rudest people at stage door- Page 5

[NBRISBY]

Posted: 9/1/04 at 4:53pm

Let me explain how 2K a week is nothing. 1000 easy to spend on rent each month for a kind of crappy place outside the city. A thousand on food (if you don't go out often). 1000 on voice lessons. 500 on dance lessons. 500 on acting classes. 10% to an agent. 15% to a manager. THat leaves them 2000 a month to save for when they aren't making anymoney at all. And that assumes they have nothing else to pay for. It's not much money at all, really...especially in NYC.

Posted: 9/1/04 at 5:15pm

I agree that 2K a week isn't all that much money but 1000 a month on food? My sister can feed a family of four on 100 a week and she's a great great cook!

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 9/1/04 at 7:18pm

No stage door experiences, but I waited tables for Aidan Quinn and Matthew Modine (seperate times, not together). Complete bashtardsh, as Liza might say.

Posted: 9/1/04 at 8:01pm

As long as we're talking about waiting tables on famous people. Has anyone ever been to BitterWaitress.com? It's a site for waiters to bitch about their worst serving experiences and there's lots of celebrity encounters on there.
Bitter Waitress

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 9/1/04 at 8:07pm

NBRISBY, I live on less than half of that IN the city. And their voice/dance lessons are tax writeoffs. As are, I believe, commissions. It is definitely decent money, especially considering they work about three hours a day (excepting rehearsal time before a show opens of course). And you're definitely overestimating lesson costs. $1000/month?? Even the most expensive voice teacher wouldn't cost half that with a weekly session.

Updated On: 9/1/04 at 08:07 PM

[lildogs]

Posted: 9/1/04 at 9:01pm

yeah, not to rag on you nate, but $1000/month for food? where u eatin' man? foie gras wasn't meant to go in a sandwich...

[Fair 2 Middlin]

Posted: 9/1/04 at 9:07pm

It's not?

Don't know about comissions being a write off. If an agency cuts you a check, it's taken out pretax. If the production company cuts your check then the comission comes out of your pocket and the money you are paying it with has been taxed. Unless you're a corporation and then you pay taxes on the income later and declare it then if you can. I'm not sure. All in all, write offs in the acting profession are amazing. But that is a totally different topic.

Updated On: 9/1/04 at 09:07 PM

[johny0828]

Posted: 9/1/04 at 11:19pm

frenchie davis

[newyorkuniq]

Posted: 9/1/04 at 11:57pm

$1000 a month on food?!! I eat well enough on about $90 a month. I get the grocery store deals baby! lol Updated On: 9/1/04 at 11:57 PM

[Ebonic_Singer]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:23am

Yeah--I've never heard of $250 a week for a voice teacher. No teacher is worth that unless they're Idina's or Eden's or someone who obviously has learned an awsome technique--and I doubt even theirs is $250 an hour.

[birdboy782]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 12:02pm

Pamela Payton-Wright stepped in for Vanessa Redgrave when her mother died.

I saw her play the role at the Goodman before it went to Broadway (Vanessa had nothing to do with it at that point) - and she was by far superior to Vanessa.

It's always sad to the better actor booted for a star name. Ah well. Not that Vanessa was bad - but it was a very special performance by Pamela...

Who was also very nice at the stage door!

[NBRISBY]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 12:59pm

1) most bway people dont have time to cook, so they have to eat on during breaks and such...10 bucks a pop at least, 3 times a day, 30 bucks a day, drinks after the show is around 50 bucks a day...thats 1500 dollars. i estimated 1000. i found that fair.

i also have to defend the 1000/month for lessons. Seth Riggscharges 250 for a half hour last i heard. most bway people take 1-2 times a week. so, it is possible for a bway performer to spend 2000/month (if there are four weeks in a month, and not five). most good teachers in NYC are at least 100/lesson. that still makes quite a dent in the budget.

The point of the post was to say that 2000/month goes VERY quickly in the city...not to mention that the smart performer saves their money so they don't starve or have to get a temp job in between gigs.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:08pm

They don't have time to cook?? They work fewer hours than the majority of the population! And charging $250 for a half hour is CRIMINAL.

