When Paying Dues Doesn’t Pay the Rent, How Does the Theater Survive?

The New York Times: A woman who has been working for about 16 years in a costume shop at a midsize theater in a midsize city in the Midwest agreed to discuss her job. A typical 40-hour week finds her cutting, draping, patterning, tailoring, altering, stitching, dyeing, distressing, repairing and “whatever else comes up.” The pay is $18.64 an hour, but only during the theater’s nine-month season.