People go see a show, they sit, they watch, the clap, they leave… But they don’t think about the work and the sacrifice that goes on behind the scenes. The blood, sweat and tears (trust me, I have seen all three and more) that occurs backstage before, during, and after the shows. The friendships that are formed, the memories that are made, the pressures and criticisms thrust upon everyone working there… It is truly astonishing. But anyone in the theater industry can agree with me that they wouldn’t trade it for anything else in the word.
1. You will get asked to do the impossible
I’m not an actress, I’m a makeup artist. And as a makeup artist I have been asked to do anything from the simplest things to basically asking the impossible. Going in to my current job as a local theater’s makeup artist, I didn’t know that. But it was such a great learning experience for me; I’m almost glad I DIDN’T know that I was going to need to do the impossible… That way when the time came, my skills were truly put to the test. You will be asked to do nearly impossible tasks in whatever aspect of theater you work in whether it be acting, backstage crew, sound and tech, wardrobe, or makeup and hair, like me.
“Learn this new scene in a day.”
“Your quick change time was just cut in half.”
“You have now even less time before the spotlight needs to be centered."
“Those vests? Yeah, I need them by tomorrow, not this weekend.”
“Em, our last bottle of hairspray won’t work and our show starts in half an hour.”
“You need to cover a bruise but you’re only given drugstore quality makeup and some Q-Tips.”
These are only some of the many things you will here as you scramble backstage, but it is worth every moment, for it stretches you in ways you didn’t even know you could move.
2. People change personalities under a stressful time crunch
Working in an outdoor theater, we deal with all sorts of weather… Especially rain. Rain means delays. There is already anticipation and nerves before a show so if you prolong it, the nerves with just continue and grow which means that so will the stress levels. Backstage will get stressful and people will crush under pressure – that even includes me. Actors can get tired (understandable), wardrobe, tech and sound, and makeup will all get tired as well… Stress is inevitable. But going into this profession knowing that will make the stressful situations just a little bit easier.
3. You will learn everything about everyone
At my current job, Park Playhouse in Washington Park, shows run for about a month. That’s a month straight of seeing the same people almost every single day. If you hang out with people for that long, you’re bound to get to know them. Your dressing rooms become rooms of secrets and stories, laughter and tears, life lessons and life disasters. Even as a makeup artist, I still grow close to the people that I work with – actors AND staff included because I am with them all the time. I guess you could compare it to high school. You’re with these people a majority of your day and your week and eventually you learn each other. And even sometimes, you find your best friends through working in theater. I know I did. But I didn’t know that going in.
4. There will be people who will never be on your side
There’s no business like show business; at least that’s how the saying goes. And that is so true. Show biz is a tough gig; possibly one of the hardest careers to break into, no matter what aspect you’re looking at. There will be people who you love, the people who will become your kindred spirits, your confidants… Not only your coworkers, but your friends. But there will also be those people that you will not get along with. No matter how hard you may try, they just won’t put in the effort to try to connect with you. It happens in this business. There are all sorts of personalities that work in theater; just like in any other job. So it makes sense that some personalities will just simply clash with yours.
5. You need to learn how to take criticism with a strong backbone
It is very hard to find the words “tough love” connected to the theater industry. But if you do, hold onto it for dear life and never let go. I’ve been scolded, I’ve been criticized, and all that jazz… (throwback to our last show, Chicago). And sometimes it was in a not in a loving way. But, in the theater industry, you need a strong backbone in order to take all of the bits of criticism you will hear into stride. Sure, it may be CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, but that doesn’t help the delivery of it. Face it: you will get people who will tell you things that you won’t want to hear, but you need to. Strengthen your backbone and learn how to accept the hard stuff.
6. You might just find some of your very best friends
When I got my very first job as a makeup artist in the theater industry, I had one focus: makeup. I wasn’t there to make friends, I wasn’t there to chit chat and to be all buddy-buddy. I was there to go in, do my job, do it well and leave. But when I got there, I found that the people I worked with were incredible people. Moving from theater to theater, I have found best friends, I have made connections, I have formed friendships with people that I would never have befriended had it not been for theater.
Theater is composed of tough skin, willingness for new things, energy and so much more. Working in theater has taught me so much. But if there’s one thing that I can take away from it all… It would be that there is nothing quite like it in the entire world, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
