Timeline is subject to change!

* February 15, 2024 — Artist Call Opens


* April 16, 2024 — Artist Call Closes**

* May 1, 2024— Artists notified of their status, or asked for additional information.

* Mid-May 2024 - first draft of the (complex) Cannonball schedule shared with artists.

* June 1, 2024 - Offers finalized


* June 15, 2024 - Signed contracts and deposits due.


* June-July, 2024 - artist photoshoots, workshops, and social events. 


* August 2024 - Cannonball preview nights and networking/promo opportunities.


* September 1 - 29 - Cannonball Festival 2024!


* November 1, 2024 - Artist surveys are due and all payouts will be completed. 


** All applications for BIPOC NWT, Al-Bustan, CSAW and PYAC must be submitted by this date. Late applications will not be accepted.

We are more than happy to answer technical questions about completing the application. You can email us at admin@thealmanac.us. For specific questions about your show and where it might best fit into Cannonball’s programming, we ask that you submit your application first, and then schedule a meeting to talk about your show with a Cannonball Producer. This makes it easier for us to talk specifics!

Yes! You are welcome to apply to all tracks for which your work is eligible. If you apply and are accepted to multiple tracks that come with financial stipends, you will be asked to chose which opportunity you would like to take advantage of.

The Co-Presentation and Special Presentation Tracks (BIPOC New Work, CSAW Award, Al-Bustan Award, and Performance for Young Audiences Cohort) are all competitive opportunities. While Co-Presentation track decisions are made collectively by festival producers, the Special Presentation Track opportunities are adjudicated by panels of peer artists, award producing partners, and previous recipients. Panels are administrated by Cannonball Producers and Program Managers.

If you apply for a Special Presentation Track and you aren’t selected, you may still be offered a Co-Presentation or Buy-In Production Track.

In 2023, Snack Track supported new experiments in interactive, small-audience experiences at Cannonball. Through this special production track we were able to bring performances to Cannonball that expanded the boundaries of what, how, and where a Cannonball show could happen. In order to expand this opportunity we've created the Nooks and Crannies “venue” to cater to the needs of performance artists who are creating outside the boundaries of a more traditional or typical performance space.

Our goal is to make more room for immersive performances, intimate artistic encounters, and durational works that artist might otherwise not submit. We believe that artistic innovation is essential to what makes Cannonball what it is, and the creation of the Flex Venue is our way of engraining that value into the structure the festival.

In 2023, we offering the Split Bill track, where artists with a work that was shorter than 35 minutes were paired with another artist under one ticket. Split Bill are a great way to offer more opportunities to more artists. In 2024, instead of pairing artists together ourselves, we encourage you to grab your friends and build your own mixed bill evening of shorter works! You know your work best, and you know who your people are, so reach out to each other and submit one application for the whole bill. The more the merrier at Cannonball! Don’t know how to reach out to? Ask us! We can help to provide ideas.

All Cannonball shows are also registered as part of the Philly Fringe Festival, and we serve as a “Hub” of the Philly Fringe. FringeArts, as the parent organization of the Philly Fringe, works closely with Cannonball and directly with artists. We all collaborate to create the best possible festival!

Yes! All artists must apply to the Philly Fringe in addition to Cannonball. Registration will open on March 1, 2024. If you are accepted into Cannonball, we will reimburse your $20 Fringe registration fee during ticket reconciliation after the close of the festival.

Yes! More than just producing your work, we are a part of and invested in continuing to build a community that can support itself. We think deeply about what independent artists need to successfully produce their shows. Pre-festival social events build camaraderie and connection between festival artists — and we try to supply as much donated food and drink as we can get our hands on!

All Cannonball artists are invited to participate in several photoshoots over the summer leading up to the Festival. However, the Fringe deadline for show images is June 15 and our photoshoots will likely occur after that, so your Cannonball photos are best for supplemental content like posters, postcards, and ads. In the coming months, you can sign up for a time slot, bring props and costumes, and collaborate with other artists to help us showcase the energy of the festival as a whole.

Miniball is our name for shorter versions of Cannonball that happen outside of the Philly Fringe. We’ve hosted Miniball during the months of of March, April and December over the last 2 years. We are excited about developing new works between festivals, and pooling resources for iterative making! We often invite past or future Cannonball artists to participate in Miniball and other pop-up off-festival programming.

Cannonball was founded by members of Almanac Dance Circus Theatre in 2021 (you can visit us at www.thealmanac.us). Since then, we’ve grown into a fully independent community-curated and artist-produced festival. As we turn 4 this year, we are proud to announce we are leaving the nest and stepping out from underneath Almanac, to operate as our own non-profit organization. We are truly artist-led! Lots of Cannonball artists work on the festival as producers, stage managers, box office managers, food vendors, and more!

Our festival has a light pirate theme. You may hear us say “ahoy” or “arg” every now and then. This is just to add some fun, and to speak to independent artists’ shared identity as renegades operating in a world of larger, more established institutions. Your show does not need to have anything to do with pirates to be a part of Cannonball.