Soulpepper Theatre Raises $6,400 For Actor's Fund Of Canada

Soulpepper audiences got into the holiday spirit this month, donating $6,400 to the Actors' Fund of Canada following four performances of Parfumerie, a heart-warming story that has quickly become a hit of Toronto's holiday season. Former Actors' Fund Board member Joseph Ziegler, who plays a heartbroken shop owner, made curtain speeches explaining the valuable role that the Fund plays in Canada's entertainment industry.

"It was wonderful to have an opportunity to inspire our patrons, giving them the opportunity to support those who create the art that they love" said Albert Schultz, Soulpepper's Founding Artistic Director and himself a former Actors' Fund Board member. "Having served on the Fund's Board of Directors, I know how vital the work they do is, and how many careers have gone on to
flourish as a result of artists having received emergency financial aid from the Fund at a crucial point in their careers. From its inception, Soulpepper has been a company dedicated to the development and wellbeing of artists, so supporting the Actors' Fund is a very natural extension of our desire to strengthen the cultural landscape in Canada."

The Actors' Fund of Canada is the lifeline for Canada's entertainment industry. Performers and others who work behind the scenes in film and television, theatre, music and dance can apply for emergency financial aid from the Fund, which recently set a new record for the amount of financial aid delivered to industry members in a single year, topping $600,000 in 2008. The Fund has helped over 10,000 entertainment industry workers recover from illness, injury or other circumstances causing severe economic and personal hardship since it was founded in 1958.

The Actors' Fund of Canada is a registered charity that has paid out over $3.7 million in rent payments, grocery money, utility payments and other basic living expenses in the last 10 years. Performers, creators, technical staff and other production team members can benefit from the Fund, which receives no major government funding and is sustained by support from individuals and entertainment industry organizations.