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Hey Diddly Dee, A theatre life for me!
One of the most common queries the monkey receives is "how do
I get a career in theatre?" Since the monkey does not work in the
theatre industry it decided to ask people who do, in the hope of gaining
some profound insight into these seemingly desirable jobs…
This article first appeared on Theatremonkey
Dateline: 18th September, 2003
From the replies it received, it was able to sketch out the following
article - much of which makes the old Noel Coward number "Don't
Put Your Daughter On The Stage, Mrs Worthington" seem like sound
advice! Still, for those intent on treading the boards, repairing them,
writing about them or just sweeping them…the monkey hopes it might
be helpful.
The first decision is probably whether you want to be on the stage,
behind the scenes, or working in a theatre or arts organisation. The
book "Careers in Arts and Entertainment" published by Kogan
Page is a good place to start for finding out about the various options
available.
Acting:
Actors will find hundreds of courses…producing ever more new actors
each year. Still, as the monkey found when one of it's friends went
for a job in a bank - even in the so-called "steady" world
of office work, you can still face odds of 3000 to 1 against getting
employed! With selection procedures for office jobs on a par with those
for acting roles, who can blame anyone for trying!
In the UK, good drama training is hard to find. Websites www.drama.ac.uk
and www.ncdt.co.uk offer information
on the options available. The best courses, accredited, will help graduates
immeasurably. A bad choice could be three fun years of education with
little hope of work at the end of it.
Peter Lathan of www.britishtheatreguide.info notes that,
The great thing about being at Drama School is that you make contacts
through the school. You may be no better an actor than someone who hasn't
been to Drama School (although you will have picked up some skills which
the non-DS person probably will not have); but - as always in this business
- personal contacts are vital and you are more likely come into contact
with agents, directors and producers.
West End actor Sebastian Bates, who recently completed a successful
run in Three Sisters at the Playhouse Theatre, felt that in his
career to date, "luck has more to do with it than anything else..."
a sentiment that seems to echo throughout the industry. From the people
the monkey spoke to, it was surprising how many started off as actors,
before moving into other areas of the industry.
Backstage:
If being on stage is not for you (or you decide to move backstage after
trying acting first), what are the other options? http://www.abtt.org.uk/train/workin.html
has an incredible list of the skills needed to get the "show on
the road" each day. Backstage, stage managers, lighting and sound
operators, wardrobe assistants, stagehands and other assistants are
needed at every performance. The theatre which houses the show needs
staff to greet customers, sell tickets and refreshments, guard the stage
door, clean and carry out the hundreds of jobs that any building needs.
Away from the venue, costume and scenery makers and designers lend
their skills to creating productions - and let's not forget those who
actually write the stuff in the first place! Producers have offices
in which they plot their latest productions, marketing companies devise
strategies for publicising them, ticket agencies sell the seats and
computer experts provide the machinery and programs to help them do
it.
Common to all jobs is one requirement highlighted by Peter Lathan:
"You need to be dedicated. Pay is going to be low and hours
long - and very unsociable. Working in theatre and a normal life are
totally incompatible, even if all you're doing in working as a stage
doorman or in the box office.
You've got to really want to do it. Thinking it might be nice is
not enough: if theatre is all you want to do and nothing else will satisfy
you, then you might have a chance."
Writer and Editor Tanya Lees, - who worked as director and lecturer
in theatre studies before moving into film, went further:
"Don't do it. Take all the warnings you will hear very, very
seriously. Theatre is tough - it has all the disadvantages of working
in the arts, with few of the perks. It's so expensive of time, money,
energy and sanity, without very much in the way of mutual support or
reward - because almost everyone around you will be as exhausted and
poor as you are! If a creative and optimistic person were to ask me
how to get into the theatre - I would say "no way" - creativity
and talent will always find an outlet, but theatre, for all its genuine
glory, is one of the toughest - and most soul destroying - fields I
have come across. TV, Film, painting, writing, music - any of these
but Theatre! I know this sounds mean and embittered - but forewarned
is forearmed. Be very sure that has to be theatre before you commit
years of your life to it."
But if theatre is for you…then how do you do it?
Christine Walford, who worked in theatre marketing for ten years, produced
an interesting answer for all those studying on university "Media
Studies" courses in the hope of starting a career:
I applied for a job as an admin assistant in a small theatre, having
worked as a general commercial PA/secretary. I got the job and learned
as I went along. During my first 18 months, there were several changes
of Marketing Officer. After each change, I took on more responsibility
and after a time I found myself more or less doing the whole job, and
I was eventually officially appointed to the position.
