Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) is an arts service organization representing professional theatre, dance and opera companies in the City of Toronto. Amongst their 175 members are the Canadian Opera Company, Luminato, Factory Theatre, Mirvish Productions, and Theatre Passe Muraille. As a lobby and advocacy group, it has been credited with playing a major role in raising Toronto's theatrical profile. TAPA also presents the annual Dora Mavor Moore Awards, operates T.O. TIX (Toronto's central ticketing outlet), and publishes Go Live Toronto, an online guide to theatre, dance and opera performances in the city. In 2008, the organization published a detailed survey of Toronto's performing arts groups, the first of its kind to be conducted there.
History
TAPA began in 1974 with members of Toronto's theatre community who met informally to plan joint political activities and group initiatives. The group was formalized in 1977 as the Toronto Theatre Alliance and was incorporated in 1979. In 1979 the organization presented the first annual Dora Mavor Moore Awards.