Areas of Expertise

Event and Project Management

• 20+ years of successful festival and live event production, planning, and presentation
• 20+ years of solid fiscal management and revenue generation
• 20+ years of visionary music booking and promotion
• Speaker, Presenter, and Emcee at conferences and festivals
• Appointed to Advisory Committees such as the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Sport’s Live Music Working Group, the Toronto Live Music Initiative Committee, and the Arts, Culture, and Heritage Advisory Committee to the City of Peterborough
• Skilled at re-shaping events, organizations, and venues to maximize impact

Communication

• Clear, concise writer and accurate editor
• Personable, socially outgoing, and humorous speaker, presenter, or host
• Skilled critic, able to temper opinions
• Experienced in media relations, interviews, public speaking, and hosting
• Experienced in website and social media management, strong WordPress experience

Interviews

• Oakville Sun – Y U NO Women, JUNOS? (Interview embedded) – April 1, 2017
• Eric Roberts is the Fucking Man Podcast – Episode 4 – The King’s Guard (2000) and Witchblade S02E10 – March 7, 2017

Quoted in Media

• The Globe & Mail – Advocacy group keeps score of gender balance at Canadian music festivals – January 9, 2018
• Yahoo! Canada News – Canadian music festival criticized for lack of support for women, diverse artists – April 21, 2017
• Oakville Sun – Y U NO Women, JUNOS? (Interview embedded) – April 1, 2017
• NOW Magazine – Toronto music venue closures spark community concern – March 14, 2017
• The Globe and Mail – Older women embrace aging, fight against idea of ‘eternal youth’ – February 15, 2017
• CBC News –  New initiative aims to fight sexual harassment at Toronto bars — through drink coasters – January 9, 2017
• Toronto Star –  Millennials using Botox to stay young looking, plastic surgeons say – November 22, 2016
• The National Post – Lauren Pelley: The feminist cause was betrayed by white American women on Tuesday – November 10, 2016
• The Globe and Mail – Music festivals have a serious problem: They don’t book enough female acts – June 26, 2016
• Toronto Star – Beyoncé’s Lemonade drama — and why we always shame the ‘other woman’  – May 3, 2016

Published in Media

• Newcomer Bulletin – Canoe journey through waterways and lifeways – Winter 2012, P. 28
• Electric City Magazine – NXNE presents a sausagefest – June 13, 2016
• FYIMusicNews – International Women’s Day post – Candace Shaw’s Tips for Improvement – March 10, 2017

Work Experience

Secret Frequency         2014 – Present      secretfrequency.ca       Founder  & Executive Director

• Founder of an incorporated not-for-profit which aims to make the Canadian music industry as cool as it pretends to be
• Created and maintains the Canadian Festival Report Card, and the Secret Frequency Artist Database, the former grading festivals on gender parity on stages, which has resulted in an incredible increase in women booked at Canadian festivals
• Established a workshop series helping to give women and non-binary people in music essential skills to succeed in the industry
• Travelling to festivals, conferences, and events as an emcee, writer, and cultural commentator

New Democratic Party of Canada         2019       ndp.ca         Candidate

• Candidate in the 2019 Federal election
• Public speaking, debating, working with the press
• Working with voters and hearing their concerns, door and phone canvassing, fund raising
• Garnered 12,000 votes in the riding of Peterborough-Kawartha

The Distillery Historic District      2014 – 2019    thedistillerydistrict.com     Outdoor Events Supervisor

• Coordinating all outdoor events in the historic district, including managing staff, stakeholder relationships, permits, administration and budgets, and resource management, with an eye to engaging Torontonians and emphasizing the Distillery District as a destination for locals as well as travellers
• Increased the number of event days from 36 to 172 over a five-year period, professionalized event production
• Increased revenues by 138% over a five-year period
• Creating and Curating the Music City Summer Series, 40+ artists in a weekly live music series
• Creating and Curating the Distillery Sunday Market – listed in 2018 in NOW Magazine’s ‘Top Weekly Markets in Toronto‘
• Managing and facilitating TV, Film, and photo shoots
• Establishing and Strengthening community relations, including communications, responding to neighbourhood concerns about event impacts, and minimizing event impacts on residents
• Marketing and Public Relations, including overseeing website and social media staff, overseeing the website redesigns,  the creation of the Distillery Pocket Guide, and creating and overseeing the implementation of social media marketing plans
• Facilitating the Toronto Christmas Market, SING! Vocal Arts Festival, TO 2015 Pan Am Torch Relay, CIBC PANAMANIA Live!  TD Toronto Jazz Festival, Music City Summer Series, NHL World Cup of Hockey, Toronto Light Festival, Tirgan, and many more

 

Toronto Christmas Market       2013      torontochristmasmarket.com       Event and Site Manager

• Working with the team, both with the Distillery District and JK Live Events, to coordinate and manage the Toronto Christmas Market, a 21-day event modelled after European Christmas markets, featuring live music, vendors, activities, and visits with Santa.
• Site management – responding to the needs of an event with 500,000 attendees annually

 

Harbourfront Centre          2013          harbourfrontcentre.com       Artistic Associate

