Penny,
I did a costume job search with Cirque and came up with nothing. I'd
love to go work with them for awhile.
Sylviz
On Aug 15, 2008, at 8:00 PM, Penny Ladnier wrote:
Joan,
I forgot a couple of possibilities...
If you are in a city that the Broadway plays tours, they hire local
dressers and stitchers. My 4th son does lighting. We couldn't find
out who was in charge at one of the venues that has the tours. I
dropped him off at the venue a day before a Broadway show. He walked
in and kept asking who was in charge until he found the right person.
This opened the door wide for him. The crews move from venue to venue.
It is hard to catch up with the crew chief. Sometimes, the crew
chief is at several venues in one day. Each city here in Virginia
have a different local for the union. My son works in VA Beach,
Richmond (four venues), University of Virginia, ODU, Virginia
Commonwealth University, and was just hired permanently for the DC
area. The Stage-hand Union that he works for includes costuming. He
works all sorts of shows from country to rock concerts, WWE
(wrestling), Cirque du Soleil, Dancing w/ Stars and American Idol
tours, ice shows, conventions, etc. All need dressers and stitchers.
Cirque begs for costumers year-round,
http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/CirqueDuSoleil/en/jobs/offstage/
recruitsoft.htm . If this site doesn't show costuming/wardrobe, let me
know. My son has the direct link for crew members. The last time my
son checked, they were looking for costumers for their Vegas shows.
Also Ringling Bros. technical crews are based Palmetto, Florida (next
door to my sister's house) and Northern VA.
The gig he has in DC sounds like what others are suggesting for you.
He is setting up events for conventions at different venues in the DC
area. It is a full time job...so full-time, it is 60-80 hours a week
at $32 an hour. Convention is a huge industry. If you can get in a
location that hosts big conventions, you can do well. I have watched
my son working a convention and it amazes me how many people are
required for the set-up. He is 23 years old and has been setting up
and loading out conventions, here and there, since he was 19. You
don't need a lot of experience to work the conventions.
My son has brought all his friends and two of his brothers into
working all these jobs. Some work full-time and others part-time when
they need extra money. One of the main qualifications the unions are
look for is safety conscious people..safety for all...themselves,
other employees, performers, and the audience. Safety is first in the
business. Some Stage-hand Union locals offer in Virginia offer
insurance, some don't. This varies from state-to-state, area-to-area.
Some states and venues require the insurance. Others only have
insurance on you while working the gig.
If you can get a film commission directory from your state or the
state you are interested in moving to; you will find a listing of all
kinds of entertainment industry businesses. It is amazing all the
different types of businesses involved that work all fields in world
of entertainment. My suggestion is to read through it the listings
and select the businesses that you want to send resumes. Remember
that the majority of the businesses do other genres besides film.
The casino industry is in several states. Some casino areas look for
full and part-time costumers for shows. It not just Vegas and
Atlantic City for casinos anymore. My niece was working for a casino
in Biloxi, MS until Hurricane Katrina moved her casino across the
highway. The company moved her to a casino in Nebraska. They
transferred her back to MS last month. Shows in casinos are a big part
of their industry. My youngest son goes to University of Southern
Mississippi and they have a undergrad degree in casino gaming
industry.
Think of it this way, the world is your oyster and you are the pearl!
Good luck and keep us updated.
Penny Ladnier,
Owner, The Costume Gallery Websites
www.costumegallery.com
www.costumelibrary.com
www.costumeclassroom.com
www.costumeslideshows.com
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