Do not work here. The theatre is like a summer project for the owners rather than a business and the talent is treated like campers at a sleep away camp. The stipend is next to no money and is only paid out on closing night- there aren’t any comps or travel reimbursement either so there is really no way to not lose money doing their shows, but they’ll never forget to remind you how lucky you are to be there. There is no contract, they just send an email offer and demand a response within 24 hours. There’s a history of injury that the theatre didn’t take responsibility for. A misogynistic in-house director that either gives line readings or doesn’t pay attention during rehearsal because he’s busy blogging. If anything gets relayed as a concern, they will either offer to cut that section of the show OR ”offer you the option to leave”. Even for the most inexperienced actors trying to build credits- you are worth more than this. You deserve to be compensated and work in a fair and professional environment.
Nope. I worked here last summer (was supposed to work here all summer). First of all- it was a $750 stipend for each project, which as an actor is unlivable. On the first day the owners invited us over for pizza and we played a game where we went around the room and said what our first professional gig was and how much we got paid. I didn’t have the heart at the time to tell them I was paid way more for my first professional experience than what they were paying me at PBT. Second, the main director they use refuses to read the librettos of the shows he directs which is a bit insulting when you’re under his direction (small problem, but ask anyone who’s worked with him: it’s almost astounding). Third and most astounding, however, is their utter lack of safety concerning their actors (asking one of our leads to stand on a rolling bed before locks are installed, unscrewing things mere feet from a lift call and leaving the hardware out, clunky clogging of the wings creating tripping hazards, etc) which is all the more shocking considering someone was PARALYZED AT THE THEATER a few years prior. Upon confronting the owners about this, I was asked to (and encouraged to) leave the following two projects I was cast in. DO NOT WORK HERE. THEY DO NOT CARE ABOUT THEIR PERFORMERS OR ACTUAL STAGE CRAFT, THEY JUST RELY ON TALENTED PERFORMERS TO CARRY THEM THROUGH THEIR SEASON.
I worked here in the fall of 2021 and I will never go back. Actors are EXTREMELY underpaid for no reason. They only pay a $750 stipend per show. It's not a nonprofit theatre, and the owners are super rich, so they have no excuse to not raise wages. The theatre talks a big game about safety, but when our cast raised COVID safety concerns, we were dismissed and then "punished" by not being given video footage of our performance. (In past years, every single show got filmed and distributed to actors for their reels.) Additionally, there was a really scary incident back in 2019 where someone got injured while partnering a lift during a dance number and is now permanently paralyzed because of it. I did not work there in 2019 so I cannot speak to the details, but I know someone who was in that production.
The cast housing is okay. It gets the job done, but it did get a little chilly towards the end of the run because the house I was in had no insulation and we were there till early October. The rooms are set up to sleep multiple actors per room, but they only need that in the summer, so you'll likely get your own room if you perform in the first or last show of the season! There is a kitchen with no dishwasher and pretty bare bones kitchen appliances, but we managed. There is no company car, but many actors bring their cars, so it was always easy to find a ride. There is shared laundry on site (two washers and two dryers I think?) and it wasn't too hard to coordinate laundry schedules with the cast. Housing is on the same campus as the theatre, which is super convenient. The housing is also a 5 min walk from the beach!! We had so many lovely beach bonfires as a cast.
I will say that the actors who come to PBT are really wonderful. I made some really great friends there who I'm still close with today! I've also heard from my friends who have worked there multiple years in a row that the casts are lovely every single time.
I didn't get a chance to work at this theatre, unfortunately. But they offered me a job a few years ago when they were still paying $500 for the whole process.
I was working a full time job at the time and they were working hard to find a replacement for a role they couldn't fill. I agreed to the stipend but said that I still needed to work to pay my bills, so I could drive down there on weekends for rehearsals since my role was small.
