I think the names of the auditions, MWTC, SETC, NETC - are more to do with the location of the audition - not the location of the theaters doing the hiring. All of these have theaters represented from all over the country.
@janne006 Thank you!
Correct about UPTA. I think in an effort to siphon off some competition UPTA is increasingly reaching out to Summer only theatres. The costs (for companies) to attend these auditions is going DOWN, DOWN, DOWN (SETC is about half of what it was three years ago).
Sorry about my lack of clarity, though!
Will everyone come back and post if your kid’s callback becomes an offer so we can celebrate, too? 
I believe this was answered last year, but searching in the app is difficult, so please assist me. What questions should you ask if your child receives an offer? Are their things that should be prioritize as a sophomore or junior, that aren’t as a freshman? If you are a freshman, should you be open to accepting any offer? If you are a junior, should you be more calculating about where/what you audition for? What conversations are you having with your performers about what they should/shouldn’t accept? Feel free to answer any/all or just randomly discuss. I’m not looking for concrete answers because I believe there are many answers to these questions or possibly no good answer for some.
Some of these companies offer very little for a whole lot of work. There is at least one company that offers 100 a week, and that doesn’t include lodging or food. So, not all offers are equal, and some just aren’t worth it, in my opinion. I guess some of the more important questions would be: compensation, work day schedule, housing (is it included?), food (is it included?), if housing is included (what exactly is furnished?), days off, arrival and departure dates, other duties besides rehearsing and performing. Some of this information is furnished in the packets that were given in callbacks. I am sure there are more and better answers. And, I would encourage my D to tactfully solicit this information. There is also Gig and Tell, where some people have posted about their experiences with certain theaters.
EMC points. That’s a big deal.
@IfYouOnlyKnew My 2 cents (I’ve shared some of this with you already) but here goes:
What questions should you ask if your child receives an offer? Have the theater spell out ALL of the summer requirements. For example, many theaters require the performers to also serve as hosts/hostesses, perform other tasks around the theater, act as counselors to youth programs, etc. I’ve heard of kids showing up and being very surprised at the scope of their summer responsibilities. Also ask if travel to and from the theater is reimbursed, whether meals are included (that isn’t always clear, oddly enough) and if not, do the actors have access to transportation to groceries/food.
Are their things that should be prioritize as a sophomore or junior, that aren’t as a freshman? Junior year, as @Jkellynh17 mentions, EMC points. Sophomore year if possible but that seems to be a little tougher.
If you are a freshman, should you be open to accepting any offer? Not sure how to answer. Summer stock is an exhausting, amazing experience - I’m not a fan of accepting ANY offer but be flexible!
If you are a junior, should you be more calculating about where/what you audition for? EMC points if possible!
What conversations are you having with your performers about what they should/shouldn’t accept? For us, no pay to play. Not saying there are not some very good pay-to-play options, but it wasn’t on the table for us for either my junior or freshman. My freshman D will not be doing summer stock this summer but she will be doing some behind the scenes work at one of our local theaters.
I would say the five biggest questions are:
-
Artistic Staff/Where they hire Actors-Directors-Designers, etc.
-Are you working with people who Direct/Choreograph regionally a lot? People with connections across the country? Are the actors coming from New York? Do a lot of leads have Broadway/National Tour credits? Are the Designers well known? These are really important for college aged kids…connections are perhaps the biggest thing from summer stock. -
Reputation of Theatre
- You want the credit to mean something on their resume. If it won’t ring a bell for a CD/agent/etc. its value is diminished.
- EMC
- Again, a personal decision, but it is nice to start cracking out EMC points before graduation if possible.
- Compensation
- What are you being paid? Is housing and travel included? This needs to be weighed with the first three questions - but unless you are working with Broadway Directors at a SUPER Reputable theatre you should not be spending money to do summer stock.
- If housing is provided - what is the living situation like?
- This often gets overlooked…but ask. I promise you won’t regret it. “Oh, housing is provided!” can mean a Vacation Home in the area of the theatre (hey, its like a vaca!)…a dorm room (awesome and functional)…or seven people crammed in a bedroom in a shack (or 10 crammed in a classroom of an abandoned school)…
If you can find a theatre that nails ALL five - take the gig! Typically 3-4 is a solid gig. EMC is usually (not always) handcuffed with a contract making less money…so there might be a tradeoff there. I mean $50/week and a cot is fine if you’re working with Casey Nicholaw and Sutton Foster…That being said:
$200-$300/week with housing and travel provided is usually the baseline for compensation for Non-Eq College aged summer work.
