Did you know that the City of Barrie invests in arts and culture every year?
Through the Arts & Culture Investment Program, funding is provided to our local arts and culture organizations for their day-to-day operations, their goals for growth, or their unique projects which often fill a specific need in the community.
This year, $230,400 was invested into 14 different organizations. Here are three of the many organizations worth keeping an eye on:
Barrie Film Festival
(Photo courtesy of Downtown Barrie BIA)
The Barrie Film Festival encourages multicultural perspectives while demonstrating excellence across all aspects of cinema. Approximately 50% of its offerings are Canadian films, and it exhibits Indigenous, international, foreign language films, and “timely stories of diversity, racism, colonialism, equity, 2SLGBTQQIA+, and the environment”.
The Barrie Film Festival hosts many events and provides development opportunities for artists such as the Central Ontario Youth Short Film Festival which champions high school talent across the province, the four-day Reel Stories Festival which showcases socially conscious true stories, outdoor summer screenings which provide family entertainment for free in public spaces, and of course, the annual Barrie Film Festival.
The City of Barrie’s Arts & Culture Investment Program supports the Barrie Film Festival in keeping up with growing venue challenges and needs, continuing to expand its youth programming, and pursuing new goals like launching a fresh, new website.
Simcoe Contemporary Dancers
(Photo by Jaqui Brown featuring Chrissy Baxter and Morgan Ferhman)
Simcoe Contemporary Dancers connect to the community by using movement to transcend language. They create opportunities for local dancers to train in a non-competitive atmosphere and they provide free and ticketed entertainment at local venues. They also provide drop-in classes, guest workshops, in-school workshops, and ‘community-engaged creations’ where community members – with no cost or experience required – can participate in both the development and performance of a dance.
With support from the Arts and Culture Investment Program, Simcoe Contemporary Dancers will realize a new project, an outdoor dance festival at Lampman Lane Park on July 27 and 28, 2024. The festival, called “Get Out and Dance”, will include a series of locally curated dances, a live band, dance workshops in various styles, and partnerships with other local organizations. This festival will be a new iteration of a festival they previously hosted at the park. Simcoe Contemporary Dancers will also create programs for Culture Days, a national festival of arts and culture which is widely celebrated in Barrie.
Bravado Show Choir
The Bravado Show Choir may challenge your notion of “choir”, as it performs a “broad spectrum of music”, from classic to country, from rock to folk. With around 30 choir members and 50 volunteers, they intend to “reinvigorate the choral art form” and spread the social and emotional benefits of singing. They produce two energetic shows a year accompanied by guest performers and a live band, often in collaboration with other local arts organizations. They also perform to fundraise for charities and host public rehearsals where community members can enjoy a performance for free and even join in.
Arts and Culture Investment Program funding is assisting with Bravado Show Choir’s programming for the year. This includes a travel-themed performance at the Georgian Theatre which took place in May and engaged local visual artists, and a holiday performance at Collier Street United Church in November, which will partner with Collier’s Table Community Meals program and include a song performed in American Sign Language. Funding will also support Bravado’s administrative goals such as upgrading equipment and improving marketing.
These strategic investments serve to recognize organizations for their important contributions to our community while developing Barrie as an arts-friendly city with opportunities for artists to develop their careers, encouraged cultural diversity, and enriching experiences for residents and visitors.
To learn more about Barrie’s Arts and Culture Investment Program, including the full list of recipients and how to apply, visit Arts & Culture Investment Program | City of Barrie.
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