In an effort to capitalize on the co-viewing potential of Fresh TV’s Backstage, DHX Television is taking a slightly different tack in marketing the show by actively targeting parents ahead of its March 18 bow on Family Channel.

“We are approaching Backstage as more of a family show than a kids show,” Paul Cormack, VP of marketing with DHX Television, told Playback Daily.

While the primary target of the marketing campaign are core Family Channel viewers in the 8-to-14-year-old demo, off-channel marketing dollars are also being spent on attracting the attention of parents, Cormack said. The production value on the show is quite high, Cormack said, and has a certain cinematic feel to it, which might appeal to a more adult demographic.

“There is a lot of kids programming out there that parents just kind of grin and bear because they know it is entertaining their kids,” Cormack said. “But this is a show we really feel confident about as an event for the family to sit down and watch together, so we want to make sure the parents are getting exposed to it as well.”

Much of the marketing targeting parents so far has been in the form of sponsored social media posts on Facebook and Twitter. DHX Television also has a TV spot running in U.S. ad availability positions on various Canadian networks during adult-skewing programming, Cormack said. Two cast members from the show, Josh Bogert and Aviva Mongillo, along with The Next Step‘s Victoria Baldesarra, have also done morning show appearances in a number of cities across Canada, including Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.

Cormack also noted the sheer talent of the cast featured on Backstage is another factor in its co-viewing potential, which has also influenced other aspects of the show’s pre-launch marketing campaign. McKenzie Small, who plays Scarlett on the show, did a live performance at Ontario’s Blue Mountain this week alongside an on-mountain activation DHX did for the March Break weekend in Ontario, with Bogert, who plays Miles, set to perform at Big White in Kelowna during B.C.’s March Break on March 25. While DHX Television has typically waited until a show launches to do live appearances, the strength of the cast prompted the channel to test out performances before Backstage bows on TV.

“It goes back to casting these kids who are talented – we can put Josh and Mackenzie on a stage and they will wow people. They are that talented,” Cormack said.

The premiere of Backstage will lead into The Next Step, Family Channel’s top-rated show (Backstage is also premiering during a month-long free preview of Family Channel). Three of Backstage‘s cast members – Bogert, Mongillo and Small – also have record deals with Cardinal Point Music, with their own singles and videos to roll out in the weeks after the show has its premiere, further bolstering Backstage‘s media profile.

The series was created and developed by Fresh TV in association with DHX Television. Backstage was co-created by Lara Azzopardi and Jennifer Pertsch. Brian Irving serves as executive producer and producer along with Pertsch, who also writes. Other executive producers are Azzopardi, who also serves as showrunner and director, Tom McGillis and George Elliott.