Director of the Birmingham Conservatory; Director of the Langham Directors’ Workshop & Associate Director, Planning; Director of Production; Executive Producer; Casting Director; Director of the Foerster Bernstein New Play Development Program; Meighen Forum Director; Head of Design
“Stratford is by every measure – budget, employment, attendance, production – the largest repertory theater in North America, and likely the largest nonprofit theater, period.” – New York Times (August 13, 2024)
Opening night of the Stratford Festival’s first season in 1953 featured renowned British actor Alec Guinness as Richard III. Rapidly expanding in the next few years to become North America’s leading classical theatre company, the Stratford Festival (the Festival) includes large-scale musicals and newly commissioned plays. In addition to the main playbill, the Festival now creates a rich stream of digital content and hundreds of ancillary events are curated each year for the Meighen Forum, to enrich, inform and entertain patrons.
In addition to its public-facing activities, the Festival supports artistic development and growth, through its Birmingham Conservatory for early-career actors, and its Langham Directors’ Workshop for mid-career directors. The Festival features one of the most robust coaching programs in the industry, offering 3,000 classes in voice, movement and text each season.
The Stratford Festival has four venues: three thrust stages (the Festival with 1,800 seats, the new Tom Patterson Theatre with 600 seats, and the Studio Theatre’s 260 seats) and one proscenium arch, the Avon Theatre with 1,100 seats. Since the pandemic the Festival is earning roughly 50% of its $75-million dollar annual budget through ticket sales with the remainder coming from donors, partners, funding agencies and others. The Festival boasts an endowment of $120-million. It is on track to reach its pre-COVID attendance of approximately 500,000.
THE ROLE
The incoming Artistic Director (AD) will lead the company, be fully responsible for its artistic vision and creative work and be supported by the Executive Director’s (ED) leadership of the administrative and strategic planning functions. Bringing artistic excellence and an audience-focused approach, the AD will create an exciting playbill that will sustain loyal audiences while attracting new patrons.
It is expected that the new AD will start working during the 4th quarter of 2025 as Artistic-Director Designee. There will be a considerable overlap with the current Artistic Director, Antoni Cimolino during 2026. Cimolino will program the 2026 season, while the new AD will be responsible for programming the 2027 season and beyond.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Artistic Vision & Programming
Organizational Leadership
Budgeting & Finance
Talent Development & Education
Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Accessibility
EXPERIENCE, QUALITIES & SKILLS
COMPENSATION
The base salary range for the role is between $400,000 to $475,000 CAD. In addition to base salary, a comprehensive benefits package and pension contribution are included.
Reasonable costs of relocation will be provided.
Recruitment for this role is being led by Daniel Weinzweig and John McQuaker of Searchlight Partners. They can be reached at the email above.
We welcome applicants of every identity, and encourage applications from Indigenous, Black, People of Colour, Deaf, disabled and 2SLGBTQ+ folks. We are committed to accommodating people with disabilities throughout the recruitment process and beyond. If you require accommodation (including, but not limited to, an accessible interview site, alternative format documents, ASL Interpreter or Assistive Technology) during the recruitment and selection process, please let our recruitment team know.
The Stratford Festival (the Festival) is North America’s largest classical repertory theatre company, operating year round, presenting a season of about a dozen plays each year between the months of April and November, a rich stream of digital content and hundreds of Forum events, designed to deepen understanding of the plays. The Festival is undergoing a culture shift to support anti-racism and anti-oppression and ensure a respectful, equitable and inclusive environment in which all staff, artists and audience members can feel a true sense of belonging.By attracting the finest talent from Canada and the world, and by providing the conditions and training that enable artists to achieve their most courageous work, the Festival immerses its audiences in a theatre-going experience that is innovative, entertaining, and unsurpassed anywhere in the world: one that is deeply relevant to, and reflective of, their lives and communities.