Balancing Act Canada

Balancing Act Canada Advocacy and support for artist mothers, parents, and caregivers in Canada.

Established in 2019, Balancing Act exists to create increased accessibility for parents and caregivers working in the performing arts across Canada. In collaboration with partner organizations, our aim is to develop, pilot and evaluate innovative strategies, examine best employment practices, and advocate for artist parents and caregivers who wish to retain careers in the industry and achieve greater work/life balance.

🎉Balancing Act champions the work of The AFC and Unison , who provide emergency financial support and key services to C...
05/29/2026

🎉Balancing Act champions the work of The AFC and Unison , who provide emergency financial support and key services to Canadian artists and arts workers, in the performing arts & entertainment sectors, and music industry respectively. 🎉

Caregiving responsibilities can be unexpected and life-altering, especially for arts professionals in an economy driven by gig work and short-term contracts. Organizations like The AFC, Unison, and Balancing Act can help.
❤️

🔗Head to the links in our bio to learn more.

📣In case you missed it…A new report, “Sound of Support: Exploring the Music Community’s Caregiver Needs,” marks a turnin...
05/20/2026

📣In case you missed it…

A new report, “Sound of Support: Exploring the Music Community’s Caregiver Needs,” marks a turning point for Canada’s music industry. 🎶

Report released by and Music Publishers Canada. Balancing Act gets a nod in the latest press release alongside these music industry titans!

⭐️”Caregiving touches everyone in this industry and the conversations are finally moving from the sidelines to centre stage,” said Robyn Stewart, Executive Director of Women in Music Canada, and a caregiver for 14 years.”

⭐️”Momentum is already building. Balancing Act’s Level UP! Initiative – a national program supporting arts organizations as they pilot care-centred workplace policies – has expanded into the music sector through a partnership with Women in Music Canada.”

⭐️”This report is a call to action and encouraged by the willingness we see across the industry to adopt new practices, share what works, and build a music ecosystem in Canada where caregivers can thrive,” said Margaret McGuffin, CEO of Music Publishers Canada.
McGuffin – who has held multiple caregiving roles as a mother and a daughter – is optimistic. “The Canadian music industry has developed many smart, innovative caregiving strategies and I hope other industries will take notice and take action,” she added.”

🗞️🔗Press release and Report linked in our bio. A must-read for the music industry and arts sector at large.

📊Half of Canadians will become a caregiver in their lifetime. Every sector, including the arts, must consider robust sup...
05/15/2026

📊Half of Canadians will become a caregiver in their lifetime. Every sector, including the arts, must consider robust support for workers as they navigate caregiving responsibilities.

This week Balancing Act was honoured to meet with MP Chi Nguyen, a member of the National Caregiving Caucus (convened by ) AND a member of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women.

⭐️Arts leaders Sarah Cullen and Jacoba Knaapen from our Balancing Act network, along with Executive Director Susie Burpee, advocated in support of artists and arts workers with caregiving responsibilities.

We were thrilled to engage in a robust conversation with MP Nguyen.
📣 Do you want to get involved?

🔗🔗Visit the links in our bio for
💌Advocacy Tools
📪Letter Templates.

🧡Reach out to us if you want to learn more or would like to share your story.
[email protected]

🎉Today we are celebrating the inspiring work of mother artists on exhibition at our recent Art of Care event on March 27...
05/11/2026

🎉Today we are celebrating the inspiring work of mother artists on exhibition at our recent Art of Care event on March 27th in Toronto.

Toronto-based artist Jennifer Long created the Intertwine Series (2015) during her early years of mothering, “in response to the physicality of caregiving. The resulting pieces reflect on everyday moments of play, care, and exasperation.” -
(SLIDE 1 & 2)

💕Balancing Act proudly supported Jennifer’s Level UP! Sector Expansion project in 2024-25, which included a beautiful intergenerational exhibit at Gallery@501 in Sherwood Park, AB, with Shea Proulx (SLIDE 1)

🔗Check out the link in our bio for:
⭐️Jennifer Long’s website
⭐️The Art of Care event page



🎉Today we are celebrating the work of important mother artists, recently on exhibit at The Art of Care event March 27th ...
05/10/2026

🎉Today we are celebrating the work of important mother artists, recently on exhibit at The Art of Care event March 27th in Toronto.

The Mother Artist Campaign by is a slogan campaign that takes the form of commercially printed signs, a publication, and public, private and online interventions. The Mother Artist Campaign calls for a new mindset at the intersection of motherhood and art.