I built up my knowledge of small-scale theatre by attending as many
performances as possible and listening/discussing each company with
my colleagues who had been in the business for a long time. After a
period of time, I was included in discussions on programming and was
given responsibility for programming folk, rock and tribute bands.
The "happy accident" seems to be a common theme. Financial
Times theatre reviewer Ian Shuttleworth has an interesting journey to
his place in the national press,
I know of no two critics who got into this line of country the same
way. The one thing in common is an utter absence of application/interview
channels.
Myself, I went along to the National Student Drama Festival in 1988
and '89; I'd done some student reviewing, but no theatre - I was an
actor, dahling! But I gravitated towards the daily Festival magazine,
and in 1989 won the student critic award. A friend suggested I wave
this under the noses of the Independent, who were then recruiting for
their 1989 Edinburgh fringe team. That worked; on that team I made the
acquaintance of Lyn Gardner, who gave me reviewing work for City Limits
magazine when I moved to London in 1990, and then suggested me to sit
in for her on maternity cover.
While she was away change in editorship and ownership meant that rather
than her returning, I stayed on. When City Limits folded, I eventually
realised that I wasn't unemployed so much as freelance; and...well,
anyway, it's all been contacts and right-place-right-time. Later, when
Annalena McAfee moved from arts editor of the Evening Standard to the
Financial Times, she sort of pulled me in her wake, to the title where
I've been a regular writer for nine years now."
Transferable skills like typing, time management and administration
are as important as creativity in theatre. Flexibility, tolerance and
the ability to work tirelessly under immense pressure (for little pay)
are also highlighted as useful! Gaining experience outside theatre can
prove very helpful. Peter Lathan tells us that,
A pal of mine has just had a major career change, at the age of
55. He's been a salesman all his life (and a very good one) and has
also been deeply involved in amateur drama, not just as an actor and
director, but also in various offices in the amateur theatre: play selection
and casting committee, bar committee, vice-chair, chairman. Now the
theatre's marketing department has taken him on because of his sales
and drama experience.
He does note, though that
"This is unusual: many theatres today want their admin/PR people
to have some sort of arts marketing/admin training. And the pay is way,
way below what he was earning before."
A sentiment echoed by Christine,
It is possible to get satisfying work in a theatre, even without
any formal training or experience. However, I must admit I was extremely
lucky!
and Peter warns,
If you're not already deeply involved in theatre (at whatever level)
your chances of getting a job are very slim. The only exception to this
rule is FoH (front of house - bartending, ushering and cleaning) work.
as for expecting real help in training for your career, Tanya Lees
warns that,
It is tough - a lot of people will have to say no to you, not because
they are hard-hearted or blind to your talent, but because however much
they may want to be generous, they just don't have the resources to
support you! Believe me, it is as hard to say no to requests as it is
to hear. Don't take it too personally.
Work Experience:
Bearing the lack of career structure and investment in training, where
do you actually go for some work experience just to start things off?
Both Peter Lathan and Christine Walford were able to comment on this
elusive quantity which so many at school and college level seek and
rarely find.
Peter says,
It all depends on where you are and what age you are. Strangely enough,
I have two students (both 15) about to start on work experience in theatre.
One is going to Bruvvers Theatre Company in Newcastle and she will be
touring locally with them, taking part in workshops and helping set
up (and take down) the touring show. The other is going to an actual
theatre - the Customs House in South Shields - where she will be working
with the tech crew. About the only thing she won't be doing is rigging
lanterns because she will not be allowed to climb ladders. Otherwise
she will be doing sound, LX and scenery shifting.
I've also had kids doing FoH (including admin) work at the Customs
House and backstage at the Empire Theatre, Sunderland.
The thing is, they are all places where I have worked in the past
so they are being taken on as a favour to me. They weren't organised
through the careers service but by my ringing friends. Many theatres
will take on work experience kids FoH, but not backstage.
What might happen in London, of course, is different, although one
former student of mine did work backstage for Miss Saigon a few years
ago when he was at college. He arranged it himself: it was not done
through the college's careers people.
Christine feels that you should,
take any job you can get, just to be employed within the building.
