COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FACILITATOR, ENGLISH THEATRE

Company Overview

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FACILITATOR, ENGLISH THEATRE
Competition number: J0924-0689
Department: English Theatre
Status: Full-Time, 1-year term
Hours: Monday to Friday, 35 hours per week; some evening and weekends
Annual/hourly salary: $73,900 – $92,300 (position with benefits and pension plan)
Closing date: October 20, 2024
Anticipated start date: As soon as possible

Introducing your National Arts Centre
The National Arts Centre (NAC) is Canada’s bilingual, multi-disciplinary home for the performing arts. The NAC presents, creates, produces, and co-produces performing arts programming in various streams – the NAC Orchestra, Dance, English Theatre, French Theatre, Indigenous Theatre, and Popular Music and Variety – and nurtures the next generation of audiences and artists from across Canada. The NAC is located in the National Capital Region on the unceded territory of the Anishinabe Algonquin Nation.

At the National Arts Centre, we believe the performing arts are vital to the human experience. A house of dreams for the Canadian performing arts, we work with artists and arts organizations from across this land to revitalize our sector.
Curious to learn more? Read our 2023-2026 Strategic Plan, The Journey Ahead.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Anti-Racism and Accessibility
We are on a journey, committed to ensuring that equity, diversity, inclusion, accessibility, anti-racism and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples will guide our actions.

The NAC welcomes applications from candidates who can help us meet our vision, and contribute to the diversity of lived experiences, perspectives, and approaches. When you join the NAC, you will be part of an inclusive community working hard to dismantle barriers to employees’ well-being, access, potential, and success. The NAC actively seeks candidates who identify as women, Indigenous, Black, Persons of Colour (IBPoC), members of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, and people with disabilities. We encourage you to self-identify in the recruitment process.

Job Description

Key activities:
Reporting to the Managing Director of English Theatre, this role will be responsible for the delivery of community-focused engagement strategies, activities and programs that create meaningful relationships with new audiences, and ultimately increase awareness, drive attendance and contribute to a growth in ticket sales for NAC’s English Theatre.
To be successful, this role will liaise with both internal and external stakeholders, notably community connectors, consultants, organizations and partners, to support the audience development goals of English Theatre. Furthermore, the role will work on compelling activations that entice new audiences and forge relationships with affinity groups in ways that draw audiences to English Theatre’s programming and ancillary events.

You’ll thrive here because;
• You love the challenge of building audiences
• You love theatre, as a space, as an energy and as a way of life
• You love building bespoke…in efficient ways
• You’re a gamechanger, able to solve puzzles with grit and a smile;
• You’re a champion for communities…be they small, large or underrepresented
• You’re a leader, a thinker and a doer

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
• Participate in the development and execution of strategies to engage with identified communities, with the goals of welcoming them at NAC English Theatre performances, and creating long-term, authentic relationships through repeat engagement opportunities;
• Identifying and collaborating with community connectors, consultants and partner organizations towards shared goals for community engagement through theatre;
• Participate in the ideation, planning and execution of in-person community engagement events and activities in connection with English Theatre performances, including but not limited to pre- and post-show discussions and events, affinity group events etc;
• Drive sales by creating opportunities to reach new audiences, and foster ongoing opportunities to engage with them through our work;
• Creating databases of community contacts, organizations, and other key stakeholders from the communities we will be engaging with;
• Communicating directly with community contacts through email and phone/video calls;
• Drive the success of key events and festivals across the city to meet and engage with the local communities we’re endeavouring to reach;
• Working in collaboration with the NAC’s Audience Engagement team to align with their strategies, partnering where possible and leveraging collective resources to accelerate English Theatre’s engagement program;
• Collaborating with Marketing, Communications and Audience Engagement to evaluate and track metrics for success (including retention levels and database growth);
• Collaborating on the marketing and communications for English Theatre engagement programming, including on digital and social media strategies;
• Supporting the Learning & Engagement Coordinator, English Theatre, with additional programming as required;
• Representing the English Theatre team at internal and external community engagement-related meetings and events;
• Presenting at English Theatre department staff meetings and other NAC meetings, as required.
• Ensuring that the terms of any contracts and corresponding contracts/arrangements with any artists, partners or presenting entities associated with community engagement programming are met;
• Assisting the Managing Director, English Theatre and the Learning & Engagement Coordinator in developing and managing the Community

Engagement budget;
• Providing financial projections to Managing Director, English Theatre at pre-established intervals.
Required qualifications:
• A passion and demonstrated history of introducing theatre to new audiences;
• Post-secondary education or a minimum of five years of related professional experience in theatre, arts administration, community outreach and engagement, or other relevant experience that speaks to community engagement through the arts;
• Experience producing community engagement programming in arts and culture contexts;
• Familiarity with, and a commitment to, equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility within the performing arts and community engagement;
• Exceptional written, oral and interpersonal skills, and an understanding of building authentic relationships with various communities;
• Familiarity with a diversity of communities across Ottawa and the National Capital Region;
• Ability to evaluate and manage multiple priorities, and adapt quickly to a fast-paced, complex work environment;
• Strong project management, planning and problem-solving skills;
• Creative and analytical thinking;
• Demonstrate initiative and sound judgment;
• Computing skills including Microsoft 365, Teams and Adobe CS;
• Ability to work occasional evening and weekend hours to support the needs of the department;
• Bilingualism is a strong asset.