What am I getting myself into?

[Caroline Naveen]

No thread on this already so here it goes. What am I getting myself into? This is an interesting question regarding stage management that I don't feel like a lot of high school or college students fully understand, or even think about when considering going into stage management. I've really, really enjoyed stage management and have been volunteering full time at a nearby professional theatre. Some things I'm thing about right now when I'm considering college are:

1. Average Pay for a Stage Manager or anything in arts right now for that matter. It's pretty tight sounding....
2. The saturated job base there are so many people that want jobs in these areas.
3. Vacation Time. (I have this philosophy that you need to love what you do, but sometimes it's nice to have a life outside of work.)
4. I TOTALLY love doing it, everything about the whole process. But is it worth it to me? It's totally worth it when the show goes up, but will this outweigh the downsides 5 or 10 years down the road?

Is there anything on this list that I might be missing? I want to have as complete a list of prose and cons so that I can really consider what I'm doing with the rest of my life. I'm a straight A student and there are a lot of things that I could do, but very minimal things that I ENJOY doing. I thought about going into business administration for a while. However, even though it pays well that's the job my dad has, and I really think I would totally hate sitting in a office with no personality all day working.......I'm really trying to get myself to count the costs if/before I get involved in theatre arts as a career choice, because I don't want to be on this fence on this. I have been told by previous bosses that I am incredibly gifted, because I am so artistic but have a great business and organization sense. Theatre has become so much a part of who I am and it's what I love to do, but I also want to be realistic about it about my career. Are there some other jobs that I might be interested in looking into for comparisons sake? Thoughts?

[iamchristuffin]

Hi Caroline,

I can add a few more Pro's and Con's for you....

Cons
- Very little job security. If you're freelance (in the UK sense of the word - working for various different companies throughout the year), then each company are able to change their mind on who they hire, whenever they want (except when a contract is signed). A friend of mine has just lost a gig she's been doing for nearly 10 years, and it left quite a big gap in her year.
- Social time/unsociable hours. Once you hit stage sessions, you won't see anyone outside of the production team for a little while. Could be a week, could be two months. You just won't have any time or energy for socialising outside the theatre. Then, once you're on show call, you're working on a completely opposite schedule to anyone with a 9 to 5 job.
- Money. I'm sure you realise it is very, very hard to earn well in this career. While there are the big, high paying jobs, they are few and far between. As an example, I earn roughly £20-25,000 ($30,200-37,700) a year, and I'm expecting to stay in this bracket for quite a few years yet.
- Pensions. Unless you are a full time employee, companies won't operate a pension scheme, meaning you'll have to start a private one, which (generally) aren't as rewarding.
- Family. In the same vein as Social time, it's very hard to raise a child and work as a Stage Manager. This has been discussed at length in other topics, so I'll stop there - having no experience in this area myself.
- People. You will have to listen to and work with some horrible, conniving, rude, lazy and pretentious people. They may be your employee, in which case there's little you can do, or they may be a colleague, who may be weeded out by the company in a little while. You still have to work with them for the rest of the contract.

Pro's
- Job Satisfaction. I'm sure we all feel a massive buzz on first night, during the first sitz, the first day of rehearsals. On top of that (and this may sound a little conceited), I love telling others about my job - and people are interested. It's very different to working as an Insurance Salesman.
- People. Despite what I said above, you can build such a close little family through work. Of the eight people I'm currently working with (on my first contract with the company), I knew, or knew of, seven of them before. It often gets the first day nerves out of the way, and you can focus on the names of the company instead! It also means trips to the pub are less awkward at the start!
- Freedom to choose. If you don't like a company anymore, and you are confident you can find something to cover the time, then you can leave. This gives you more control on your career progression. Speaking of which....
- Unique career progression. Sounds like a weird Pro, but trust me. There is no-one who will have the same progression as you. For example, at the moment, I have pretty much skipped ASM work and gone straight into DSM work, which at the moment, is great. However, I'm hoping to work for the largest houses in the UK at some point, so I'm choosing to go back a step for a little while, so I can be a better ASM, which will in turn make me a better DSM as well!
- Vacation time. You may not have a huge amount of free time, but you can plan ahead and not take a gig. If you want two weeks off in January, and it's in between contracts, then there's nothing stopping you.

