduates, support workers, and audience members, when it comes
to key creative roles in the sector, their numbers diminish substantially,
dropping below 35 per cent. For example, women form 50 per cent of PGC’s
membership, but they do not account for even one quarter of the nation’s
produced playwrights (the numbers for women of colour are lower yet), and rates
of representation are <i>regressing</i> rather than improving over time. These
imbalances have a negative trickledown effect on the industry, making an impact
on the variety of work, employment opportunities (for women actors, designers,
and directors), and audience experience.</span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-CA;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm -13.4pt 0pt 0cm; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 248.1pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">To learn more about EIT, email us (</font><a href="mailto:equityintheatre@gmail.com"><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman">equityintheatre@gmail.com</font></a><font face="Times New Roman">), like us
on </font><a href="https://www.facebook.com/EquityinTheatre"><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman">Facebook</font></a><font face="Times New Roman">, follow us
on </font><a href="https://twitter.com/EquityInTheatre"><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman">Twitter</font></a><font face="Times New Roman">
(@EquityInTheatre), or give us a call at PGC (#416-703-0201). <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Please join in our <a href="https://www.facebook.com/EquityinTheatre?ref=hl"><font color="#0000ff">online action</font></a> today!</b>
<o:p></o:p></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 248.1pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">You can also attend the </font><a href="http://on.culturedays.ca/en/activities/results/grid?location=city&postal_search=&postal_radius=25&province=ON&city_search=Toronto&city_radius=25&day=&day%5B%5D=2014-09-26&day%5B%5D=2014-09-27&day%5B%5D=2014-09-28&start_time=&end_time=&name=equity+in+theatre&organizer=&language=&wheelchair=0&type=&type%5B%5D=&category=&category%5B%5D=&keyword=&query="><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman">Toronto
Launch</font></a><font face="Times New Roman"> of EIT on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Saturday, September
27, 2014</b> during Culture Days. Stay tuned for more info about launch events
in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Vancouver</b> (hosted by Playwrights
Theatre Centre on October 6<sup>th</sup>, 2014) and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Halifax</b> (hosted by Playwrights Atlantic Resource Centre in November
2014).<o:p></o:p></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman">
</font><BR><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm -13.4pt 0pt 0cm; -ms-text-autospace:; mso-layout-grid-align: none; tab-stops: 248.1pt;"><span lang="EN-US"><font face="Times New Roman">Website coming soon to </font><a href="http://www.eit.playwrightsguild.ca/"><font color="#0000ff" face="Times New Roman">www.eit.playwrightsguild.ca</font></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><font face="Times New Roman">
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style='font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style='font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;'>Media
Contact: Rebecca Burton <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style='font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;'>PH:
416-703-0201 FAX: 416-703-0059<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style='font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;'>Email:
<a href="mailto:equityintheatre@gmail.com"><font color="#0000ff">equityintheatre@gmail.com</font></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style='font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt;'>Website
(coming soon): <a href="http://www.eit.playwrightsguild.ca/"><font color="#0000ff">www.eit.playwrightsguild.ca</font></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style='font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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