OUTstages Residency Program

Call for applications: open to artists, companies or collectives

This residency program is a one year program, that is designed to support one local (Victoria/Lekwungen Territory or Southern Vancouver Island based) artist, company, or collective who self-identify as 2SLGBTQ+, in the research, creation, and development of a new queer work through 2025. 

This program is tailored to the project and artist(s) and can either support a brand new idea, or re-visit or re-imagine an old idea through a new lens or approach. The goal of this residency is to invest in a new queer work, and can be led by a director, writer, choreographer, architect, opera singer, bus driver, veterinary technician or any self-defined queer artist. If the application is from a company or collective, a primary contact must submit the proposal. We emphasize the investigation of new work creation and the artistic process, and encourage artists to take risks, to blur the lines between artistic disciplines, to explore critical dialogue between artist and audience. 

Founded in 2015, OUTstages is Intrepid Theatre’s queer performance festival. OUTstages focuses on new work from multidsiciplinary queer artists, and has supported local artists through showcases, cabarets and a play reading series. This residency program is a next step in supporting new work and developing local queer artists. 

The OUTstages residency provides artists with a minimum of 50 hours of studio time during the 2025 season, access to technical equipment, artistic & technical support, $1,000 residency fee, and opportunities for showing/sharing work in progress. The studio time will be booked at mutually agreed to dates and times, based on artist and venue availability.

Time commitment

Flexible. The project can be developed during the 2025 calendar year on an ongoing basis over many months, or a concentrated period over a few weeks, or anywhere in between. 

The OUTstages resident artist will be required to provide updates to artistic & technical staff, and to have one public sharing of the work in development during 2025, with the intention of working towards a fully produced version in the future. 

Proposal should be no more than 3 pages in length and include:

• Brief history/bio of artist or collective/company 
• What is your idea for this project?
• Why is this OUTstages Residency right for this idea?
• How does this idea sit within your history and body of work?
• What is your dream for this idea and project through this residency and in the future?
• Brief outline of technical support needed for this project, knowing that it will change and evolve
• List of other collaborators
• Support materials (videos, scripts, manifestos, collages, letters of support)

Please email all applications to sean[at]intrepidtheatre.com