Development Assistant - Part Time

Company Overview

Centaur Theatre, located in the heart of Old Montreal, is devoted to telling stories on stage that expand our perceptions of the world.

Who We Are

We believe theatre serves a vital role in creating a healthy, democratic and progressive community. By fostering an expansive spirit in artists and audiences alike, we train a fresh lens on their experiences of being human.

Our History

Situated among the cobblestone streets of historic Old Montreal and residing in Canada’s first stock exchange building, Centaur Theatre is at the centre of Montreal’s arts community.

Founded in 1969 by Artistic & Executive Director Maurice Podbrey, the company’s formative years were devoted to producing contemporary and classical plays from the English international canon.It was the world premiere in 1979 of Montreal playwright David Fennario’s Balconville,that put Centaur Theatre on the map as the only English Canadian theatre reflecting Quebec’s unique cultural landscape.The play was a critical and box office success at home and abroad when it toured internationally. Centaur’s global reputation continued to develop as Podbrey produced works with celebrated international directors and playwrights that included such ground-breaking luminaries as South Africa’s Athol Fugard.

Podbrey remained at the helm until 1998, when Gordon McCall assumed the artistic and executive directorship. Under McCall,Centaur produced the English-language world premiere of Quebecois playwright Michel Tremblay’s For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again,which toured North America in 2002. During this era, Centaur’s portfolio of international co-productions continued to expand as the company collaborated with Dublin’s Abbey Theatre and Australia’s Melbourne Theatre Company. This period also saw the development of several successful new plays about Montreal’s Italian community including Steve Gallucio’s Mambo Italiano, which toured Canada and was made into a feature film.

In September 2007, Roy Surette was appointed the company’s third Artistic & Executive Director. During his tenure,Centaur intensified its focus on new Canadian,and often Montreal-inspired productions, including several English-language premieres of French Quebecois plays.Surette’s 2011 world premiere of Schwartz’s: The Musical, written by renowned Montreal musical-satire duo, George Bowser and Rick Blue, was named “hit of the year” by the Montreal Gazette. In 2015, Surette collaborated with Montreal’s Black Theatre Workshop and the National Arts Centre to produce an acclaimed production of The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God, written and directed by Djanet Sears. His tenure produced 16 world premieres and earned the company 13 Montreal English Theatre Awards.

In 2017, on the eve of the Centaur’s 50th Anniversary, the Board of Directors announced Eda Holmes as Centaur Theatre Company’s first female Artistic & Executive Director. Formerly the Associate Artistic Director at the prestigious Shaw Festival, Holmes seeks to expand on our multicultural history as a theatre and a city to make Centaur a hub of culture in Montreal by attracting the best local, national, and international theatre creators to connect with Centaur’s diverse audiences and tell the most relevant stories of our times.

Job Description

Centaur Theatre, Montreal’s leading English-language theatre company, is looking for a Development Assistant to join our fast-paced team and add to our fun and dynamic work environment. This is an entry-level position (3 days per week) in the Development Department and reports to the Director of Development. 

Requirements

This position requires: attention to detail; organizational skills; excellent oral and written communication skills in English; working knowledge of French; interpersonal skills, computer skills (Word for Windows, Excel); basic accounting skills; and an interest in working as part of a team. This position also involves some evening and weekend work (opening night performances, committee meetings and special events). Experience in fundraising, database (Spektrix) and working in a performing arts environment would be an asset.

Responsibilities

The Development Assistant provides clerical and administrative support for all areas of the company’s fundraising and development department activities. The duties include:

• database maintenance
• issuing tax receipts and thank you letters
• donation campaign coordination
• special event coordination
• mailings and mailing list coordination
• editing
• all other tasks as assigned by the Director of Development

The Development Assistant will spend approximately 60% of their time on administrative duties that involve mainly correspondences, campaign coordination and mailings. The other 40% of the time involves interpersonal duties, including special event coordination and liaising with donors, sponsors, board members and volunteers.

The hiring process will continue until the position is filled. Interested candidates should send a cover letter and a résumé as soon as possible by e-mail to:

Haleema Mini

Director of Development

Centaur Theatre Company

Phone: (514) 288-1229, extension 235

E-mail: haleema@centaurtheatre.com

Centaur Theatre encourages applications from our diverse community. Centaur Theatre is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion. We recognize that increasing the diversity of our staff on all levels is integral to accomplishing this objective.