@artskids you are always the best! I appreciate your answers privately and here! Your answers all lined up with what I personally believe, but I like getting opinions of those who have already been there done that.
Thank YOU!!!
@TheaterHiringCo I like the idea of achieving 3-4 of the 5! While many of these things are discussed, I think there is a expectation to check every box. Thank you!
Its been so long since I posted!
My S is a JR and has worked every summer. I’m not sure he or I ever thought about “options” I think we thought more like “I hope I get a contract” Its far more competitive than college auditions. He was fortunate enough to have multiple offers his freshman year. He accepted the theater with the best reputation, standard summer stock pay, good housing included, great directors, good area etc. The second year he had one offer and much like college, he ended up where he was meant to be. With a lead role in a great show that will be forever in his heart. Now in his Jr year he really hoped for EMC points, which he was fortunate enough to get. He’ll work at the Utah Shakespeare Festival all summer. How my dancing singing boy ended up at a Tony award winning Shakespeare festival is beyond me…but he’s excited to go!
My best advice is be true to yourself, connect with your audition material and have a good video. This year he booked based on a video.
Utah Shakes, fantastic!!!
@MTMajorCook! I have been thinking about you and wondering how you and your son were doing!!!
My S is same cohort as @MTMajorCook’s S (what an awesome outcome! - can’t wait for what comes next). He had several callbacks from two unified auditions and was lucky enough to score an ensemble position for the summer after his freshman year. A few of the leads were Equity and had some major city credits, but the majority were regional. They did four shows in ten weeks, and ensemble was rehearsing/performing many hours/day, 6 days/week. It was exhausting, but a wonderful learning experience (standard summer stock pay/housing). The following summer he thought it would be “easier” to wait tables (HAH! another “learning” experience), but also had the pleasure of being a “supernumerary” (“super”) for our city’s professional opera (a gig he LOVED - much less stressful than summer stock, better hourly pay rate AND terrific music). This year he’s back at summer stock auditions and hoping for 4 of TheaterHIring’s 5. As a soon-to-be rising senior he’s hoping for a “named” role, but he now realizes that the “stress” of exhausting ensemble work is way more fun than waiting tables. Doing “something” in the theater he lives for is better than marking time in a job which only has a paycheck going for it. And through his summer stock and opera gigs, he now has exponentially more friends/colleagues/connections in the extended theater/music world than he had by just being in productions at school.
And my S is also in the same cohort as @mom4bwayboy and @MTMajorCook’s. His freshman summer he and an actor friend from Otterbein and an arts management friend from BW put up “Last Five Years” soup to nuts. Set up a company, got the rights, hired the musicians, rented the space (which included a stage manager), and staged the production. They ran it for two weekends. It was quite a learning experience for them! He did summer stock his sophomore year. He attended MWTA last year and received some very nice offers with lead and ensemble tracks. He chose to do a summer rep with one of his former Stagedoor directors.
This summer, he will be doing Idaho Shakes (complete with EMC points!) through the summer in Idaho, moving to Cleveland through early November. I’m relieved the summer plans were put to bed very early this year for him. It makes the spring a little less stressful.
Last year, we went to see some other summer stock shows where we knew our S’s classmates were performing. It was quite a good time!
I love hearing all the stories about what these kids are working on during the summer! Thank you all for sharing – and keep it coming! @TheaterHiringCo Thank you very much for the “five questions.” I have forwarded that to my D – that will give her some great insight.
So we learned today is that the CC class of 2018 is booking!!! Congrats parents on your MT’s checking off some of these lists. Having passed the college audition point, I value your “what’s next information” and hope you all keep posting!!!
@lojosmo so funny I thought of you too. I wonder about your S every year for CLO audition time! I can hardly believe mine will not be a Newsies… Seems every theater is doing the Newsies this summer and mine, who everyone says is “destined to be a Newsie” will be doing Shakespeare LOL
@artskids we should start a thred… “2017…the year the class of 2018 took on Shakespeare Festivals” LOL
YES @MTMajorCook! Coincidentally, I always assumed my S would be a Newsie and is also doing Shakespeare!!