Guidelines

Elgibility

The Sterling Committee must be informed of all Eligible Productions at least thirty (30) days prior to the first public performance of an Eligible Production. It is acceptable for Presenting Companies to provide one list containing all the eligible shows in its season, so long as this list is provided a minimum of 30 days prior to the first public performance.

1) Productions must be professional in nature, defined simply by whether or not the entire creative team receive payment solely for their artistic efforts, or in the case of a collective for their administrative and artistic work (i.e. collective publicity, box-office, etc.). In addition, all of the creative and production teams (actors, directors, choreographers, stage managers, designers, playwrights) must be engaged under a CAEA*, ADC*, or PGC* approved contract. Other contractual arrangements must be submitted to the Sterling Committee for approval.

* Canadian Actors’ Equity, Associated Designers of Canada, Playwrights Guild of Canada

2) Length of run: Productions must run at least nine (9) performances over a minimum two weekends. Exceptions may be made at the discretion of the Sterling Committee. Theatre for Young Audiences must run a minimum of nine (9) performances over a maximum of four months and may run in a variety of venues. 

3) Productions must run within the City of Edmonton.

4) Remounts and reproductions:

          Mainstage to mainstage

If a mainstage production is remounted on the same or another mainstage, five years must have passed between the original production and the remount to be eligible again. If a remount occurs within five years of the original production, only new elements will be eligible for Sterling consideration. New works can only be eligible as a new work in their first mainstage production.

          Fringe to mainstage

If a Sterling-eligible Fringe production is mounted as part of a mainstage season within 5 years of the original Fringe run, it will be eligible for Sterling consideration in all categories except Outstanding New Play. However, if a Fringe production receives a mainstage run in the season immediately following the Fringe run, the producers must elect whether they want to be adjudicated as a Fringe production or as a Mainstage production - a single run will not be eligible for both Fringe and mainstage awards. If the producing company does not register the Mainstage run  at least 30 days prior to mainstage opening, the production will default to its original Fringe eligibility.

Mainstage to Fringe

If a Sterling-eligible Mainstage production receives a Fringe run within 5 years of the original Mainstage run, it will not be eligible for Fringe Sterling Awards.

5) Theatre for Young Audiences is defined by the theatre engaging its cast using a TYA contract with Canadian Actors’ Equity Association. Other contractual arrangements must be submitted to The Sterling Committee for approval.

6) To be eligible for the Fringe categories, a Fringe production must register, be locally produced (having submitted their application from Edmonton) and be theatrical in nature. It must appear as part of the official Edmonton Fringe Festival lineup (which includes BYOVs). Productions must be professional in nature, defined simply by whether or not the entire creative team receive payment solely for their artistic efforts, or in the case of a collective for their administrative and artistic work (i.e. collective publicity, box-office, etc.).    

7) Productions running as part of Festival productions or presentations are Sterling eligible if they run at least nine (9) performances over a minimum two weekends. Exceptions may be made at the discretion of the Sterling Committee.

Juries

a) There are three Sterling Juries. The Mainstage Jury is responsible for seeing professional mainstage productions playing in the City of Edmonton from mid-May to mid-May including TYA productions. It consists of approximately 9-14 members. The Fringe Jury is responsible for seeing the above eligible Fringe productions in August of each year. Fringe juries will consist of approximately 5-7 members. The production jury (made up of professional theatre artists producing theatre in Edmonton for the past season) will select the nominees and recipients for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Production .

b) All juries are selected by the Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards Committee upon advice from the community and a public juror call. Every attempt is made to ensure all Juries are as well rounded in terms of theatrical disciplines and lived experiences as possible. Jury recommendations must be sent to sterlingawardsyeg@gmail.com in between April 1 - May 15 of each calendar year to be considered for the upcoming June through May season.

c) The Sterling Committee endeavors to engage jurors who bring a variety of life and theatrical experiences, including artists with experience in theatre creation, direction, acting, stage management, production design, sound design, musical direction, community building, musical composition, technical theatre, production management, theatre administration, playwriting, and theatre education. Priority is given to artists who are not on a salaried position with a professional theatre company and artists who are members of historically underrepresented communities.

d) The Sterling committee may, at its discretion, choose not to establish any given jury if there are too few companies producing in that field.

e) Jurors may serve one, two or three season terms.

