The Dora Mavor Moore Award (also known as the Dora Award) is an award presented annually by the

Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) is an arts service organization representing professional theatre, dance and opera companies in the City of Toronto. Amongst their 175 members are the Canadian Opera Company, Luminato, Factory Thea ...

which honours theatre, dance and opera productions in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

. Named after Dora Mavor Moore, who helped establish Canadian professional theatre, the award was established on December 13, 1978, with the first awards held in 1980. Each winner receives a bronze statue made from the original by John Romano.

Awards

Awards are given in major divisions: General Theatre (Drama/Comedy/Play, budget over $100,000 and over 150 seats), Musical Theatre (Musical/Revue/Cabaret), Independent Theatre (budget under $100,000 and/or under 150 seats), Dance, Opera, Theatre for Young Audiences, and Touring. Each of these major categories are further sub-divided in an assorted number of awards. In 2018, the awards announced that beginning with the 2019 awards it would discontinue gender-based performance categories, replacing its previous performance categories for men and women with "Outstanding Performance" categories."Dora Mavor Moore Awards to adopt gender-neutral performance categories"
CBC Arts, April 25, 2018.

Ancillary awards

In association with the Dora Awards, several ancillary awards are also administered and presented by TAPA.

Pauline McGibbon Award

This award was established in 1981 in honour of former

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the , who operates distinctly within the province bu ...

Pauline McGibbon, the winner is announced at the Dora Mavor Moore Award ceremony. This award is "Intended to assist a member of Ontario’s theatre community who has displayed a unique talent, a potential for excellence and who is in the early stages of his or her career." The Award recipient moves in a three-year cycle, rotating through individuals working as a director, a production craft person and a designer respectively. Each award winner receives $7,000 and a medal designed by

Dora de Pedry Hunt Dora may stand for: *Dora (given name) Places United States * Dora, Alabama *Dora, Arkansas *Dora, Missouri *Dora, New Mexico * Dora, Oregon *Dora, Pennsylvania *Mount Dora, Florida Other countries *Lake Dora (Tasmania) *Lake Dora (Western ...

Barbara Hamilton Award

Established in 1996 in recognition of Barbara Hamilton, this $1,000 prize, administered by the City of Toronto is awarded to an individual who has "demonstrated excellence and professionalism in the performing arts." The winner of this award is announced during the press conference presenting the season's Dora Award nominees. Along with the cash prize, recipients also receive a scroll from the city of Toronto. Past winners include John Neville, Karen Kain, and Colin Mochrie

George Luscombe Award

Named for George Luscombe, founder and artistic director for 27 years of the Toronto Workshop Productions, this award is presented to an individual who has shown great mentor-ship in the realm of theatre. This award was first presented in 1999, and the recipient receives a framed print by artist Theo Dimson. The winner of this award is announced during the press conference announcing the Dora Award nominees.

Audience Choice Award

The Audience Choice Award was inaugurated in 2006 at the 27th Annual Dora Mavor Moore Awards. Presented by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA), the Audience Choice Award for Outstanding Production is sponsored by ''

Now Magazine ''Now'' (styled as ''NOW''), also known as ''NOW Magazine'' is an online publication based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Throughout most of its existence, ''Now'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper. Physical publication of ''Now'' was suspen ...

'' Toronto and Yonge-Dundas Square. Facilitated and sponsored by ''Now Magazine'', the public was invited to vote online for a winner from the list of nominees in the General Theatre (Play and Musical), Independent Theatre, Opera and Theatre for Young Audiences Divisions; and Outstanding New Choreography in the Dance Division, or choose their own show. The winner is announced at the Dora Awards ceremony and presented with a commemorative plaque.

Silver Ticket Award

Beginning in 1980, TAPA began presenting the silver ticket award to "an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the Toronto stage and to the development of Canadian Theatre". Nominees for the award are submitted from individuals from the general performing arts community, and a committee composed of previous Silver Ticket winners. Along with the award, the winning individual is entitled to two free tickets, for life, to any production performed by a company belonging to the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts.

Past winners

Past winners have included Salome Bey,

Kawa Ada Kawa Ada (born June 12, 1982) is an Afghan-Canadian actor, writer and producer. He distinguished himself as a stage actor on Broadway and in Toronto before pursuing a career as a film and television actor and a writer. He is also a dancer, a ch ...

, John Alcorn, BirdLand Theatre, Michel Marc Bouchard, Valerie Buhagiar, Ronnie Burkett, Caroline Cave, Waawaate Fobister, Paul-André Fortier, David Hersey, Tomson Highway,

Christopher House Christopher House (born May 30, 1955) is a Canadian choreographer, performer and educator. For many years he was the artistic director of Toronto Dance Theatre. Early life and education House was born in St.John's, Newfoundland. He moved to Ot ...

Stuart Hughes Stuart Hughes (born June 9, 1959) is a Canadian actor known for his leading roles on the stages of many Canadian theatre companies, including Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival and Soulpepper Theatre Company (of which he is a founding member). ...

, John Krizanc, Daniel MacIvor, Manitoba Theatre for Young People, Diego Matamoros, Neil Munro, Julian Richings, Roseneath Theatre,

Tyley Ross Tyley Ross is a Grammy nominated recording artist, the co-founder of the Universal Records recording act The East Village Opera Company, and a Dora Award winning musical theater actor. He is based in New York City. Biography Ross began his care ...

Djanet Sears Djanet Sears is a Canadian playwright, actor and director, nationally recognized for her work in African-Canadian theatre. Sears has many credits in writing and editing highly acclaimed dramas such as ''Afrika Solo'', the first stage play to be w ...

, Denis Simpson, Michel Tremblay and Jonathan Wilson. In 2005, arts patron and philanthropist Bluma Appel received an Honorary Dora Award.

References

External links

Official site

Dora Awards Eligibility Requirement
{{Dora Awards Awards established in 1978 1978 establishments in Canada Canadian theatre awards