CMU School of Drama


Friday, January 25, 2013

Philadelphia Theatre Company Stagehands Strike at Suzanne Roberts

The Philly Post: The inflatable union rat has reared its ugly head again. This time, the rat is standing (well wobbling, really) at the corner of Broad and Lombard streets in front of Suzanne Roberts Theatre, home to Philadelphia Theatre Company, which was supposed to sneak preview its new Martin Luther King-based show The Mountaintop tonight. Except that’s not going to happen.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

This sort of article makes me so conflicted inside because I know that theatre companies are having a rough time in this economy, but I also know that I want to be paid, and that anyone who works in theatre wants to be paid. It not even just about a "want" or "desire" to be paid, it's a necessity. We live in a capitalist society, and a free market society. To live in a home and eat food, we need money. Why should people who have learned a profession either through college study or experience be told that "internships are for experience, not the money". Just as the theatre company has made a monetary decision to save money by not paying its workers, the people who are striking are being denied the option of making a monetary decision due to lack of pay. Our society revolves around money, and it really comes down to the fact that somewhere along the line, someone has to exchange money, or the system doesn't work. This theatre company has hurt its reputation, and will lose money. Cutting corners in one area has lead to an overall decrease in revenue, where they theoretically thought it would save money.