Hey ya’ll I remember a while ago someone mentioning to me that they didn’t know what calling a show was. I posted some examples of musical theatre show calling, but here’s some opera as well.
the show does not need to go on
in this industry we have this idea that we will sacrifice ourselves for the art. We will do anything for the art. We will put ourselves in danger for the art. We tell ourselves, “The show must go on.”
I’m here to tell you that the show does not need to go on. Our art is important, but as in any job, health and safety are far more important.
Same anon who was asking about applying. Thank you! I will apply to those. When writing a cover letter do you have any tips? And when looking for tech jobs where do you look? Ive only been using general job search sites and I've noticed it's extremely hard to find them and unless you use specific wording and lots of variations you'll never find them.
Anonymous
Try offstagejobs.com for theatre tech jobs. That is mostly where I look. I also recommend looking up theatres that are local to you and seeing if they’ve posted anything in their employment/audition sections.
As for cover letters, I tend to have a break down that looks like:
Dear Mr./Ms. [name of person charged with the hiring process],
My name is [your name] and I am applying for [position] posted on [where you found the listing].
[A brief introduction paragraph about yourself and work.]
[A paragraph that addresses the requirements of the jobs and your abilities / experiences with them]
[A conclusion paragraph and something to extent of “thank you for your consideration; I look forward to hearing from you.”]
Best
[Your name, add signature if possible]
If you do not have experience directly relating to the job, when addressing the job requirements it is best to bring up similar experiences. Example: “Although I do not have much experience in stage management, I have been a shift manager at Teavana. In this position, I had to coordinate many different schedules, find the appropriate ways to assist unhappy customers, and problem-solve in the moment.”
If you want to go off anon and send me your email address, I would be happy to help you edit your cover letter & resume. (The response would not be posted publicly).
So I'm 17 (18 soon) & I've found a few tech jobs that I could do for the summer. I'm worried about my age tho & that I've never done a paid tech job before. All my experience is from the last four years at my school through our shows, main stage & side shows, classes, and volunteering w/ the middle school shows. I'm just scared of applying bc I don't necessarily have paid experience even tho I gained ranks quickly and have been sm for things all year & I'm not sure if I even have a chance.
Anonymous
Apply anyway! It really can’t hurt. But make sure you highlight in your cover letter what you’ve learned from school. It is okay that you don’t have experience – everyone has to start somewhere. I recommend looking for assistant / entry level jobs (A2, electrician, assistant stage manager, run crew, spotlight operator, etc.). This way you can get your foot in the door and learn as you go, but more value will be placed in your enthusiasm / hard work rather than experience.
- me:
*sends initial greeting email with my number*
- me:
*tells everyone my number at first rehearsal*
- me:
*sends every email with my number*
- actor:
i'm sorry i didnt call you i dont have your number
things that make me very frustrated with the way the world is:
nearly every theatre I have ever worked with has had to arrange for all the women to leave evening rehearsals with another person for their safety
Techies are a lot like spiders.
You’re always within three feet of one, whether you know it or not.
Later today I will open my very first opera and I’m pretty damn excited about it.
How to show a stage manager you love them:
Bring them coffee
- me:
*walks into green room.*
- actor:
*on floor in costume in fetal position eating a piece of cake and crying*
- me:
so we're gonna have a good show today