Director of Production & Facilities

Canadian Stage Company; Toronto; Hybrid; CAD 125,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

Canadian Stage seeks a Director of Production and Facilities to lead production and facilities across four Toronto venues: Bluma Appel Theatre, Berkeley Theatres, High Park Amphitheatre, and the Winter Garden Theatre. You will oversee the production calendar, budgets, safety, and staff while partnering with artistic and executive leadership to realize ambitious seasons.

You will drive capital planning, facilities maintenance, and multi-venue coordination, ensuring high artistic quality and

Qualifications

• Extensive technical theatre production experience.
• Senior-level experience in professional theatre production and/or performing arts operations within PACT.
• Demonstrated experience leading production teams in a complex environment.
• Significant experience developing and managing large production and departmental budgets.
• Experience working with unions and collective agreements, particularly IATSE and Canadian Actors Equity Association.
• Experience managing facilities, capital projects, and building operations.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent productions and competing priorities.
• Experience recruiting, supervising, developing and retaining staff.
• Strong understanding of occupational health and safety requirements and practices.
• Demonstrated ability to navigate complex decisions involving artistic ambition, financial resources and risk.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and negotiation skills.
• Thorough understanding of Canadian Stage’s mission, strategies, and programming.

Responsibilities

• Allocate human and material resources among the four venues and any touring productions.
• Prepare and manage the Production Calendar and timetables, ensuring budgets align with organizational plans.
• Advise Artistic Director and Executive Director, balancing artistic ambition with financial realities; final budget approval rests with the Executive Director.
• Ensure production requirements are met effectively, economically, and on time in collaboration with the Technical Director.
• Provide status updates on production problems to leadership; maintain production budget.
• Oversee production-related time sheets and payroll summaries.
• Staff recruitment, supervision and performance management for technical leadership and seasonal personnel.
• Negotiate and manage union contracts, ensure compliance with labour regulations and safety policies.
• Lead safety, risk management, and capital planning for facilities and operations.

Skills

Technical theatre prod

Senior theatre ops

Team leadership

Budget management

Unions & agreements

Facilities management

Multi-venue ops

Staff recruitment

Health & safety

Decision making

Negotiation

Company mission

Tools

NetSuite

SharePoint

Airtable

Asana

Job description

POSITION TITLE: Director of Production and Facilities
POSITION TYPE: Full Time
START DATE: Immediate
SALARY RANGE: $125,000-$135,000 / year
POSTING: September 2026

ABOUT CANADIAN STAGE

Canadian Stage is one of the country’s leading not-for-profit contemporary performing arts organizations. Sharing innovative work from Canada and across the world, the company stages an annual season across four Toronto venues, including its beautiful heritage building on Berkeley and Front Street, in the vibrant St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood.

In its long and storied history, Canadian Stage has employed thousands of artists and produced hundreds of new productions to over 5,000,000 audience members, including the premieres of 350+ new Canadian works. Many of the plays developed by Canadian Stage have been awarded and nominated for Canada's most prestigious literary and performing arts honours, including Governor General's, Chalmers, and Dora Mavor Moore Awards.

Canadian Stage is entering an exciting period of growth and renewal, with ambitious programming across its four venues and an ongoing commitment to strengthening the systems, people and infrastructure that support artists and audiences.

ABOUT THE POSITION

Reporting jointly to the Artistic Director and the Executive Director, the Director of Production and Facilities is a senior leader responsible for ensuring that Canadian Stage's artistic ambitions are supported by excellent production, operational and facilities practices. The Director oversees the people, resources, systems and infrastructure required to safely and successfully deliver Canadian Stage's productions and activities across its four venues.

The Director of Production and Facilities is responsible for creating and delivering effective activities to help Canadian Stage achieve several key objectives:

• Delivery of productions of the highest artistic quality possible
• Close management of organizational resources and adherence to budgets in the execution of productions
• Accurate future planning of financial and human resources for the realization of Canadian Stage’s seasons and new work development activities
• Leads the Production Department in maintaining a culture of health, safety, respect and accountability, ensuring that policies and practices are understood, implemented and consistently followed
• Proactive oversight of Canadian Stage’s facilities
• Maintenance of positive relationships with the artists and organizations that make up the Canadian Stage community

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR:

Required:

• Extensive technical theatre production experience.
• Significant senior-level experience in professional theatre production and/or performing arts operations within PACT.
• Demonstrated experience leading production teams in a complex environment.
• Significant experience developing and managing large production and departmental budgets.
• Demonstrated experience working with unions and collective agreements, particularly IATSE and Canadian Actors Equity Association.
• Experience managing facilities, capital projects, and building operations.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent productions and competing priorities.
• Experience recruiting, supervising, developing and retaining staff.
• Strong understanding of occupational health and safety requirements and practices.
• Demonstrated ability to navigate complex decisions involving artistic ambition, financial resources, operational capacity and risk.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and negotiation skills.
• Thorough understanding of Canadian Stage’s mission, strategies, and programming.

Assets:

• Experience with NetSuite, SharePoint, Airtable and Asana.
• Experience in a multi-venue performing arts organization.
• Experience with co-productions, touring or presentations.

The position requires regular evening and weekend work, particularly during technical rehearsals, previews, performances and other production periods.

KEY COMPETENCIES

Inclusion: fosters relationships and provides equitable opportunity across a diverse spectrum of people and organizations.

Communication: engages technicians, production personnel, artists and partner organizations in a manner that is respectful and clear; positively and timely communicates relevant issues of concern.

Judgment and Problem-Solving: exercises sound, independent judgment in complex and sometimes ambiguous circumstances; identifies risks early, gathers appropriate information, consults effectively and makes timely decisions that balance artistic, financial, operational and human considerations.