Right now, that's everything I can think of - breakfast is calling! I hope that helps your decision. As a side note, I've been out in the real world as a professional for a year (plus three years at uni before that, and 5 years at school/bit work before uni). While there are times I'd love to be on £35,000, and having 128 hours a week to myself, I don't think I'll be leaving theatre for a little while yet!

Cx

[On_Headset]

I bet someone in your life has told you that you should skip university and become a carpenter. (Plumber, tool-and-die maker, paralegal, etc.)

After all (they'll say, in a serious, admonishing tone) I have a cousin who works as a tool-and-die maker and earns 80k just two years out of community college. And anyway (they'll continue) university is worthless. The humanities and the fine arts are pointless. No, no, you should focus on your career. Focus on getting a job. Don't waste your time with a degree you'll never use.

I bet this person exists in your life because this person has existed in literally every college-bound person's life since roughly 1990. And on some level they're right: if your goal here is to earn lots and lots of money and own a nice house and have your butler bring you foie gras on the lido deck of your yacht, you should almost certainly not go into the fine arts and humanities.

But you know what?

People do. Millions and millions of people do. They hear that advice--TURN BACK! HERE THERE BE DRAGONS!--and they ignore it. They aren't ignorant of the choices they're making, but rather they're deciding that, well.

Yes, I know that studying philosophy will mean there's a very real chance I'll end up working at Starbucks. But I'd rather be a barista who reads Nietzsche than a bored, unfulfilled aircraft mechanic.

Yes, I know that studying visual art will mean there's a very real chance I'll end up teaching pottery classes to twelve-year-olds. But I'd rather have the education I need in order to become capable of creating and appreciating beautiful things than a paralegal who idly doodles on her notepad in meetings. ("Hey, that's a pretty nice house, Stacey! You should become an artist or something!")

And, yes: I know that studying theatre will mean there's a very real chance I'll end up working as a waiter. But I have to do theatre. I must do theatre. It calls to me, it makes me smile, and if I don't kick open this door, I'm going to spend the rest of my life wishing I had.

None of this is to say that paralegals or aircraft mechanics or tool-and-die makers are bad people, or unfulfilled people, or sad sacks. Your condescending relatives are right: many of them are quite successful and happy. (And as Matthew Shiner told us years and years ago, doing something you don't really love in order to fund/create time for something you truly love is a perfectly viable gameplan! Nothing wrong with becoming a paralegal who does a fantastic community-theatre Evita!)

But, like, we know this. Anyone who reaches the age of 18 without being absolutely bombarded with advice to the effect of "Don't bother with the subjects you think will fulfil you; go into electrical engineering instead" is such a rare bird that they ought to be put in a case at a museum of natural history. And yet young people defy it. Young people don't go down that path.

Young people, with full knowledge of their circumstances, make their own choices. And if you feel strongly, why should you be different?

Study as much as you can, know as much as you can, make the most well-informed decision you can. You're right: there are major downsides to this career path, and those who make the attempt but fail end up scattered across the Starbucks and Asian-German Fusion Restaurants of the land. But if you want to do it, if you must do it, if this path calls to you and urges you forward, and if you're willing to accept the risk...

(Does it show that I work for a university's Faculty of Fine Arts?  )

[Maribeth]

Take a look at this thread for some "cons" that SMs have talked about before: http://smnetwork.org/forum/the-green-room/the-things-we-give-up-for-theatre/ . A lot of members mentioned that stage management often means giving up time with friends and family, in particular special events like weddings and holidays.

Regarding college choices, keep in mind that 1) you don't have to major in theatre to become a professional stage manager, and 2) there's no rule that you have to make up your mind about majors/careers before college starts. 

[WordSorter]

I'll add my two cents worth, though my stage management experience is more on the "community" rather than the professional level.

Cons:
It's stressful. You have to be a combination psychologist, tech wizard, magician and parent to be successful at it. You become everyone's "complaint board." People come to you wanting to know where their costumes are, props are, the fact that someone is being a diva, etc., etc., etc. If you have a thin skin, don't even think about this career.

