PAL Canada
1000 Yonge Street, Suite 300A M4W 2K2 Toronto, ON, Canada

Join us for "Zoom Game Days". Sign up at palcanada.org/game-days. A virtual event where seniors gather to play fun games. Please sign up now.

Join us for "Zoom Game Days". Sign up at palcanada.org/game-days. A virtual event where seniors gather to play fun games. Please sign up now.

Join us for "Zoom Game Days". Sign up at palcanada.org/game-days. A virtual event where seniors gather to play fun games. Please sign up now.

Just had a chat with a friend who has lost his bricks and mortar to lockdowns. A barber. One of the best. Self-made independent business owner. I was sympat...hizing with him when he suggested that our plights are different. That actors are still working in TO. Sure, I said. Some film and TV actors. Live performers have been locked out since March 13 of last year. Some earlier. It’s a completely different discipline. Sure, most of us cross over to an extent, but our bread is buttered, largely, by one or the other. My first discipline has always been live performance. I don’t think we’re more important or essential than anyone else. I’m just tired of being swept under the rug and forgotten. I am a live performer. I have worked my ass off for close to 40 years to build a viable living within that framework. It has not been easy. Ever. I too am a self-made independent business owner. I’ve lost my bricks and mortar. The ones I worked in and the ones I lived in. This isn’t a complaint. Well, I guess it is, but I know that many share it - and many, many, many have lost so very much. Just don’t forget about us, k? 10,000 people a week were coming to the Royal Alex (dining in local restos, staying in hotels, getting haircuts, yadayadayada) - and that’s just one of Toronto’s theatres. Our industry was a significant economic force in Toronto. The public loves coming to see us for its catharses. I wish they’d understand that we haven’t lost a hobby. We’ve lost our livelihood. And a significant chunk of our identity. The cost goes far beyond the financial. . . . Oh, P.S. We are artists, not content creators. g P.P.S. This may well spark a discussion, which is great. In the spirit of the message I’d been sharing for 3 years prior to shutdown, and that I was/am proud to use my abilities to share, let us please proceed with kindness. Deal? PPPS - My barber friend is an artist too, btw. His passion for cutting grew from his work as a graffiti artist:)

Join us for "Zoom Game Days". Sign up at palcanada.org/game-days. A virtual event where seniors gather to play fun games. Please sign up now.

PAL Canada congratulates Lynn Ross on her new position and welcomes her to the PAL Canada family!

PAL Canada congratulates Gary Glacken on this very special honour.

News from our Vancouver chapter.

On behalf of all of the dancers in Equity's membership, we wish dancers around the world a happy International Dance Day. Normally, there would be a variety of activities scheduled to celebrate the beauty of dance and to offer opportunities for professional dancers and those who love to dance to come together to express their emotions though moving their bodies. Fortunately, this is still possible, even with the extraordinary circumstances we find ourselves in today. The old adage "Dance like no one is watching you" rings more true than ever, as many of us shelter in place. Even if you are not alone, encourage the people you are with to crank up the music and give in to the joy of dancing for the sheer personal pleasure of it. -Arden R. Ryshpan, Executive Director, Canadian Actors' Equity Association

https://www.cbc.ca//here-s-where-canadian-artists-and-free

Exciting news from our Vancouver PAL chapter! Welcome, Lynn Ross.

BRENT CARVER He was truly a marvel. He walked into a room with that signature edginess and there was, as they say, an unwritten light cue. He came onstage, whatever the role, and you witnessed not so much an entrance as a parting of the waters of the sea. He sat in rehearsal with his delicious mind constantly dissecting every moment, sometimes totally withdrawn, sometimes leaning in to listen, and those remarkable eyes dared everyone to be superb. Directors loved his process...Continue reading

Huge shoutout to our CAEA Executive, Council, Staff, and Business Reps, who are working around the clock to field questions and adapt to this situation as it constantly shifts and affects more and more of our membership. THANK YOU for your hard work, communication, and compassion.

Dear Friends and PAL Canada Members, 2020 will be upon us very soon, but did you know that December 31, 2019, is your final opportunity to make a charitable donation and receive a tax receipt for 2019? We encourage you to support your favourite charities during this time of giving and hope that you will include PAL Canada Foundation or one of our 8 chapters as one of your chosen charities. ... We thank those of you who have already made a contribution and express our sincere gratitude to you for your continued support. We also invite you all to share this message with any of your friends or family who believe in supporting the arts, and who may also be in need of this 2019 tax receipt opportunity. Funds raised through this year-end campaign will go to support our important work to create caring communities and support programs, which allow elder members of Canada’s arts and entertainment industry to thrive. We thank you in anticipation of your considering our request to support us with a donation. If you have any queries about our organization or our work, please feel free to contact us at [email protected]. To make a donation to PAL Canada Foundation please click on the link below. CLICK HERE TO DONATE! https://palcanada.org/donate