“There’s this feeling of … ‘You know what, you should just be happy that you’re here,’ ”
Wednesday, September 04, 2019
Theater workers, let's reject 'happy just to be here'
“There’s this feeling of … ‘You know what, you should just be happy that you’re here,’ ”
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This article brings up a really interesting conversation about a really toxic idea in the industry. Though I don’t think the article goes into any real depth about the issue and ends with a sort of defeatist attitude the topic itself is very compelling. The mentality of being grateful to be in the room is one that is perpetuated by certain companies that have some “big name” value but I haven’t ever heard that thought followed by “and they were an incredible company to be a part of”, usually it is followed by the details of a fairly chaotic working environment that the employees dealt with because of the name recognition. There is a devaluing of individuals in labeling them, or thinking of yourself in that position because it is one that resides in a place of fear. For the individual it is the fear of being able to critique and contribute to the institution and for any management dictating it they’re essentially using it for leverage of tread lightly or you may not be here anymore. Perpetuating this idea is making people, specifically marginalized groups aren’t feeling in a position to constructively critique these companies and ultimately improve them.
I have heard this concept of “you should just be happy to be here” several times throughout my career and I am only a freshman. I worked on a summer show this past summer and I was working out a salary and heard this several times. It’s unfair, especially for students, for people in the industry to make these claims. We work hard every day trying to move up the ladder. Accepting that mentality is basically just submitting to the level you are on now. It is important to continue to want to move up so that we are always putting our best work forward. It also is unfair to make these claims to people belonging to marginalized groups. How are they supposed to speak up and defend themselves if they are forced to stand down and be happy with what they have? It’s a never ending battle and it is the worst advice to tell someone to just stop trying to better themselves.
This is a feeling that cuts across the industry be it educational or professional. The feeling is present and there is an underlying expectation of gratefulness that individuals are expected to have especially when they work for "big name" companies or attend "big name" schools like Lauren said above. The frustrating/annoying part is no one expects you to question the status quo, just go with the flow and keep your head down. This article could have done a better job of going into more depth about the issue but at the same time it gives cause for a conversation to be had about the toxic mindset that has plagued the industry. As a woman of color and immigrant, there is an expectation that I am supposed to be ‘happy just to be here' and I have felt like that and other times I haven't had that feeling, I've felt guilty. This particular feeling has caused be to be silent about certain issues when I should speak up. One thing the author does wonderfully well is describe the feeling when she says " It sounds like gratitude, but it comes from a place of fear, and it’s offered as placation to a threat. "
Snaps for this excellent article! “I’m just happy to be doing what I love” is what gets other people thinking that your art can be paid for with “exposure bucks.” I am happy that I get to be at Carnegie Mellon. I am happy that I get to do the kind of work I find joy and passion in. That does not mean you get to pay me less than what I’m worth, over work me, or abuse me. I am thankful for the opportunities I did get to have at companies that really understood how to take care of their employees. I saw a meme on Facebook once that said something along the lines of how employees shouldn’t be grateful for companies hiring them, companies should be grateful for employees wanting to work for them. And that is something that I think is very true and resonate. Stephen Buescher has done an excellent job of using the privilege his financial stability he has to fight against racist practices and lift the voice of those of us who don’t have that financial stability and find ourselves marginalized.
This was the perfect article for me to read on the second week of the semester. The first week of my exchange year went so fast. Everything I saw looked bright and I was moved by every single word that drama professors said. I was ‘happy just to be there.’ However, now two weeks have passed and I began to realize how short the time I got is. After a year, I need to go back to my home university. No matter how much I envy Drama Major Freshman around me, the limitation is fixed. In order to gain as much as I can within the chance given to me, I must always seek for self-improvement and if possible, acknowledgement as a theatre student. I think the phrase, “grateful but fearful” nicely expresses the feeling necessary for the improvement. Needless to say, I would like to enjoy my time here at CMU. But it will be best with moderate tension.
Of all of the things I want to be in life, complacent is not one of them. Never will I find myself at a point in my life that is simply "good enough". The phrase "just happy to be here" implies a similar meaning--that you no longer wish to be active in the community in which you live. As a theater worker, it means that you don't strive to counteract the comments that you're pursing a career in "a dying industry", and instead, you exist as a stagnant part in an industry capable of creating so much social change. Theatre is an outlet and a platform, and living with the "happy just to be here" mindset takes its power in the world for granted. I believe in being happy about your achievements. In fact, it's what I hope for. But using that happiness--that satisfaction--as a crutch does not adhere to the mercurial pace of the theater industry.
I am lucky enough to have been reasonably compensated on work I've done in theatre, as far as compensation goes for an 18-year-old. However, more than once I have definitely thought, "I'm happy just to be here," because I know I've got my foot in the door, and a foot in the door goes places. "I'm happy just to be here" is a nice sentiment, because truly I am glad for the opportunity, but when said, it sounds almost like I would be okay with not being compensated because a job well done is its own reward, which is not the case. I want to be paid for my work, I want recognition, I will not be satisfied with just a job well done. It is an ambitious thought, yes, but ambition, not just my foot in the door, is what is really going to take me places.
