You're looking for a place to hold auditions for your next production. You could just have people show up at a coffee shop, but an open call at Starbucks is probably not a good idea.
Then you start thinking like Nathan Detroit in a "Guys and Dolls" production number—"The Biltmore Hotel wants a grand, but we ain't got a grand on hand. And they now got a lock on the door to the ATM lobby on West 34. There's the stockroom behind McSorley's Bar, but Mrs. McSorley ain't a good monitor. And things being how they are, the Astor Place Kmart is out."
Odds are your best bet will be to go with a more conventional venue for your tryouts. So now you're faced with the reality of renting a theatrical space.
To prepare for the search, you've poured through the trades, done some Internet research, consulted friends and colleagues, and made a list of possible venues. You're ready to go out and see for yourself if the impossible can be made possible: finding an affordable, accessible, amenable, ambient, all-purpose audition room.
Let's say you do secure this amazing space for your casting call, and you get a great response, and lots of great actors show up, and you hire the perfect ensemble for your project. Now you have to locate a suitable rehearsal room. It could be the same place where you held auditions, or it may have to be an alternate site that's more convenient and accommodating to your show's needs. Above all, it should provide the proper working conditions conducive to creativity. You may start to feel like Audrey in "Little Shop of Horrors," desperately wishing for "a studio that we share… in the Pine-Sol-scented air… far from SoHo, we'll block our show, somewhere that's clean."
Of course, there's no point in holding auditions or rehearsals unless you've already booked an actual performance space. And, in spite of the current economic climate, most theatres, black boxes, dance halls, and cabaret venues are usually high in demand, difficult to secure, and limited in availability. And even when you finally settle down in your temporary new home, hidden problems and unforeseen drawbacks may prompt you to start singing like Rose in "Gypsy": "Curtain up (hopefully it won't get stuck), light the lights (that is, if they work), you've got nothing to hit but the heights (and speaking of heights, let's hope the roof doesn't leak)!"
With venerable venues frequently closing and brand new sites popping up, rental options—particularly in the New York area—are constantly changing. But departures always seem to be balanced out by arrivals. Sure, Raw Space may have shuttered (at least for the time being), but have you checked out the recently opened Revelation Theater, FatChance Productions' 50-seat Ground Floor Theatre, or the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex, to name a few? And with the sparkling New 42nd Street Studios, Playwrights Horizons, and the Shubert Organization's Little Shubert leading the way, Theatre Row has turned into "Theatre Wow!"
Alternate venues are starting to attract producers and playmakers as well. In addition to its two 72-seat theatres and multiple rehearsal spaces, Midtown's Chashama has added its new TIXE space with two galleries, one 35-seat theatre, and one studio. The School for Film & Television has seven spaces available Monday through Friday, ranging from 14'x23' up to 18'x35', which can be rented for scheduled auditions. And if you want to make an impression, MAP's penthouse theatre offers a memorable experience for talent and theatregoers alike.
Sanctioned Spots
From churches to bars, Central Park to subway cars, resourceful practitioners of the arts are constantly discovering new places in which to ply their trade. Keep in mind, however, that if your production is going to include members of Actors' Equity Association (AEA), you'll need to verify that your location has been approved for rehearsals and auditions. The union gladly provides a list of spaces that meet its specifications, based on safety and sanitary conditions, which can be picked up at its offices, 165 West 46th St., on the second floor. (You can also call Equity at 1-212-869-8530, leave an email address, and they can forward you the list.) This list is compiled by Equity business representatives, who assess each venue and make periodic inspections.
The different types of Equity auditions include principal auditions and chorus calls, each with varying requirements, so you'll want to play it safe and contact the director of the audition department, Jerry Cole, and his colleagues, Robin Welch and Herb Foster Quebec, before you start. Let's say you are planning an Equity dance audition—you're going to need to check that the room you rent has not only a piano, mirrors, and ballet barres, but a required "sprung" dance floor, layered properly to lessen the impact to dancers' joints and muscles.
