Ex Machina

What Ex Machina does

Ex Machina is a private, artist-run multidisciplinary theatre and production company founded in 1994 and led by artistic director Robert Lepage, headquartered at Le Diamant (a 600+ seat venue at place D'Youville in Quebec City, Canada). The company creates, produces, and distributes original scenic works spanning theatre, opera, dance, circus, exhibition, music, and multimedia. Its underlying technology integrates proprietary scenic systems — bunraku puppetry, black art illusion, automated scenery, video and projection mapping, interactive lighting, and architectural projection — with traditional performing arts disciplines. The production portfolio exceeds 30 works and includes landmark co-productions with the Metropolitan Opera (Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, 2010-2019), La Scala (Thomas Adès's The Tempest, 2022), Wiener Staatsoper, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Barbican, Stratford Festival, National Ballet of Canada, FLIP Fabrique, and Bibliothèque nationale de France.

The business model is hybrid. Earned revenue streams include ticket sales at Le Diamant, co-production fees from international presenting venues and festivals, touring performance fees, and ancillary publication sales. The capital structure is supplemented by recurring public funding from four government bodies — CALQ (Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec), Canada Council for the Arts, Ville de Québec, and Canadian Heritage (Patrimoine canadien) — covering creation, production, and dissemination activities. International distribution operates directly and via Menno Plukker Theatre Agent inc., which books the company for the Americas, Asia (except Japan), and Oceania. Headcount is approximately 20 permanent employees with a large variable workforce of freelance artists, artisans, designers, authors, performers, and technicians. Productions are seen annually by hundreds of thousands of spectators across Quebec, Canada, the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Oceania.

Customer concentration centres on premier cultural institutions (opera houses, festivals, museums, ballet companies). The model carries founder-artistic dependency on Robert Lepage, public-funding reliance, and episodic cash flows tied to production and touring cycles rather than recurring contract revenue.

Name

Ex Machina

Legal name

Ex Machina

Website

https://exmachina.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ex Machina is a Quebec City-based, artist-run multidisciplinary theatre company founded in 1994 that creates, produces, and tours original productions integrating theatre, opera, dance, circus, and multimedia for international cultural institutions and performing arts audiences.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Performing Arts Production

NAICS

Other Performing Arts Companies (711190), Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (711510)

akta.pro primary industry

Scenic Fabrication & Set/Stage Carpentry (MPAGAKAG)

Keywords

• Theatre production
• Performing arts creation
• Multidisciplinary theatre
• Opera staging
• Scenography design

Headquarters

HQ city

Clarke City

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales and Venue Operations: Ex Machina generates revenue through ticket sales at Le Diamant (600+ seat venue), touring performances at partner theatres and festivals worldwide, and venue rental/presentations.
2. Co-productions and Touring Fees: The company enters into co-production agreements with international theatre companies, opera houses, dance companies, and festivals, receiving fees for presenting productions developed with Ex Machina.
3. Public Funding and Grants: Ex Machina receives ongoing support from public partners including CALQ (Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec), Canada Council for the Arts, Ville de Québec, and Canadian Heritage for creation, production, and dissemination activities.
4. Publication Sales: The company publishes and sells books and texts related to productions, including 887 text, 887 illustrated book, Le Rossignol et autres fables publication, La Trilogie des Dragons publication, Le Dragon Bleu publication, and La Face cachée de la Lune publication.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Ex Machina is a multidisciplinary theatrical production company that conceives, creates, produces, and tours original performing arts works spanning theatre, opera, dance, circus, music, exhibitions, and multimedia. Productions are developed in-house and in co-production with international institutional partners, then presented at the company's own Le Diamant venue in Quebec City and on tour at festivals, opera houses, and cultural venues worldwide. The company also operates an R&D function for scenic technology and publishes scenographic documentation of its work.

Product overview

Ex Machina is a theatrical production company led by artistic director Robert Lepage that creates, produces, and disseminates multidisciplinary artistic works, most often theatrical. The company develops approximately 30 productions across seven categories: Théâtre (theater), Opéra (opera), Danse (dance), Cirque (circus), Exposition (exhibition), Musique (music), and Multimédia (multimedia). Their portfolio includes original plays, opera productions (such as Der Ring des Nibelungen at the Metropolitan Opera and La Tempête at La Scala), dance works (Hamlet, Prince du Danemark co-created with Guillaume Côté), circus productions (SLAM! with FLIP Fabrique), immersive exhibitions (La bibliothèque, la nuit), and multimedia installations (Le Moulin à Images). Productions often incorporate video, interactive projections, and other technological elements as artistic tools. The company is based in Quebec City at Le Diamant and primarily develops shows there before touring extensively throughout Quebec, Canada, the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Oceania.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Original multidisciplinary theatrical productions
• Le Diamant venue operations and programming
• Opera staging and direction services
• Scenography and exhibition installations
• International touring and co-production services
• Publications and scenographic documentation