Nominating Procedures

a) All jury members cast secret ballots provided by a liaison from the Sterling Committee at the end of the season. They will vote using a five point weighted scale in each category. Their first choice receives 5 points, second choice 4 points, third choice 3 points, their fourth choice receives 2 points and fifth choice 1 point. 

b) No individual may be nominated twice in the same category. All points are transferable within categories. This means that no individual is penalized for a body of work. For instance, if a performer receives points in the Supporting Performer category for three different performances all their points apply towards a potential nomination. If there are then enough points for a nomination they will be nominated only for the achievement for which they received the most initial points.

c) Special Achievement Awards are presented by the Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards Committee upon recommendation by Sterling jurors in significant numbers. They are defined as awards honouring achievements outside of the established categories or given in place of categories dropped due to lack of eligible achievements in any given season.

Tabulating the Jurors’ Ballots

a) Jurors’ ballots are tabulated by an independent accounting firm and remain completely secret. The resulting Sterling nominations also remain secret until the full list of nominees is revealed at the press conference at the end of the season (late May/early June).

b) Nominations in each category are determined by the achievements which receive the most points, as above.

c) There are to be a maximum of five nominations in each category except in the case of an unbreakable tie where there can be six nominees. In the case of a three-way tie for the fifth nomination, there will be only four nominees in the category, never seven nominees.

d) Ties for the fifth place on the ballot are broken as follows: The achievement receiving points from the most jurors always receives the nomination. The weighted ballot (the 5s, 4s, 3s, 2s and 1s) are added only to break a tie which occurs when two or more achievements receives the same number of jurors supporting it.  All jury votes receive the same weight until there is a need to break such a tie. At this point the secondary number (the total number of points an achievement receives when the 5s, 4s, 3s, 2s, and 1s are counted) is used to break a tie for fifth place on the ballot. If a tie still exists then the tie is broken by the achievement which receives the most 4’s. If the two achievements receive an identical number of 4’s the tie is broken by the one receiving the most 3’s and so on. In the unlikely case that everything is identical, the tie is unbreakable and both achievements appear on the final ballot for six nominations in that category. 

e) If a performer receives votes from jurors for multiple roles, they will be nominated for the role where they received the most points. If there is a tie here it is broken as above. 

f) Once the nominations are tabulated the juries then vote on the nominations in a secret ballot using the five point weighted scale to determine the winners. Winners are determined using the same principles as nominees. All categories are juried awards.

Categories

Mainstage:

1. Outstanding Production of a Play - All professional non-musical, non-Young People's Theatre productions are eligible for this award, including productions of new plays. The New Play award is for writers only and recognizes the text and the writing, not the overall production. Productions brought in from out of town are also eligible in this category. Non-musical Independent productions are eligible only in their own production category (3., below).

2. The Timothy Ryan Award for Outstanding Production of a Musical - This category is for both musical theatre in the traditional sense of a book-musical and revue-type musicals (as in song to song without dialogue). As above, new musicals and out of town shows are also eligible. This Award category includes companies producing multiple productions within a season as well as independent theatre companies producing independent productions of musicals. This award is given in honour of the late Timothy Ryan.

3. Outstanding Independent Production of a Play - The productions which fit into this category are by companies which do not always produce a season or have a season (season being defined as a regular presentation of two or more productions in the course of a year). Independent productions are not eligible for Outstanding Production of a Play. Other achievements (directors, writers, actors etc.) are, of course, eligible in their respective categories.

4. Outstanding New Play - Defined as a play or musical that premieres in Edmonton. This means no other full production anywhere else. If the play was workshopped elsewhere or performed in an incomplete form and without admission charge (that is to say a workshop production) then it is still eligible in this category. This award goes only to the writer and is not an award for the production. All new plays and musicals (presented as Independent or Mainstage productions) are eligible in this category.

5. Outstanding Performance by a Performer in a Leading Role (Play) All leading performances in any Play (Mainstage or Independent productions) are eligible. 

6. Outstanding Performance by a Performer in a Leading Role (Musical) All leading performances in any Musical (Mainstage or Independent productions) are eligible. 

7. Outstanding Performance by a Performer in a Supporting Role (Play). All supporting performances are eligible, as above. 

8. Outstanding Performance by a Performer in a Supporting Role (Musical). All supporting performances are eligible, as above. 

9. Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a play or musical. This can include the entire cast of a play or musical or a specific ensemble within a play or musical (ie. The Mechanicals in a production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” or the Fates in “Hadestown”). All ensemble performances are eligible, as above. No individual show may be nominated twice for an Ensemble award. If one production receives points in the Supporting Performer category for three different ensembles, all their points apply towards a potential nomination. If there are then enough points for a nomination they will be nominated only for the achievement for which they received the most initial points.

