Employment
Auditions
Calaway Park is a Calgary hot spot for showcasing a wide-variety of professional and amateur
local talent. The Calaway Park Entertainment Department contracts dancers, actors, stage
shows, special character appearances, and professional or amateur roaming entertainment
including clowns, magicians, jugglers, musicians, etc.
You
must be
(THIS TALENTED)
to work here.
You hear that? That’s the sound of all the boring, fun-hating, non-talented, dull-job-loving people
clicking away from this page, scared away by the mere thought of being on stage and in the
spotlight, having fun and making new friends this summer, and getting paid to do it. But not you.
Whether you’re planning your launch into a performing career, or wanting to put your dance skills
to use in the summer time, or you’re an emerging street performer, or a seasoned professional, or
you’re a dance group from the community, Calaway Park’s Entertainment department is waiting
for performers like you. If you’re looking for a place to shine, then we’re looking for you.
Click
a category below for more information about how
to perform with us!
Audition
for this season’s theatrical dance productions.
Join us for auditions for the 2012 season.
Attend
our
OPEN-CALL AUDITION
for the 2012 cast!
We are hiring dancers aged 17-22 (approx)
for a summer performing contract
We’re looking for:
FEMALE DANCERS
Requirements:
- Trained dancers with a solid formal dance training (no specific amount of years, but any
combination of jazz, ballet, tap, hip hop, etc). Females with natural or freestyle hip hop skills and
musical theatre experience are also welcome.
- Good work ethic and attitude, responsible and reliable as a team player is a must.
- Available Sunday nights 5:00-9:30 pm starting February 28 for the duration of March through June
2012.
- Available for the show run – Summer. (Specifically starting at the end of June through July and
- August to the Labor Day weekend…. Part-time hours of 5 afternoons per week in the summer,
approx 5 hours each day). Show will continue on Sept/Oct weekends.
AUDITION
INFORMATION
WHEN: Saturday January 21, 2012
WHERE: The Metropolitan
Centre (333 – 4th Avenue SW)
TIME: All participants arrive at 9:30 am
For dancers under the age of 18, please
have a parent or guardian with you for a presentation
at 9:30 am for all participants.
WHAT TO BRING, WHAT
TO DO…..
Bring a resume and a recent photo. Include your previous employment history and your past performance
training and experience.
No performance preparation is necessary for the audition. The audition is run as a workshop… Plan to be
there all day (bring a water bottle and a light lunch). Cuts will be made throughout the day. The latest the
audition will run is approximately 5:00 p.m.
Dress in comfortable dance-rehearsal clothing ready to learn choreography (no jeans please).
Please ensure you are available on the Sunday January 22 in the event you receive a call-back.
***For audition
tips and discussion boards join the “Calaway
Park Auditions” group on Facebook!**
INFORMATION ON THIS CONTRACT
We are looking for a young professional age group for the cast, approximately but not limited to aged 17 to
22.
REHEARSALS: Rehearsals run March, April, May and June on Sunday nights from 5:00 pm to 9:30 pm.
Rehearsals are held in a studio by UofC from March to mid-June. Rehearsals move on-site to Calaway
Park mid-June for tech and dress rehearsals. (We are open to discussing minor date conflicts you may
have with the rehearsal schedule arising from dance competitions, school/dance productions, spring break
vacations, etc.)
SHOWS: Shows open at the end of June and run 5 afternoons per week in the summer throughout July and
August to Labor Day weekend, and then continuing on Sept/Oct weekends. This contract is part-time hours
(5 days per week in the summer, afternoon commitment of approx 5 hours each day). PLEASE NOTE:
Vacation time during July and August is difficult to accommodate in this contract.
CONTACT INFORMATION
If you have further
questions please contact
Chris Thompson, Entertainment Director.
RE: Calaway Live Auditions
CalawayParkEntertainment@telus.net
Here’s what some
of our past cast members say about dancing at
Calaway Park:
“When
I think about being in the cast Calaway Live,
I think of quick-changes , the magic show where
I was dressed as a gorilla , being mascot Jill
Bunny, the wonderful talented choreographer, the
many friends I made, learning a cast schedule,
laughing, performing, enjoying and smiling!
Calaway Live helped me realize that I wanted to
perform and gave me the tools I would need to
continue, from auditioning and rehearsing to the
strong work ethic and tough skin that is needed
to survive in this industry.”
"I
was involved in theatre from a young age but never
really thought of dancing until a friend dragged
me to the Calaway Live audition. Calaway
Park and the people I worked with opened my eyes
to a whole new world of performing. 10 years later
I’m traveling the world, working as
a professional dancer… I know what a valuable
experience Calaway Live was for me!"