[NBRISBY]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:10pm

Seth Riggs could be called a criminal for what he's done to some voices. And, most Bway people don't have time to cook b/c they are always in rehearsals for the show...they have put-in rehearsals, brush-up rehearsals, rehearsals for new readings, auditions, meetings with agents/managers, headshot appointments, and a number of other things to keep them constantly on the go. It's a fun life, but it is not a life where you work a mere 8 hours every day.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:15pm

Those rehearsals are pretty much done once the show opens. Understudies rehearse once every two weeks generally, sometimes once a week. Put-in rehearsals are obviously a rarity if they happen at all. Actors don't go hang out at their managers'/agents' offices unless they have a specific meeting, which again, isn't that often. How often do people have headshots done? Once every six months, at the most. Meanwhile most of us work 8 straight hours 5 days a week, not including commuting time, and still manage to live our lives and cook our dinners. We don't have any more free time then they do. Probably quite a bit less.

[Fair 2 Middlin]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:22pm

Not too many people I know who live in the city, myself included don't cook. It's easier to order in.

What's in my fridge?
Half & Half, champagne, leftover chinese.

freezer?
Ice cream, vodka, bag of peas,

& $10 a meal? Where you eating? McDonalds?

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:31pm

Me too, Fair! And I don't make close to $2000 a week, do you?

[Fair 2 Middlin]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:37pm

Not yet anyway.
Rath, were you a personal assistant for Mizz Turner?

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:43pm

I was, yes.

[Fair 2 Middlin]

Posted: 9/2/04 at 1:49pm

check your pm

[JohnnyTlover216]

Posted: 9/3/04 at 3:19am

I am also surprised at the Hunter Foster experiences- and the Rick Lyon ones- but yea, like all of you have been saying, everyone has their off days. When my friend and I went to "rent", we wanted to get Frenchi Davis to sign our playbills, I had to run after her and ask her- and she said "uhg, Fine" (with an attitude) "but don't bring a whole croud"... I know it's not as bad as some of the ones I've read- but it was the worst that I delt with. I guess it just annoyed me that she had just got in rent (it wasn't too long after she had just became the soloist person) and she was already annoyed by people asking her for her autograph-- I would be flattered. But yea, maybe she was just in a bad mood- or just doesn't like fans surrounding her I guess.

[SusanBway]

Posted: 9/3/04 at 4:36pm

I haven't been on this board in a few days so I'm glad that this thread is still going strong. I must add my 2 cents even though I'm not the first to mention this person. I couldn't believe how rude Patti Lupone was to her fans after Noises Off. I guess I shouldn't complain b/c I did manage to get her to sign my playbill. I told her I was a big fan of hers ever since the tv show Life Goes On. She finished signing & walked (ran) to her waiting car. Sure, we all have bad days or maybe she had somewhere to go but now I know I'm not the only one.

But I still think she's a great performer unlike: Jason Biggs. I was unfortunate enough to meet him after the Graduate. I didn't really want his autograph, but I was waiting for Linda Gray (the NICEST @ the stage door) who was in the show for a few days. So when he came out I figured, what the heck.....big mistake. An absolute jerk! He obviously didn't want to sign or talk with anyone and if that's the case, then he shouldn't have bothered! Believe me, I wish I didn't have his autograph on my playbill cover.

[BwayLover]

Posted: 9/3/04 at 4:44pm

Jason Biggs? Really? I met him after seeing "The Graduate" (but with Kathleen Turner) and thought he was an absolute sweetheart. Hmmmm.

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 9/3/04 at 4:46pm

When we were at the Wicked stage door, there were some rude (well more annoying than rude) ladies waiting right behind us. It was after the show, and they wanted to get Randy Harrison's autograph/picture. They kept saying "Where's Randy? We want Randy!" When someone other than Randy came out, they would say "We don't care about you! We want Randy!" They didn't say this loud enough for the actors to hear, but it was still annoying and rude. Unfortunately for them, Randy didn't come out that day.

[SusanBway]

Posted: 9/3/04 at 4:48pm

BwayLover, it's incredible that people can have such different stories to tell. I'm glad that he was nice to you. I guess I'll have to believe I caught him on a bad day.