Producers may also find an ideal spot for their union calls right in the AEA Audition Center. Equity has three studios available, utilized almost exclusively for auditions. Inquire at least two to four weeks in advance at the Actors' Equity Association Audition department at 1-212-869-8530 ext. 302 or 380 to check on availability. You may want to begin even earlier if you are looking to book in the first part of the year, because calls for summer stock shows usually are in abundance.
Occasionally, the rooms are available on a moment's notice at a considerable discount. If you are an Equity member, you can book a room for a warm-up or a short rehearsal between the hours of 9:30 am and 5:30 pm, subject to availability. Call a day or two before you plan to come in and you could be eligible for a 50% price reduction.
Inquiring Minds
Whether or not you need an Equity-sanctioned space, you're still going to want to do a thorough investigation of any prospective location to make sure it meets your particular needs. Question everything before booking your next audition, rehearsal, or performance venue, so that there are no unwanted surprises when you show up. Here is a rundown of what to look for and what to ask when you find it.
Unless you've got an unlimited budget, or you're Cameron Mackintosh, you're going to want to inquire about cost. Ask for a brochure or website address with rates to find out how much the rental will be per hour, day, or week. When do you have to pay, and can you pay in installments? Also important to know is what type of payments are accepted—some places may not take checks or credit cards, and at least a few deal in cash only. And make sure to get a receipt for each transaction—it never hurts to have proof of payment.
Then there's the matter of availability: How far in advance do you have to reserve the space? What hours can you use it? Do you get exclusive rights to the theatre, or are classes and other rehearsals going to be held on your set during the day and after shows?
If you expect a large turnout, you will quickly realize that size does matter. What are the measurements of the space? How many seats are there? Is there room to add folding chairs if necessary and allowed? Are there enough restrooms, and does the venue have adequate lobby space and waiting areas for auditionees, ensemble members, or patrons? For performance runs, do the dressing rooms have adequate space for your group?
Location is key. Is the building located near subways and bus stops? What is the neighborhood like? Are there conveniently located restaurants and delis? Is there steady foot traffic past the theatre, which will hopefully help bring in audiences?
Accessibility can be another important factor. Is there parking? Are the entrances and exits clearly marked? Are there suitable entrances and restrooms for handicapped patrons?
Take a checklist of necessary amenities with you to determine what the venue has to offer. Does the building have phones, vending machines, a refrigerator, and a microwave oven? How about a fax machine and copier? Can you borrow items from the office, or should you bring your own stapler and tape dispenser?
Cleanliness is becoming a concern more and more these days, and while you may not need to put on a white glove and test for dust in each theatre, it is smart to check that the place provides sanitary working conditions. Find out if the stage, house, dressing rooms, and restrooms have regular cleaning and maintenance. Are the patron seats free of dirt, gum, and food stains? Are there frequent exterminator inspections?
It's also wise to ask about hidden costs, so you know exactly what you are getting for your money. What exactly does the rental amount cover? Is there an extra charge for air conditioning, electricity, janitorial services, or marketing of your show? What is their insurance status and availability?
Opening night will be exciting enough without having to hassle over the ticket policy, so you'll want to know about the box office system. What hours is it open for business? Does the owner or rental company take a percentage of your box office? Do you have to provide someone to work the booth before shows? And who's going to take those tickets, a venue employee or a friend who was coerced into volunteering?
Technically speaking, here are a few bases to cover: Is there any staff support available, such as designers, technicians, etc., and does that cost extra? Are there restrictions on what type of set or lighting you're able to install and use? What does the sound system consist of? Are there players for both tapes and CDs, and do you get access to all the equipment in the booth? Do they have a tech contract rider with a detailed inventory of the equipment that's either provided or for rent? What are the load-in and load-out requirements, and can you do it without getting a parking ticket from the police or being towed?
Group Efforts
More and more these days, consolidation is becoming a financial necessity. The theatre community is following suit with big business and corporate America by combining their talents and creating co-productions. Big budget musicals can get more mileage (and see more profit) by lining up performances at several regional venues, as opposed to each space producing its own version from the ground up.
One way to utilize this concept on a smaller scale is to approach theatre companies and see if they have any "off nights"—evenings when shows and classes are not running, and the theatre is dark. If you can come up with a show that will work on their existing stage and a plan to share profits, you may be able to piggyback on their production and help them maximize the use of their space at the same time.
