| Awards Guidelines |
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Metrolina Theatre Association
The purpose of the Metrolina Theatre Association (MTA) is to promote fellowship between theatre artists. The Annual Theatre Awards celebrate the achievements and excellence of its members and raise awareness of theatre in the Charlotte and Metrolina area through the production of an annual Awards Ceremony. The Awards Process Awards will be determined by a peer review process, whereby theatre artists and educated audience members will perform the duties of MTA nominators as outlined below. Awards will be given in the following categories:
The following awards may be given in each of these classifications:
Other categories may be added by the Awards Committee, subject to MTA Executive Committee approval. Additionally, Exceptional Awards may be given and are voted on by all eligible nominators. Honors in the Exceptional Awards category are discretionary awards and may be presented to a company or individual for excellence in craft, advancement of the art, or special achievement. The nominating and voting procedure(s) for these awards are in the process of being revised and will be available before June 15, 2009. Nominations for the Exceptional Awards will be accepted from June 15 through July 31 of each year. Exceptional Awards may be given in the following categories: Outstanding Original Play or Musical – is given to the playwright and/or producer of the best play, musical or other production to receive a world premiere in a fully staged production. Readings and book-in-hand workshop presentations are not eligible for consideration, but productions that have received staged readings, concert readings or workshop productions prior to the premiere production are eligible. This will be in effect beginning with the 2009-10 season, and the particulars outlined in the Exceptional Awards procedures. Emerging Artist of the Year – is presented to an individual who has shown exceptional growth in their art, craft or in their contribution to theatre; this person may or may not be new to the MTA region or theatre community. William E. Rackley Award for Technical Excellence – is chosen for excellence in design, construction, stage management or overall advancement of technical theatre. Theatre Person of the Year – is chosen for overall contribution to theatre in the MTA region. Theatre Company of the Year – is chosen for overall impact, improvement or achievement in theatre in the MTA region If there are fewer than three nominees in a given category, that award will not be given that year. In the case of the Special Event, College/University, & Regional categories, the number of awards may be limited at the discretion of the Category Coordinator and Awards Committee Chair(s).
The Awards Committee The MTA President [or a designee(s) appointed by the MTA President] shall serve as Awards Committee Chair(s). The Awards Committee shall consist of the MTA President [or designee(s) of the MTA President], Category Coordinators, and up to three persons appointed by the MTA President and Awards Committee Chair(s). The Awards Committee shall perform an annual evaluation of this rules document and the entire awards process. The Oversight Committee shall be a subset of the Awards Committee consisting of a minimum of three persons. At all times the Oversight Committee shall have as members the MTA President and MTA Awards Chair(s), plus other persons appointed by the MTA President. The Oversight Committee shall interpret the rules document, as well as other duties that may be assigned by the MTA President. In the case of complex matters, the Oversight Committee shall defer to the larger Awards Committee
Nominators All Nominators and Category Coordinators must be members in good standing of MTA. Nominators may serve in one or more categories. Each category shall begin the season with a minimum of twelve (12) Nominators. The Coordinator for each category will also serve as a Nominator in that category. Nominators actively involved with a specific production are deemed to have a conflict of interest and may not submit a nomination form for that production. Involvement is defined as any live performance, or producing, directing and/or design any creative element of said production. Other participation that may cause a Nominator to be ineligible includes but is not limited to employment or board service. Issues of eligibility are determined by the Awards Oversight Committee. All Nominators who attended a production may vote for that production on the preliminary and final ballots. A Nominator may not vote on any production that he or she did not attend. To prevent an imbalance in voting, no more than two Nominators in a given category may hold a staff, artistic, or board position with a given theatre company. All Nominators shall agree to the Nominator’s Agreement, which outlines specific duties and responsibilities of the Nominators. All Category Coordinators shall agree to the Coordinator’s Agreement, which outlines specific duties and responsibilities of the Category Coordinators.
The Submission Process The MTA Theatre Awards season will begin August 16th of each year and end August 15th of the following year. Theatre groups wishing to be considered for an award must submit their productions and performance dates for consideration to MTA, by writing to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , at least forty-five (45) days prior to the first public performance. Petitions for title replacements must be made in writing to the Awards Chair no later than thirty (30) days prior to the first public performance, and will be considered for eligibility on a case-by-case basis. If a company replaces a show with the same category production, (i.e., comedy for comedy) the replacement will be approved automatically provided that scheduling is unaltered and proper notice is given. Any production that has 75% or more of its public performances on or before August 15 will fall into that awards season. Exceptions may be made by the Awards Oversight Committee on a case-by-case basis. New or non-member theatre companies must apply for membership sixty (60) days before the date of their first public performance of any adjudicated production and must file their shows with MTA, by writing to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , no later than forty-five (45) days prior to the first public performance, in order to be eligible for consideration. Productions submitted by new groups after established deadlines will be ruled eligible at the discretion of the Awards Oversight Committee. To be considered in the Comedy, Drama or Musical categories, a production must offer a minimum of five (5) public performances. Except in the College/University or Regional categories, productions offering fewer than five (5) public performances will automatically be categorized as Special Events. In the event that a production is incorrectly classified (for example, listed as a drama when it should be considered as a comedy) it is the responsibility of the producing organization to correct this error as early in the awards season as possible. A minimum of forty-five (45) days notice prior to the first public performance is required. All requests for reclassification must be submitted in writing to MTA, by writing to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , for approval by the Oversight Committee.
