Does anyone know the average pay/hour one could make in professional theatre?

Question

Or is it calculated by the show, or rehearsal, or how does that work?? I know it varies with the company, etc., but say that one is just starting out in smaller productions. How might that pan out financially? Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

your best bet is to go to www.salary.com and look up what your title would be. that should give you a general idea on what you could make. and that report is free.

then if you really wants a specific one, you have to pay for it, but you could put in the size of company, type of company etc.

if you dont want to do that, you can always ask someone at a small production company after the show. saying that you want to get into that career field and you were curious if it paid well?

most theatres dont pay very much. ever heard of "starving artist"? lol. but if its what you really want to do, it would be worth it to go into that career.

best of luck!

Answer 2

S.W. is talking about AFTRA, which is the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.  Note that it says nothing about theatre.  

Theatre pay is regulated through Equity, the actor's union.  It's usually a weekly paycheck, which covers both performances and rehearsals.  I'm not sure what scale is these days; you could look here:

http://www.actorsequity.org/

Smaller productions not under an Equity contract may or may not even pay you.

Answer 3

If you're asking specifically about live performance theater, this general search might offer suggestions. AFTRA should be able to define usual pay scales, and, or situations where they may vary, such as small community theaters, etc.

http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=AsmA...

S.W.

Just my 2 "scents"

AFTER THOUGHT: Check "EQUITY" as well.