Personal life of a Broadway performer

[christian_drake]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 1:43am

Acting is one of the most unsteady occupations out there. Especially if you're a Broadway performer!

I understand that Broadway performers work 6-7 days a week, and often 8 shows a week. That's a lot! I was wondering if there was any website, magazine, interview, etc, where I can find information on the personal life of a performer?

Some things I wouldn't mind knowing (this is just what comes to mind):
1) Is it possible to hold relationships?
2) Take care of children?
3) What do you do after a show has closed? Constant auditions?
4) Financially, is it easy to make it?

These questions could be asked to any performer, Broadway or not. Music Theater of Wichita, they have actors from across the world come perform. Kristin Chenoweth was here many years ago :)

Thank you

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 1:54am

I don't think any Broadway performers have ever held relationships and certainly none of them take care of children, that I'm aware of. The pay is very very good once you're on Broadway so pretty much, after you've done a show on Broadway you're all set. Anything after that is pure gravy.

[christian_drake]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 1:57am

Well, some of them DO have relationships. Brian D'Arcy James has a daughter (IDK if he's married, but he has a daughter, so he HAS had a relationship).

I believe Cheyenne Jackson has been with his partner for 7 years?

I might be getting facts mixed up.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 2:04am

No. Once you agree to be a Broadway performer, you also sign a celibacy agreement.

[christian_drake]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 2:07am

^Haha :P

What about touring companies? Are they able to sustain relationships?

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 2:39am

Some touring companies make them sign contracts that say they can't have any kind of relationship with any human being. Plants only.

[sweetTb'way]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 2:42am

Ok ok, before this thread quickly gets out of hand......haha

Not sure any performer would call themselves a "Broadway Performer." Work is work and I'm pretty sure it's safe to say that everyone who has worked on Broadway has also worked regionally and/or toured before & after they've worked on Broadway.

1) Is it possible to hold relationships?

Yes. Completely possible. The lifestyle of a performer (hours, traveling, ins & outs of the business, etc.) can pose lots of difficulties sometimes but what relationship is without difficulties?

2) Take care of children?

Plenty of performers have families & children. Yes it can be done. Sacrifice & compromise probably come into play as far as career choices are concerned once a family is involved but yes, performers have kids & take care of them.

3) What do you do after a show has closed? Constant auditions?

Shows close. It's a part of the business. Performers know this and life goes on. Other jobs will come and yes, auditions are a must - lots of times even when they are currently employed.

4) Financially, is it easy to make it?

Depends & varies. Depends on the job, contract, length of employment. And also depends on the time in between jobs.

Bottom line, it's a tough business. People do it because they love it. You make things work: Performing, Relationships, Kids, Finances. It's not always stable but it's exhilarating and it takes a love that other people will never understand.
But YES, it can all be done & plenty of performers are doing it.

[tommigyrl5]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 3:15am

I'm not going to jump on the previous bandwagon of totally making fun of this person-but I will say this:

What job nowadays doesn't require you to make sacrifices? To single out actors as special or alone in this category is a little fantastical. Acting is like any other job.

Say you grow up with a father who was in finance...you'd never see him but I bet you'd have no financial difficulties.

Actors have most of their days free...they can take their kids to school and pick them up before they have to go to work...they may not make a ton of money but they don't work 15 hour days like business folks. Some would say spending time with your kids is worth more than money. Thats a personal preference.

Acting is a passion job but its not like this other worldly position. These are real people with real lives.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 5:10am

Stage actors live their lives differently, but they lead them the same way....some have relationships, some have families. Each actor needs to find the ways that they can make it work.

I would suspect that the understanding of the business of theater is a must for any "significant other" and not all possible mates could make the necessary adjustments...because it is not "normal".

As for work...for some it's very steady: Krysta Rodgriquez has gone from show to show with a great run of SEVERAL YEARS being employed:
Spring Awakening
A Chorus Line
In the Heights
Addams Family

Most are NOT that lucky. But they supplement their income constantly....they constantly audition, they do Monday night gigs, appearances when they can get them, they get day jobs/temp jobs when they need them, they go on tours, they go to regional theaters....they do whatever they can to find jobs.

Susan Blackwell (Title of Show) supposedly never left her office management position even once they hit b'way...but she was able to reduce her hours.

How each performer handles it is up to them, but I'm guessing that being financially responsible while you are being paid is a must. MANY of the younger performers on B'way live relatively sparsely...roommates, public transportation, etc.

No, financially it is NOT easy to make it. For every consistantly working actor in NY there are probably 100 wannabees. I'm sure the number of actors that get ONE b'way show and then never land another is high.

Acting (in any medium) is not for wimps.

[CockeyedOptimist2]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 8:21am

Read this book: "Making it on Broadway: Actors' Tales of Climbing to the Top" by David Wienir and Jodie Langel. They interviewed about 150 Broadway actors of all types about all aspects of their lives. It answers a lot of the questions you posed from a lot of different perspectives. It was fascinating and I loved reading it!