Yep, this!This article succinctly brings to light a very real problem with our industry, and the other side of the coin to the article "How a Sense of Purpose Can Link Creativity to Happiness." Yes, I can love the work I do and feel completely fulfilled by it, but that should in no way be taken advantage of so that my employer can shame me into feeling "just grateful to be here." This is still a job, and my livelihood, and I need to be acknowledged and treated like a human for the work I do and the care, focus, sweat and tears, I give to what I do. I have been very lucky to work with people who respected the fact that I should be respected in my job because I am a person, and not merely seen as a worker bee who can be replaced by the next intern in line who is "just happy to be here." Fortunately, this change in mindset and practice is very possible. But it takes work, and a commitment of the entire team, company, and business to adopt this way of thinking."How can you bake that responsibility into a job description, an earnest commitment shared company-wide? What would leaders have to do, have to change, to make workers feel safe and trusted enough to challenge them, empowered enough to make our industry better?" This writer answers her own question: "If we want to make real change in our workplaces, let’s show the world that theaters don’t shun the outspoken, but rather embrace them openly — that here you can speak out and still get work, that here we welcome dissent and reward courage."
As a theatre student, the words “ I am just happy to be here” have at some points come out of my mouth regarding the training I receive or the work I have done. However, Lily Janiak and Stephen Buescher bring up a very valid point that has never really crossed my mind before. The one world wrong in that sentence is “just”, assuming that even if nothing comes of a certain project, whether that be money or experience, at least we as theatre artists are following our passion. It implies that there is a stopping point. And I disagree. As artists when we see that there is something not right within our art form it is our responsibility to step forward and make change. Whether that be creating new opportunities and jobs or calling out racial discrimination. Yes we are overjoyed to be pursing a passion, however we are also changing and evolving the career every day to make it a better industry overall.
This article brings up some very relevant thoughts - especially for younger theatre artists in the world today. I know many people - myself included - who have been told (usually by older professionals who reap a salary) that I should just be grateful for the [unpaid, under appreciated] position I had. I find, though, that I have been the least happy when I am in these “gratitude positions”. For young people (especially those who are of a minority, be it racial or socioeconomic), navigating the ladder of the industry can be difficult: sure, this unpaid internship could vault you off to Broadway or make you thousands of connections or give you great exposure. But, at the end of the day, you can’t keep the lights on with exposure or networking. This is not to say that those positions could never present something valuable, but not everyone has the capacity to work on them; in short, theatre companies that expect unpaid labour are effectively telling poorer people that they don’t deserve to elevate themselves on the hierarchical ladder that is the theatrical structure.
Equality is incredibly important in the entertainment industry. It’s understandable where the phrase “you should be happy to be here” comes from since the entertainment industry is very difficult to make a name for yourself in. That still doesn’t excuse the mistreatment of others. Just as the article states, you can still be happy to be there and demand change for equality. As a queer woman in theatre, there have been moments of fear that my sexuality and gender may hinder my future hirings and paycheck. I’ve also been afraid because I’ve seen how asking for change in such a tough industry can lead to a downfall. That being said, I’m not a person who takes mistreatment lightly. I’m an advocate for standing up for yourself. Of course I’m happy to be in the position that I’m in, but that doesn’t mean I can’t stand up against the bullies of the industry to make a better future for myself.
This article pointed out an idea that we so commonly are exposed to in theatre, the idea that we have to be so passionate and happy to do the work that we are doing that we don’t care about we are being underpaid, overworked, and treated poorly. And there is some truth that you need to be passionate to be in this industry because there are so many other people who are out there who are passionate to be working in the theatre world, but it also doesn’t mean you should sacrifice basic needs, mental health, or general wellbeing for the sake of theatre or for the sake of a company. I liked the question that this article posed, “What if the collorary to ‘just happy to be here’ were a madate to make ‘here’ better?”, because by changing the mindset and making the environment a “happy” working environment, you won’t have to force the people you employ to keep the mindset of “happy just to be here” when in reality they don’t because instead they will actually be happy to be here.
This article hits home because I oftentimes find myself on the side 'happy to be here', and its only when crap hits the fan that I'll even think about objecting to the norm. Who can blame me though? The entire industry is made up of people who live under the word of network, and you can't really network when you're seen as a complainer and someone who can't suck it up. I think its important to understand that there is always the exception and speaking up comes in different degrees, it comes with figuring out the things you can and can't change then figuring out how exactly to go about it. For example, half of stage management on a professional level is just gay white men telling everyone else how to sharpen pencils with some high and mighty complex, but the best way for me and other people to combat that behavior has never been to call them out or throw a fit, its to be really good at my job. It obviously does get worse than that, but with minorities in theatre what is most important is to support one an another regardless of the action you take, and to excel in such a way that it makes it impossible for other people to belittle you.
This article brings up a great point about the attitude that seemingly a lot of theatre makers and artists have about their jobs. It’s an interesting discussion in our line of work that I feel has a lot of negative sayings that are either unnecessary or harmful to workers and workers conditions. Another to me that I think is detrimental to the entertainment industry would be the “show must go on” idea. With the conditions that we often given in theatre with sparse resources and deadlines next to impossible the idea that we must do whatever it takes to make it work becomes the only logical reason to be stretching ourselves. In places where we don’t have to worry about these conditions and we have an environment that is positive and helpful we get taken advantage of. This idea that after struggling and working hard to make it farther and farther in the industry only to be rewarded with decent job but not decent compensation or benefit whatever it may be.
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