“Working
for Calaway Park in the Entertainment division
for seven years was an extremely valuable
experience for me. Not only did I improve
my stage performance skills but I also gained other
important skills that would help me later on in
the professional world. I went on from
Calaway Live and pursued an education to become
a Doctor of Chiropractic. During this time
I danced for Alberta Ballet and Toronto's "The
Dance Company". Now I am dancing and
practicing chiropractic on board the Celebrity
Infinity cruise ship. The encouragement
from the friends and family I made through
Calaway Park have shaped the direction that my
life has taken until this point. I would
encourage anyone to work for this company as the
experience will be life changing.”
Past cast members have identified
how they have benefited from their experience
working as a dancer for Calaway Park:
- Free performance training.
Cast members receive on-going coaching on their
stage performance and have the chance to experience
different genres and styles of dance and music.
- Being a part of 1000s of
kid’s memories. This is mentioned many times
by cast members… having their photos taken with
kids after every show, receiving letters and
drawings from young fans, and inspiring kids
to want to perform one day.
- Being paid to perform – not
a regular job. Actually being employed in
doing something they love to do and have a lot
of passion towards.
- A “show run” experience.
Having the opportunity to perform a lengthy
show run is a step towards being part of professional
production, much like a Broadway musical or
a touring show. For example, one show is performed
over 100 times in the season and sees in excess
of 50,000 audience members.
- Being a part of the performing
community. . With common interests in dance
and drama, cast members are immersed into learning
about the professional community, productions
that are in town, other skills such as auditioning
and resume building, and knowledge drawn from
each other.
- Meeting friends with common
interest. There is no doubt that the social
aspect of the job is one of the reasons performers
return to the park year after year!
- Flexible and workable time
commitment during the school year. Talented
people are busy people. Cast members have appreciated
the flexibility during the rehearsal period
to still be involved in their other activities
like dance classes and competitions, school
productions, sports teams, vacation, etc. prior
to the Calaway Park shows opening in the summer.
- Performing and/or work reference.
It’s all in who you know! Working in the Calaway
cast and maintaining a positive and meaningful
contribution has created opportunity for cast
members, both with employment outside of the
Calaway season as well as performing jobs and
opportunities with film, dance and theatre.
- Career resources. Cast
members have found it useful to liase with our
Entertainment professionals for advice about
pursuing a career in the arts. As a creative
team our choreographers and production staff
have experience with cruise ships, major theme
parks, film, television and theatre, both on
stage and in behind-the-scenes positions.
- Free Transportation.
Employees of the park are offered a free bus
service to get them to and from work once the
shows have opened.
APPRENTICE STREET PERFORMER
PROGRAM
Maybe its playing the saxophone on a street corner, or roaming the streets with a juggling act, or
developing a fun character or close-up magic show to entertain guests in ride lines… Whatever
your talent is, there may be a street corner waiting for you at Calaway Park!
Calaway Park is seeking high school and university-aged emerging jugglers, musicians, street
magicians, stilt walkers, clowns, actors and other artists to perform on the streets of the park in
the summer.
The Apprentice Street Performer program is an opportunity for you to develop your performing
skills as an emerging artist in an hourly paid summer job, either as part of a larger position
working in one of our various departments for the season, or as a limited part-time opportunity for
the summer.
To arrange an audition and meeting, please contact:
Chris Thompson, Entertainment Director.
RE: Apprentice Street Performer Program
calawayparkentertainment@telus.net
COMMUNITY
PERFORMANCE GROUPS
Is your dance studio looking for a fun performing opportunity outside of competitions? Calaway
Park books dance studios and other community group performances for show times at the park,
highlighting the amazing talent and programs in our city.
Perform 1-2 shows on one day and receive free admission for your performers, instructors and
chaperones. This is a great program to enhance the profile of your studio, give your performers a
public performance opportunity, and create a fun social day for your group!
Please note: Performances are held on our outdoor Celebration Square Stage and are
sometimes subject to weather cancellation. Dates and timeslots are limited, as is the size of
group to accomodate. To see if you qualify for this program and for more information please
contact:
Chris Thompson, Entertainment Director.
RE: Community Performance Program
calawayparkentertainment@telus.net
PROFESSIONAL STREET
OR STAGE ACTS
Calaway Park contracts a variety of professional
stage acts (magic, music, dance, puppetry,
comedy, etc) and roaming performers
(clowns, jugglers, stilt-walkers, ventriloquists,
characters, etc). We offer fair rates, an opportunity
for multiple-date bookings, and a fun, safe and
clean work environment.
Please note: Calaway Park contracts family-friendly
entertainment appropriate for all ages (Target
market is young families with kids aged 3 to 12).
To submit information
about your act and rates, please contact:
Chris Thompson, Entertainment Director.
RE: Contract Entertainment
calawayparkentertainment@telus.net
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