If you are around artists, have a friend who is a DJ, or entertainers of any sort than at some point on Facebook you have seen one of these rants:
Yes, the "You should not work for free" rant: which honestly has a lot of valid points. But there are some valid reasons for doing free shows and there are also a lot of giant warning signs that you should bear in mind. Some of the best shows that I have ever done have been free shows and some of the worst shows that I have ever done have been free shows. So here is a few thoughts on the topic of doing free performances. There are some valid points and some alarm bells. Keep in mind that many of these are for new entertainers.
#1 Payment doesn't always mean money.
This summer a rather large sum of cash will literally be flying out of my account for no other reason than to have someone with decent equipment follow me around for a day and taking video of me performing a number of act's through out the city of Philadelphia for the purposes of creating a promotional advertisement for my show to ship to various ren faires and prospective agents. There are a large number of things that go into being a performer and entertainer that can be difficult to do. Website design, photography, business card design, video editing. All of these can make or break you on getting working gigs as well. And all of these can cost a fortune as well.
A decent camera rig can easily cost well over a thousand, it takes a while to develop the necessary skill and knowledge to create an effective and interactive website for prospective client, and it takes a very good eye to take quality video So whenever I get a chance to get a show where these things are included I always do so and try to include access to raw footage as a feature of the contract. But if someone want's to do a payment-in trade; then even though that's not cash it can easily be worth it. Especially since so many of artists are only as good as our word. I have a lost a few contacts because someone broke their word to me and left me hanging on the book (which in turn caused me to break off arrangements; which means i am persona non-Grata in a few places). I have also bartered for a few things on the notion of a "I owe you a favor".
Every year I try to make sure I perform at juggling festivals because while I don't get paid for it (I am not what you would ever call a head liner juggler) the festivals almost always make sure that there show gets a video graphed and the ability to do that is honestly worth it's wait in gold (Because getting video of you on a stage to a really happy audience is always good for a promotional clip). Also getting the chance to work a stage show without worrying about the crowd getting angry or upset(or a venue owner getting angry or upset) is also a needed experience.
It takes time to develop a stage show and unlike comedy; there is no such thing as a juggling open mike. It either works or it doesn't; so festivals are an amazing place to go and perform a stage show (which allows you to do stuff you can't do on a street during a busking show) to allow you to work out the bugs. And this is worth it's weight on gold-pressed latinum (and yes I am a total star trek geek)
#2 What actually constitutes exposure
The number one line that I am exposed to when it comes to the freebies is that what I will be doing will constitute exposure. Exposure is sort the mythic monster that performers live and deal with on a constant basis....and I hate it.....and need it. But exposure needs to be defined.
~Exposure is any instance or event that will put you in front of people that will either be intersted in furthering your work, promoting you, or hiring you.
Are the people whom you are interacting with or performing for actually in a position where they would be interested or are capable of hiring you?
-I enjoy performing for people who are appreciative but like everyone else I do need the capacity to live and so while bringing the art's to the groups that may not necessarily get it is a wonderful gift. It would turn me into the starving artist.
Are you showcasing your brand (or the promoters)??
-Promoters will often promise to people that entertaining or performing at their event will result in them being exposed; however without your brand being recognized as something separate from the event planner/promoter all you are showing is the promoters brand. Part of this is you having the necessary tools and equipment to showcase a brand (Business Cards, Promo Packets, a sign for the show on the stage). Part of this also means the kind of promoter that you are working with and what they are willing to accept.
Is the "exposure" something that will go beyond the event?
-If everyone see's you but nobody actually remembers your name. Than I would never call that exposure, I mean yeah you exposed your art form. But you yourself was not given exposure. No one actually remembers you after the event or outside of the event. Exposure that exists outside of the venue in the form of television recordings, YouTube/FaceBook videos, and news articles will carry you far beyond the event itself. Because people will see that article and it will "frame" you in a very specific way that highlights what it is that you do and why you actually do it. And press is great advertisement if it allows people to find you.
If none of these things are actually happening then your are not being paid in exposure, your doing something else.
#3 The ability to try out new material
Comedians have the luck of having so many open mike nights venue were they can go ahead and try out material that they have created for a mixed crowd of lay people and fellow comedians. For those who have incorporated circus and illusion into their act's this is a bigger challenge. I use free shows as a way of trying out new routines where I don't know if they will or will not go well. That way if it is not a five star then there is no reason that the person who brought you on will be terribly upset because your sacrificing your time and money towards a free show. These shows are necessary while you are developing your act.
#4 What are they really getting out of you?
This is a question for the venue and for the performer. A while back an open letter to Oprah from a hoop artist went viral. She was asked by one of the richest companies in the world to do a show for them "for the exposure" on a side stage because a big-wig wanted to feature local entertainment. The question that I always ask myself for a freebie is "what" is the promoter/person who asked me to be there is getting. I am a softy so when it is a performance for a a real non-charity to help those who would otherwise not get such things I am far more willing to do so.
I have issues when I run into a promoter who is essentially getting a discount, they want all of the benefits of having entertainment but they want to keep more money in the black (or they have a bad business plan that doesn't take into account entertainment). This might be phrased in terms of competitions/contests, "exposure" (blech), or future "gigs". But if at the end of the day it is simply a matter of wanting more black ink for themselves then this is a promoter who is using you in order to do better for themselves (regardless of the poor planning on their part)
Last summer I did a church project for an inner city gospel church. The music was wonderful, but the parents abandoned their children who out of being bored and abandoned simply came over to me and then proceeded to inspect, grab, touch every single article or tool I had. This was to the point that a parent had to be asked to come over and grab two children who decided they were going to sword fight with juggling swords, sadly no pirate "R's" were exchanged and no broken noses/split skin. I wasn't asked to be an entertainer for the event.....what I was asked to do was to be a babysitter and I am not doing that for free. Though I still find it funny that there was a crowd of full of people praising Jesus while their children were 50 feet away and raising hell.