10. Outstanding Director - Directors of all plays, musicals, and independent productions are eligible in this category.

11. Outstanding Set Design - Award to designer. All set designs as part of a play, musical, or independent production are eligible.

12. Outstanding Lighting Design - Award to designer. All lighting designs as part of a play, musical, or independent production are eligible.

13. Outstanding Costume Design - Award to designer. All costume designs as part of a play, musical, or independent production are eligible.

14. Outstanding Score of a Play or Musical - This category exists to recognize the original composition of the music and (if applicable) lyrics of a score in a play or a musical. 

15. Outstanding Sound Design- This category exists to recognize the sound design of a play or musical where any number of elements such as original composition, synthesized music, compiled sound effects are used to develop an overall underscore/sound design of a production. Outstanding live audio mixing of a musical is also eligible in this category.

16. Outstanding Musical Direction -  A musical director is in charge of any live music played or sung on-stage in a play or musical. A musical director guides a singer or musician through their show much as a director guides actors and designers. They are  also in charge of harmonies in any group singing and directing the band or orchestra.

17. Outstanding Choreography/Fight Direction -  A choreographer/fight director creates dances, fights or any special movement in a production. Often programs will acknowledge choreographers as "movement coach" or "movement by..."

18. Outstanding Multi-Media Design - A multi-media design includes projection and video elements, live or pre-recorded.

Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA)

TYA productions are primarily for presentation to pre-school, elementary and/or secondary school age audiences, either by means of traveling to the place of performance or at the regular place of performance in its point of origin. With the exception of Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Score of a Play or Musical, TYA productions are only eligible for two categories below. 

1. Outstanding Production for Young Audiences - All professional TYA productions are eligible for this award, including productions of new plays, musicals, collective/independents or productions brought in from out of town.

2. Outstanding Artistic Achievement, Theatre for Young Audiences - For individual achievements in the field of theatre for young audiences.

Fringe

1. Outstanding Fringe Production - All fringe festival, Edmonton-based productions are eligible for this award, including productions of musicals, revues, and new work.

2. Outstanding Fringe New Work - Defined as a play or musical that premieres at that year’s Edmonton Fringe or on that year’s Fringe circuit. This means no full production outside of the Fringe circuit or in any other calendar year. If the play was workshopped elsewhere or performed in an incomplete form and without admission charge (that is to say a workshop production) then it is still eligible in this category. This award goes only to the writer (or in the case of a musical, to the writing/composing team) and is not an award for the production.

3. Outstanding Fringe Performance - Individual. This includes performances by individuals in any eligible production.

4. Outstanding Fringe Performance - Ensemble. This includes performances by an ensemble in any eligible production.

5. Outstanding Fringe Director - Directors of any eligible fringe production.

Production

Outstanding Individual Achievement in Production - This award recognizes work behind the scenes in production comprising but not limited to technical directors, production managers, stage managers, ASMs, wardrobe personnel or technicians of any kind. Its jury is selected by the Sterling Committee each year in May by email and the vote is performed electronically.

Non-juried Awards

1. The Margaret Mooney Award for Outstanding Achievement in Administration

   Selected by the Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards Committee on the advice of Ms. Mooney

2. Outstanding Contribution to Theatre in Edmonton 

   Selected by the Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards Committee on the advice of the Edmonton Theatre community at-large.

3. The Ross Hill Award for Outstanding Achievement in Production 
   This award is to honour professionals working behind the scenes in production whether they be technical directors, production managers, stage managers, ASMs, wardrobe personnel or technicians of any kind. Recipients are selected by The Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards Committee on advice of Alumni of the Ross Hill Award for Outstanding Achievement in Production.

  Special Awards

Special Award Categories honour outstanding achievements outside the Award Categories listed in above. Special Award Categories are implemented upon recommendation of jurors on the Mainstage or Fringe juries in sufficient numbers. The Sterling Committee will make the final decision regarding the presentation of Special Awards.

Questions and Comments

All questions or comments on any element of Sterling eligibility whatsoever must be directed to the Sterling Committee by emailing sterlingsawardsyeg@gmail.com - Any direct communication by theatres with the Sterling accounting firm could result in disqualification of your company’s productions from Sterling eligibility.

These guidelines were updated in April of 2023 and are subject to change at the discretion of the Sterling Committee.