Another practical solution for play producers—instead of trying to do everything on their own—is to submit proposals to one of the growing number of festivals in town. The New York International Fringe Fest, hosted by The Present Company, had an overwhelming response and a record number of submissions this year. There may be fees involved, but these productions are devised to keep individuals from having to cover all the costs. By joining this type of event, spaces are usually already provided, production budgets can remain low, and ticket sales and publicity can be a joint effort. Other opportunities on the local circuit include the Samuel French Short Play Festival, Frank F. Calo's Spotlight On Productions' Winter and Halloween fests, the Midtown International Theatre Festival, and the Riant Theatre's various competitions.
Renter Roundup
There's only one way to really know how producers are tackling the challenges of the current rental scene, and that's to ask them. Back Stage decided to get the inside scoop straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak. Tom X. Chao, a resident artist at the Horse Trade Theater Group, covers all the bases—writer, performer, producer, and director. His latest effort, "Cats Can See the Devil," is enjoying an extended run at the Under St. Marks venue now through Nov. 16 after clawing its way to the top of this year's New York International Fringe Festival. He is also prepping a staged reading of "Deepening Then Gone" to be produced by Confluence Theatre Company.
A horse of a different color is the White Horse Theater Company. Cyndy A. Marion is co-artistic director, along with Rod Sweitzer, one of the founders of the ambitious new group. Their first two offerings, "True West" and "A Lie of the Mind," have met with critical and popular success, and on the horizon are several projects including " 'night, Mother" and "A Streetcar Named Desire."
Two other playmakers have spent lots of time in the winner's circle. Steve Thornburg is associate producer of Spotlight On Productions and director of the Sage Theatre Institute. Having worked in the business 25 years, Thornburg has done everything from technical duties on Broadway shows such as "Les Misérables," "The Phantom of the Opera," and "Beauty and the Beast" to writing and directing his own plays. He's currently helming "Thor's Day" for the Spotlight On Halloween Festival at Chashama.
Carl Forsman is artistic director of Keen Company, an Off-Off-Broadway group now in its fourth season. The ensemble has consistently presented long-lost gems, including "The Voice of the Turtle" and "The Good Thief," and the recent production of P.G. Wodehouse's "Good Morning, Bill." Upcoming next for the company is "The Journals of Mihail Sebastian" by David Auburn.
Talent Search
These theatre vets have had their fair share of memorable (and educational) moments on the New York theatre scene, and are more than happy to provide insights and advice on how to navigate through the realities of renting. Here are some of their experiences regarding audition spaces.
Thornburg: "I have had it all—the state of the art and the rundown/decrepit. Some venues charge more if you have an open call instead of appointments. Some places make you rent a holding area if you have an open call."
Chao: "For a long time, I used to go over to NYU (from which I earned an M.A. in the Gallatin School) and audition in one of the rooms. After Sept. 11, they tightened up the security and it was no longer possible to 'borrow' those studios. More recently, as a resident artist of the Horse Trade Theater Group, I have been using their spaces with great success. The Red Room in particular has a good hallway for people to hang out while waiting to audition. At Under St. Marks (formerly the St. Marks Theater), the situation is a little more problematic, as there is no real lobby or waiting area. Recently, I rented one of the studios at the Blue Heron Arts Center, which was quite nice. They do make you provide an audition monitor to work the door and direct traffic, which is understandable if they have another event taking place simultaneously with your auditions."
Forsman: "We are very lucky to do all of our auditioning at One on One Studios at 23rd Street; we have an ongoing partnership with them and they are very generous with us."
Sweitzer: "When we did 'True West,' we were working on a very limited budget. We decided on a place, and the price was great. When I went and checked the place, everything seemed fine and the price was $12 an hour, very big and newly painted. But when we went in for the first audition, the place was completely unorganized. It had no furniture, such as a desk for the director to sit behind, and just lacked the basics. We borrowed everything from the office and left the owner sitting on a crate. We had no choice—the actors coming in to audition deserve a professional environment. We pulled out of there and decided on another place to hold rehearsals."
