Guthrie Awards Landing Page
More InfoHere at the Stratford Festival there are several occasions to celebrate throughout the year. Every fall we hold The Tyrone Guthrie Awards, Loyal Service Brunch, Dinner and Reception, Tanya Tom & Tyrone Awards and the Dama Bell Volunteer Award.
The Festival holds an annual awards ceremony which honours company members, staff and alumni with more than $125,000 in cash awards. The awards, named after the Festival's first Artistic Director, were created by members of the first acting company to provide financial assistance for training, development and personal projects. They are funded each year from the proceeds of designated performances and income from endowed awards. For 2022 the dedicated Guthrie performance is of Little Women. 
All members of the Festival company and staff, both past and present, are eligible for these awards and are invited to submit applications. The 2022 Guthrie Awards committee was chaired by actor Ron Kennell, Ceairy Free (Director Membership), Bonnie Green (Associate Producer), Jessica B. Hill (Actor), Kim Lott (Stage Manager), Andre Sills (Actor), Maxine Tubbe (Wardrobe) and Amaka Umeh (Actor). This committee is elected every summer and the awards ceremony takes place every fall usually in September. The evening is a great night where folxs from all departments gather, usually with an open bar and pizza for all!
Loyal Service Dinner and Reception
The Stratford Festival formally recognizes and acknowledges milestones in the service provided by its full-time and seasonal employees, specifically the number of seasons they have worked at the Festival. These milestones occur with every accumulation of five seasons’ employment, i.e. 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and each subsequent 5 seasons of employment. Employees are recognized in October of the season in which they achieve a milestone. Retirees are also invited to the Loyal Service Dinner, held each October, in the season they retire. Recipients are invited/notified by the Human Resource department.
Background
The Stratford Festival has a world reputation for excellent artist and production quality. This level of excellence is also key in the many customer and administrative areas at the Festival. Individual employees can have a significant impact on the level of quality that appears on our stages, and the type of experience that our patrons encounter. In order to recognize exceptional employee performance that upholds this level of excellence both on stage and behind the scenes, the Festival will honour selected individuals on an annual basis.
Criteria
Awards will be given in recognition of exceptional workmanship, and innovative ideas that improve our patrons’ experiences or streamline the way we work. Our goal is to reward those employees who demonstrate a high level of commitment to excellence and a dedication to continual improvement.
One “Tanya” award will be available for a production employee or artist, in the amount of a $2,000.00 cash bonus. Similarly, one “Tom” award will be available for an administrative or customer service employee, as a $2,000.00 cash bonus. In addition, there will be one “Tyrone” award, which will be a cash bonus of $5,000.00 each, for the two best overall nominations.
Eligibility and Nomination Process
All employees and self-employed artists, excluding senior managers, will be eligible for the reward program. Note that this program is designed to reward outstanding individuals and not groups or teams.
Nominations may be made by an employee’s co-worker or manager. The person making the nomination will need to describe the particular achievement and describe why the nominee is deserving of the recognition. Nominations are usually accepted during the month of September.
Background
The Stratford Festival has a world reputation for excellence both on stage and off stage. Over the last few years, the Festival has recognized individual volunteers for their contributions and awarded those who have significantly impacted the quality and type of experience that our patrons encounter.
Criteria
Awards will be given in recognition of those volunteers who have shown exceptional leadership, provided outstanding customer service, contributed strategies or ideas to improve our operation, and inspired outstanding teamwork. Our goal is to reward those volunteers who have demonstrated a high level of commitment to our organization.
Annually, in recognition of the level of excellence brought forth by volunteers, one Dama Bell Volunteer award will be granted, consisting of a dinner for four catered by the Greenroom, and four tickets to a performance.
Eligibility and Nomination Process
All volunteers (including Friends of the Festival, Chicago Associates, Michigan Members, Board of Governors, Stratford Express and any other volunteers) will be eligible for this reward program.
A Stratford Festival employee or a fellow volunteer may make nominations. The person making the nomination will need to describe a particular achievement and explain why the nominee is deserving of the recognition.
Nominations are accepted often during the month of September.
- Human Resources Department