You have no life of your own. Your life is tied up with the theater. You're the first there and the last to leave. Unlike the director, who can walk away after opening night, you're stuck there from the first audition until the final curtain of a run. It means late nights and, on matinees, long days. It means friendships outside the theater can be difficult to form and/or maintain (especially romantic relationships).

As you mentioned, the pay. There are definitely easier ways to make a living 

Pros
Putting together something meaningful. There is something very compelling about helping to put a show together. As one individual mentioned in this post, there is no other experience like that of opening night, being backstage, sitting in the booth and watching the audience reaction to the entertainment onstage.

Built-in friendships. Theater people can be catty, insincere, gossipy divas (and I'm not just talking about the actors). They can also be your most loyal and cherished friends. Granted, as a stage manager, you're their "boss" in a sense. But if you comport yourself in the right way, you can be that respected authority figure as well as part of this "in group."

The unpredictable life. You never know what's going to happen performance to performance, or even rehearsal to rehearsal. If you like challenge in your life, and situations that aren't static, this is a great profession to be in.

In terms of education, I agree you don't need to get a degree from a college to be a stage manager. Some of the best stage managers I've worked with got to where they were through apprenticeships and on-the-job training. I, myself, don't have a theater degree, but apprenticed myself to several theater companies (for little or no pay) to learn about the inner workings of the profession.

Good luck!

[MatthewShiner]

I’ve tried several times to answer this post . . .

First, you are a junior in high school . . . let me state something that may not be obvious to you right now . . .  the job you are doing know as a stage manager is different then the job you will do in college and different then the job you will do early in your career and then the job when you get to the stride of your career.  You will gain more responsibilities, require new skill sets, be under more pressure.  I am hesitant for anyone to plan an entire career path as a high school junior.  The advice I want you to hold on to is don’t let the “Love” of something get in the way of being open to other opportunities that may present itself to you.

There are too many people who hold on to the dream of this business too long, long beyond where they need to find another option for themselves.  You have to be a shrewd business person – because in reality – being a freelance stage manager is truly running your own business.  How long do you run a business at a loss?  How much do you invest in yourself for the amount of possible payback?  When is the amount of time, energy and life resources you put into this work not worth the return on that investment. 

Better you start by putting together you dream life.  What do you want out of life?  Rather then pick a career and try to figure out what sort of life you will get based on that.  I speak from being at a point knowing what I know now, I doubt I would have pursued stage management as a career.  I am good at my job, and I feel I am a success – and have a bright future to come here at the midpoint of my career.  But the things that I have had to give up – my first marriage (and thus the ability to be with my son as he grew up), friendships with people in the same city as me - missed funerals, weddings - a sense of stability - an life with out anxiety about my future – stability.   I am very lucky to have a loving, caring, considerate partner, but this year, I have been away from home 10 out of 12 months.  This is not the life I was hoping for being away from the person I love.  But, it’s the career that has been dealt to me.  I wish perhaps to be more in control and could be more stable – while still get the challenges and adventures.

But, now I am in my 40’s and I really can’t do anything different . . .  and sustain the life-style I want . . .

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy many aspects of my job, but at the end of the day, it’s a job like every other job.  Like an accountant.  Like an barista.  I have good days and bad days.  And the “LOVE” of it, helps during the bad days, but it doesn’t sustain a career. 

But, above all, I can't give you anything but this most generic advice . . . I don't know you, I don't what skill sets you have, you odds of making it in this business, the amount of education and time and money you are interested in investing in yourself, and what you find important in life.

If this is the path you choose, best of luck to you.  It's a hard path, but has many inherent rewards in the career. 

[VSM]

Perhaps you could combine your love and skill set and look into Theatre Management?
From both the artistic side and the business side...?

[Jessie_K]

You're in high school.  Try what you want to try.  Go to school or don't.  Study stage management or don't.  Sooner or later you'll realize that you are on the right path...or not on the right path.  And then you can make a new path at that time.

But like everyone said, don't go into theatre for the money.  You might (*might) end up making a living, but that's it.  No frills.