A lot has been weighing on my mind recently about work- and how lucky am I to have work as a writer, and potentially some possibilities for next season if I go back to dancing on top of teaching. These are opportunities I am blessed to have, but if I’m good at it, should I expect payment? And I mean tangible payment, not the-richeness-of-my-soul kind of thing.
I came across this via Lost Bird Found- but you can see the whole chart by Jessica Hische and take it yourself here.
I think the world of professional dance has its own set of rules. There are reasons why I would dance for free besides karma points but there are also times when, at least in my own history, it has NOT been worth the trouble. So here’s a little guideline/ chart I came up with for dancing for free. I call it:
To Dance for Free, or Not to Dance For Free- That is the Question
Start in the Middle and work your way out
Just ask yourself, what would the tutu-clad Mr. Monopoly do? And then ignore everyone else’s advice (even mine) and do what is in your heart.
Brilliant… the best part was the little Monopoly man in the tutu. That made me very happy.
Wow. I actually just used this to justify my “career” choices, and it made me feel so good! When my students graduate high school, I should hand out copies of this flow chart for their reference.
Sabrina- I think this was created out of the spirit of self-justification! (I WAS somebody! wah!) and Stirling- I want to be happy, but I won’t be happy til I make you happy too..or put everyone in a tutu
Can’t help with the decision, but I love your chart, and the drawing of Mr Monopoly! If you’ve thought it through enough to make a chart like that, likely you’ll arrive at the right decision……
Sadly, the chart took less than ten minutes- probably because I’ve been faced with these issues throughout my professional life, as many dancers have. The only downside is that a credible company or choreographer name doesn’t always trump up to a quality experience, and at least where I am now in my career, I’d rather build artistic satsifaction (and possibly a sustainable lifestyle) than have a resume full of name dropping.
Very nice. I should make one for me…about another issue