Do you expect performers to be great 8 shows a week?- Page 9

[Kad]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 4:53pm

You think this is bad? Go to Datalounge.

[newintown]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 4:54pm

"People outside of this message board have told me "Don't go there, people there are really rude, pretentious, arrogant and snobby"..."

It's very true - I was on the crosstown bus just the other day and heard a woman saying that to her child. Everyone, simply everyone is talking about broadwayworld.com's message board.

[SNAFU]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 4:56pm

That is almost verbatim to what my Dad's final words were to the hospice worker!

[binau]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 4:56pm

"singing/dancing/acting for long hours at rehearsals every day is much harder than educating kids about spelling/grammar."

Look we need to clearly define what 'harder' is here. Obviously because being a teacher actually requires an education that alone is something that might make teaching 'hard' for some actors who may not be very academic.

(I am not a teacher).

Updated On: 5/20/13 at 04:56 PM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 4:57pm

1. NO ONE GETS FIRED for simply going up on a line. EVER. It happens.

2. Therefore, no one gets stressed out about it. Mistakes happen: all the time.

3. Why, oh, why didn't you listen to the people?

People get upset with you because despite that EVERYONE on this thread has disagreed with you, you insist that you are right. You got lots of "thanks for showing up" trophies as an even younger child, yes?

NO ONE has said that this isn't a demanding job. It just in no way is what you are making it.

[BroadwayStar4]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:01pm

"Is posting here more or less demanding than being a Broadway actress?"

And this is where you live up to the bad reputation that this message board holds. The unnecessary childish sarcasm.

And who knows what point newintown is trying to make....

I keep posting here because this is a pretty active place to talk about Broadway, West End and everything theatre.

[Kad]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:08pm

You don't want to discuss theatre. You want to tell everyone they're wrong.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:08pm

I love the idea that being a housekeeper is the same as just doing chores around your own house. Applying the same logic, then being an actor is just playing pretend. I bet we can make almost any job sound less demanding if we don't let our brains get clogged up with all that useless critical thinking.

[Dave19]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:13pm

The only people that really understand what it is like to do a show 8 times a week, are the ones who have done it. Everyone else is just speculating.

Updated On: 5/20/13 at 05:13 PM

[BroadwayStar4]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:14pm

"People get upset with you because despite that EVERYONE on this thread has disagreed with you, you insist that you are right"

Just because everyone here disagreed with me, doesn't mean that they're right.

"It just in no way is what you are making it."

Someone here said that babysitting is much more demanding than being a Broadway performer. Seriously? Even a 13-year-old can babysit without going through any challenges. I've babysat before, and it was easy as pie. I'm literally astonished that people actually think that. Please, give me examples that you think is less demanding than being a Broadway performer. Maybe we can agree on something there.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:16pm

Please, give me examples that you think is less demanding than being a Broadway performer.

Nepotism.

[jnb9872]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:16pm

The direction this thread has taken has never been because you disagree with people or your opinions. It's because you make grandiose, outrageously hyperbolic claims. Then, when asked to elaborate on your claims, you defensively demean any contrary opinions with strawman arguments. Then, when called out on your strawmen, you criticize the nature of people on this board, who are perfectly capable of any number of civil disagreements when opinions are shared with dignity and respect. Maybe you haven't been party to any of those civil conversations... when the various members of this message board react to an individual in a consistent manner, is it the various and ever-changing members of the community who are to blame, or could the fault lie with the common denominator in all of your interactions with these people... you?

[Dave19]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:21pm

I have been teaching too, and when I got home at 5, I could just go to a birthday party with friends and loud music. That was not possible when I was performing. Also, it didn't matter if I had a little cold, a little cough, a late night, not 8 hours of sleep, a birthday party, a wedding, a day with family,

there is just NO comparison to the amount of pressure and responsibility you have 24 hours a day as a performer to maintain the quality.

Being a performer is not a job. It is a lifestyle. And the performing itself is only a part of it. Every 24 hours of the day are dedicated to it.

Updated On: 5/20/13 at 05:21 PM

[BroadwayStar4]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:33pm

"who are perfectly capable of any number of civil disagreements when opinions are shared with dignity and respect."
-------------

Oh please. Look at the first page. I merely disagreed with people, and I quickly get accused of being "the OP who always wants to be right" just because I had the balls to reply to people and say that I disagree.

Someone actually yelled at me, saying "yeah THAT'S THE JOB blah blah....", when he/she basically repeated what I just said.

I also asked a simple question, and I get an unnecessary "This isn't new" response....come on....

You call that civil?


"there is just NO comparison to the amount of pressure and responsibility you have 24 hours a day as a performer to maintain the quality."
----------

Exactly, I agree.



Updated On: 5/20/13 at 05:33 PM

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:40pm

I have been teaching too, and when I got home at 5, I could just go to a birthday party with friends and loud music. That was not possible when I was performing.

