And the Award for Most Under-appreciated Goes To...
6-2-13
Yesterday on facebook I threw out a question, "Which job in the theatre biz is the most under-appreciated?" All the fellow theatre peeps jumped on this question with fury. They all had opinions on this matter. I noticed a pattern very quickly that they all thought their job was the least appreciated, one even had the balls to say that actors were the least appreciated. I think it's safe to say that most people would agree that actors are very appreciated for their contributions to a project. You don't see people throwing down in the tabloids over who's going to win the best Sound Editing Oscar this year, now do you? (PS- Paul Ottosson is totally going to win...) Below are 5 very under-appreciated theatre jobs that are essential to the business but often overlooked for their hard work.
1. Front of House Staff
Front of House is comprised of a lot of different types of artists. You have your Box Office managers, your Front of House managers, your Guest Relations people, Ushers, etc. These people work on making the theatre experience a pleasurable one from a customer service standpoint. Finding a decent FoH manager is a tough task in Hong Kong. You need someone who can communicate well both with audience members and the Stage Manager. You also need a person who dresses/acts professional and can train any Ushers. Ushers in Hong Kong tend to be a little too militant for my liking. I remember going to a show once where the Ushers yelled at people for dancing in the aisles, after the actors had just encouraged it as part of the show. Ushers need to be polite, bi-lingual, and attentive. I admit they have a stinky job sometimes with the amount of rude audiences that bash about. How many times do we need to tell you people to put your phones away?
Box office managers have a unique breed of issues to deal with. They handle your money; because of this people tend to get antsy. You have people who get pissed off because they waited too long and the show is sold out, you have people whose credit cards are not working and my personal favorite: crazy people. Hug a Box Office Manager today (with permission) they probably got yelled at...
PS- Have your credit card out and ready to use when making a telephone booking with a box office person. It's a pet peeve of the industry to have to wait for you while your diggin' it out of you're purse.
2. Stage Managers
Stage Managers are super important! Having a person who can call your show superbly is essential. A great SM can save a disaster show when something goes "amatter". You can have a fabulous lighting design- but if the cue is called at the wrong time, you're screwed. ASMs are equally important to the theatre game. They run the deck and often know the show better than the actors. They give your calls to the stage. Often times, they also coordinate the scene changes with the Deck Captain. Do not piss off your Stage Manager or be prepared to do the show in the dark.
3. Dramaturgs
Dramaturgs are like researchers. They research everything in the play to make sure the Directors has all the correct information. This is especially important when you see a show with historical premises. I remember seeing a production of The Merchant of Venice set in WW2 Venice where Nazi symbols were everywhere in the designs. There was Mussolini's Blackshirts (which had their own symbol) during WW2 Italy. The Dramaturg had obviously missed a very important detail...which made the production's concept lose a lot of it's effectiveness.
4. Arts Managers
Arts Managers are the ones who sell your show. They typically do the publicity, design your posters, and make the programs. They also set up all your interviews and photo taking sessions. Nowadays, Arts Managers are typically the ones who run the official facebook and twitters. It's their job to brand your show and make it a must see. They live and die by the ticket sales which is stressful!
5. Props Artisans
Props is a big department with a big job to do. They handle anything held by the actors, set dressings, rehearsal props, weapons, and anything food or liquid in a show. They have to deal with a myriad of problems whether it be a Director suddenly deciding he doesn't like the color of the curtains- to food allergies amongst the cast.
*Snaps to all you under-appreciated artists. Now, go yell at an intern to make yourself feel better!*
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