Marion: "Some places are very expensive and usually very noisy and busy. You will pay anywhere from $15 to $35 an hour for a mid-sized room. Many also require a nonrefundable payment up front where you only get part of your money back if you cancel. The cheaper, better spaces are often booked, so you have to be super organized and plan well in advance (two to three weeks at least). Another thing to keep in mind is that many audition spaces are closed on Sunday evenings during the summer months. And if you need anything special—such as extra chairs, table, or boom box—it is good to tell them about this when you are booking the space."
Running Order
Rehearsal periods can be very stressful, so the last thing you need to be concerned about is the place where you're asking everyone to meet. Here is what our panel of experts has to say on this subject.
Sweitzer: "We needed an Equity-approved rehearsal space and, once again working on a limited budget, it was not easy to find. Some places we looked at were very old and expensive. For 'True West,' we found a place that was very reasonable, and fairly new. We got the space way ahead of time as well, which is the only way to do it because the spaces fill up so fast. We basically paid a flat rate, and it worked out well because they had different-sized rooms, and we used the larger-sized studio more often than the small one. The problems with the space were a lack of furniture or even a boom box, and the walls were paper-thin. Also, they had two dogs that lived in the studios that would bark all the time during the rehearsals (which was okay because we needed coyote sound effects for 'True West'). That was the tradeoff for the great price."
Marion: "For 'A Lie of the Mind,' we really wanted to find a quiet, large, clean rehearsal space that we could use repeatedly. Clean, air-conditioned, spacious, affordable rehearsal space is very hard to find, but it is out there. The biggest issues we faced while looking for space were prop storage and not enough rehearsal furniture. We were lucky enough this time around to find a small not-for-profit theatre company that rents out their rehearsal studios to other companies. This proved perfect because we could store stuff, it came with furniture, and we could even tape down the floor of the studio. It became our artistic home until we moved into the theatre."
Chao: "As I live and generally present my performances in downtown Manhattan, I usually limit myself to the downtown rehearsal spaces. I understand there are a lot of spaces in Midtown, but I have never used them. The downtown rental space scene was dealt a great blow when Charas closed. It offered only spartan accommodations, but at least it was cheap and ideally situated. Usually I have been given rehearsal space in the theatres where I've put up my shows. It's always best to rehearse in the actual venue, of course. The problem with this situation is that you can't schedule rehearsals in theatres during the evenings, because they are generally booked with shows. MTW (now 440 Studios) has always been my standby rehearsal location, and its blessings are that it has a convenient central location, and everyone knows it. The Educational Alliance has large classrooms available down on the Lower East Side, and I understand that Dixon Place is now offering itself as a reasonable rehearsal space at 258 Bowery."
Thornburg: "My favorite spaces for rehearsals are ones with pleasant staffs. It's important to me to feel a nice attitude from the staff. Dionysus on Eighth Avenue has beautiful, clean, and new studios of any size. Sage Theatre Institute has picked it as its home in 2004. Ripley Grier at 520 Eighth Ave. is clean and homey with comfortable lounges and plenty of folding chairs, stools, tables, and music stands to rehearse with. The West Side Studios at 131 West 72nd St. are also clean and homey, and suitable for dance, yoga classes, or musical rehearsals. Where Eagles Dare on 36th Street is a nice room with windows on two sides and adjustable black drapes, which turn it into a nice black box space that can be designed in any configuration. They also are opening a 35- to 40-seat black-box theatre on the ground floor for performances and classes."
Forsman: "We started out renting rehearsal space at MTC's Creative Center at 311 West 43rd St., which was amazing. They had an insider rate I got because I worked as a reader there, and it was cheap and the spaces were gorgeous. Now we rent space at our home base, ART/NY's Spaces at 520, which is where our office is. The spaces are functional and priced the same as everywhere else."
Show Time
When it comes to choosing the right venue to house your show, there are many variables that can make your experience either wonderful or miserable. Hearing from our panel on the topic can, if nothing else, help you realize that you're not alone.
