One thing I’m not against is doing a show for free, but there needs to be a reason. I’m not talking about shows for charity, but shows that are ticketed, but there’s no pay. I look at these as a chance for me to break in new material and I don’t do my A material, I do things that I’m working on. The only exception to this is if it’s a favor to a friend.
A little while ago a show producer posted a “casting call” in a performer’s group. Here’s the form you had to fill out to audition to perform for free:
First of all, if there’s an audition for a free show, I personally stay away from it. There’s zero reason to audition to not get paid, unless there’s some other form of compensation from the gig, like them providing high quality video/pics of the act.
Next they are asking for experienced performers to do this gig for no pay. The schedule of the shows taking place on Saturdays kills any opportunity to take paid gigs on that prime night for actual paid work.
The super crazy thing to me is that they want 7 rehearsal days…for a FREE show! Then another six days for the shows, for a total commitment of 13 days with zero compensation. The gig is selling tickets, but they aren’t even kicking in for gas or meals for the performers.
Personally I say NO to gigs like this.
This is worse than the charity gig that asks for a show in trade for exposure. You can easily leverage those shows into something that’s a win-win.
Is getting to do an act that’s not even YOUR act worth it?
-Louie
As someone who auditioned, got cast, and had zero issues with the lack of payment, I’d like to personally invite you to one of our shows and would be happy to comp your ticket if you decide to attend. It’s shaping up to be a fantastic show and we can’t wait to perform it in a few weeks.
You can totally be OK with the lack of payment for a 13 day commitment, but these gigs aren’t for experienced performers (which the casting call asked for).
My huge issue is that it’s asking for “experienced” performers to work for free. The casting call isn’t asking for inexperienced performers looking for stage time, they want experienced performers to give them 13 days for free, with no mention of any sort of profit sharing, expense reimbursement or alternative compensation (ie copyright free video/pics).
Have fun in the show, I can’t take you up on the tickets because I’ll be on the road performing paid gigs.
-Louie
Louie, can you please remove this post?
Everyone involved in the show is participating by choice and has consented to the established payment structure, including goods-based compensation. We are not professional circus performers, nor are we making a living from this work — we are a collective of improvisors passionate about creating and sharing our art.
You’ve made it clear that this is not the right gig for you, but it is the right gig for someone else and that’s their prerogative.
This is a female-directed show produced by a small, female-owned business, and posts like this detract from the success of this community-driven project.
Hayley,
Short answer is no I will not take it down. I will change the heading of the blog post, and I’m willing to change/remove parts if I’m factually wrong. Please let me know what facts I got wrong.
I understand how it is to be a small business. Mine is a small business and one that is BIPOC owned. Gigs that ask for almost two weeks of an “experienced” artists time detracts from the success of the performing arts.
Someone can totally be OK with the lack of payment for a 13 day commitment, but these gigs aren’t for experienced performers (which the casting call asked for).
My huge issue is that it’s asking for “experienced” performers to work for free. The casting call isn’t asking for inexperienced performers looking for stage time, they want experienced performers to give them 13 days for free, with no mention of any sort of profit sharing, expense reimbursement or alternative compensation (ie copyright free video/pics).
-Louie
I was looking for experienced improvisors for an improv show. Most of my cast have taken at least through level 3 at an established improv theater. That is the level that we are working with here, which I consider experienced in this field, although I appreciate that you are looking at this through a different lens.
It was my mistake in the first place to reach out to the professional circus performers in that Facebook group where you saw my post. I was just trying to get broader visibility, but clearly it was not welcome. Again, it was up to the discretion of the artist whether to engage with the show or not in the first place.
I would have been happy to have a conversation with anyone about compensation needs to figure out if this project was a good fit or not. Clearly it was not for you, but this show has been a dream come true for many of my cast members and I will not invalidate the impact this show has had on them and their visibility in the Seattle improv community.
As I mentioned above, we compensate our performers through an established compensation structure that includes goods, services, and comped tickets for friends and family. All improvisors agreed to this structure upfront and you can feel free to include that in your article.
If you look in your casting call you list none of those for compensation. You simply say compensation is unpaid, and don’t list any of the things you just mentioned.
Also if you look into the chat of the post on FB where you listed this casting call, I along with MANY others mentioned the lack of any compensation and you didn’t say, “you get pics/video/whatever”. That FB post would have been the place to mention that when people brought up the issue when you first posted the notice. So yes, many people did try to have a conversation about compensation with you.
My question would be why didn’t you mention the compensation in your casting call or to the numerous performers who mentioned it in the FB post?
In the blog post I do mention that there are reasons to do a gig, and that goods and services in trade are one them.
-Louie
This is my first show that I have produced and directed in my life. To be honest, I felt a bit honored to have a hit piece written about me in my directorial debut – I don’t think every new director gets that kind of publicity.
But in general, I have never done a casting call for a show before so forgive me if all the details weren’t clear. I specifically was referring to monetary compensation, but trust that I have learned my lesson that those other compensation package details are worth mentioning.
I also appreciate the feedback from other members of that FB group who helped me brainstorm ways that I could do outreach to sponsors and fundraise to facilitate monetary compensation of cast members. This is still something that I am still exploring and working towards.
A follow-up post on creative fundraising approaches for small productions could be a productive addition to this discussion. 😉
Thanks for all the learnings here Louie and really appreciate the recent updates to the post.
Have a great one!
Feel free to write a post on creative fundraising approaches, send it to me and I’ll post it here under your name as a guest…unless it’s super crazy or inappropriate.
Louie