❤️Balancing Act proudly supported the Ottawa-based 44.4 Mother/Artists Collective as a Level UP! partner in 2025! Special thanks to consultant Jagroop Mehta.

🔗Check out the link in our bio for:

⭐️The Mother Artist Campaign/44.4
⭐️The Art of Care event page



2 - We Created You, We Can Create Art /
No Mothers, No Art World (2025)
The Mother Artists Campaign
44.4 Mother/Artist Collective
Double sided Chloroplast signs, editions of 24
18 x 24 inches
We graciously acknowledge the support of Balancing Act for this campaign.
Nous vous avons créés; nous pouvons créer de l‘art /
Sans mères, le monde des arts n’existe pas (2025)

3 - Everybody Knows I’m a Mother / Nobody Knows I’m an Artist (2021) The Mother Artists Campaign
44.4 Mother/Artist Collective
Double sided Chloroplast signs, editions of 24 18 x 24 inches
Je suis mere, c’est bien connu / Je suis artiste, le savais-tu? (2021)

4 - Motherhood is Political / Mother Art is Political (2020)
The Mother Artists Campaign
44.4 Mother/Artist Collective
Double sided Chloroplast signs, editions of 24
18 x 24 inches
La maternité : Un art politique /
Notre art : La maternité politique (2020)

May is National Caregiver Month in Canada!Are you interested in the most recent data highlighting the state of care in C...
05/05/2026

May is National Caregiver Month in Canada!

Are you interested in the most recent data highlighting the state of care in Canada? Want to learn more about why it’s critical for our federal government to act on care?

Join the Webinar: Caring in Canada 2026, hosted by , revealing findings from their data-focused report, Caring in Canada 2026.

🗓️Wednesday, May 6
Online from 1 to 2:30 p.m. ET

🔗Info and registration at the link in our bio!

It was an honour to have M.P. Karina Gould join us at The Art of Care: Media Conference on March 27, 2026. A mother, com...
04/27/2026

It was an honour to have M.P. Karina Gould join us at The Art of Care: Media Conference on March 27, 2026. A mother, community advocate, and trailblazing leader, she spoke directly to the Radical Act Mothers—artist mothers and their babies—on the vital role caregivers play in shaping Canada’s future.

In a powerful moment, she reminded us:

“It's about making sure that we have qualified, talented people in the workforce who can contribute…we want you to be contributing. We want your ideas. We want your talent. We want your skills. That's what makes Canada a successful country.”

Care work is essential work—and it deserves real support.

Take action for childcare. Contact your representatives, share your story, and support a system that works for all families. Learn more with Child Care Now [childcarenow.ca] and Childcare Resource and Research Unit [childcarecanada.org]

Art of Care Spotlight: SOPHIE GEESophie Gee is a director and theatre maker working across English and French, with a pr...
04/16/2026

Art of Care Spotlight: SOPHIE GEE

Sophie Gee is a director and theatre maker working across English and French, with a practice rooted in bold, interdisciplinary storytelling. A graduate of the National Theatre School and recipient of the 2024 John Hirsch Prize, Sophie is also a mother and caregiver.

As a Balancing Act Level UP! partner, Sophie created the Seven of Wands zine to bring visibility to her artist-caregiver journey. Featured at The Art of Care (March 27), the zine reflects on care as a structural issue.

Sophie's latest work, Bonnes Bonnes (co-created with Tamara Nguyen), is a bold and intimate new production presented by Factory Theatre and Théâtre français de Toronto. Blending documentary theatre, live cooking, and multimedia, the piece follows three Chinese women as they unpack identity, internalized racism, and their complex relationship to whiteness—building toward a sharp, cathartic confrontation that is as personal as it is political.

Now on at Factory Theatre

April 15–19 (English)

Avril 22–26 (français)

In the News 📰The Art of Care is making headlines!Great coverage from Exclaim! for our recent March 27th event. Thank you...
04/13/2026

In the News 📰

The Art of Care is making headlines!

Great coverage from Exclaim! for our recent March 27th event. Thank you again to music artists Jill Barber and Witch Prophet who made this day really special.

Shout out to WIMC and Music Publishers Canada for the launch of their Sound of Support Survey mentioned in the article (link in our bio)

Without real support systems, artist caregivers are being pushed out of the sector.

At Balancing Act, we’re working to change that. Because care work shapes who gets to create—and who gets to stay in the industry/

Read more via link in bio.

Photo: Artist Victoria Mata and her little one at The Art of Care

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M6N2V7

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