Forsman: "We have rented three different theatres: the Quintero on 42nd, the Blue Heron in Gramercy, and the Connelly on East Fourth Street. The Quintero was great—they cut us a decent deal and stayed out of our hair. We did 'Good Thief' there, then we moved to a big house downtown on a transfer. The Blue Heron was home to three of our shows. It had a wing and nice dressing rooms. But there are two theatres there and the noise from the other space was sometimes distracting. And they need you to be in and out at certain times, so you don't get much autonomy. We like to load in for 24 straight hours, so that wasn't perfect for us. But they are all very nice and it was always very clean, which I liked. We've worked at the Connelly three times, and it's heaven. We love it. If I could rent it for all 15 weeks, we'd do our whole season there, but it's not always available, which I understand. The space is the best—it suits us to a T."
Chao: "Generally, I have been invited by performance venues and curators to present or co-produce my work, so I have never actually rented space for a performance."
Marion: "Affordable, sizable performance space is hard to find. There are numerous black-box theatres, but actual proscenium stages are much harder to come by, especially on a showcase budget. We wanted a small proscenium for 'A Lie of the Mind,' so we opted to go with the Sargent Theatre at the American Theatre of Actors. I love the Sargent because of its high ceilings and deep stage—it gives off the feeling of a larger theatre in an intimate setting with only 65 seats. There are plenty of small theatres with small stages and 65 seats or less. It is much harder to find a larger stage with a small house. We wanted a large stage and a small house and I think we found that with the Sargent."
Sweitzer: "Our experience with renting performance space for 'True West' was pretty good. We got the space at the right time in the beginning of the year and the space we rented offered a special half price for the first couple weeks because of holiday time. So we actually had a full week in the space before opening, which was great because that allowed us plenty of rehearsal time and also time to get the set complete. The price—and time we had—was great. The problem was it being a small black box that was not really meant to be a theatre. It had its share of problems as far as the lighting and sound, but we overcame that with the cooperation of the owners and our technical people."
Thornburg: "We've probably had a little bit of everything, from floods to faulty circuitry and venues that could not carry much voltage. We've had classy landlords and also the ones who by all appearances have made a pact with the devil. I even had one who abused his own theatre cat (by not feeding her or changing the litter) and then told me three weeks later that it was my job."
Positive Thinking
Based on comments by our panel, other pitfalls that one should be aware of while renting space include having previous renters run overtime, double-booked time slots, questions about insurance, interruptions by staff and other groups, equipment that is faulty, and load-in complications. But don't let these warnings dissuade you from getting out there and getting your show up on its feet. Most people who produce a show for the stage end up with artistic satisfaction (if not financial success). Here are some last pieces of advice from our tireless theatre artists.
Marion: "Find out whether you will have 24-hour access to the space if you are renting it by the week. This total access will prove vital when you are installing the set—with a weekly rental rate you can't really afford to have more than a few days for tech and these extra hours will be essential."
Thornburg: "Shop around and really look closely at all of the fine print. Don't do anything without a signed contract in advance."
Chao: "The best thing to do is keep an ear to the ground and look around for alternative spaces such as churches, schools, colleges, private lofts, conference rooms, or other places that aren't necessarily selling themselves as rehearsal studios. And if you can catch a new space that is looking for renters, try to get in on the ground floor (no pun intended) and cement (no pun intended) a relationship with the owner/landlords before everyone in town hears about it."
Sweitzer: "My advice to people renting in New York is shop it early. Come in with a full list of questions. Also make sure that you bring your team in with you so that you know it works for them technically. Holidays can be a great time to rent, the prices can be good, and you may get an extra week of rehearsal in the space."
Forsman: "Make sure the space fits the show. I think the longer you can run the better (more word of mouth, let the show find its feet, more time after you open to call everyone you know and beg them to come), so I like the cheaper-space-for-longer way of doing things. I'd never rent a space without air conditioning—a hot audience is a hostile audience. And remember, people make judgments about your show starting with when they look at the address on the postcard. The number of times you delight or amaze them between then and the curtain call is determined in part by the theatre you're in. It's an important choice, third only to doing the right play with the right actors."