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SMNetwork Archives / A question of loyalty
« on: Oct 24, 2005, 01:25 am »
What, so soon?
Approximately 45 minutes after sending my Fall letter to the SMA Membership (the letter was the original thread post) I received about a dozen responses from people. Some were similar "war stories," some were sympathy notes, and all asked the same question: "Did you report this to Equity?"
Before I answer that question, let me state LOUDLY that the people who run both theaters that I mention in my letter are EXTREMELY dedicated and sympathetic, and they ALSO went above and beyond their own job descriptions to get the shows up and running. In the case of the musical, the managing director himself worked with the ASMs to safety-tape and mark out the deck, not to mention my production manager, tech director and crew working practically non-stop for a week. I don't want to make it sound like I'm the only person doing more than my share, nor do I want anyone to think I work for evil bastard people. In fact, I really like this particular theater company. But I think a big part of this problem stems from the fact that we're ALL willing to knock ourselves out for the sake of the show, not just the SMs (more on this anon.)
Would you even be the slightest bit surprised that I -- chair of the SMA, an AEA member for over 13 years and a member of many AEA committees -- not only did NOT say anything to Equity, I didn't even tell the theaters I was having back problems?
First things first. Why don't I tell Equity? Let's say I call AEA (or ask the Deputy to do this) and say hey, come check this out, I'm doing a lot more than my contract says I should. So Equity comes and shakes their fingers at management. At this point one of two things happen:
-branded a troublemaker, that's the last time I work at that theater.
-the theater says hey, we're not MAKING her do anything, we'll get to everything we need to do, she's just jumping in. THEN, branded a troublemaker, that's the last time I work at that theater.
This isn't to say I won't talk to Equity. I have. A lot. And I will continue to do so. But in this instance what am I going to say? "Hey, this theater makes me do XYZ." Are they MAKING me? Or am I jumping in because I need to get the job done and there's nobody available to do it? Let's face it, it's my own damn fault. All AEA can tell me is to stop doing that, because it's not my job and because it ultimately devalues the position (more on this anon, too.) However, if the theater says "oh, by the way, you'll be running the light board," well, yes, then they ARE making you do more than your share. And that's something AEA can, and will, do something about. But in this case, there's nothing to report except my own stupidity. And many people at Equity, and elsewhere, already received that bulletin (!)
What I WILL talk to AEA about is the need to make ASMs a REQUIREMENT on ALL contracts, no matter how small, using my tales of woe as an example. But contract negotiations don't grow on trees, and changes take time. Every time the off-Broadway contract comes up for renegotiations we demand freestanding ASMs on all shows, period. Every time we get just a little bit closer, but we are still dealing with ASM/understudies. But every year the wheel gets a little bit squeakier and you know what they say about squeaky wheels...Anyway, I will continue to squeak as far as this issue goes. And I encourage you all to squeak too.
And the reasons I didn't tell the theaters about my back problems and, in one case, my need for an ASM, are definitely stupid and fear-based, but possibly realistic. Here's my fear: tell the theater you're injured and need help and they say, "Oh, poor thing. You'd better sit this one out." or "You know we don't have the resources for that! How can you even think to ask?" And then I have no job.
Did I even consider that the theater would merely say, "Oh, poor thing. No ASM, though," or even, "Oh, poor thing. I bet we could find a couple of bucks to pay for an assistant?" Hell, no. You don't want to make ANYONE think that you are in any way incapable of performing your job, do you? So you say nothing and end up a wreck, wailing, "It really didn't need to be this hard!" I was so afraid of losing my job that I didn't think about the consequences of NOT asking for help, which is -- just talking about the job here -- you're then not performing your job as well as you're capable of. And if you're not performing your job well, why would the theater hire you back? Hmm....
Another theme running through the responses is: "What can I do? EVERYONE is pulling more than their fair share and let's face it, I know that I'm probably making more $$ than they are, it's the least I can do..." Tell me about it! When I was the resident SM at a stock summer theater, I used to stay up all night with the crew during changeover weekends and help with the strike.
This is a real tricky question and one that there is obviously no "correct" answer. Are we doing these things because we WANT to do them or because we FEEL WE HAVE to? Make the distinction between HAVE TO and FEEL WE HAVE TO because we don't HAVE to do them. We just do. We may never work at that theater again, but we stood our ground. We take on the extra responsibility because we FEEL WE HAVE TO, and therein lies the rub: the more we do these things, even as our stock value rises as a "team player," the more we ultimately devalue our position as a "manager." You think Joe Torre mows the outfield when the groundskeeper gets sick? Okay, maybe that was a bad analogy but you know what I mean. The more we jump in and do these things, the more accepted that practice becomes, and the more it becomes part of the job. The more it becomes part of the job, the easier it is for management to bring it to the negotiating table and voila, we no longer have that protection.