However, they emailed me thanking me for auditioning and took back the whole offer. #Yikes
Do not work here. The theatre is like a summer project for the owners rather than a business and the talent is treated like campers at a sleep away camp. The stipend is next to no money and is only paid out on closing night- there aren’t any comps or travel reimbursement either so there is really no way to not lose money doing their shows, but they’ll never forget to remind you how lucky you are to be there. There is no contract, they just send an email offer and demand a response within 24 hours. There’s a history of injury that the theatre didn’t take responsibility for. A misogynistic in-house director that either gives line readings or doesn’t pay attention during rehearsal because he’s busy blogging. If anything gets relayed as a concern, they will either offer to cut that section of the show OR ”offer you the option to leave”. Even for the most inexperienced actors trying to build credits- you are worth more than this. You deserve to be compensated and work in a fair and professional environment.
Nope. I worked here last summer (was supposed to work here all summer). First of all- it was a $750 stipend for each project, which as an actor is unlivable. On the first day the owners invited us over for pizza and we played a game where we went around the room and said what our first professional gig was and how much we got paid. I didn’t have the heart at the time to tell them I was paid way more for my first professional experience than what they were paying me at PBT. Second, the main director they use refuses to read the librettos of the shows he directs which is a bit insulting when you’re under his direction (small problem, but ask anyone who’s worked with him: it’s almost astounding). Third and most astounding, however, is their utter lack of safety concerning their actors (asking one of our leads to stand on a rolling bed before locks are installed, unscrewing things mere feet from a lift call and leaving the hardware out, clunky clogging of the wings creating tripping hazards, etc) which is all the more shocking considering someone was PARALYZED AT THE THEATER a few years prior. Upon confronting the owners about this, I was asked to (and encouraged to) leave the following two projects I was cast in. DO NOT WORK HERE. THEY DO NOT CARE ABOUT THEIR PERFORMERS OR ACTUAL STAGE CRAFT, THEY JUST RELY ON TALENTED PERFORMERS TO CARRY THEM THROUGH THEIR SEASON.
I worked here in the fall of 2021 and I will never go back. Actors are EXTREMELY underpaid for no reason. They only pay a $750 stipend per show. It's not a nonprofit theatre, and the owners are super rich, so they have no excuse to not raise wages. The theatre talks a big game about safety, but when our cast raised COVID safety concerns, we were dismissed and then "punished" by not being given video footage of our performance. (In past years, every single show got filmed and distributed to actors for their reels.) Additionally, there was a really scary incident back in 2019 where someone got injured while partnering a lift during a dance number and is now permanently paralyzed because of it. I did not work there in 2019 so I cannot speak to the details, but I know someone who was in that production.
The cast housing is okay. It gets the job done, but it did get a little chilly towards the end of the run because the house I was in had no insulation and we were there till early October. The rooms are set up to sleep multiple actors per room, but they only need that in the summer, so you'll likely get your own room if you perform in the first or last show of the season! There is a kitchen with no dishwasher and pretty bare bones kitchen appliances, but we managed. There is no company car, but many actors bring their cars, so it was always easy to find a ride. There is shared laundry on site (two washers and two dryers I think?) and it wasn't too hard to coordinate laundry schedules with the cast. Housing is on the same campus as the theatre, which is super convenient. The housing is also a 5 min walk from the beach!! We had so many lovely beach bonfires as a cast.
I will say that the actors who come to PBT are really wonderful. I made some really great friends there who I'm still close with today! I've also heard from my friends who have worked there multiple years in a row that the casts are lovely every single time.
I didn't get a chance to work at this theatre, unfortunately. But they offered me a job a few years ago when they were still paying $500 for the whole process.
I was working a full time job at the time and they were working hard to find a replacement for a role they couldn't fill. I agreed to the stipend but said that I still needed to work to pay my bills, so I could drive down there on weekends for rehearsals since my role was small.
However, they emailed me thanking me for auditioning and took back the whole offer. #Yikes