I have seen too many shows and events that never reference artist fees up front.
“Put your performer fees up front.
Working out what you are getting paid shouldn’t be like an Agatha Christie novel.”
In this day and age, I thought we would have started getting better about this.
Burlesque is an industry with so many women, queer/LGTBQIA+ community members, and often full of people who in other aspects of life can be and feel marginalised.
Or to be short. As a burlesque performer, I have not participated in many shows where the old straight white dudes are in the majority.
(Contrast that with any job interview I’ve been too).
Maybe this observation is a damming reflection that straight men still hold too much sway in producing events, and holding power structures in our industry.
Or it might just be a lack of knowledge in a sector of the arts that is running everything from slick corporate partnerships, to festival touring productions to local, grassroots shows an activities.
In my time, I have definitely still seen locally produced shows that just never seem to reference to fees up front.
Let’s talk about why not being upfront about your fees absolutely sucks.
Firstly, it breeds the feels of insecurity that we as performers feel all the time. “Am I getting paid for this”, “When will I get paid”, “Will it be on time”, “Is this going to be a good event”.
You have to know that your time is valued. You have to feel safe and appreciated - .especially when you are taking your clothes off.
Nowadays, I am a hardened up old gal, and I have no qualms in asking about fees or referring to my standard rates.
But let us rewind to 2008 Grace Cherry.
In this pre social media era (and no eyebrow era!) I would have been thrilled to just be performing!
So excited that I would have not wanted to turn down any opportunity.
I would have been scared that if I didn’t stick up or request payment, that the opportunity would be lost forever.
I didn’t know much about what industry rates were, other than what I would see a few festivals offer as payments or a few higher profile shows.
Less experienced Grace Cherry at a private function (for which I was well paid and had started to sort my shit out!. Flanked with Monya Lisa and Shaan Valentine.
But I had no idea about corporate and private bookings and how to start a conversation about payment. Throw in the ickiness of charity events and I was well out of my depth.
It would be the same as expecting a 16 year old to negotiate their own wages in their first casual job.
It’s only experience that makes you feel more confident in requesting and negotiating wages and fees as a performer. And I will also say, I negotiate from an immense privilege that performing only equates for about 20 – 25% of my burlesque income. It is majority driven by classes, workshops and supplemented with merchandise or other associated fees.
I also am fortunate to have a partner and a stable part time job. So again, performing only makes up a super small part of my take home earnings each fortnight. So it’s much easier for me vs a full time artist, to say no to gigs that aren’t appropriately paying fees.
But I digress.
It would be great if as an industry, producer’s could all lead by example and start naming up their fees – either during an application process or when approaching a performer.
This would basically be an act of public service to new performers and make sure that we aren’t taking advantage of people with less experience or discouraging them from applying for events.
In being really open and transparent about industry fees as producers we can also set the standard for anyone dipping their toe into producing an event for the first time.
What are your thoughts? Do you advertise your fees openly?
What has been your experience as a performer?
Chime in using the comments below. I think it’s really important to hear if transparency in fee structures helps you as a performer or as a producer!