For example, let's take a benign rule, like the one about the SM not ordering food for the company in those situations when management needs to provide a company meal. Imagine a scenario where the show schedule dictates that every Saturday and Sunday the company needs to be fed, and management has hired a company manager who cannot be there on the weekend to do this. It's a small company and an understaffed run crew and they are very busy from curtain down of the matinee until half-hour of the evening show. You feel terrible asking these overworked crew members to take this task on so you pick up the responsibility. Heck, it's only 7 people and you're one of them. Repeat this scenario a while, and management says, "What do we need this rule for, our SM does this for our company with no problems!" And in the next negotiations, poof! the rule is gone. And now you have the 25-person cast with three kosher people, one macrobiotic, 3 vegans, and 4 people on Atkins. Good luck! Oh, and make mine the veggie option. No cheese, please.
AND MANAGEMENT IS NOT ENTIRELY TO BLAME. That's right. You heard me. It's easy to portray them as the evil demons who prey upon our willingness to do what it takes, and let's face it, there are some people like that out there. But the majority of them are as hard-working and dedicated to their jobs as we are, and while not necessarily in it for the money -- let's face it, it's theater, a bigger gamble than the horses -- they are always looking for ways to stretch what little $$ they've got. So when I say "When we go the extra mile, aren't we proving they can get away with XYZ?" I don't mean that management is rubbing their hands together gleefully thinking of new ways to make our lives difficult. Of course if they think they can do without an extra ASM, a props person, an extra run-crew member, a full-time company manager, they will. When was the last time you heard a GM say, "Wow! We're really under budget!" What I mean is that if we keep allowing ourselves to overstep our boundaries and create practice that runs contrary to AEA rules -- for whatever reason -- than management cannot be vilified for taking advantage of it, or expecting it to continue, although we can certainly shake our fists at the heavens and be angry that they do (and then shake them at management, who create these situations when they decide to do a huge show when they only have a 24 dollar budget.)
We want the theater to succeed and do well because we want shows to stay open so we have our jobs. We want to work under the protection of the AEA contracts we fought to create and still fight to maintain. It's so hard to strike that balance, to give your all without feeling like you've been taken advantage of. For all the shows that confirm how much you love your job, there's one that leaves you crying in your beer, feeling like crap and doubting your place in this business.
About a week after I opened that musical I mentioned in the Fall letter I went out for drinks with some friends who've been in this business a good long time, with Broadway and road credits too numerous to mention. I poured out my tales of woe. They told me stories about rough situations they had been in (and not all of them at early stages of their careers) and how and when they completely "lost it." With each story I felt better and better, and at the end of the evening I had worked my way out of the funk I had worked myself into.
Our jobs are pretty lonely when you think about it. We work alone or with one or two other team members. We tend to work with (and for) the same batch of people. We don't quite fit with management, and we don't quite fit with the actors. So when bad shows happen to good people, who can we turn to? You think you're the only person in the world who couldn't handle that situation. That's why talking to my friends was so helpful -- these are people you could light firecrackers under and they wouldn't flinch, and to hear them tell their similar tales of woe, made me realize I was not alone. Sure, there's that one perfect SM that never loses their temper and never beats themselves up over botching a rough situation. Guess what? If that one person ain't you, you have a LOT of company.
This is why an organization like the SMA is so necessary, to toot our horn for a second. Here's a great cross-section of SMs, at all levels of experience, and we are all here to support and learn from each other. There are certain fundamental parts of this job that do not vary regardless of whether you're doing the high-school musical or the latest Broadway smash, so don't feel that you have nothing to offer because you're just starting out. Your enthusiasm for the job might be just what someone needs to hear, and your question, or your response to a question, might make someone look at a situation in a whole new light.
So, to conclude this massive missive, I again ask the original question, "Where do we draw the line?" There is no right or wrong answer, and a pat answer like, "Wherever you feel comfortable" is not the best conclusion. Maybe you feel comfortable propping your shows. Maybe a lot of people do, and all of a sudden it's out of the contract and now we all have to prop our shows. But I will tell you all that writing the Fall letter and this follow-up -- and reading the responses I've received so far -- made me think a lot more about how to better value myself as an SM, and how to better protect the SM position now and in the future.
Maybe we can rustle up a special guest or two and get together in the Chat Room for a real-time forum.
Until then, much love and fun work,
MG
PS: Adam, I LOVE your post and the way you handled some tough scheduling dilemmas. I totally agree with everything you say, especially the part about realizing that SMs are not Super(wo)men. Unfortunately that's the way I was "raised" as an SM, and it's obviously taking a very long time to unlearn this. It IS a very fine line between doing what's best for the show and being taken advantage of, between bending the rules and breaking them, and I think you've done an amazing job of straddling that line.
