SummerWorks International Development Strategy

Starting in 2023, the SummerWorks International Development Strategy continues to foster long-term and sustainable engagement with diverse international artists and companies from specific countries or geographic regions.

Each year, Artistic Director Michael Caldwell travels to various international festivals, markets, and conferences to seed partnerships, grow relationships, and manifest opportunities for creative exchange.

Conversations are ongoing with artists, and often lead to engagements across multiple Festivals, with lengthier stays in Toronto, and in Canada. This provides an opportunity for meaningful connections with local artists and creative collaborators.

Since 2023, SummerWorks has hosted focused programs with artists from Taiwan and South Korea, with new energy and connections with New Zealand, Australia, and Denmark for upcoming Festivals.

The SummerWorks International Development Strategy firmly plants relationship-building and ongoing collaboration at the centre, while offering audiences an opportunity to follow an artist’s creative journey over a multi-year cycle. This strategy specifically supports independent artists and small companies/collectives in live performance, and provides SummerWorks with more time and additional opportunities to actively seek funding from a variety of local, national, and international partners and sponsors.

Scroll down to learn more about the international artists within the 2025 SummerWorks Performance Festival!