[BroadwayBound115]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 10:29am

Making It On Broadway is an excellent book. I recommend it to anyone that truly wants a career on Broadway.

[ashley0139]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 10:48am

I think it's funny that you singled out actors. How about ANYONE who works in the theatre. Stage managers, stage hands, etc. They often work way more hours than actors but have the same kind of schedule and issues (financial, touring/traveling, etc). And yet, everyone always forgets about them.

[nealb1]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 11:52am

Ok, I'll bite - why in the world would anyone think that actors can't have relationships, etc. What an absurd thing to say/ask.

What about accountants, cops, waiters, drivers, etc.....

[singtopher]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 12:32pm

My theory would be basically how the career demands of an actor (or a cop, waiter, truck driver, or any job that requires "odd" hours) differ from what are the learned norms in society. People have difficulty seeing how that lifestyle would work with family.

Also, while there are many ups and downs for the backstage crew as well, there are many more opportunities for them. In addition to theatre, they can work on rock concerts (some tours employ well over 100 techs.) special events, ice shows, the circus, you name it. For regional theatres, the technical crews are usually on staff and work for years at the same theatre on scores of different productions. That gives them not only steady income, but steady locale as well.

In my experience the largest difficulty actors face in personal relationships is how much long distance is involved. Couples spend a lot of effort and money to stay as close as possible. Additionally, if an actor is in a show and their spouse has a day job they don't get to see them as often as most couples do. Even on a day with only one evening performance there are often rehearsals in the afternoon for understudies, put-ins, and fixes. Unless they live close enough, most actors have to say around the theatre for their dinner break before the show.

Actors with children also face many hardships. They miss out on a lot: Birthday's, soccer games, band concerts, etc. Most NY based actors just don't have the luxury to only be able to accept work that will keep in them in town.

It's not impossible, but it's not easy.

[WishingOnlyWounds2]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 2:18pm

Kerry Butler, Kevin Kern, and Charlotte d'Amboise all have kids, to name a few. Stephanie J. Block and Sebastian Arcelus got married while in WICKED by taking some time off and flying to Italy. So, you can make time for other things.

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 2:43pm

It's just a job, like any other job.

They manage their lives, just as any other person on this planet does.


This is the strangest question I think I've ever seen here.

[BrookeTansley]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 4:19pm

Hi. I was on Broadway for close to 4 years. I see a lot of misinformation on this board, particularly when it comes to finances. I'd like to shed some light on this. I aim to be helpful.

I've just dug out a random pay stub from my time in Hairspray. At this time I was a swing with several principal understudies (Penny, Prudy, Amber) and chorus feature covers (Dynamites).

4/01/2004

Earnings - 1643.00

Deductions -
Fed w/h : 316.37
FICA INS: 101.87
FICA MED: 23.82
NY w/h: 91.03
NY DISB: .60
NYC tax: 53.38
UNION: 32.86
MISC (Agent): 164.30

401K: 49.29

weekly take home pay = $809.48
monthly take home pay = $3237.92

At the time I rented a 435 square foot apartment in the 100s on Amsterdam that was a rent stabilized $1250 per month.

$3337.92 - $1250 = $1987.92

I took 4 45 min voice lessons per month with Liz Caplan (who is wonderful) @ $660 per month.

$1987.92 - $660 = $1327.92

I'm going to estimate phone, electricity, gas, internet, tv, and monthly MetroCard costs at $310 per month.

$1327.92 - $290 = $1017.92

This left me with approximately $255 per week for food and anything else that might come up. Accompanist fees to learn songs for auditions, for example, or anything else life might require that isn't food or shelter.

Principals who aren't names from non-Broadway work do not make the kind of figures I've seen tossed around here on the board. Unfortunately, due to contract obligations I can't discuss my B&theB pay.

Hope this sheds some light on things for those aiming for Broadway. It is beyond wonderful.

Save your pennies. I've made more money in 13 days of on camera work than I did in an entire year of full time work on Broadway.

:) Brooke

[BrookeTansley]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 4:38pm

I should add that I was very frugal during these years. I managed to get out of $11,000 of credit card debt that I racked up during the years before Broadway. I also managed to sock away around $12,000 into a 401K that I liquidated last year in order to get together the down payment for the house in L.A. that my husband and I just bought last year after the housing bubble burst.

I found that I couldn't have the adult life that I wanted in NYC. I married another actor. We want kids. We wanted a house with a yard. We couldn't afford the down payment on a house in Jersey. We didn't feel like we could responsibly bring children into our lives until we owned a home. We didn't want the constant black cloud of worry that I've seen hanging over the lives of our friends who are actor couples with children and still renting.

We hope to buy a tiny fixer house in CT (my family is there) within the next 3-5 years. I would love to return to Broadway at some point, but our home base is now California.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 4:41pm

Brooke -- you are very gracious and brave to share your earnings/expenses with us. Thank you!

