Wow.
This is the verdict, and there are two situations with the same issue. Company #1 is an educational institution that hires professional stage managers. They produce 5-6 operas a year (it's an opera program) and once a year they do a musical. Because the performers are students, they can't unionize the artists. There are a few IATSE crew members, and the directors/maestros they bring in are in unions (though I'm not sure how that side works with the university). Company #2 is a small "opera" company that performs one opera and one musical a season.
I spoke with Equity and AGMA (I'm a member of both). To confirm what many of you have said, AGMA doesn't care what we do. Granted, they don't seem to offer much support to stage managers in general anyway (if any, other than having contracts for us) and in the past, when I've had problems with companies, they have done nothing to support me and the company got away with many contract breeches in the end. So, AGMA didn't care either way. Equity had this opinion: they prefer their members not work non-union contracts, but understand that we do, occasionally, if we work under AGMA jurisdiction.. so they approve because legally they can't. They just want us to be treated fairly, and many non-union opera gigs pay better than MANY union Equity gigs, offer housing/benefits, etc..
Back to the point. With Company #1, Equity said the only way for me to work the musical legally was to do a Guest Artist agreement. The house seats 1,000+ people, so that was my only option. Come to find out the university had worked with Equity quite often, though not in the opera department as much. Luckily, the university is housing me and I was able to save them a great deal on that end, so adding over $2,000 to my musical contract (in benefits, taxes, etc.) wasn't a problem. The fee was close enough to Equity's requirements already so that side of the contract wasn't an issue.
Company #2 was the same situation with Equity, though I also had the option to do a Special Agreement with Equity because their house is significantly smaller than Company #1. #2, on the other hand, wasn't open to spending an extra penny to give me health weeks, plainly. I wouldn't work for them EVER now knowing their disrespect for unions.
Now, I'm not sure if the University would hire me to do a musical again, and I guess we'll see about that.
I just finished a production with another non-AGMA opera house that paid AGMA rates, they just don't have an agreement with AGMA, though I can see no reason why they wouldn't. They aren't against it though.
I would much rather work for companies that offer union-like benefits and pay well than an Equity contract that pays $200 a week. Would someone explain to me how a job that pays like that is respectful? And why a company that isn't anti-union, but pays significantly better (for theater) isn't in our "best interests" as Equity members? I feel the love from the Equity office everytime I call, and they would die for me in a conflicted situation, but they really need to bridge the pay gap within the contracts they offer.. and either NOT require Equity to house SMs, or say "the institution is required to house all members of Stage Management but won't do it in most instances so don't even try." Even NON-union AGMA houses house most of the time. For the love.
I think the original question left out an important piece in the discussion. What kind of contract, if any, does the "opera" house have? Are they an Opera House only in name, or like us, do they produce all opera and then once in awhile a musical. If it is a non union opera house and not considered as a possible theater for Equity to organize, then there seems no impediment to anyone in any union working there.
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