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Ottawa, March 4, 2008 – Independent theatre producer Sherrie Johnson and Santee Smith, artistic director of the Kaha:wi Dance Theatre, are the first two recipients of the John Hobday Awards, which celebrate outstanding achievement in the field of arts management.

The $10,000 awards allow recipients to enhance their own professional development by taking part in a recognized program, seminar, workshop or a mentorship with another experienced arts manager; or to pass their knowledge on to the next generation by acting as a mentor for a young arts administrator. The competition was open to both senior and mid-career arts managers.

The Canada Council for the Arts, which administers these awards, announced the creation of the John Hobday Awards in May 2006. The awards were made possible by a $1 million endowment from The Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Family Foundation. John Hobday was executive director of the Foundation between 1983 and 2002, and director of the Canada Council from 2003 to 2006.

Sherrie Johnson’s award is for professional development. She will enroll in the executive MBA (master of business administration) program at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto to develop her marketing, financial and business skills. Ms. Johnson plans to expand the scope of her work as an independent producer and exporter of Canadian theatre by working with philanthropists, banks, corporations and other patrons to build foundations for the performing arts in Canada.

Santee Smith’s award will allow her to pursue a mentorship with
Max Reimer, managing artistic director of Theatre Aquarius. Mr. Reimer is known for assisting arts organizations in enhancing both their financial and artistic capabilities. This mentorship will enable Ms. Smith to broaden her knowledge about developing, producing and disseminating theatrical and dance works by collaborating with orchestras. Ms. Smith, who has worked in both theatre and dance, will learn about budgeting, scheduling and agreements with orchestras, musicians and venues.

“Arts managers are an essential part of the arts ecosystem in this country,” said Canada Council Director Robert Sirman. “With these prizes, we are recognizing the potential and the commitment of these managers and providing them with the opportunity for further professional development.”

“It is very exciting for us to see our vision of an award for arts managers become a reality with the selection of the first two John Hobday Award recipients. These awards recognize John’s tireless work during his tenure as director of the Foundation toward elevating the standards of professional arts management in Canada,” said Stephen Bronfman, president of The Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Family Foundation. “We would like to thank the Canada Council and the peer assessment committee for making it happen. And we wish Sherrie Johnson and Santee Smith every success in their efforts to further develop their skills as arts managers and, in doing so, make a significant contribution to both their art forms and the arts management profession itself.”

The competition for the first John Hobday Awards was adjudicated by a peer assessment committee consisting of Rémi Brousseau, general manager, Théâtre Denise-Pelletier (Montreal); dance consultant
Jazz de Montigny (Winnipeg); and Lee Lewis, managing director, Mermaid Theatre (Windsor, NS).

In selecting this year’s winners, the jury said, “What is exciting about Sherrie Johnson and Santee Smith is that, while they are both arts managers, their passion for the arts is reflected in the work they do, as is their intimate relationship with the creative process. We believe that these professional development and mentorship activities will contribute to their growth as professional arts managers. We hope that they will in turn share this knowledge and expertise with their communities.”

Sherrie Johnson

Sherrie Johnson is one of Canada’s foremost independent producers and exporters of English-language theatre. In 1987, Ms. Johnson
co-founded da da kamera with Daniel MacIvor, which created a new model for how theatre was produced and exported in Canada and helped put Canadian theatre on the world stage. da da kamera won numerous national and international awards.

In 1995, Ms. Johnson founded the Six Stages Festival which showcased emerging Canadian talent, generated domestic and international touring opportunities and brought international artists to Canada. In 2005, she developed the Industry Series of the Magnetic North Theatre Festival by creating innovative professional development forums for theatre professionals, presenters and producers.
Ms. Johnson did the same for the multi-disciplinary PuSH Festival and in 2007, she hosted the first International Network for Contemporary Performing Arts (IETM) meeting outside of Europe. She lives in Toronto.

Santee Smith

Santee Smith is from the Mohawk Nation, Turtle Clan and lives on Six Nations Reserve, Ontario. Ms. Smith is the founding artistic director of Kaha:wi Dance Theatre (KDT). She holds a master’s degree in dance from York University. Santee attended the National Ballet School from 1982 to 1988. She expanded her knowledge of movement with a kinesiology degree from McMaster University. In 1996 she began creating her own choreography and developing a movement style that reflects who she is as an indigenous artist. Ms. Smith creates, produces and presents her choreographic work nationally and internationally and is the founder of Canada’s inaugural Living Ritual: World Indigenous Dance Festival. She is the recipient of the K.M. Hunter Award for dance and the Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award for the most outstanding mid-career artist in the field of dance in 2006.

As the artistic director of kdt she has produced: Kaha:wi; Here On Earth; The Threshing Floor; A Constellation of Bones; Woman In White; Sacred Spring; A Story Before Time and A Soldier’s Tale among others. Her upcoming artistic works include: Transmigration, Tripped Up Blues, Fragmented Heart at the Canada Dance Festival 2008, and Living Ritual in 2009.

General information

In addition to its principal role of promoting and fostering the arts in Canada, the Canada Council for the Arts administers awards and fellowships to over 200 artists and scholars annually in the arts, humanities, social sciences, natural and health sciences, and engineering. Among these are the Governor General’s Literary Awards, Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts, the Killam Prizes, the Killam Research Fellowships, the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prizes, and the Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts.

For more information about these awards, including nomination procedures, contact Janet Riedel Pigott, Acting Director of Endowments and Prizes, at 613-566-4414, or 1-800-263-5588, ext. 5041, or by e-mail;or Carole Breton, Acting Endowments and Prizes Officer, at 613-566‑4414, or 1-800-263-5588 ext. 4116, or by e-mail.