.png)
Tickets for The Gilded Hammer Awards ceremony on Saturday, November 21st are now on sale!
Hosted by Donna-Michelle St. Bernard, this fully accessible online event features The Gilded Hammers awards presentations, local artist performances, Scroll Down digital premiere funded by Canada Council for the Arts and community partners, and a community conversation hosted by theatre collective Femmepire.
Tickets range from $5-$40 and 50% of ticket sales from The Gilded Hammer Awards will be donated to the Disability Justice Network of Ontario. For new and existing Hamilton Fringe members, your ticket account will automatically discount a full price ticket to the special member price of $10.
Announcing the Nominees
The Cutting Edge: Innovation Award
Valeri Kay Michael Kras Stephanie Hope Lawlor
The Groundbreaker: Emerging Artist Award
Will Gillespie Camille Intson Kitoko Kasiama Maddie Krusto Carlyn Rhamey Claud Spadafora
The Force of Impact: National Achievement Award
Anna Chatterton Juno Rinaldi
Why award Hamilton Theatre artists?
It is our belief that a strong and inclusive theatre culture contributes to the cultural life of all Hamiltonians. We are committed to creating presentation opportunities for local artists and to supporting the growth of professional theatre in Hamilton. The Gilded Hammers are designed to celebrate the fierce spirit of independent theatre artists, to award innovation and growth, to nurture emerging talent, and to recognize the national achievements of artists from Hamilton.
The Gilded Hammers theatre awards categories include:
The Cutting Edge: Innovation Award Celebrating the change-makers, the innovators, the courageous, the revolutionaries. This award recognizes the skills and achievements of a local artist or arts leader who has carved out new pathways for theatre in Hamilton. This award will have a $1,000 cash prize attached.
The Groundbreaker: Emerging Artist Award Awarded to an artist who is young in craft and shows great promise. The winner exhibits vision, sensitivity, and strength in the art form. Community impact and burgeoning creativity are given greater weight than polish. This award will have a $1,000 cash prize attached.
The Force of Impact: National Achievement Award An artist from Hamilton who is making a name for themselves and for the city on the National stage and beyond. This award winner will have travel and accommodations paid for to attend the theatre showcase event.
The Dramatic Backer: Community Contribution Award Awarded to a business, sponsor, or donor who has made a significant impact on the theatre arts through their financial support of artists and arts organizations.
2020 Nomination and Selection Process:
An individual or an organization may put forth a nomination in any of the categories listed above. Only one nomination per person/organization per year is permitted. Artists are encouraged to self-nominate. There is no fee to apply.
Nominations closed September 18, 2020.
The Gilded Hammers Jury:
An independent jury of theatre artists and professionals will evaluate all nominations. The size of each the jury will be between 3-5 members, depending on the number of nominees. The 2020 jury includes: Aaron Jan, Lisa Pijuan-Nomura, Rick Roberts.
The Gilded Hammers Announcement:
The 2020 Award Nominees will be announced in October. The 2020 Award Recipients will be announced at The Gilded Hammer Awards online event on November 21st, 2020.
The Gilded Hammers Steering Committee:
The Gilded Hammers Steering Committee is composed of theatre artists and professionals from all experience levels dedicated to providing consultation on the development of an awards program that represents the needs of the local Theatre industry. Steering Committee members have contributed to the development of The Gilded Hammers and Theatre Showcase beginning in September 2019 and will continue through 2020. 2019-2020 Steering Committee Members: Trevor Copp, Ruth Flynn, Radha Menon, Micaela Morales, Cairine Wilson.
This pilot theatre awards program is supported by the City of Hamilton’s City Enrichment Fund: Capacity Building for Arts Organization grant.
