[NEohioPAL] A Note About Dobama Theatre's Equity Status
Julie Friedman
jfriedman at dobama.org
Fri Apr 11 12:26:01 PDT 2014
Greater Cleveland Theatre Community (particularly area Actors and Stage
Managers),
We at Dobama Theatre have received some questions regarding our status as an
Equity Theatre beginning the upcoming 2014-15 Season. In the interest of
transparency, to try and answer some of the questions you may have, and to
help to clear up any confusion around what this announcement means for area
artists, we've included some frequently asked questions below. Dobama
remains committed to producing first-rate professional theatre using the
gifted theatre artists who live in this region. Dobama will continue to cast
from the considerable pool of local acting talent, both Equity and
non-Equity while providing ALL actors and stage managers with a professional
working environment as laid out in the AEA- SPT rulebook.
Everyone at Dobama has a great amount of admiration and respect for the
entire theatre community, including all theaters and actors (regardless of
union affiliation) and we appreciate everyone's support as we take this
important step for our theatre and for the community at large. We believe
strongly that "a rising tide lifts all ships" and we look forward to
continuing to expand our collaboration with and support of all of the area's
amazing theatre artists and organizations. Please do not hesitate to email
us with any questions or concerns. We will be announcing the dates for our
general auditions soon and we look forward to seeing you there.
With Love and Respect,
The Staff of Dobama Theatre
WHAT DOES BEING AN EQUITY THEATRE MEAN?
An Equity theatre is considered in the theatre industry to be a fully
professional theatre. They pay union actors and stage managers a base rate
as well as other benefits (health, pension, etc). An Equity theatre can also
offer union membership, through an AEA contract, to non-union actors. Equity
houses can also offer non-union actors Equity Membership Candidate "points".
After a certain number of weeks working at an Equity theatre, a non-union
actor can then enter the AEA union. It also means that the theatre operates
according to the AEA rulebook (which regulates everything from rehearsal
lengths and breaks to the washing of costumes). There are various types of
Equity Theatres, based primarily on size, from Small Professional Theatres -
SPT (which Dobama will be) to LORT houses (large regional theatres). These
different types of Equity Theatres have different rules and regulations.
WHY BECOME AN EQUITY THEATRE?
Dobama Theatre has a long history of producing high-quality productions of
important new plays for the Greater Cleveland community. We've been a
professional theatre in some regard for well over two decades paying all
directors, designers, actors, and staff. While Dobama has been generally
operating as an Equity theatre for many years, (using 1-5 Equity actors per
show and adhering to Equity SPT rules for breaks, work weeks, costumes,
etc), the formal process of becoming an Equity Theatre is an important step.
It signals a commitment to paying all theatre professionals a more livable
wage, allows all actors and stage managers the opportunity to work in an
acceptable standard of professional working conditions, and is a visible and
outward sign of the level of theatre that Dobama produces. We also hope this
will allow actors who are starting their career to stay in this area by
having more opportunities to attain union membership and/ or accrue EMC
points.
WILL DOBAMA STILL HIRE NON-AEA ACTORS?
Absolutely. In fact, the ratio for union and non-union actors will stay
about the same as in past seasons (using 1-5 AEA actors depending on cast
size). There will be no change in the number of opportunities for non-AEA
actors to work at Dobama Theatre. We will also be able to offer non-union
actors EMC points, in some cases offer an Equity card outright, and give a
guarantee to all employed at Dobama that we operate according to AEA rules
for working conditions.
*It's important to state that we believe an actor's union affiliation is no
reflection on the quality of their work. Dobama Theatre will still cast the
actor that is best for the role regardless of their Equity status. However,
taking this step should help many of the talented non-union actors gain
acceptance in AEA through both contracts offered and the EMC points system.
WHAT DOES THIS MEANS FOR AEA ACTORS AND STAGE MANAGERS?
By taking this step, Dobama has made a commitment to pay Health Insurance
weeks for AEA Actors and Stage Managers. However, while Dobama will be a
full-fledged Equity Theatre beginning the 2014-15 season, there are steps in
place to make the financial transition easier for Small Professional
Theatres. As part of this transition, Dobama will not be paying health
insurance weeks for AEA actors for the 2014-15 season. However, Dobama will
begin paying health insurance for AEA actors as soon as the 2015-16 season,
and not later than the 2016-17 season. Another part of this transition is
the assurance that beginning in 2-3 years, we will exclusively use Equity
Stage Managers. Finally, the Equity designation means that we will not be
limited in any way as to how many AEA actors we can cast in a production.
For financial reasons however, we will likely be a similar ratio of AEA to
non AEA actors per production as we have in the past (1-5 AEA actors) Per
Equity- SPT rules, we are only required to use one AEA actor per production.
WHEN WILL DOBAMA BE USING AEA STAGE MANAGERS?
Again, Dobama will be a full-fledged Equity Theatre beginning the 2014-15
season, but will be following the steps in place to make the financial
transition easier for our organization. While there is a possibility of an
AEA contract for a stage manager being available in the near future,
Dobama's plan is to slowly increase Stage Manager stipends each season
leading up to the 2016-17 season when Dobama would begin offering Equity
Stage Manager contracts. Dobama would have the ability to offer an AEA card
non-union stage managers.
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