First NAC Gala since 2019 will celebrate women leading in the arts 

JULY 13, 2022, OTTAWA – Jann Arden, the multi-platinum, award-winning singer, songwriter, actor and author, will headline the NAC Gala on Saturday November 5, 2022, performing with the NAC Orchestra in Southam Hall as part of a spectacular evening in celebration of women who are leading in the arts. After the concert, attendees will be invited to party the night away in style at the social event of the fall season.  

CELEBRATING WOMEN LEADING IN THE ARTS 
 
“This year’s NAC Gala theme of celebrating women leaders in the arts is close to my heart,” said Jayne Watson, CEO of the NAC Foundation, which organizes the signature fundraising event. “There are so many extraordinary women in the performing arts who are making things happen right across Canada. They are artists, designers, writers, producers, technicians, administrators, volunteers, fundraisers — the list is endless. They do brilliant work for the arts sector, they deserve recognition, and we are absolutely delighted to be celebrating them at the NAC Gala.”  

One of those extraordinary women leaders is Adrian Burns, Chair of the NAC Board of Trustees, who in December 2022 will step down after more than two decades of volunteer leadership. Proceeds raised from the Gala will be directed to the new Adrian Burns Fund for Women Leaders in the Performing Arts, which will help create opportunities across the country for professional skills development in the performing arts for women. 

In addition, the NAC is delighted that Sophie Grégoire Trudeau will serve as Honorary Chair of the 2022 NAC Gala.  

  
ABOUT JANN ARDEN 

An acclaimed singer, songwriter, actress, broadcaster, podcast host, and author, Jann Arden has taken the world by storm for almost three decades. Born and raised in Alberta, Arden catapulted onto the Canadian music scene in 1993 with her debut album, “Time For Mercy,” featuring the hit single, “I Would Die For You”. A year later, with the follow-up album “Living Under June,” she would have her career breakout hit “Insensitive,” which solidified her position in the music scene across Canada and beyond. To date, Arden has released 17 albums and achieved 19 top 10 singles. Her music is available to stream HERE. 

With accolades that include 19 top 10 singles, eight JUNO Awards and 10 SOCAN Awards, Arden is a beloved Canadian musical artist and personality. In 2020, she was announced as an inductee into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, joining the ranks of Canadian music icons including Alanis Morisette, Bryan Adams, Barenaked Ladies, Bachman Turner Overdrive, Joni Mitchell, k.d. lang, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, RUSH, The Guess Who, The Tragically Hip, Sarah McLachlan, Shania Twain and many more. 

A versatile artist, Arden co-created and stars as a fictionalized version of herself in the CTV Original Comedy Series JANN, available on CTV in Canada. The first two seasons are available via HULU in the U.S. Premiering in 2019, and the series was the most-watched new Canadian comedy series of the 2018-19 broadcast season. Season three wraps up with the last episode on November 15. The show features Sarah McLachlan, k.d. lang, Elisha Cuthbert, Keshia Chanté and more. Arden has been involved in Workin’ Moms, Wynonna Earp, Private Eyes and The Detour, she has previously appeared in sitcoms Ellen and Corner Gas. Arden has made guest appearances on CBC’s Rick Mercer Report, as well as regularly appearing as a guest host on The Social. Arden also hosts an iHeartRadio original podcast called The Jann Arden Podcast, discussing everyday life challenges, triumphs, and tribulations. The Jann Arden Podcast is a fun-filled, relatable experience exploring what makes all humans authentically themselves with various special guests, including musicians, actors, politicians, writers and athletes. Listen HERE. 

In addition to being a singer/songwriter, Arden is, of course, an author of note, peppering her words of wisdom with her signature humour. Arden has written five books, the most recent being her new memoir “IF I KNEW THEN: Finding Wisdom in Failure and Power in Aging,” released in October 2020 via Random House Canada. IF I KNEW THEN follows Arden’s 2017 Canadian bestseller, “FEEDING MY MOTHER: Comfort and Laughter in the Kitchen as My Mom Lives with Memory Loss,” which spent a combined 44 weeks on The Globe and Mail bestseller lists. 

Follow Jann Arden: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook.

SHOWTIMES AND TICKETS 

The NAC Gala will take place in the National Arts Centre’s Southam Hall on Saturday, November 5,  2022. The evening will begin at 5:30 p.m. with a concert start time of 6.30 p.m.  

Tickets go on sale on August 26 at 10 a.m. and will be available through the NAC website, and in person at the NAC Box Office. 

 
SUPPORTERS  

The NAC Gala is made possible thanks to the generous support of our donors and sponsors. We are grateful to Sophie Grégoire Trudeau for serving as Honorary Chair. We thank the 2022 Tribute Committee, including Adrian Burns, LL.D. & Gregory Kane, Q.C., Christopher Deacon & Gwen Goodier, Susan Glass, C.M. & Arni Thorsteinson, O.M., Dr. Dianne Kipnes, C.M. & Mr. Irving Kipnes, C.M., M. Ann McCaig, C.M., A.O.E., LL.D., Nancy McCain & the Honourable Bill Morneau, Janice O’Born, C.M., O.Ont & Earle O’Born, Dasha Shenkman, OBE, Hon RCM, Alexander Shelley & Zoe Shelley, and the Bonnie & Daryl Howard Charitable Foundation.  Thank you also to our corporate sponsors, including Arel Capital, Emond Harnden LLP, RBC, Powercorp, and BMO Financial Group. Their investment, as well as individual and corporate donors from across the country, help the NAC nurture and develop the creativity of women in all regions across Canada. 

 
ABOUT THE NATIONAL ARTS CENTRE FOUNDATION 
 
The National Arts Centre Foundation raises funds to support the National Arts Centre’s work in performance, creation and learning across Canada. Since its founding in 2000, the National Arts Centre Foundation has raised more than $160 million to enrich the lives of Canadians through the performing arts and champion our country’s artists, students and educators. 

  
ABOUT THE NATIONAL ARTS CENTRE 

The National Arts Centre (NAC) is Canada’s bilingual, multi-disciplinary home for the performing arts. The NAC presents, creates, produces, and co-produces performing arts programming in various streams—the NAC Orchestra, Dance, English Theatre, French Theatre, Indigenous Theatre, and Popular Music and Variety—and nurtures the next generation of audiences and artists from across Canada. The NAC is located in the National Capital Region on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe Nation.  

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FORE MORE INFORMATION:  

Mary Gordon 
Senior Advisor, Corporate Communications 
National Arts Centre 
mary.gordon@nac-cna.ca 
(613) 601-3877