AEA OPENS THE FLOODGATES…
If you are a performer of any kind, I am sure you have heard the recent news from the Actor’s Equity Association about the decision to “open access” to become a member of AEA for any performer who has worked professionally as an actor in any capacity.
Let’s break it down shall we:
The Actors' Equity Association (AEA), commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance.
Taken from the AEA website directly:
“Equity membership is now open to any stage manager or actor who has worked professionally on a theatre production in the United States. We’ve also made it easier for former Equity members to rejoin the union.” - actorsequity.org
Once you decide to start performing professionally, becoming “Equity” is generally the end game, and up until now, it has a been quite a feat to obtain Equity status. There used to only be 3 options of how to become Equity:
1.) Work for a sister union like SAG (Screen Actors Guild) 2.) Become EMC and earn 50 points 3.) Work at a theatre that offers you an Equity contract.
Let me take you on my own journey for a minute before I get to the reason that we’re all reading this article…
I started performing professionally in 2013 when I booked my first job at an outdoor drama. I then got a performing apprenticeship at an Equity theatre in Florida, and decided to take it amongst other professional offers because it offered me the chance to gain my EMC card. (For those who aren’t familiar with this lingo, an EMC card is a pathway to gain points towards eventually becoming Equity.)
Baby Alyssa with her new EMC card - Circa 2013
Once I got my EMC card, my career started feeling real, because I was working towards this goal of eventually becoming AEA. At the time, I did not know much about the union or how it worked, other than it meant you got paid well, got leading roles, and got to perform in major regional houses. In the years following, I booked work at a couple of Equity houses, and then re-located permanately to Florida. It was there that I started booking understudy roles at Equity houses and started racking up EMC points. I was working ever towards that 50 point mark, and was over halfway there. (Side note: I was understudying for a very small stipend over WEEKS of working to attain this goal.)
Then, in 2017, while I was backstage performing a production of Newsies, Actors Equity announced that they would be dropping the EMC points system from 50 down to 25 points to join AEA. This was the moment I had been waiting for! At 33 points, I was eligible to finally get my card!! This was the moment my perspective all changed. Like many actors have been doing this week, I posted a Facebook status after hearing the news: “HELP! I have enough points to become Equity - should I join?!” and a flood of advice started coming in. I had never thought much about being AEA before that because I had such a long journey to get there (or so I thought) but now that it was actually an attainable thing I started panicking, never thinking I could become Equity so early on in my career. It was then that I started learning the pros and cons of being a member. I had been very lucky to be booking consistent work as a non union actor, and after much contemplation, I decided to wait to take my card. After that time period, any time I worked a contract that offered EMC points, I did not take them, as I wanted to not go over the limit and be forced to take my card. I wanted to join AEA when it felt right for me.
I continued working professionally as a non union actor, and then in late 2018 I booked a role at a major Equity house, and was offered an Equity contract. My very first question to the casting director was: “Does this mean I HAVE to take my card?” After much delibiration, calling the AEA headquarters (who didn’t seem too happy about me wanting to stay EMC) and doing lots of research, it was decided that I could take the contract,defer my Equity card, and not take any addition points. Y’all. That was THE gig. I was on Equity salary, (4 figures a week) under Equity rules and protection, and even got an Equity pay bump halfway through the run, but was still very much a non union actor. (This was a very rare case and I can tell you I had to jump through a lot of hoops to make it happen. Always check with AEA before signing any Equity contracts.)
I have now seen both sides: Working at non union theatres, and being under an Equity contract at a top tiered theatre. They can be vastly different from each other. Booking an Equity contract is a very sweet gig for so many reasons…but since that time, I have only worked in non equity houses. Why? Long story short - for me personally, I only ever wanted to join the union if I knew I would be auditioning consistently in NYC. I have lived in Orlando, Atlanta, and now the Philly area, and though there are Equity contracts to be had at these locations, it wasn’t enough work for me to be convinced that I could stay booked if I took my card. I didn’t doubt that I would be able to book work itself, it was more-so how often the work might come that held me back.
This leads me to my pros and cons list:
PROS of AEA:
With AEA, you are under protection. You get paid a higher rate. You can work towards health insurance. Generally the theatres you are working in have higher budgets, meaning amazing production quality, housing, and benefits. You are required to have breaks during rehearsals, a later call time for shows, and a cap on the amount of shows you can perform in a weeks time just to name a few.
You are guaranteed to be seen at auditions. Period.
Unions work together (with you and for you)
CONS of AEA:
Less work to be had (We’ve seen this already and now I imagine, especially with an influx of new people joining)
Yearly Dues, and a Large Initiation Fee, even if you aren’t booking work.
Not as many Equity houses in the U.S. as Non Equity Houses.
51,000 AEA members BEFORE Open Access started.
Equity auditions were already crowded before, and the AEA audition appointment system has already had glitches in the past. I am curious if EPAs and ECCS will become the new Non Equity Open Calls in terms of how many people attend them.
You cant take any non-union work. AEA does not allow this. (There are certain exceptions for non-stage work, but it must be union approved)
You only gain health insurance for weeks you work.
You are in a whole new talent pool and in competition with Broadway veterans, big names, and producer favorites.
There are a number of union contracts per production.
Many theatres do not have the option of becoming Equity, especially after losing so much money due to Covid.
To conclude, here are my thoughts so far:
There is still a whole lot we do not know about this open access decision. AEA has not given many details on much of anything, such as, “What does professional work mean?” “How will auditions run now?” “Will there be more work opened up for Equity actors since there are now so many more of them to go around?”
What I DO know, is that we are still in a pandemic, and the AEA has had a very tight reign on its actors during the past year and a half, leaving many of them out of work. Non equity actors are really the only ones who have been performing in person at all since March 2020, and even a year and a half later, only a few Equity productions have been given a green light to start producing live theatre again. With everyone now taking their card, will this open up more opportunities for Non Equity work?
This decision is yours and yours alone. My best advice to you would be to not jump into joining before you have all the info you need. Don’t let someone pressure you one way or another. With the fees not being due for a while and having a couple years before they close open access, you have plenty of time to ride this out and see how the theatre industry handles this next audition season before deciding if you want to jump in or not. This is just a very short synopsis of all the details of the pros and cons, and of AEA in general, but much of it comes down to what you want out of your career, and where you are located regionally.
If you are thinking about joining, ask yourself: Am I okay with the possibility of not booking work for a long while? Am I okay with not being able to audition and accept contracts at my favorite non equity theatres?
AEA is hosting a webinar about Open Access on August 31, 2021, but I am hoping we get more info before that time.
For any specific questions, contact AEA: membership@actorsequity.org
Actor’s Equity is allowing Open Access Eligibility until May 1, 2023.
If you have any specific questions about your own career path, considering joining the union, or anything else performing related, feel free to reach out to me and we can chat about it!
Catch me on my website: nosweatrep.com, or shoot me an e-mail: alyssaflowers.nosweatrep@gmail.com
Links to more info about Open Access:
Much love and broken legs to everyone,
Alyssa