Approximately 45 minutes after sending my Fall letter to the SMA Membership (the letter was the original thread post) I received about a dozen responses from people. Some were similar "war stories," some were sympathy notes, and all asked the same question: "Did you report this to Equity?"
Before I answer that question, let me state LOUDLY that the people who run both theaters that I mention in my letter are EXTREMELY dedicated and sympathetic, and they ALSO went above and beyond their own job descriptions to get the shows up and running. In the case of the musical, the managing director himself worked with the ASMs to safety-tape and mark out the deck, not to mention my production manager, tech director and crew working practically non-stop for a week. I don't want to make it sound like I'm the only person doing more than my share, nor do I want anyone to think I work for evil bastard people. In fact, I really like this particular theater company. But I think a big part of this problem stems from the fact that we're ALL willing to knock ourselves out for the sake of the show, not just the SMs (more on this anon.)
Would you even be the slightest bit surprised that I -- chair of the SMA, an AEA member for over 13 years and a member of many AEA committees -- not only did NOT say anything to Equity, I didn't even tell the theaters I was having back problems?
First things first. Why don't I tell Equity? Let's say I call AEA (or ask the Deputy to do this) and say hey, come check this out, I'm doing a lot more than my contract says I should. So Equity comes and shakes their fingers at management. At this point one of two things happen:
-branded a troublemaker, that's the last time I work at that theater.
-the theater says hey, we're not MAKING her do anything, we'll get to everything we need to do, she's just jumping in. THEN, branded a troublemaker, that's the last time I work at that theater.
This isn't to say I won't talk to Equity. I have. A lot. And I will continue to do so. But in this instance what am I going to say? "Hey, this theater makes me do XYZ." Are they MAKING me? Or am I jumping in because I need to get the job done and there's nobody available to do it? Let's face it, it's my own damn fault. All AEA can tell me is to stop doing that, because it's not my job and because it ultimately devalues the position (more on this anon, too.) However, if the theater says "oh, by the way, you'll be running the light board," well, yes, then they ARE making you do more than your share. And that's something AEA can, and will, do something about. But in this case, there's nothing to report except my own stupidity. And many people at Equity, and elsewhere, already received that bulletin (!)
What I WILL talk to AEA about is the need to make ASMs a REQUIREMENT on ALL contracts, no matter how small, using my tales of woe as an example. But contract negotiations don't grow on trees, and changes take time. Every time the off-Broadway contract comes up for renegotiations we demand freestanding ASMs on all shows, period. Every time we get just a little bit closer, but we are still dealing with ASM/understudies. But every year the wheel gets a little bit squeakier and you know what they say about squeaky wheels...Anyway, I will continue to squeak as far as this issue goes. And I encourage you all to squeak too.
And the reasons I didn't tell the theaters about my back problems and, in one case, my need for an ASM, are definitely stupid and fear-based, but possibly realistic. Here's my fear: tell the theater you're injured and need help and they say, "Oh, poor thing. You'd better sit this one out." or "You know we don't have the resources for that! How can you even think to ask?" And then I have no job.
Did I even consider that the theater would merely say, "Oh, poor thing. No ASM, though," or even, "Oh, poor thing. I bet we could find a couple of bucks to pay for an assistant?" Hell, no. You don't want to make ANYONE think that you are in any way incapable of performing your job, do you? So you say nothing and end up a wreck, wailing, "It really didn't need to be this hard!" I was so afraid of losing my job that I didn't think about the consequences of NOT asking for help, which is -- just talking about the job here -- you're then not performing your job as well as you're capable of. And if you're not performing your job well, why would the theater hire you back? Hmm....
Another theme running through the responses is: "What can I do? EVERYONE is pulling more than their fair share and let's face it, I know that I'm probably making more $$ than they are, it's the least I can do..." Tell me about it! When I was the resident SM at a stock summer theater, I used to stay up all night with the crew during changeover weekends and help with the strike.
This is a real tricky question and one that there is obviously no "correct" answer. Are we doing these things because we WANT to do them or because we FEEL WE HAVE to? Make the distinction between HAVE TO and FEEL WE HAVE TO because we don't HAVE to do them. We just do. We may never work at that theater again, but we stood our ground. We take on the extra responsibility because we FEEL WE HAVE TO, and therein lies the rub: the more we do these things, even as our stock value rises as a "team player," the more we ultimately devalue our position as a "manager." You think Joe Torre mows the outfield when the groundskeeper gets sick? Okay, maybe that was a bad analogy but you know what I mean. The more we jump in and do these things, the more accepted that practice becomes, and the more it becomes part of the job. The more it becomes part of the job, the easier it is for management to bring it to the negotiating table and voila, we no longer have that protection.
