Paying to be in a play?

[Workyworky]

My son wants to audition for a play. We've never heard of the theatre company but the advert was sent to us from an established and reputable theatre so presumably it's legit.

If he's successful they want us to pay them a £225+ fee to cover costume fittings etc. He won't get paid. It's a normal show so you have to buy tickets etc.

He won't be auditioning but is this normal?

Yes, we had the same with a local theatre group that my daughter did Bugsy Malone with.

Sounds like a scam to me

It's pretty normal to pay to be in an amateur theatre group.

When she was in a pantomime, we had to pay 'costume fees' for our daughter and also buy a couple of pairs of different coloured shoes ( not cheap). We had to drive her to and from endless rehearsals and performances ( also not cheap). We had to buy tickets for the show. At the end, the children were given a token payment of £50 for hours and hours of work. Pure exploitation - they do it because they can and the kids love the experience. About 250 girls auditioned for 20 places, so supply far exceeded demand.

It's not a scam at all.

I have been in Am-dram all my life.

Amateur dramatic companies are generally self-funding.

Just as an example, my group currently pays over £3,000 to rent the theatre for show week. Then there is venue hire for rehearsals, musicians to pay, rehearsal pianist, costumes, script/score hire... The list goes on and on and on.

If your child would like to take part but you can't afford the fee, speak to the theatre company. Most will be able to help with fees for those who can't afford the full amount.

It's not exploitation at all! Shows are bloody expensive to put on.

We don't pay anywhere near that much, around £50- this covers teachers time, costume hire, rehearsal space hire, and all associated overheads.

And thats for a v highly rated theatre school in SE England, so £200 does sound very high

Very normal. The tickets won’t cover the cost of the production and it’s done for the benefit of the cast as a hobby (they aren’t professionals being paid so aren’t benefitting anyone else). It’s a bit like paying to play for a football team - if he were a professional football player then they’d pay him but he’s not.

Many local amateur groups and likes of NYT request a fee but there is funding available for those who cannot pay it. Professional companies often advertise and their "auditions" are a formality rather than competitive. £225 is a lot ime.

Surely it's the same as pursuing a sport or an art group. It's a hobby/passion and you need to supply the kit. If you compared it a pilates class or a piano lesson l'm sure it would be a similar weekly cost.
Incidetly, who dobyou think should pay?

Not many hobbies are free

you say he's not being paid but is he a professional actor?

How old is your son? If it’s an adult amateur theatre group where nobody’s being paid this seems very expensive, but if we are talking a show with a load of young kids where the adults in charge are being paid then it’s pretty reasonable.

GD was In a production of Matilda. Same thing - audition (not everyone got in) and then they had to pay. But you are paying for the experience, the training as well as the costumes etc. She had a wonderful time.

I would expect to pay to be in an amateur play, if you are a member of the company you would pay weekly subs to cover this.
£225 sounds a lot for one play though.

DD1 is in an Am Dram group and does 3 shows a year at £300 a time.

DD2 is a member of Stagecoach and their fees are similar.

I mean I do an amateur production and because the theatre is a proper big touring venue the hire for the theatre alone is £16,000- before you’ve even put lights or sound or set or costumes on. Plus running costs of the society (NODA insurance etc).

£225 does sound steep-ish but if the show is in a big theatre and the company have to pay for rehearsal space and costumes etc then I get why it would be that much.

I've had this with DD recently. £200. There was no mention of fees, just an audition advert. It was only at the audition that the acceptance cost was given. I've no experience of auditions and neither has she, so was also surprised! I assumed it was just a clever way of reversing the normal go to drama lessons and put on a play at the end. I've told her to pick between her normal drama lessons and the show.

Totally normal.

Ds was doing this when he was little over a decade ago.

My DD has just been in a musical theatre production - there was no big up front cost but by the time we paid for the classes, £20 for costume and tickets to watch her it was over that amount.

Very normal. You'll likely need to contribute everyday clothing items to costumes too. And quite likely time for fundraising too.

It’s quite normal . It’s to cover the cost of costumes , theatre/rehearsal space hire and possibly the cost of hiring artistic director etc . The sale of tickets won’t cover the costs

My son has been in youth theatre and done am-dram (as an adult) and wasn't asked for money upfront

Oh wow.
DD was a member of our local Am Dram for a few years and was in a few pantos and a play. We never had to pay anything over and above a yearly membership fee.
We must have been really lucky. Our Am Dram owns its own theatre and it makes enough from 3 weeks of panto at Christmas to cross subsidise other performances if needed, and also hires out to others too.

We paid for DS to be in a semi-professional production which had a tough audition. The leads were paid professionals, and doubled-up as instructors over several days of rehearsals (it was ballet). It was an amazing experience for him. So, yes, depends on what it involves, but fairly normal!

If you're bothered about them making a profit (if they are: to slightly misquote the late great Terry Pratchett: "Drama - you put money in: you get drama out") then in your area there will probably be a youth music Trust or youth theatre that is run as a charity. You can look at their accounts on the Charity Commission website. You will find they are subsidised by grants and donations and rely on ticket income and not paying the adult directors and choreographers very much.

The chaperones (which are legally required for under 18s) are generally volunteers.

Bear in mind too that theatres are paying way more for their electricity than a year ago. Theatres need a lot of electricity.