From the Archive: An Open Letter to the "Launchpad of the American Theater"
Updated: Sep 3
This letter was written in July 2021 in response to the ongoing trend of financially exclusive internships at places with 'inclusive' mission statements. Later that summer, the intern class at the Eugene O'Neil Theater Center negotiated for better pay as well as several other benefits (see in update linked below).
Dear Eugene O’Neill Theater Center: Launchpad of the American Theater,
I’m writing regarding a recent posting you made on Playbill.com for a Producing Apprentice. I'm posting this publicly, in hopes it will raise awareness of the systemic inequalities perpetuated by the theater industry, and also to urge you to rectify a situation you may have missed.
Your tagline is accurate: Launchpad of the American Theater. Your institute is responsible for supporting and producing some of our country’s greatest works of theater. Additionally, you have a remarkably thorough EDI Statement page inspired by the calls over the last year to make theater a better industry by focusing on building inclusive communities and work environments.
However, in spite of the bold work you claim to be committed to, it appears you’re equally committed to perpetuating a cycle of labor abuse and gatekeeping with your apprenticeship programs and that little has actually been learned from the exposure of systemic oppression throughout 2020.
For a salary of $150 a week, plus housing and “experience”, you are expecting someone to work 8-12 hrs a day, 5-6 days a week. While you don’t require them to have a car, it’s considered a plus to their application if they do. Additionally, you have a note that your apprenticeships are a part of an “On Call” team, a vague point that suggests hours longer and more extensive than you state earlier in the job posting.
This is so far below a living wage, it could almost be read as satire. In spite of your statement on EDI, you’ve made an entry-level position untenable for anyone whose socioeconomic status requires them to earn a substantial salary to survive. Millennials and Gen Z-ers are saddled with more debt than any other generation in the history of America. To accept a job with these expectations and salary would be fiscally irresponsible for anyone except people whose family or other benefactors could support their lifestyle.
Unfortunately, this is the norm in far too many places. Job postings like this are gate keeping an entire industry by only being feasible for upper-middle and upper-class individuals. Our industry is in the midst of a reckoning for its lack of diversity and years of systemic abuse. Positions like this perpetuate a cycle in which only the already rich have access, and those at an economic disadvantage are forced down another career path.
As the Launchpad of the American Theatre, your organization has the power to set the tone for the future of the industry. You have an opportunity to change the narrative around unpaid and low-paid apprenticeships, to offer a living wage and open the gates to the industry so that people from all socio-economic backgrounds can begin their career in theater. The changes you institute now have the potential to shape the future of our industry for the better.
Sincerely,
The undersigned members of the theater community
UPDATE! 7.29.21
The summer staff of the Eugene O'Neill center wrote their own letter about a week ago, calling for living wages, as well as anti-racism training for all, limits on how many hours they can work per week and more. As of two days ago, according to their instagram @eotcsummer21 their conversations with senior staff have yielded:
an increase in pay (from $150/week) to $200/week
(including back pay)
anti-racism training for all staff
hours reduced to 40 hrs per week
a second day off per week
additional staff hired (and more to come) to support staff in the final weeks of programming this summer
laundry stipends
Additionally, the O'Neill has committed to rethinking the apprenticeship program going forward, and have taken down the listing that inspired this letter.
Please go check out their instagram for full details, these folks have done great work in the last few weeks, and I'm excited to see what long-lasting progress can be drawn from this. Congrats @eotcsummer21!!!
Thank you to all for signing and sharing your stories. @eotcsummer21 will be receiving a spreadsheet with all the signatures and comments to share with senior staff at the O'Neill, and hopefully they can build a better way forward.
Best,
Sarah Dew
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