Employment right after college

[LekoBoy]

Originally Posted by emoskacrewman

can anyone throw me some numbers as far as entry level stagehand/carpenter/technician salaries go?

$8 to $30 per hour. For the higher end, be sure to have a relative in the local IATSE in a major city. If no blood relatives, marry well.

[Serendipity]

Originally Posted by Charc

Dip's Boss

Not my boss! Higher on the food chain, definitely, but my boss would be the TD, and above him, the Director.

Originally Posted by Charc

Show them your work ethic, show them that you are the person they want to hire, but don't put on a show for them.
[...]
If you're playing things up, trying to get their attention, in order to get hired, that may be quite transparent.

Agreed. Even if you try putting on a show (in the idiomatic version, we do want help putting on shows in Theater!), it'll become obvious sooner or later. And if it becomes apparent later, it'll probably be much worse...
I've heard a lot of variants of this phrase: There's only forty people working in theater.
Point is: Try your best, and word will get around. (Or, for pessimists: Do less than the minimum and only show up half the time, everyone will know too.)

[cdub260]

Originally Posted by Serendipity

Not my boss! Higher on the food chain, definitely, but my boss would be the TD, and above him, the Director.


Agreed. Even if you try putting on a show (in the idiomatic version, we do want help putting on shows in Theater!), it'll become obvious sooner or later. And if it becomes apparent later, it'll probably be much worse...
I've heard a lot of variants of this phrase: There's only forty people working in theater.
Point is: Try your best, and word will get around. (Or, for pessimists: Do less than the minimum and only show up half the time, everyone will know too.)

As 'dip said, I'm not her boss. My boss is her boss.

Back when I was still just another member of the pageant crew, we had a guy working for us who , as Charc said, was putting on a show. His first year on the crew, he was one of the best workers we had. His second year on the crew, he was that biggest slacker we had. He felt he had paid his dues, and no longer had anything to prove, so he quit putting any effort into his work. No one wanted to work with him because whoever was paired with him had to work twice as hard because he wasn't pulling his own weight. In the twelve years, I have known this person, he has shown a remarkable inability to hold a job. He no longer works in the entertainment industry, because no one will hire him unless they're desperate for bodies.

One of the cold hard facts of life that we all have to deal with is that you're never done proving your worth. There's always someone out there who is better than you, so you must always be an asset to your employers if you want to continue working. The moment you become a liability, your job is no longer secure.

[cdub260]

Originally Posted by Charc

I'm using letters because I am lazy and prefer replying in the quoted area in color, rather than break the quote apart, but really it'd take the same amount of time, and I have to reach the 10 character limit.

Somehow, I think I'll live.

I'll have to remember that trick of replying in the quote area with a different color.

[emoskacrewman]

Sorry for the laziness in my typing, I'm a legitimately good English student; I've just become used to typing in the generic grammatical shorthand on forums due to the usual age of their participants.

Thanks for the feedback. I was on Backstagejobs.com the other day and found some listings for currently needed techs around the country, with some estimated salaries. Provided I am all of these necessary things (hard working, pride-of-work and -place, connected), does it seem likely that I could end up with a stagehand job somewhere like the MGM Grand right out of college? Or is that possibility a shot in the dark just like everything else, due to me trying to become the forty-first person working in theater?

[cdub260]

Originally Posted by emoskacrewman

Sorry for the laziness in my typing, I'm a legitimately good English student; I've just become used to typing in the generic grammatical shorthand on forums due to the usual age of their participants.

Thanks for the feedback. I was on Backstagejobs.com the other day and found some listings for currently needed techs around the country, with some estimated salaries. Provided I am all of these necessary things (hard working, pride-of-work and -place, connected), does it seem likely that I could end up with a stagehand job somewhere like the MGM Grand right out of college? Or is that possibility a shot in the dark just like everything else, due to me trying to become the forty-first person working in theater?

I'll try to go a little easier on you next time.

While its not out of the realm of possibility that you'll land a steady stage hand gig someplace, right out of college, its more likely that you'll end up freelancing for a while while you build your resume. That process will speed up a bit if you get out and work while in college. While a college degree looks good to a prospective employer, a college degree with experience and references looks a whole lot better.

[sobenson]

Starting out at my theater is $12.50. Go up from there based on experience and seniority.

[RichMoore]

It would seem that with the ability to search anywhere and everywhere with the internet, finding a job would not be that difficult. Granted, you might not start off doing exactly what it is that you wish to ultimately end up doing, but you can be working around what you want to do. By that, I mean that you can find work with online companies that sell lighting gear, you can work for one of the myriad theme or amusement parks, you can work for one of the theatrical supply companies, you can work for one of the theatrical rigging companies, you can even work with the circus.

The possibilities are endless. It all depends on you and what you are willing to do. As has been stated in previous posts, you will also be known by how you do whatever it is that you do.

This is a fairly small industry that is filled with professionals, some of whom have been at it for many years. Most of us 'seasoned' professionals started at or very near the bottom of the food chain and through hard work, perseverance, ethics, a good attitude and a bit of luck have managed to stay employed. It is very seldom easy and often times it is no fun, but that is why they call it work.

So, if you want to pay off those loans by working in this industry, resign yourself to the fact that you will have to do a few things that you may not relish doing and that you could never see yourself doing and maybe get a little dirt on your hands. Get out there and make a life's adventure for yourself and remember, there are no debtor's prisons in this country.

[ruinexplorer]

Originally Posted by emoskacrewman

Thanks for the feedback. I was on Backstagejobs.com the other day and found some listings for currently needed techs around the country, with some estimated salaries. Provided I am all of these necessary things (hard working, pride-of-work and -place, connected), does it seem likely that I could end up with a stagehand job somewhere like the MGM Grand right out of college? Or is that possibility a shot in the dark just like everything else, due to me trying to become the forty-first person working in theater?

That is also a great way of finding the necessary skills that employers are looking for. Is it possible to work somewhere like MGM right out of college? Sure, but it will depend on what you were doing in college. If you were only working in your department and not for any professional companies, your chances will be much slimmer. What kind of production work do you want to do? If you work for a staging company that provides the labor for rock concerts and the like, save your college money and get out there now. If you want to work on a show, that education will help, especially if you seek intern positions. Dinner theater or regional theater can pay ok, but be prepared to work your tail off for it (they don't have the budget to pay good wages, especially to a full crew). AV work usually pays the best since corporations have bigger budgets to spend. Diversify your skills but train on industry specific gear if possible.
Be aware that when you are looking for jobs outside your city, you will most likely have to pay for your own relocation (even when you are more experienced). If you are looking for a job in a city like Las Vegas, there are a lot of qualified technicians already here, so the employer may not be looking to wait for someone to relocate unless you have unique skills (relocation prior to applying can be useful, but can be risky). Getting work in a production company will give you more experience than working for a staging company. With a production company, the employees are hooking the equipment together and doing the problem solving, with a staging company the employee is being told what to plug in (usually color coded) and rarely have any of the problem solving responsibilities. Guess which technician is more desirable? That's not to say don't work for a staging company, you just won't add to your problem solving (and possible design) experience as fast.

[CavezziMagnum]

I just graduated in May, and now I am the Assistant Production Manager. I got this job through my LD professor in undergrad. It isn't theatre, but its using the same technology. Look into fields outside of just theater. Right now, i'm pulling down a salary w/benefits. I'm still able to make student loan payments, and i'm not living in a cardboard box. It is possible. If you want a better idea of what kind of jobs are out there and what they are paying, check out Backstagejobs.com, that'll help you out, and you might even find a sweet gig out of it!

Good Luck!