Co-Productions - In the event of a co-production, the following criteria must be met: a. If the partner organizations are located within the Metrolina region, each must be a MTA Member Organization; b. If any partner organization is located outside of the MTA region, membership is not required provided that at least one partner is a MTA Member Organization.
Revivals: Revivals are not eligible for consideration. A revival is considered to be any presentation of the same production with a majority of the same creative personnel and/or concepts, remounted less than 3 years after its last adjudicated performance.
Responsibility of Producing Theatres - the participating theatre will: 1) Maintain Organizational Membership in good standing with the MTA. 2) Submit to MTA, by writing to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , the titles, dates, times and performance locations of each production along with a contact name, telephone number and email address of the person who handles ticket reservations for their theatre. Due to the challenges of geography and limited performance schedules, theaters in the College/University and Regional categories may submit only two productions for award consideration in any season. 3) Determine which category for which a production is best suited, and designate that category assignment when providing season information to MTA. Blatantly incorrect assignment requests will be corrected and the theatre group informed of the change. (For example, The Music Man may not be submitted for consideration as a drama, but some more modern works are open to interpretation. This interpretation is the responsibility of the producing organization.) 4) Provide two (2) tickets at no cost to each Nominator for each production they wish to have adjudicated. Producing theatres may limit the performances to which complimentary tickets are available (i.e., Friday and Saturday night tickets may not be available for a popular production). Producing theatres are urged to work together with Nominators to make the process as simple as possible. Flexibility is encouraged. Theatre representatives will be given a current list of all Nominators by the Awards Committee Chair(s) prior to the first production of that theatre’s season. 5) Notify MTA, by writing to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , of any cancellation or changes to the season as soon as the decision is made and no later than the deadlines listed previously under the section entitled “submission process.” 6) Make an effort to submit the name of one (1) or two (2) person(s) associated with the theatre to serve as Nominator(s) for each season. 7) Advertise participation in MTA in all production Playbills and Programs. Specifically, these words must appear in all Playbills and Programs of member organization productions: “name of theatre organization is a proud member of the Metrolina Theatre Association.” MTA’s logo and web address should also be displayed, if space permits.
Performance Space Environment A. The theatre space must meet all federal, state, and local fire code regulations and other ordinances, with particular attention to wiring, occupancy, etc. Occupancy regulations and all other permits must be clearly posted. Exit doors must: B. All participating theatre organizations must maintain a reasonable ambient temperature in their performance space (minimum 62°F and maximum 85°F). Special accommodations may be made for outdoor performance on a case by case basis at the discretion of the Awards Committee. C. If a space is rented, it is the responsibility of the participating theatre organization to negotiate with the landlord to ensure that all of the above safety and temperature requirements are complied with, well in advance of any public performances. D. If the theatre organization chooses to create an alternative environment for its audience for a particular production, e.g. extreme hot or cold temperature, audience members must stand, etc., MTA will not be held responsible for Nominators who may choose either not to attend or to leave a particular performance due to discomfort.
The Judging Process Category Coordinators must, on a regular and consistent basis, notify their Nominators of all eligible productions including performance dates and relevant contact information. Every effort will be made to determine performance classification prior to the opening of the production. If a performer receives nominations in multiple performance classifications in a single production, then the Category Coordinator will contact the designated representative at the producing organization, and they shall make a determination of which category is appropriate. Nominators must submit an online nomination form within two (2) weeks of the final performance of the production. Nominators are required to keep a copy of their Playbill and nomination forms from each production until the end of the awards season and voting process. Out of the total number of nominators in each category, a minimum of five (5) nomination forms for each production are required in order to constitute a critical mass for the awards process. The balloting timeline will be provided prior to the end of the season. All nominees that receive a minimum of two nominations will constitute the preliminary ballot. Nominators, upon receiving the preliminary ballot, will select their top five choices and shall rank their selections in numerical order, as instructed in the online ballot. Nominators must complete both their preliminary and final ballots, ranking as many nominees as their eligibility allows. Late and/or incomplete ballots will not be accepted. After the ballots are submitted, each ranking is converted to a weighted score, and that total score is averaged by the number of Nominators eligible to vote for that production. Once the finalists have been determined, a final ballot shall be distributed to the Nominators. Nominators will select their top three (3) choices and shall rank their choices in numerical order. Once the final ballot is completed, each Nominator will submit it electronically to an independent auditor for final tally. These final ballots must be submitted in accordance with the balloting timeline. |