• Working with the team in the Community and Educational Programming Department to deliver Harbourfront Centre’s festivals and events, including:
• Tirgan Festival – Lead Programmer working with a large team of volunteers and Harbourfront Centre staff to produce the largest Iranian festival in the world, with an estimated attendance of 130,000 over three days and 80+ performers
• TELUS TAIWANfest – Lead Programmer working with a team of staff and volunteers from the Asian-Canadian Special Events Association and Harbourfront Centre staff  to produce the annual festival with an estimated attendance of 70,000
• The Redpath Waterfront Festival and Grand Opening of Ontario Square – Lead Programmer working with Harbourfront Centre staff to produce a two-day festival with an estimated attendance of 60,000
• The 8th Annual CaribbeanTales Toronto Film Showcase – Working with a team of staff and volunteers and Harbourfront Centre staff to produce a ten-day festival of films from across the Caribbean diaspora.
• Assisting on other events including Lunarfest, Beat Nation, and Tango y Vino
• Creating plans for the 2014-2015 season of festivals and events

Artsweek Peterborough           2012 – 2013     artsweekptbo.com  General Manager

• Management of budgets, curation, events, and operations for a week-long cultural celebration sponsored by the City of Peterborough
• Restructured the organization to better meet goals and ensure that programming choices were diverse and representative of the community
• Increased funds available to artists for production

Peterborough Folk Festival     2006-2013      www.ptbofolkfest.ca     Executive Director

• Coordinating and running a volunteer-run three-day folk festival which draws over 8,000 attendees annually
• Responsible for day-to-day operations and funding as well as artistic vision and long-term growth
• Increased funding by 40% in two years
• Re-branded the festival, restructured organization
• Also Artistic Director, 2006-2013

The Canadian Canoe Museum 2010 – 2012  canoemuseum.ca   Coordinator – Volunteers, Events, and Social Media

• Recruiting, training, scheduling and managing a volunteer corps of 100+
• Managing and maintaining the museum’s blog and Social Media
• Coordinating and scheduling bookings of museum facilities for special events
• Planning and coordinating special events on behalf of the museum, such as VIP receptions, exhibit openings, and memorials
• Administration, grant-writing, managing budgets

National Canoe Day     2010 – 2012     nationalcanoeday.net       Coordinator, National Canoe Day

• Creating event plans, guides, and documents supporting the growth of National Canoe Day in Canada
• Coordinating efforts in conjunction with volunteers and Mountain Equipment Coop Staff to ensure a strong CCM/NCD presence at MEC Paddlefest events in Toronto, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec City, Winnipeg, Calgary, and Vancouver
• Coordinating and running the local National Canoe Day event annually around June 26
• Redesigning the website in anticipation of National Canoe Day’s fifth anniversary in 2012

Candace Shaw Digital Video      1999 – 2010      Owner/Operator

• Ongoing work on digital video; shooting and editing projects such as training videos, live concerts, mini documentaries, promotional videos, etc.
• Owner/Operator; bookkeeping, time management, customer service, billing, promotion
• Voice over, hosting, writing, subtitling
• Visit my Video page for a detailed list of projects and samples of my work

Arbor Theatre Company      2008       www.arbortheatre.com      Marketing Consultant

• Marketing the 2008 season to elementary schools across Ontario

Peterborough Arts Umbrella      2005-2007       www.pauart.com     Office Manager

• Administration of the office, publication editor, accounts receivable
• Maintaining a professional face for for a multi-disciplinary community arts centre playing a key role in the region
• Training artists and consulting on projects, gallery management, sales and customer service, scheduling, communications

The Montreal House      2004-2005      www.themoho.ca       Booker/Promoter

• Creation of the five-nights-weekly MoHo Music Revue, showcasing the best in new independent music, revitalizing the music community in Peterborough and re-branding the Montreal House as a youth bar
• Increased bar revenues by 30%
• Promotions, artistic vision, public relations, website design

Trent University Audio-Visual Department       2002-2004        www.trentu.ca      Technician/Editor

• Production of multi-media presentations
• Training and facilitating media technology for students and teachers, including lighting for theatrical productions and set-up for conferences, presentations
• Digital Video shooting and editing for training videos

Youth Emergency Shelter      2002      www.yesshelter.ca  Live-in Mentor

• Working with residents to ensure safety and smooth operations
• Trained in Crisis Intervention, Peer Support, Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) Certified

Lang Pioneer Village      2000-2002      www.langpioneervillage.ca       Historical Interpreter

• Speaking to large school groups and small private groups, explaining the history of the buildings, conservation, and giving context
• Demonstrating day-to-day activities of regular people in the 19th century
• Knowledge of 19th century crafts such as hearth baking and cooking, embroidery, butter-churning, spinning, candle-making
• Retail sales and customer service

B3 Productions       1999-2002      Production Manager, Writer, Actor, Co-Director, Host

• Writing, editing, and re-writing a feature script
• Resource management and scheduling
• Managing a team of 10-20 actors and crew
• Miscellaneous tasks taken on as an integral part of a three-member team working on a micro-budget feature film
• Host and creator of web series ‘B3 World’

Humber College      1996-1997      www.humber.ca      English Tutor

• Proof-reading, editing, correcting, teaching
• Teaching students of all ages, and from all walks of life
• Teaching English as a Second Language students

Bryston Limited       1995-1996      www.bryston.com      Electronics Assembler

• Assembly of circuit boards
• Soldering
• Occasional office work, answering phones, data entry

4th Line Theatre       1994        www.4thlinetheatre.on.ca       Actor

• Cast as Kathleen Collins in the 1994 re-mount of the wildly successful Cavan Blazers
• Working with fire, animals, babies and children in outdoor theatre

You can also find my theatre/film experience here.