Quantifiable outcome

• Productions seen by hundreds of thousands of spectators annually across global touring
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• FLIP FabriquecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLIP Fabrique is a circus company that co-created and co-produced SLAM! with Ex Machina. This is a flagship co-production combining circus arts, wrestling aesthetics, and theatre, featuring creative collaboration on direction, choreography, music, and staging. SLAM! has toured extensively internationally including venues in North America, Europe, and Asia.
• Musée de la civilisation de QuébeccoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint creation and presentation partner for Lutte. Le Québec dans l'arène exhibition. This co-production explores the history of wrestling in Quebec through an immersive exhibition featuring technology installations including praxinoscope, mutoscope, magic lantern, screens, and projections. The partnership leverages both institutions' expertise in cultural presentation and exhibition design.
• Menno Plukker Theatre Agent inc.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTheatrical agent representing Ex Machina for booking productions in the Americas, Asia (except Japan), and Oceania. Menno Plukker is a specialized theatre agent facilitating international touring and presenting relationships between the company and venues/festivals in these territories.
• Le DiamantcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLe Diamant is Ex Machina's home venue located at place D'Youville in Quebec City, housing the company's operations and providing a 600+ seat performance hall. The venue is a key component of the company's local creation and dissemination activities. The consortium Coarchitecture / in situ atelier d'architectes / Jacques Plante architectes was involved in integrating the heritage YMCA façade (1879) into the facility.
• Guillaume Côté / Côté DansecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChoreographer and dance company that co-created Hamlet, Prince du Danemark with Robert Lepage and Ex Machina. This co-production has toured extensively internationally, presenting at major venues and festivals worldwide. The collaboration combines Lepage's theatrical vision with Côté's choreography.
• National Ballet of CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCanada's national ballet company that co-produced Frame by Frame with Ex Machina. Robert Lepage directed this ballet celebrating Norman McLaren's work at the National Film Board, featuring theatrical staging, lighting effects, and interactive projections combined with classical ballet.
• CALQ (Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec)coreOthersProvincial arts council providing ongoing funding support to Ex Machina for creation, production, and dissemination activities. CALQ is one of Ex Machina's key public funding partners at the provincial level.
• Canada Council for the Arts / Conseil des arts du CanadacoreOthersFederal arts council providing ongoing funding support to Ex Machina. The Canada Council is a key public funding partner at the national level supporting the company's artistic activities.
• Ville de QuébeccoreOthersMunicipal government of Quebec City providing ongoing funding support through cultural development programs. Ville de Québec is a key public funding partner at the municipal level.
• Patrimoine canadien / Canadian HeritagecoreOthersFederal department providing cultural funding support to Ex Machina. Another key public funding partner at the national level.
• Théâtre du Nouveau Monde (Montréal)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor Montreal theatre company that has presented numerous Ex Machina productions including 887, Coriolan, Les Aiguilles et l'Opium, Le Dragon Bleu, and others. Long-standing presenting and co-production relationship.
• Stratford FestivalmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCanada's premier Shakespeare festival that has presented Ex Machina productions including Macbeth (2025) and Coriolan (2018). Robert Lepage directed a 'biker version' of Macbeth at the Stratford Festival.
• The Metropolitan Opera (New York)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor opera house that commissioned and presented Robert Lepage's production of Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen (2010-2019) and Thomas Adès' The Tempest (2012). These are flagship co-productions bringing Ex Machina's work to the world's leading opera stage.
• Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVienna State Opera that presented Robert Lepage's production of The Tempest (2015, 2024). Major international co-production partnership bringing Ex Machina's work to one of Europe's premier opera houses.
• Teatro alla Scala (Milan)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMilan's famed opera house La Scala that presented Robert Lepage's production of The Tempest (2022). The production was set in the mythical and timeless setting of La Scala, paying homage to classical opera.
• Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLeading New York performing arts centre that has presented numerous Ex Machina productions over the years including 887, Lipsynch, La Face cachée de la Lune, La Trilogie des Dragons, Le Dragon Bleu, Le Projet Andersen, Le Rossignol et autres fables, and Les Aiguilles et l'Opium. BAM is a key presenting partner for Ex Machina's presence in the US market.
• Barbican (London)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLondon's major arts centre that has presented multiple Ex Machina productions including 887 (2017), Lipsynch (2008), Les Aiguilles et l'Opium (2016), La Face cachée de la Lune (2003), La Trilogie des Dragons (2005), and others. Key presenting partner for the UK market.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Robert Lepage / Ex Machina productions (related entities): Sister entity Robert Lepage Inc. handles the artistic director's personal representation; while not a competing company, it is operationally intertwined with Ex Machina and relevant as a counterparty and brand asset.

Direct peers

• Complicité: UK-based innovative theatre company known for visually inventive, internationally touring productions with co-production economics and a director-driven creative identity comparable to Ex Machina's model.
• Kneehigh Theatre: Cornwall-based touring theatre company known for visually inventive, music-driven, internationally toured productions, comparable in repertoire scale and creator-driven identity.
• Théâtre du Soleil: Paris-based, artist-led multidisciplinary theatre company founded by Ariane Mnouchkine. Closest structural analog: single artistic director, large ensemble of collaborators, multilingual touring repertoire, similar scale and French-language roots.
• Cheek by Jowl: London-based director-driven theatre company producing internationally touring, multilingual productions with co-production partners across opera houses and festivals, mirroring Ex Machina's institutional relationships.
• Cirque du Soleil: Canadian-headquartered multidisciplinary live entertainment company with global touring, public-grant heritage, and Quebec roots; comparable in scale and ambition, though commercially larger and more spectacle-oriented.
• DV8 Physical Theatre: UK physical-theatre company creating internationally touring dance-theatre productions with technology integration, comparable in scale, touring reach, and cross-genre discipline mixing.
• The Wooster Group: New York experimental theatre ensemble using integrated multimedia, video, and innovative scenic technology. Comparable in artistic ambition (technology-driven staging) and ensemble-based touring model.

Broad incumbents

• Royal Shakespeare Company: UK institutional theatre company producing Shakespeare and new work at scale, with international co-productions; functions as a presenting partner and peer institution rather than direct competitor, but comparable in producing ambition.
• Stratford Festival: Canada's largest classical theatre festival and an active presenting/co-production partner of Ex Machina (Macbeth 2025, Coriolan 2018); comparable in producing scale and institutional stature, though broader in mandate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ExMachina_Ca
• Facebookfacebook.com/exmachina.ca
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ex-machina_3

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ex Machina