Only 8 Performances- Page 2

[Phantom of London]

Posted: 2/16/20 at 9:10am

I haven’t said that artists do more than 8 performances a week, but to use your unused understudies and employ more artists, sure this could work for Wicked, The Lion King and Hamilton.

Conversely this would not work for a star driven show such as Bette Midler’s Hello Dolly, where the majority of people didn’t go to see Hello Dolly, but to see Hello Dolly with Bette Midler. The demand was there to do more than 8 performances a week with grosses touching $3m a week, but unfortunate Bette couldn’t sustain more than 7 performances a week, so clearly it wouldn’t work for star turn shows.

Saying that as others have alluded to on here that cast do rehearsals to introduce new cast members, a star such as Bette wouldn’t do this.

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 2/16/20 at 2:41pm

Phantom of London said: "Saying that as others have alluded to on here that cast do rehearsals to introduce new cast members,a star such as Bette wouldn’t do this."

Ummmm, yes she would. They're called put-ins and evey actor in every show is required to be a part of them, no matter how famous you are. As for your argument about understudies or standbys doing the other performances....then who is going to be the understudies and standbys? Whether they go on or not, they're still obligated to be at every performance ready in case something happens. So if they're already there working 8 times a week and you can't legally force anyone to work over 40 hours, then who is going to do those other shows? And what stage crew and ushers and house managers and security and everyone else? What about the company manager? And how would any marketing shoots be done if there are performances happening around the clock as they would need people involved in those performances? Are you starting to see the problem with all of this?

[B.JAMES]

Posted: 2/16/20 at 2:57pm

Phantom of London said: "B.JAMES said: "For one,it's notChuck E. Cheese. There shouldn't be around the clock performances. As people have stated, supply and demand may have something to do with it. But more importantly, I think you are diminishing and underestimating the work that goes on before and after the actors take the stage. The laundry that needs to be done. Costumes that need sewn and repaired. Television appearances. Rehearsals for swings and understudies, etc.

I just want to be super annoying and make it clear that I am super appreciative of all the hard work that goes into making 8 shows happen. These people bust their butts."

Actors don’t really ‘work their butts’, when a show lasts a mere 80 minutes. Even then it’s not like they’re doing 12 hour shifts to get minimum wage."

 

I gave multiple examples, not just the actors efforts. And what show are we talking about that is 80 minutes, because the vast majority of them are not.

*eye roll*

[hak5]

Posted: 2/17/20 at 12:34pm

Islander_fan said: "Blue Man Group has a rotating cast which is what allows them to do multiple performances. Furthermore, interestingly enough, the actors that are the blue men are not equity. If memory serves I believe they don't qualify because they don't speak. But, regardless, I am sure they are treated well. Blue Man Group is an international smash so the company at least has the ability to make sure they are all well taken care of."

i believe BlueManGroup was bought by CirqueDuSoleil

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 2/17/20 at 1:37pm

I don't have a scientific survey in front of me, but I don't believe Phantom of London is right that "injuries are rare". Just because injuries aren't publicized like they were with SPIDERMAN doesn't mean they don't happen.

It varies with the show, of course, but there's a reason they have that system of multiple--and overlapping--understudies, stand-bys and swings. Putting on 25% more shows per week, much less 50%, would require hiring as much as 25%, or 50%, more cast members. And it would be hard to find quality performers for the additional cast if you only hired them for a peak month a couple of times per year.

I worked a long-running revue here in Palm Springs and we did as many as 10 shows per week, but only for a limited number of weeks in "high" season. And the show only ran 7 months of the year and there were LONG times of the show when the dancers weren't on stage. But even when we did extra shows, the cast still had to have two consecutive, full days off during that week.

It's popular to speak of unions as time- and money-wasters, but it is for issues like the health of the workers that unions are essential.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 2/17/20 at 4:37pm

GavestonPS said: "I don't have a scientific survey in front of me, but I don't believe Phantom of London is right that "injuries are rare". Just because injuries aren't publicized like they were with SPIDERMAN doesn't mean they don't happen."

Yeah, Phantom of London's claim was nonsense. Injuries happen all the time. They may not be severe, but that doesn't make them no less serious.  Although the more severe injuries are much more common in dance shows,  they are fast from rare. 

[Phantom of London]

Posted: 2/18/20 at 9:22pm

Fosse76 said: "GavestonPS said: "I don't have a scientific survey in front of me, but I don't believe Phantom of London is right that "injuries are rare". Just because injuries aren't publicized like they were with SPIDERMAN doesn't mean they don't happen."

Yeah, Phantom of London's claim was nonsense. Injuries happen all the time. They may not be severe, but that doesn't make them no less serious. Although the more severe injuries are much more common in dance shows, they are fast from rare."

Can you substantiate my claim was “nonsense”.

Actors have minor injuries, it’s an occupational hazard, like any job. However injuries are rare, I wouldn’t think Hamilton would get that many injuries? I am not necessarily saying actors do more than 8 performances a week, which I am getting tired of saying. I am saying employ more actors and revert back to 8 shows a week in the off season, give your artists their vacation there, even give them more vacation, if they have put additional performances.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 2/18/20 at 11:05pm

^^^^ PofL, do you seriously believe nobody has thought of your idea before? Vaudeville was famous for its "two-a-day" or 10 to 14 show weeks. (But acts did their 8 to 15 minutes and exited; they weren't onstage for most of the evening the way a modern ensemble may be.)

The eight-performance week didn't happen by magic. It was derived by a combination of what the union thought best for the performers' health and what management thought it could sell.

Even now, there's no law to my knowledge that prohibits a 9 or 10 or 12-show week. But union members have to agree to and get paid time-and-a-half for the 9th performance (I never did an Equity show that gave more than 9 shows in a week; the Palm Springs show I mentioned was AFTRA). And Equity is only one of the unions involved.

What you are proposing isn't practical. If it were, it would be common.

[Kad]

Posted: 2/19/20 at 12:02am

Injuries are not rare at all. At all! You are speaking from ignorance, plain and simple. And you are coming off as being wholly unsympathetic to a very physically demanding job in service of your totally ill-conceived and pointless argument.

Strains, sprains, torn muscles or ligaments, vocal damage, falls, etc etc are all common. There’s a reason why chorus shows require physical therapists to be employed.