Non-Equity Tours - Scam?- Page 3

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 5/3/07 at 9:41pm

I usually find that the talent in Non-Equity shows is usually lacking. At least that's been my case. The most recent RENT tour had some pretty horibble vocalists.

[Mr. Tuttle]

Posted: 5/3/07 at 9:55pm

Go Non Equity! Also known as Broadway's wake up call.

[WICKEDFAN2]

Posted: 5/3/07 at 10:01pm

I saw this, is anyone going...
www.childrenstalentconsultants.com
seems like a good thing for kids auditioning for the show.

[stageagent13]

Posted: 5/3/07 at 11:43pm

i saw a non-equity Aida and it was the most horrendous theater experience I have ever had. the show was just BAD and it seemd like half the male actors came from Medieval Times

[bwayfan4ever2]

Posted: 5/3/07 at 11:56pm

wickedfan2 you registered today. What's your motivation for posting this website?

[Switz78]

Posted: 5/3/07 at 11:58pm

Actually Equity came up with a special experimental tour contract that allows producers to pay less for something like an Equity tour of Annie because it is not coming straight from Bway or because of the cast size and size of house it will be playing. That started about 2 years back and haven't heard much about it lately.

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 12:23am

I haven't heard great things about the current non-equity tour of Rent. I had the opportunity to see it recently and choose not to because of the things I had heard about its current cast. To be quite honest, I'm not sure if I'd shell out money to see Rent. I just like listening to the soundtrack(yes,soundtrack) every now and then.

[rgaywrites]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 1:22am

I go to school and teach at a university in Houghton, MI, where the non-equity tour of AIDA came to town last fall. It wasn't a perfect show by any means, but it was the best night of entertainment I've had up here in two years. They were here for one night and the theatre was sold out. If the show had stayed longer, those performances would likely have been sold out as well. For us, up here, our only hope of seeing theatre is through non-equity tours. We're ten hours North of Detroit. We're way past the middle of nowhere. This is an economically depressed area, where the only industries, mining and logging, are no longer in operation in any significant way. Without the university, this place wouldn't exist.

The theatre where AIDA played would have loved the company to stay longer, but couldn't afford it. I think its easy to judge non-equity tours when you live in NYC or other major metropolitan areas. I'm lucky enough to be able to travel to see shows in NYC and elsewhere, but for most of us up here, we take what we can get and we appreciate it because without non-equity shows, it would be quite depressing. I also know that most people here can't afford more than $40 or $50 to see a show, and even that's a financial stretch. I believe the top ticket price for AIDA was $36. I know my friends and I, as graduate students, paid $18 for second row seats. That would never happen with an equity show. And so, blah blah blah, I ramble, but I say all this just to say that I think unions are important, and I wish all tours could be equity, but for those of us in these more remote places, where money is scarce, non-equity tours are invaluable.

[winston89]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 4:42am

I always get the impresson that the actors/crew on a non equity show that is considered to be the national tour of its broadway counterpart ( Rent, Hairspray, and maybe the new tour of A chorus Line) the actors and crew are treated better then your run of the mill truck and bus tours.

[WaitingForKathy]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 10:40am

I've seen numerous Broadway shows that sucked (Producers, B&B anyone?). Just saying that it's on Bway doesnt make it better at all. I saw Cats a year ago and it was great. I saw Man of La mancha recently and it was great. Saw Prodcuers on Bway a year ago and it was so bad. The whole argument that Equity stuff is better is bogus. There are plenty of untalented Equity people out there and on Broadway. But just cause it's in NYC, everyine thinks it's better but it's not.

[TechEverlasting]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 11:00am

The point I've been trying to make is that Equity shows pay better, not so much that they are better. I'm sure the Wedding Singer and Chorus Line tours will be well put together. I doubt the actors will be getting health insurance, full per diem and wages comparable with Broadway.

The ticket prices will be the same though.

Posted: 5/4/07 at 11:18am

No, the ticket prices are NOT the same.

[TechEverlasting]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 11:34am

REALLY? We'll just have to wait until the Wedding Singer and Chorus Line tours go out and see how much of a "non-Equity" discount is built into the ticket prices.

[Neverandy]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 1:32pm

Switz-the Special agreement contract has been in use for almost 10 years now.
Once again I agree with Tech. On the non-eq tour that I mentioned in my previous post, there was no difference in ticket prices for my tour than there was for phantom or Les mis when we played major markets. That really sucked-thinking about where all that cash was going.

[lildogs]

Posted: 5/4/07 at 1:55pm

"The point I've been trying to make is that Equity shows pay better, not so much that they are better."

And people in musicals generally make money than people in plays--OF COURSE Equity people make more than non-equity people.

Our crew WAS IATSE, btw--I think alot of non-eq tours have union crews.

As far as ticket prices, those are set by the vendors, who purchase the show for a lump sum from the producers. They can choose to charge what the market will allow.

And many places we played charged $25-40 a ticket...usually the one-nighters. I TOTALLY AGREE that the tickets are too high--our tix in DC and LA were regular theatre prices at about $80-100--which is way too much to spend on ANY production of GREASE--it's just not worth it.

If you also count in our hotel and travel money, we made about $1100/wk.

[ucjrdude902]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 1:04pm

sorry to bring this back

but alot of people do non-eq tours to become a member of AEA. thats what a friend of mine did.

[sondhead]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 1:24pm

"(I don't know anyone who makes $1400 a week for only 16 hours worth of work)"

What actors do YOU know that work 16 hours a week?

Actors work much longer than this. You do realize Broadway rehearses during the day, right?

[ElFantasma14]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 2:55pm

Techeverlasting, is "A Chorus Line" definately going to be a non-equity tour?

[TapTapTapioca]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 2:59pm

I just saw HAIRSPRAY on Wednesday Night and even though it was a non-equity tour and it was worth every penny, they were all great!

[ucjrdude902]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 3:05pm

ive heard that non-union auditions u have to find out on ur own? is that true?

[junkyard]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 3:20pm

(a response from a 40 year memeber of AEA).......my most recent project was working under a production contract during the past season(yes, I am a working actor). In my opinion we as union memers need to stand united in an effort to unionize our national tours......When the current production contracts are up for negotiation, I would gladly support a work action on Broadway as a bargaining tool with the producers in obtaining a fair agreement in regard to this issue. Broadway is the biggest bargaining chip our union has, and we should not be afraid to use it.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 3:26pm

Tom14850 - not sure if we saw the same Wonderful Town, but it was pretty bad. The lead lady who played the Donna Murphy role was great, but other than that I was really bored and thought the production values looked cheap and almost like a bad high school production.

[friedrichVT]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 7:53pm

Just to clarify a previous post, The Avenue Q tour is A FULL production contract. No tiers,no experimental contract..., full production.

[Elphaba3]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 8:02pm

I saw the NE Hsirspray tour in April and I loved every second of it.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/9/07 at 8:52pm

I've only seen one non-Equity tour in my entire life, and it was awful, but it gave me bragging rights: Joe Machota as Joseph.