Leadership and Accountability: leads by example, demonstrating Canadian Stage values in all aspects of their work while providing guidance and oversight to a range of staff members, collaborators and freelancers; with independent sound judgement, effectively manages productions to accomplish Canadian Stage’s mission and objectives.

Stewardship: delivers productions within recommended and approved budget and schedule parameters.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE:

In this role, success will mean:

• Canadian Stage's productions are delivered safely, artistically ambitiously, on time
  and within approved resources.
• Production staff feel supported, accountable and proud of their work.
• Production planning is proactive rather than reactive.
• Artistic and operational teams work collaboratively and communicate effectively.
• Canadian Stage's buildings and production infrastructure are well maintained and
  strategically planned.
• The organization has a clear understanding of its production capacity and future
  resource needs.
• Canadian Stage maintains strong relationships with artists, unions, venues,
  partners and suppliers.

DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION AND FACILITIES

KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITIES

• In consultation with the Technical Director, allocates human and material resources among the Bluma Appel Theatre, Berkeley Theatres, High Park Amphitheatre, the Winter Garden Theatre, and any touring productions.
• In collaboration with the Executive Director, prepares and manages the Production Calendar;
  • prepares and publishes individual production timetables, including design deadlines, construction starts, etc.
  • ensures that the financial requirements of the Season Calendar are in line with the corporate budgets of the organization.
• Serves as a key advisor and partner to the Artistic Director and Executive Director in balancing artistic ambitions with financial, operational, technical and human-resource realities. Final budget approval rests with the Executive Director.
• In conjunction with the Technical Director, ensures that the production requirements of each production are met effectively and economically and on time.
• Keeps Artistic Director and Executive Director apprised of the status and related issues of all production problems.
• In conjunction with the Technical Director, maintains the budget of the Production.
• In conjunction with the Technical Director, and the Stage Manager, establishes the Production Schedule for each show.
• Provides advice and guidance as required to the Technical Director and to all Department Heads.
• Leads all production meetings.
• In conjunction with the Technical Director(s) ensure that all aspects of a production are safe both for the performers and crew and for the public.
• Authorizes overtime as required.
• Is present on a regular basis in the theatre, for all load-ins, tech weeks, preview periods and load-outs, as is appropriate.
• Attends technical and dress rehearsals and assists and advises the Technical Director as necessary.

People and Culture

• Builds and maintains a healthy, collaborative and accountable departmental culture.
• Provides clear expectations, feedback, supervision and support to production staff.
• Addresses conflict and performance issues promptly, fairly and constructively.
• Supports staff through periods of intense workload while maintaining sustainable and respectful working practices.
• Fosters strong working relationships between production, artistic, administrative and front-of-house departments.
• Chairs weekly Production Department Staff Meetings.
• Participates in weekly Producers meetings.
• Participates in weekly Programming meeting.
• Represents the Production Department at weekly senior staff meetings.

Financial and Resource Management

• Prepares and documents, under the management of the Artistic Director and the Executive Director, the annual production budgets, including all productions, production overhead, production facility maintenance, long term theatre maintenance, and capital acquisitions.
• Administers the production budgets as approved by the Executive Director, including, but not limited to:
  • monitors all direct production expenses on a daily basis
  • authorizes all direct production expenses, either directly or through Department heads
  • maintains, with the assistance of the Technical Director and Production and Site Manager, a full set of Production Accounts, and labour cost records
  • regular reports of all direct production budgets to the Artistic Director, Executive Director, and Director of Finance
  • monitors and authorizes all production overhead expenses
  • monitors and authorizes approved production related capital purchase and projects
  • prepares any capital related financial reports required by the Executive Director
  • works with Production Manager in the reconciliation of all co-productions.
• Approves all production related time sheets:
  • prepares production payroll summary for the payroll department

Labour Relations and Contracts

• Responsible for the staffing of the Production Department:
  • recruitment, supervision, performance management, professional development and retention of the Technical Director, Production and Site Manager, Building Operations Manager, and Head of Properties
  • recruitment, supervision, and performance management of all seasonal production staff
  • ensures that seasonal production staff compensation is accounted for in the company’s departmental, production, production overhead or corporate budgets, as applicable
  • negotiates contracts for Stage Management and all Designers
• works with the Artistic Director and the Executive Director as appropriate on Stage Management and Designer relations, disciplinary matters and terminations.In conjunction with the Executive Director, negotiates and manages the IATSE and other collective bargaining contracts.
• Ensures that all Union agreements are respected.
• Ensures that all Federal and Provincial labour regulations are respected.

Health, Safety and Risk

• In conjunction with the Health and Safety Committee, the Technical Director, House Manager(s) and Building Operations Manager, establishes and maintains Emergency Procedure Policies.
• In conjunction with Canadian Stage’s Joint Health and Safety Committee ensures that the facility operates in safe and responsible manner.
• Establishes and maintains Policies and Procedures as related to all areas of Production.

Facilities and Capital Planning

• Within Canadian Stage planning process, takes responsibility for production capital and infrastructure planning.
• In consultation with the Building Operations Manager, oversees Building and Operations budgets and activities, including maintenance and general upkeep, building security, and liaison with the City of Toronto
• Other related duties as assigned

Strategic Planning

• Working with the Artistic Director, Executive Director and senior leadership team to assess production capacity, identify operational risks and opportunities, and ensure that future programming plans are achievable within available financial, human and physical resources.

DIRECT REPORTS:

• Technical Director
• Production and Site Manager
• Building Operations Manager
• Head of Properties
• Contract and seasonal staff (Stage Managers, Production Coordinators, Productions Assistants, etc.)