Rent the Fergus Grand Theatre

All ticketed events require a $150 deposit to confirm booking. All non-ticketed events must be paid in full when they are booked.

All ticketed events must use our TixHub ticketing system, and the use of other box office services is strictly prohibited. All tickets issued, including comps, are subject to a handling fee.

All non-ticketed events with public admission (free shows, public meetings, etc) are subject to a Non-ticketed Public Event fee in lieu of the per ticket handling fee.

Insurance: All events require proof of $2 million liability insurance, with the Township/Theatre listed as additional insureds. For clients who do not have their own insurance the theatre offers coverage through a third-party insurance provider for an additional fee.

Entandem Remittances: SOCAN and Re:Sound fees, administered through Entandem, may apply to your event. The theatre will deduct them from your final settlement and remit them on your behalf, unless you specifically indicate that you handle your own Entandem remittance obligations in the rental contract. The securing and payment of all other permissions, licenses, royalties, etc., is the sole responsibility of the renter.

HST: the theatre does not report or remit HST on our clients’ behalf. However, we are required to identify the HST amount, should it apply, on every order (see example below under Pricing your Event)

Minors: The FGT Child Supervisor Policy applies to events with participants under 16 years of age

Renter Cancellation: The Renter may cancel a booking upon providing to, and receipt by the Township of, written notice to the Theatre Coordinator at least 60 days prior to the event. If the event is cancelled after the 60-day period, the rental fee including applicable taxes less the non-refundable deposit will be invoiced to the Renter.

Technical: All technical work in the building must be completed by or under the supervision/training of, an approved FGT technician. The technician works independent of the theatre and negotiates with each individual renter directly. Please see our Technical Information Package for more details. The digital projector and screen, if used, are subject to an additional fee.

Marketing: The theatre has no mandate or budget to promote rental client events, but we do everything we can to help clients out – please see our Copy and Graphics Guide for what we need to help you best. In-house promotions include your poster on our digital signs, inclusion in our patron newsletter, and brochure space on our literature rack, as well as any other 1-off marketing opportunities that come up.

The best marketing help that we can offer clients comes from their fellow renters. The Art of Selling Out is our marketing best practices guide, built from the success of past events and updated regularly. The guide contains lots of general arts marketing information, as well as tips and tricks that are specific to promoting shows here in the local market in Centre Wellington. All clients are strongly encouraged to consult this free resource when creating a marketing plan for their event.

Contact us to enquire about available dates, and try our new Rental Quote Calculator to estimate the revenue and expenses for your event.

Understanding the structure of our ticket pricing is something that many clients and patrons find challenging. Here’s an example of how it works:

The tickets for this show have a selling price of $38.00. Because there are two of them, the patron is being charged $76.00.

The subtotal of $61.94 is arrived at by calculating the base price of the tickets before the handling fee is applied, and before the HST calculation is made. In this case, that amount is $30.97 per ticket.

Next the HST is applied. Remember that we don't remit HST on our clients' behalf, but we have to show the amount of HST there would be, whether or not it applies. In this case, the HST is $4.03 per ticket.

It's only at that point that the handling fee is applied, and the total comes up to $76.00, which is the price the patron is expecting to pay.

Hopefully this helps to explain the sometimes-convoluted math that you may see at the end of a patron order, or that your patrons may ask you about.

As a rental client, you should keep the following things in mind when setting your ticket price:

Keep it simple. Most shows only need one ticket price.
Price to value. More clients price shows too low than too high.
Use discounts sparingly. TixHub can create promo codes to offer discounts, but they should be used strategically, as part of a clear objective in your marketing plan. Offering a discount on its own won’t typically entice a patron to buy a ticket.

Looking for some inspiration, or just some ideas about how your show could look in our theatre? Here are some examples of how past shows have used the stage for plays, concerts, and other events over the years. Many clients also like to see the space before they visit for the first time, and we’re always happy to give someone a tour. But if you don’t live close enough to the theatre to drop in for a visit you can see the space virtually – the Google 360 tour found at the bottom of this page lets you see the box office, auditorium and stage areas in perfect detail.

Theatre – good set designs pay attention to audience sightlines, don’t place large objects in the downstage corners, and require little to no wing space (because there isn’t any!).

A set on stage — *Photo courtesy of Bill Longshaw*

Concerts – many bands prefer to locate the drummer on a riser upstage centre – just be sure they’re far enough downstage that the upstage curtain can close behind them. Vocal mics should be set about four feet back from the front of the stage to avoid feedback. It’s very easy for a percussionist to overpower the vocals. If you have a loud drummer, consider using our drum shield to help balance the sound.

Band on stage — *Photo courtesy of Bill Longshaw*

Dance – for dance shows consider placing the monitors on the alcoves in the stage left and stage right wings, in order to maximize sightlines. Side lighting options are limited, so if be sure to discuss any specific lighting effects that you may require in advance with your Approved FGT Technician.

Dancers on stage — *Photo courtesy Bill Longshaw*

Magic – no open flame, flash paper or pyrotechnics are allowed. Please have your Approved FGT Technician sign a confidentiality agreement if necessary to safely provide support for your show.

Of course, there are many other types of shows that we have on our stage, and new events with new configurations are coming in all the time. Don't hesitate to reach out if you have a specific question, or would like to drop in and see the space for yourself.