Government of Canada supports Theatre on the Ridge through the Tourism Relief Fund
Theatre 3×60, operating as Theatre on the Ridge, received $100,000 from Central Counties Tourism RTO6 through FedDev Ontario to relaunch their annual summer theatre festival at Scugog Shores Museum Village and expand their fall theatre events including Scary Story Walks and the Port Perry Snapshots Short Play Festival.
The tourism sector is vital to the economy and jobs in Durham Region and Theatre on the Ridge plays a vibrant role in tourism offerings in the region. Theatre on the Ridge is Durham’s only not for profit professional theatre company, operating the region’s only repertory summer theatre festival. We attract over 2,500 visitors annually to Port Perry and Scugog, through the summer theatre festival and other theatre programming throughout the year, including community-based events such as Pine Grove Plots Walks, Port Perry Snapshots Short Play Festival and through our participation in community arts and culture events such as Scugog Arts’ Small Town Big, Canada Day and Ontario Culture Days. These unique cultural programs needed support to stay operational as tourism rebounds.
In 2022, Theatre on the Ridge received a non-repayable contribution of $100,000 from Central Counties Tourism (RTO6) to enhance destination development with art and culture. This is part of the Government of Canada’s Tourism Relief Fund, delivered by the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario). Central Counties Tourism received $8.65 million from FedDev Ontario to help local tourism organizations and businesses safely welcome back visitors, recover from the impacts of the pandemic and prepare for future growth.
New artists and creators contributed to Theatre on the Ridge summer productions and fall events, some originally created in response to the pandemic in 2020 and 2021. The investment made in event production enhanced all our events and raised the quality and profile of our overall programming. We were also able to increase our event promotion and enhance our visitor experiences, opening new markets and tourism opportunities. In 2022, we attracted a record number of new visitors to Theatre on the Ridge and the community, allowing us to continue to adapt and recover and continue to contribute to economic growth in Scugog.
“Our government is happy to invest $78 million through the Tourism Relief Fund to help communities across southern Ontario rejuvenate local tourist attractions. With this funding, southern Ontario’s Regional Tourism Organizations and Indigenous Tourism Ontario are providing hundreds of local businesses and organizations with the support they need to create jobs, attract more visitors and grow local economies, now and into the future.”
Filomena Tassi, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
“The Canadian tourism sector continues to be one of the most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We are fully committed to supporting businesses and organizations through these challenging times, keeping safety as the top priority while ensuring they get support to quickly recover, innovate their products and services, and thrive. The Tourism Relief Fund will help businesses/organizations adapt, make improvements, and be ready to welcome back guests. It also feeds into a broader strategy to help the sector survive the pandemic, recover and grow. The Canadian economy will not fully recover until our tourism sector recovers.”
The Honourable Randy Boissonnault, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance
“The visitor economy creates thriving, vibrant communities across Ontario. Visitors bring new money into a community and for many businesses in York, Durham and Headwaters, these additional revenues can mean the difference between staying solvent and having to shutter their doors forever. Central Counties Tourism applauds the Government of Canada for recognizing the importance of growing our collective capacity to welcome and entertain visitors. Its investment in tourism is helping municipalities and individual businesses build compelling destinations that will attract visitors and residents alike. The economic impact from the Tourism Relief Fund will be felt for years.”
Chuck Thibeault, Executive Director, Central Counties Tourism
“The funding support provided through RTO6 allowed us to continue our response and recovery from the impacts of the pandemic, by hiring key staff for our revitalized summer season, now in partnership with Scugog Shores Museum and providing the resources necessary to hire theatre artists expand successful programs created in response to pandemic impacts of the closure of indoor theatres for over two years. The support allowed us to retain our existing patron and visitor base while increasing our new visitor base by 50% from 2022.”
Carey Nicholson, Artistic Director/General Manager, Theatre on the Ridge
About Central Counties Tourism
Central Counties Tourism (CCT) was established as a regional tourism organization in 2010 under a framework developed by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport. Its mandate is to identify sustainable best product and practices that will build a stronger and more competitive tourism industry within the York, Durham, and Headwaters regions. CCT is funded by the Ontario Government and managed as a not-for-profit organization by a voluntary tourism industry board. CCT’s mission is to increase tourism in the region by promoting and developing unique and competitive tourism products that attract high yield visitors from outside the Central Counties region.
About FedDev Ontario
For 13 years, the Government of Canada, through FedDev Ontario, has worked to advance and diversify the southern Ontario economy through funding opportunities and business services that support innovation, growth and job creation in Canada’s most populous region. The Agency has delivered impressive results, which can be seen in southern Ontario businesses that are creating innovative technologies, improving productivity, growing revenues, creating jobs, and in the economic advancement of communities across the region. Learn more about the impacts the Agency is having in southern Ontario by exploring our pivotal projects, our Southern Ontario Spotlight, and FedDev Ontario’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Associated Links
Central Counties Tourism
FedDev Ontario
Chuck Thibeault
Executive Director
Central Counties Tourism
cthibeault@centralcounties.ca
Edward Hutchinson
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
edward.hutchinson@feddevontario.gc.ca