For example, let's take a benign rule, like the one about the SM not ordering food for the company in those situations when management needs to provide a company meal. Imagine a scenario where the show schedule dictates that every Saturday and Sunday the company needs to be fed, and management has hired a company manager who cannot be there on the weekend to do this. It's a small company and an understaffed run crew and they are very busy from curtain down of the matinee until half-hour of the evening show. You feel terrible asking these overworked crew members to take this task on so you pick up the responsibility. Heck, it's only 7 people and you're one of them. Repeat this scenario a while, and management says, "What do we need this rule for, our SM does this for our company with no problems!" And in the next negotiations, poof! the rule is gone. And now you have the 25-person cast with three kosher people, one macrobiotic, 3 vegans, and 4 people on Atkins. Good luck! Oh, and make mine the veggie option. No cheese, please.
AND MANAGEMENT IS NOT ENTIRELY TO BLAME. That's right. You heard me. It's easy to portray them as the evil demons who prey upon our willingness to do what it takes, and let's face it, there are some people like that out there. But the majority of them are as hard-working and dedicated to their jobs as we are, and while not necessarily in it for the money -- let's face it, it's theater, a bigger gamble than the horses -- they are always looking for ways to stretch what little $$ they've got. So when I say "When we go the extra mile, aren't we proving they can get away with XYZ?" I don't mean that management is rubbing their hands together gleefully thinking of new ways to make our lives difficult. Of course if they think they can do without an extra ASM, a props person, an extra run-crew member, a full-time company manager, they will. When was the last time you heard a GM say, "Wow! We're really under budget!" What I mean is that if we keep allowing ourselves to overstep our boundaries and create practice that runs contrary to AEA rules -- for whatever reason -- than management cannot be vilified for taking advantage of it, or expecting it to continue, although we can certainly shake our fists at the heavens and be angry that they do (and then shake them at management, who create these situations when they decide to do a huge show when they only have a 24 dollar budget.)
We want the theater to succeed and do well because we want shows to stay open so we have our jobs. We want to work under the protection of the AEA contracts we fought to create and still fight to maintain. It's so hard to strike that balance, to give your all without feeling like you've been taken advantage of. For all the shows that confirm how much you love your job, there's one that leaves you crying in your beer, feeling like crap and doubting your place in this business.
About a week after I opened that musical I mentioned in the Fall letter I went out for drinks with some friends who've been in this business a good long time, with Broadway and road credits too numerous to mention. I poured out my tales of woe. They told me stories about rough situations they had been in (and not all of them at early stages of their careers) and how and when they completely "lost it." With each story I felt better and better, and at the end of the evening I had worked my way out of the funk I had worked myself into.
Our jobs are pretty lonely when you think about it. We work alone or with one or two other team members. We tend to work with (and for) the same batch of people. We don't quite fit with management, and we don't quite fit with the actors. So when bad shows happen to good people, who can we turn to? You think you're the only person in the world who couldn't handle that situation. That's why talking to my friends was so helpful -- these are people you could light firecrackers under and they wouldn't flinch, and to hear them tell their similar tales of woe, made me realize I was not alone. Sure, there's that one perfect SM that never loses their temper and never beats themselves up over botching a rough situation. Guess what? If that one person ain't you, you have a LOT of company.
This is why an organization like the SMA is so necessary, to toot our horn for a second. Here's a great cross-section of SMs, at all levels of experience, and we are all here to support and learn from each other. There are certain fundamental parts of this job that do not vary regardless of whether you're doing the high-school musical or the latest Broadway smash, so don't feel that you have nothing to offer because you're just starting out. Your enthusiasm for the job might be just what someone needs to hear, and your question, or your response to a question, might make someone look at a situation in a whole new light.
So, to conclude this massive missive, I again ask the original question, "Where do we draw the line?" There is no right or wrong answer, and a pat answer like, "Wherever you feel comfortable" is not the best conclusion. Maybe you feel comfortable propping your shows. Maybe a lot of people do, and all of a sudden it's out of the contract and now we all have to prop our shows. But I will tell you all that writing the Fall letter and this follow-up -- and reading the responses I've received so far -- made me think a lot more about how to better value myself as an SM, and how to better protect the SM position now and in the future.
Maybe we can rustle up a special guest or two and get together in the Chat Room for a real-time forum.
Until then, much love and fun work,
MG
PS: Adam, I LOVE your post and the way you handled some tough scheduling dilemmas. I totally agree with everything you say, especially the part about realizing that SMs are not Super(wo)men. Unfortunately that's the way I was "raised" as an SM, and it's obviously taking a very long time to unlearn this. It IS a very fine line between doing what's best for the show and being taken advantage of, between bending the rules and breaking them, and I think you've done an amazing job of straddling that line.