Read the 2023-2028 Strategic Plan Overview

2023 – 2028

Nightwood Theatre has launched a new strategic plan to propel us through the next 5 years. We are proud to share our direction with our community and continue to value their advice and accountability. Here are Nightwood’s main strategic goals for this plan:

Goal #1: CREATE
Create stunning & thought-provoking theatre through care-driven processes. Develop and present extraordinary theatre that prioritizes women and gender expansive folks of multiple intersecting identities, with a strong focus on how we do things.

Goal #2: FLOURISH
Flourish towards a sustainable future. This goal is focused on Nightwood internally – finance fundamentals, governance, office – mostly financial and workplace culture.

Goal #3: MODEL CHANGE
Model change towards an equitable sector. Pushing for tangible improvements to working conditions and opportunities in the sector, utilizing an intersectional feminist lens.

Goal #4: ENGAGE
Engage Nightwood’s stories and communities. Deepen community and audience relationships to increase visibility of our work, and depth of engagement with a focus on quantitative metrics.

Terms & Glossary

Gender Expansive People
People whose gender expression fall outside the traditional binary of woman or man [and who may have experienced violence and oppression due to their gender.] This includes: trans gender women, Two Spirit people, non binary people, trans men, gender creative and gender non conforming people.

Equity-owed groups
Groups/people who have experienced historical societal exclusion, violence, genocide, generational trauma, and denial of opportunities due to ongoing white supremacist and patriarchal systems. In recognition of these egregious, and in some cases ongoing conditions which prevent full participation in society, equity in the form of increased opportunities, care and consideration is owed.
People who identify as being a part of the following groups across the social locations of class, race, ability, sexuality and gender who are owed equity in the Canadian context.

Race
Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, Métis), Black/Person of African Descent, South Asian, East Asian, West Asian/North African/Middle Eastern, Latine/Latinx/Hispanic.

Ability
Being Blind/Having Low Vision, Deaf/deaf/Hard of Hearing, Disabled (including physical disability, neurodivergence, chronic and episodic illness), Those Experiencing mental illness, those who are aged 60+

Gender
Transgender people, Non binary, Gender non conforming, Cis women

Class
Grew up in and/or currently living and earning a very low income, those who identify as working class/lower middle class

Intersectionality 
Created by scholar Kimberlé W. Crenshaw, the concept of intersectionality describes the ways in which systems of inequality based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, class and other forms of discrimination “intersect” to create unique dynamics and effects. All forms of inequality are mutually reinforcing and must therefore be analysed and addressed simultaneously to prevent one form of inequality from reinforcing another.

Nightwood Theatre is embarking upon a strategic planning process which will support us in delivering programs that meet the needs of our communities.

Phase 1 – Metcalf Foundation – Staging Change – Phase 1 & 2 – Completed June 2021

Nightwood participated in Metcalf Foundation’s Staging Change – a multi-year strategic granting initiative offered in collaboration with EmcArts, who has a North American practice focused on innovation and adaptive learning in the arts and culture fields. Through a series of workshops with other theatre companies and an internal process to explore growth opportunities.

Phase 2  – Community Check In Survey and Focus Groups  – In progress, to be completed June 2022, led by Sedina Fiati

The Community Check In process will consist of a survey and focus groups in late June 2022. We are looking for a snapshot of our communities, identifying demographic information and needs. The survey will be anonymous and information from the focus groups will be shared anonymously with the Nightwood team. Focus groups will be concentrated on those who identify as belonging to *equity owed groups.

Phase 3 – Review of survey and strategic planning sessions with Nightwood Staff and Board – July – October 2022, led by Sedina Fiati and Jeanne LeSage

We will review the results of the survey which will inform strategic planning sessions with staff and board.

Phase 4 – Release of Strategic Plan, including survey results – November 2022

We will share our strategic plan for 2023 – 2026, identifying key goals and themes as well as share some survey results.

*Equity-owed groups as defined those who have experienced systemic and ongoing oppression and exclusion. In the Canadian context, these groups are defined as: Indigenous people, Black people, racialized people, D/deaf people, disabled people, those experiencing mental illness, seniors, working class/low income earners, those who are part of the LGBTQI2S+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, 2 Spirit) community, especially those who identify as trans and those who sit at the intersections of various marginalized identities. Using an intersectional feminist lens, we seek to create a more welcoming environment through removing barriers and expanding opportunities for participation and leadership in live performance.