Casa Bonita Performers Go On Strike After Management Walks Away From Contract Negotiations

Performers at Casa Bonita, the famed Denver-area restaurant known for its cliff divers and live entertainment, have gone on strike after management walked away from contract negotiations with Actors’ Equity Association, the national union representing more than 51,000 professional performers and stage managers.

Picketing began at 11 a.m. on Thursday, October 30, outside the pink landmark restaurant—dubbed “Casa Boo-nita” by workers who say it will stand as an “empty pink building for Halloween.”

According to Equity, Casa Bonita management failed to deliver meaningful responses in bargaining toward a fair contract or to resolve an outstanding Unfair Labor Practices charge. “Casa management came to the table today offering an additional 11 cents over their last unfair wage offer, and very little for future layoff protections,” said Andrea Hoeschen, lead negotiator and assistant executive director and general counsel for Actors’ Equity Association. “Despite that insult, the negotiating team responded with major compromises to try to get a deal. And then Casa Bonita walked away from the table without responding.”

Equity argues that performers—who provide the restaurant’s signature entertainment, from cliff diving to interactive shows—are being paid significantly less than other staff. “We know they can pay the wages we’re asking for because they already pay basically the same wages to servers and bartenders,” Hoeschen added. “Their insistence on paying dollars an hour less to the performers reflects a choice and a philosophy to devalue performers.”

Negotiations between the union and Casa Bonita management began in April 2025, following a unanimous vote to unionize in November 2024. In September, the union filed an Unfair Labor Practices charge after the restaurant cut more than 1,000 worker hours without bargaining.

The strike follows months of escalating tension, including a petition last week urging management to accept the contract currently on the table. Casa Bonita’s workforce has continued to organize, with IATSE recently unionizing arcade workers and crew, and an upcoming union election pending for more than 150 servers, bussers, and front-of-house employees, delayed by the federal government shutdown.

Casa Bonita, originally opened in 1974 and famously acquired by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, reopened in 2023 after a $40 million renovation. The restaurant’s reopening drew national attention for its immersive dining experience featuring live performers, who now say they are fighting for fair pay and safety protections.

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