As for scheduling, I can speak to that:

When you land that audition and sign the contract, you are theirs until the show goes up. Yes, you get a day off a week, but when you're in rehearsal for production, (depending on the show) you are normally still working while not at rehearsal (reviewing lines, music, choreography, staging, tracking, research, not to mention your personal fitness, vocal training, etc.). And during this time, sleep is very, very important. So forget about a social life. You'll perhaps have 1-2 nights out for drinks.

Everything goes into Opening Night. Your schedule opens up more. The only rehearsals you have would be for clean-ups, put-ins, or understudies. You would need to be available for press (such as TV performances, benefits, BC/EFA events, the Tonys, etc.). But a few weeks after Opening, things die down and you have MUCH more time on your hands. Generally speaking: on non-matinee days you don't have a call until beginning an hour before the curtain...you're there for three hours...you go home -- so you have most of the day to do as you please.

Of course, that's only if you're show is a hit. If you suspect the show will close, then you're back out on the field during the day, going to auditions and looking for that next job.

[BrookeTansley]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 4:49pm

Your welcome. I hate when I see misinformation out there, or folks that are very adamant about their misinformation being true. It does nothing but hurt the folks who are aiming to do this for a living.

I can verify CapnHook's info with a few changes.

Call is half hour before a show.

Auditioning happens constantly and will till the day you die or quit the business. Even if your show is a hit.

Hairspray was such a hit that, as I recall, we only wound up with 4 days off in the first year and 3 months that we were working on the show, due to all of the activities that CapnHook mentioned.

[BrookeTansley]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 4:56pm

I'd like to comment on the relationship aspect of being a Broadway actor.

As a woman I found dating on Broadway a ton of fun but very difficult, due to the plain mathematics of the situation. It felt next to impossible to find anything lasting. Hundreds of talented, beautiful, intelligent, successful, funny women and about 5 straight guys. If your lucky you can catch one of the crew guys, but there's a lot of competition there too.

The work schedule makes it difficult to meet people in other professions. The schedule also leaves little time to actually see people in other professions even if you meet one you're really into.

[christian_drake]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 6:03pm

To everyone laughing at this question, or thinking it is stupid:

I have heard about the personal life of Broadway actors being not-as-great as others. I thought that made sense, considering showtimes are basically family times. Say your spouse works 9-5. You have to be at the theater at 6-11, roughly. You're working in the time you'd usually spend with your family. Also, I wasn't just talking about when you are employed. What if your family all lives in NYC because you've been on Broadway, but then you get a gig in California. Do you just relocate the family and hope your spouse gets a job? It's things like this that I'm wondering.

To all the people who have answered this question helpfully:
Thank you very much! I will probably check out the book "Making it on Broadway". Sounds interesting!

Brooke:
I greatly appreciate your kind response! The breakdown of your finances were very helpful and much appreciated. "Hundreds of talented, beautiful, intelligent, successful, funny women and about 5 straight guys." That is very true. Lol. Talking about sexuality, I'm a gay male so it probably wouldn't be TOO hard to find someone! Haha. Also, the little random facts you stated like "Call is half hour before show", I really do appreciate that. All of the little facts, not just that one. Believe it or not, I HAVE been wondering when call is for most shows. Lol. Thank you SO MUCH for your help! Nowhere on the internet have I been able to find information that you just gave me. NOWHERE!!!

Again, thank you

[Patash]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 6:14pm

I guess I don't get why you're singling actors out for having unusual hours to work. Are you aware how many millions of people work evening hours or through the nighttime hours besides actors? And most of them work a lot more of those hours than Broadway performers. And do you know how many people travel for business -- perhaps all over the world and some for very long periods of time? They too can and often do have relationships.

[snowskittle]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 6:22pm

Brooke,

Thanks so much for your posts and your candor. Your notes should be a real eye opener to those who imagine it to be such a glamorous life. Unless you are a star, the work is very hard and the pay is very low and the social life is tough for many reasons.

Your notes should be required reading for the thousands of high school students with Broadway in their dreams and stars in their eyes. And you are one of the lucky ones who actually got work. For every one of you there will be hundreds (thousands?) every year who don't "make it", and even for those who do, it's still a hard life. Not that it doesn't have its own rewards, but the point is that for anyone thinking of entering this world, it's a long hard slog for all, and even for the lucky ones it's not easy.

Thanks for posting.

[BrookeTansley]

Posted: 2/27/10 at 6:25pm

Your welcome, christian!

Your bound to find great and not-so-great lives anywhere. No generalization can be made. There are challenges in every type of life.

I loved my life on Broadway. I was living my dream, and it was spectacular. There is something about achieving all of your dreams by age 26. Life keeps on going and ya get to make new set of dreams and get going on those. It's different once you start on new dreams. There is a contentment, enjoyment of the moment, relaxation, and confidence now that I didn't have whilst I toiled in the years before and during Broadway. I love my life. I loved it then and I love it now.

Good luck. I hope that you achieve all of your dreams.