When you were performing, was it the only job you had? What time did you have to get up in the morning compared to your teaching job? I think it's great that when you were teaching, you had no other responsibilities once you left the classroom, but that experience may not be as common as you think. And when performance is your sole occupation, it's like switching from a day shift to an evening shift.

Also, it didn't matter if I had a little cold, a little cough, a late night, not 8 hours of sleep, a birthday party, a wedding, a day with family,

there is just NO comparison to the amount of pressure and responsibility you have 24 hours a day as a performer to maintain the quality.

None! Except that is precisely what it is like for many people with full-time jobs.

[jnb9872]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:46pm

Sure, look at the first page. Gaveston's remark called you out for contradicting yourself between the two sentences of one paragraph. Then you curtly responded with the very kind of "unnecessary childish sarcasm" which you later hypocritically criticized this board for being known.

Just accept criticism, accept when you're wrong, accept when people correct you, accept when people call you out, primarily try to avoid doing all of the above if you can, but remain civil. The second you actively antagonize others, you start finding antagonists everywhere...

[BroadwayStar4]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 5:59pm

Nice try, jnb9872, but no. Gaveston repeated what I said. He/she said that one must find a way to to deal with it. And I agree with that. That's why I said that even though it's hard, they have to be mentally, physically, emotionally ready. That's one of the many ways to deal with it. And I was YELLED at. When you yell at someone (even with capital letters), don't expect an "Aww you're so sweet" reply.

[Dave19]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 6:16pm

Yes, the "performing" was the only job I had at the time.

Being a performer is the only job that you do 24 hours a day.
When I was a teacher it was only from 8.30 am to 16.30 pm. Of course I had to prepare lessons etc at home or in weekends, but it's just no comparison.

Full day rehearsals, promo work, meetings with agents, guest appearances, singing lessons, rehearsals for events, auditions for new shows or commercials, preparing for the show, all your administration, arrange cv's, headshots, contact agencies, physical, vocal warm up, AND 8 shows a week, including 2 matinees.

Every moment that I was awake was fully dedicated to the performing. It included a special diet and a very tight sleeping schedule. And an immense amount of pressure to be in perfect condition physically, emotionally and vocally for every performance.

Like I said, all the normal things like going to a restaurant,
hiccups, coughing, a late night, a day with your little nephews, a wedding, an hour in a bar with loud music, a little cold, a date, can all influence your performance and those things would not affect most normal jobs. No one cared if I had a little cough when I was teaching. Or any of those things.



Updated On: 5/20/13 at 06:16 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 6:19pm

And yet somehow, Broadway actors manage to go out to bars and restaurants and events and have lives.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 6:37pm

Being a performer is the only job that you do 24 hours a day.

You're right! Especially compared to something like a doctor doing his or her residence!

[SNAFU]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 6:42pm

Or an astronaut in the space lab. Or a Fire Fighter sleeping at the station house while on duty, of Lady Gaga's personal assistant…. oh the list go on. If you are dedicated to your carrer it is a 24/7 job for you. I know I can't plan personal days or events to attend because of possible deadlines.

[Kad]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 6:46pm

Foxconn workers live in their factory.

[best12bars]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 6:46pm

My mother was both an elementary school teacher and a Broadway actress ...

She said they were both equally as hard.

And they were her dream jobs. She counted herself lucky to have done both.

To answer the original question ... YES, I think performers should do everything within their power to be "great" for 8 shows a week.

No question. And audience members have every right to be upset, disappointed, and even mad if they can't deliver.

That's their job.

[jnb9872]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 6:49pm

Soldiers in active duty combat... Small business farmers and ranchers who tend to their own crops and livestock... International stock brokers who trade at all hours over the globe... Undercover cops who embed themselves in the criminal underworld... Marine biologists on months- or years-long scientific voyages... Park rangers who live in their territories...

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/20/13 at 7:16pm

My mother was both an elementary school teacher and a Broadway actress ...

You should have read the thread first. Before you even posted that, it was proven and verified that your mother is wrong.

Full day rehearsals, promo work, meetings with agents, guest appearances, singing lessons, rehearsals for events, auditions for new shows or commercials, preparing for the show, all your administration, arrange cv's, headshots, contact agencies, physical, vocal warm up, AND 8 shows a week, including 2 matinees.

And not all performers do all those things, especially all the time (if you're getting headshots that often, you've got a really crappy photographer and ordering copies rarely takes more time than an Equity break during rehearsal). There is a lot that has to do with personal work ethic, passion, and the demands one places on oneself. I've worked as a performer and in the corporate world and believe me, there are MILLIONS of workaholics in stressful jobs who take their work home with them every day, every weekend, and are on call 24/7.

Being a performer is the only job that you do 24 hours a day.

For those performers who choose to do it 24 hours a day.