re: broadway salaries

[absolutely fabulous]

I've always wondered what kind of money there is being a broadway performer. It's a dream job of mine but not one that i plan to pursue, don't exactly have the qualifications for it. I know the salaries would vary big time but what kind of salaries do beginning people make and in what range would big time names like Idina and Norbert make? I'm very curious about this.

[Yankeefan007]

equity scale is in the range of $1322 and $1422.

'Name' actors get higher. Idina started out at this low range. When she started in Wicked, she got about $20 grand. When she won the Tony, she was raised to $26 (i believe).

Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick made $50 grand for their 2nd stint in The Producers, as well as a box office cut. For Odd Couple, they're making the same.

Actors who do shows for Shakespeare in the Park, no matter how big the name, usually only make equity scale, since it's a non-profit production.

Actors who appear in Actors Fund benefits (Hair, 20th Century) do it for free.

[absolutely fabulous]

Thanks Yankeefan! I've heard of Equity but I have no idea what it actually means. And are those numbers per show/week/month/etc?

[Yankeefan007]

Weekly.

Equity is the labor union for actors and stage managers.

[absolutely fabulous]

awsome, thanks a lot!

[HBP]

No way! Idina made 20 grand a WEEK? That's sick! And Nathan made 50 grand? Holy crap! That's more than some people make in a year!

[bjivie2]

Do we have a stat for highest paid Broadway actor ever?

[Swiftynifty15]

But how much would a replacement make? Like Idina and Kristin made alot but how much of a difference would Shoshana and Megan make?

[Yankeefan007]

equity salary for ensemble always has the "+" listed next to the number. megan, being a broadway newbie would be payed very low, compared to kristin.

[Michael Bennett]

I bet Shoshana and Megan Hilty make between 10-15G a week.

[Yankeefan007]

more towards 10

[HBP]

$10 grand a week is still a lot of money though, isn't it? I mean Megan's just out of college! She's making $1,000+ each performance! And she's doing something she loves! Oh, and OBC people make more because of the OBCR and all that stuff, right? Like don't they get a cut (however small) of the profits?

[toodramatic]

Wow 10 grand a week, how can I loose!

Equity statistic: on a normal basis 85-90% of actors are unemployed (from theatre or theatre related jobs)

Hey I'm majoring in theatre I'm not trying to discourage anyone from it, but 10 grand a week is not by any means an average or close to average salary...

[Swiftynifty15]

How about Marissa? She didn't have many Broadway credits, but was one of the lead characters and won a Tony?

[Swiftynifty15]

Also, thanks for answering my question(s) Before!

[best12bars]

No wonder ticket prices are so high. I think they should start televising them like baseball games if the "big hitters" are going to get paid like that. I don't remember hearing that Zero Mostel or Julie Harris ever got rich off of starring on Broadway.

(Okay, they weren't poor... but come on!)

[toodramatic]

But b12b would "The Producers" have been a success without Lane and Broderick, how bout Wicked without Kristen and Idina, or Gypsy without Bernadette. Sadly some ppl are only drawn to the theatre by star power (look at the recent Sweet Charity debacle). These stars can command these salaries.

[best12bars]

Right... As long as producers can charge the big ticket prices and still fill their theatres, I'm sure they're not complaining about the salaries.

I guess the audiences are really deciding what they want. People would rather pay $100+ for a star on Broadway, over seeing a terrificly talented (non-star or draw) performer at $50-60 a ticket.

I just seems like it's gotten crazy-out-of-hand to me.

[toodramatic]

I agree, broadway needs to return to the days of art and buisness going hand in hand...not one or the other.

[TheQuibbler]

I thought that Nathan and Matthew made $100,000 a week the second time around?

[Benzy92]

Nathan and Matthew each got 100,000 a week for their second stint.

Reidel reported that Chenoweth and Menzel both got 25,000 a week when Wicked opened, so I bet Menzel was bumped up to around 30,000 after her Tony win!

[Yankeefan007]

my bad

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Does anybody know what stage veterans like Bernadette Peters or Patti LuPone typically make? Like how much did Bernadette make when she starred on Gypsy or approximately how much LuPone will earn headlining Sweeney Todd? I figure that given they're status they make lots more than Idina Menzel or Nathan Lane. What about off-Broadway performers?

[Benzy92]

For Bernadette Peters starring in Gypsy and Annie Get Your Gun, Variety reported that she got 10% of the weekly take in.. so if it made 600,000 one week, she got 60,000..

I can't remember if there was ALSO a base salery on TOP of that, but I doubt it..

Patti Lupone is probably getting BIG bucks, Variety will let it slip, if not them, Michael Reidel will.

[jeremykushnier1fan]

Wooh! I never knew they made so much. But we're talking about big stars on braodway. I'm glad to have looked at this thread. I too would love to know about the pay of off-broadway performers.

[brdwaybaby17]

Since it's a smaller show and an ensemble, how do the people in Spelling Bee do?