INTERNSHIPS Theatre Training Programs Work to Become

More Fair and Equitable

by Stefanie Maiya Lehmann

At the age of 20, after finishing my first year of college, with one month’s notice, I packed an overstuffed suitcase and hopped on a plane to New York City. I dove headfirst into a summer internship at a dream company where I worked long hours and was solely paid in MetroCards and experience. Those three months were exhausting, but without a doubt, they changed my life and paved the way for my entire career. In exchange for 12 weeks of grueling intern labor, I had doors easily open for me during every summer that followed. I thrice returned as a full-time seasonal employee to the same company that started it all, the same company that hired me as soon as I completed graduate school and has kept me happily employed ever since.

But there is also a dark side to internships. For every positive story like mine, there is a nightmarish tale of unsafe workplace practices and abusive treatment of interns – treatment that would not only be intolerable if it was done to an employee, but also illegal.

Just as importantly, there is an undiscussed story of inequity that is systemic to the internship concept. I was privileged to be able to take an unpaid internship; many cannot afford to do so.

In recent years, theatrical internships have come under fire for those reasons and more. Websites and Facebook pages such as Lift the Curtain called for change during the pandemic, and theatres have begun taking note of the inequity of asking interns to work for free or at very low salaries and to endure “grunt work” rather than benefit from on-the-job learning about theatre.

The pandemic shutdown of live theatre and the related financial challenges further impacted internships, with many theatres scaling back or putting their internship programs on hold.

So, what will students looking for internships find going forward? In the pages that follow, we share the thoughts of company representatives who participated in a Southern Theatre survey, as well as the perspectives of two past interns on their experiences and what needs to change.

Survey on theatre internships

In summer 2022, Southern Theatre magazine reached out to companies in the SETC database with a survey on the state of internships. A total of 58 companies that employ interns responded. Of those, one-third employ 1-3 interns, one-third employ 4-10 interns and another third employ 11-20 interns each – with the exception of one single organization that employs over 21 interns annually.

Most of the companies that responded (46%) said their internship programs have remained the same in recent times, while 10.8% said their programs have been put on hold – with most noting the pandemic and related financial issues as the reason. The remainder of the companies were evenly divided on recent changes in their programs, with 21.6% saying their internship programs had decreased in size and the same percentage saying their programs had increased.

Interestingly, concerns about providing adequate pay and valuable work opportunities to interns factored into both increases and decreases in one of the theatres that has moved from an internship program to an apprenticeship program in recent years.

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programs. As one company manager noted, “our internship program was put on hold during COVID and has now been brought back in limited capacity. Because we want to prioritize being able to pay at least minimum wage to our interns, we are hiring fewer.”

Similarly, Stages Theatre in Houston, TX, has reduced the number of interns it hires, revamped its program and adjusted its pay structure.

“We gave the program more focus, hired trained mentors for interns, and hired fewer total interns with greater accountability for them – and clearer expectations of them,” said Kenn McLaughlin (he/him), artistic director at Stages.

The company also adjusted interns’ compensation structure to match rates for similar roles in the company – in essence, less quantity but more quality, a step that McLaughlin believes will be essential for internship programs in the industry to continue.

“Theatres will need to focus their efforts to truly offer the education and experience equal to the value given – and to pay fairly for that value,” McLaughlin said. “I think internships offered in this way will allow the field to thrive and grow.”

Among the theatres that have increased their internship programs recently is Children’s Theater of Madison (CTM) in Wisconsin, which added internships in more departments while also working to ensure that students truly benefit from the jobs they are assigned.

“We have made all of our internships goal-focused, so interns are able to name their goals at the top, work toward them during their internship, and check in with their supervisor about them after their internship is complete,” said Erica Berman (she/her), CTM’s director of education.

Brevard Music Center/Janiec Opera Company in North Carolina “increased the stipends our interns are paid by 100% in 2022, and we anticipate another significant increase in 2023,” according to Andrea Boccanfuso (she/her), director of production. “The interns are expected to learn the trade by shadowing industry professionals and learning/working alongside skilled staff members.”

A to Z Theatrical Supply and Service, which provides theatres with services ranging from costume rental to scenic design/construction, also has increased its internship opportunities, partly due to “a change in our management,” said Dylan Bollinger (he/him), manager of the Production Department.

“Our new management has a background in education and views bringing on emerging professionals as paramount for company growth,” Bollinger said. “Our interns are brought on as production associates. They work under our lead installers and area specialists on projects. As a general rule, interns are treated as full-time temporary employees at our company.”

Many theatre representatives stressed the importance of changing the internship model so that interns are paid an adequate salary and given jobs that prepare them for work in theatre.

“So many theatres rely on intern power as part of their operations model,” said one theatre representative who did not want to