How Much Do You Help?
What is too much or too little when it comes to helping out a theatre. As a member of the “nonunion,” I find it hard to find a good medium. Theatres are always asking nonunion performers to do more than they are hired for. Performers, in my strong opinion, are hired to perform. That’s it. It’s in the contract. If it’s not in the contract, it becomes an unpaid job. I have discovered that many times, when performers do not go beyond what they are initially hired to do, they are judged. They can be seen as selfish. The ones who choose to go beyond their job are sometimes put on the “hire back” list. This is not true in all cases. In one case, this one performer friend of mine did a lot of extra work at one theatre. He went so far as to work regularly in the box office for no pay. Many other times, he would offer his services in the costume shop as well. In the end, despite his generous efforts, he was not asked back to the theatre. Did he help too much? Or did it just not make a difference? I would like to believe that we get hired back if we do a good job and are right for a part. I would love for things to be just that simple.
I am not one of those people who wants to go beyond my duties as a performer. I have done in very rarely, but in the end, I want to bask in the benefits of being alone and/or having some down time.
I am just putting out my thought right now. I am not angry or happy about this topic. I am indifferent because I don’t have any control over other people.