Then, if you have the perk of free or discounted tickets, attend as
many performances as you can. Show your interest, ask questions, offer
assistance where it is needed (unpaid if necessary). There are often
odd jobs going at certain times - such as chaperone, sewing, costume
laundry, envelope stuffing and so on. Usually boring but at least you
will be noticed as being both interested and helpful. Hopefully you
will be thought of when something comes up which will get you out of
the ranks of bar staff or ushers and into the box office, stage management
or administration. Leaving your own problems at home and trying to have
a pleasant personality and a sunny smile at all times helps!
A sentiment echoed by another contributor:
Work experience is ultimately the best way to get your first step
on the ladder. Yes, you may have to work for no pay initially and yes,
the work can often be tedious, but work experience can often lead to
paid work, looks very good on your CV and gives you your first referees
and contacts in the business. It also gives you a proper insight into
the way things work and you will be better prepared to answer questions
in the interview for that all-important first job. I I would say that
a block period of work experience (such as a summer internship) is much
more useful than one or two days a week as a volunteer as you can be
given projects to manage. As you are in the building every day for a
continuous period, you will be able to get to know colleagues that much
better. Pretty much all theatres wouldn't say no to offers of working
for free (!) but make sure you write to them well in good time and,
if you can, specify which department would interest you the most.
As an employer, Christine notes that
We mostly had fifth formers from the local school and it was very
difficult to find them anything to do that didn't bore them witless.
However, the ones with outgoing personalities and a genuine interest
in theatre were the ones who were asked to come back to help during
pantomime or were later employed as ushers or bar staff.
And it really can pay off,
I know of one young man currently working at The Theatre who started
like this doing work experience; then joined the Youth Theatre; became
an usher and is now employed full time in the Box Office/Front of House.
He generally makes himself indispensable to the more senior staff and
is gaining valuable experience in many areas, which will let him move
on to something bigger and better. He is unfailingly cheerful, friendly
and, most important, efficient!"
Perseverance and a good attitude seem to be the key; while it is also
a case of "who you know" at times, alas.
Qualifications?
As for actual qualifications, Peter feels them useful,
"They can help in certain theatre jobs because if, for example,
you have a BA in Arts Management, potential employers are more likely
to consider you than if you haven't, especially for that all-important
first job."
Ian the theatre reviewer has this to say,
The NSDF award, although it's not a qualification in itself, can
get you that important second glance on which you can make your own
impression. Subsequent winners now at work in the area include Dan Bye
on the Guardian's and the Herald's freelance rosters, and Maddy Costa,
reviews editor of the Guardian.
Just "doing it yourself" is an approach he endorses as much
as the other contributors - would be critics should keep writing up
shows you see, even if it's not actually with a view to publication
of that particular piece, then just for yourself, because you'll find
yourself honing your skills just as a product of that experience even
if it's not a conscious thing.
Youth schemes:
There are signs that things might be improving a little, though, for
those seeking a taste of the theatre world. A few theatres are now trying
to create opportunities for the staff of tomorrow. One project, at the
Chelsea Theatre, London, which is open to those aged 16 to 24 and living
in the borough aims to let participants experiment in writing, acting,
designing and directing. Another London based project (but open to anyone
between 13 and 25) is the Royal
Court Young Writers programme. This attempts to open theatre to
the widest range of writers possible, regardless of background. A good
number of former members have gone on to successful writing careers
from here.
While these are London based projects, they do represent a growing
nation-wide trend that will hopefully benefit many young hopefuls and
keep the industry vibrant with new ideas.
Final words:
Though this article has summed up the negative as much as the positive,
in the words of one worker the fact is that for the right person it
is a rewarding and interesting life:
I have never regretted choosing a career in the theatre. Theatre
has always been a great love of mine and I enjoy promoting exciting
plays and artists. I love seeing the final product after rehearsals,
seeing audience reaction and listening to discussions in the bar afterwards!
And I like knowing I've played a part in the success of shows. The theatre
world has a great mix of people working in it and I have worked with
- and become friends with - some very interesting characters! Be prepared
for long hours, low pay and working with big egos (!) but if your true
love is the theatre, you'll find it a fun working environment. And you'd
probably regret choosing any other career path...
And that seems to sum up a theatre career in all its forms. Without
many set paths, it is a matter of building your own career using any
opportunity to acquire a useful skill. There is no magic method for
producing a career in the industry, just hard work and low pay for many
- with the audience's approval the most tangible if sometimes elusive
reward. The roar of the greasepaint, the smell of the crowd…what
more could anyone want from a day's work?!
© www.theatremonkey.com 2003.
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