Hi Live Performance costume, lighting, set and video designers,

The Live Performance committee meets officially 4 times a year, but we also meet in regular working groups on special projects. You are all very welcome to join us for the discussions, and to help us develop strategies for making our work more enjoyable and sustainable.

The Guild is working on preparing Rates Cards for both screen and live performance designers. These are intended as a kind of ‘back pocket’ ready reckoner for designers. In Live Performance we are planning to base these Rates Cards on the recently updated rates tables that you can find in the Live Performance Guidelines*. There is a table for each of the design disciplines. They use 3 factors in combination to help designers calculate a fair fee – weekly pay rates, the scale of show and the level of experience of the designer (Emerging/Proven and Established).

In the recent update we increased the weekly pay rates in line with CPI increases. We hope we are striking the right balance between setting a rate that is a fair return for the work done and for the level of responsibility borne by the designer, while being realistic about what companies can pay. They align with actors, stage managers, and other comparable Award rates, but it is worth remembering that, unlike screen designers, live performance designers are not protected by Award minimum rates and conditions – many designers do not have an agent and we are on our own in the tough business of negotiating a fair fee.

The rates we have set are MINIMUM RATES, for an equivalent 40 hour week:

Emerging designer   $1300pw

Proven designer $1700pw

Established designer $2000pw

I would really appreciate any feedback on these rates. Test them to calculate some of your recent fees in line with the number of weeks worked on the show. Do you get a result that corresponds to a realistic fair fee? Let me know!

I also want to give a reminder to track your hours while you are working. Producers do not want to know the long hours we work. We need to prove it. Use an app to track them and share this information with the producer close to opening night. The Live Performance Working Smarter Guide: Project Management* has a list of apps for keeping track of your hours. 

*APDG members can access the resources mentioned in this article via their APDG account, ‘Resources & Advice’:  https://apdg.org.au/login#myaccount

Cheers

Stephen Curtis, Live Performance Committee Chair

Image: Set and Costume design by Kate Beere, Lighting and Video Design by Aron Murray for ‘Arllington’,         Empress Theatre and Seymour Centre, August 2024. Photo: Phil Bacher