By Eric Gelb
There isn’t a handbook on how to be a great member of our performing arts community, but there should be. Here are the five cardinal rules to being a member of the performing arts community. Feel free to save this page, print it out or just absorb the words as they are – but they’re important!
1) Professionalism is vital.
Don’t bring your baggage into the rehearsal room with you. Don’t continuously leave rehearsal early every single day without alerting the team. Don’t be the weak link in the music and then spend the first ten minutes of rehearsal not reviewing. Don’t give notes to your fellow actors. Be professional.
2) Never stop learning.
The moment you kick your feet up and stop learning will be the moment that everything changes. The audience, the casting team and the entire company will be able to see right through your comfort in your talent. The phone may not stop ringing, but the experience will never be the same. Whether or not you miss the thrill of being a responsible member of the company is your choice, but it will impact every aspect of the production. Continue to learn. Continue to be an engaged and prepared member of your company. Be open to learning new skills, because when you close yourself off to it, everything will change.
3) Keep going.
In any situation. When the set doesn’t track on, when you feel frustrated with a challenging section of music, when you are asked to stay up late and work on the show. You are an artist. YOU committed to this life – you see it through. Keep going. We’re all tired. This is our craft, this is our life, and this is what we were put on this earth to do – so do it. Keep going.
4) Be someone that makes people smile when they hear your name.
This is a small business. People will know who you are if you treat everyone like dirt. This isn’t restricted to community theatre – professional theatre is included. Smile at people at work or rehearsal. Take your five-minute break to speak with someone about their day and put your phone away. These things count. People will remember that, and people’s memories of you will be more impacting and important on your career than you’ll ever know.
5) Being respectful is key. There are no exceptions.
It doesn’t matter if the accompanist played your song in a different key, if someone totally smacked you in the face during the dance call, or you were in the bathroom when your name was called and someone didn’t cover for you. As a community that’s extremely small, you don’t have the room to be rude to anyone. It can and will come back to you. Be kind, considerate and respectful. There are no stipulations. Notice how I didn’t say that they’ll be nice back – because they probably won’t. Just do it anyway.