Read on Twitter
~just some facts about bad art~
Fallout Theater& #39;s income since 1/1/19:
+$471k (shows/rentals/classes/bar-share)
Payments to labor (not owners):
-$231k
Facilities/rent/insurance/ads/tax:
-$170k
Charity:
-$8.3k
Profit goes to plan improvements, take on more people, take risks, etc.
Fallout Theater& #39;s income since 1/1/19:
+$471k (shows/rentals/classes/bar-share)
Payments to labor (not owners):
-$231k
Facilities/rent/insurance/ads/tax:
-$170k
Charity:
-$8.3k
Profit goes to plan improvements, take on more people, take risks, etc.
Each owner has been paid ~9.5k in sporadic distributions since March 2018 (1 to 3 times per year) to recoup our initial investment (~$8k) and cover our tax share (~$3 to $4k maybe?) since we took over in late 2017/early 2018. We’re ALL still in the red in that regard.
We’ve each been paid here and there for roles we do every month. For example I got paid $400/month from Dec 2019 to March 2020 to keep the books, cash accounting, oversee house and tech managers, facility improvements, and run payroll; roles I’ve performed since day 1.
In all, I’ve been paid $11,300 in distributions and payments for the roles I’ve performed in my position as an owner of Fallout Theater for the past ~34 months. Only one other owner has been paid more than me, but he’s /actually/ on call 24/7.
In March, each owner committed to ZERO distributions in 2020 so we could continue to pay showrunners, teachers, HMs, and Techs as much as possible for as long as possible. It broke my heart to stop paying my house managers and techs this summer.
Every single fucking red cent that Fallout Theater still owns has been bleeding bit by bit from our bank every month since March while we try to survive the COVID shutdown, all this so we can continue to provide a space for more ‘bad art’ in 2021.
We spent two goddamn years trying to accelerate a shift of the culture and economy of Austin improv AWAY from an environment that necessitates majority-volunteer work and artists putting on cheap shows for little to no pay
TOWARDS one that demands consumers value our work and pay what its worth so our venue can not just sustain itself but ALSO nurture the growth of professional, paid artists and technicians who make all this happen.
That change doesn’t happen overnight, but we were making so much progress. So much momentum stopped dead in its tracks by a once-in-a-generation health crisis whose response was bungled by the barely-sentient moldy tangerine leading the country.
Fallout Theater still dreams of the day when everyone who works for us or performs for us can quit their day jobs and have a livable wage. That was the goal from day 1. And if we make it through COVID, that’s still the goal.
If you’d like to help us make meaningful change in our little micro-economy, there& #39;s a stage for you at Fallout. But if you think an art form is bad because the micro-economy around it isn’t universally lucrative or you personally are not thriving in it, idk go to grad school?
Signed,
- a bad artist who is not good at Twitter
- a bad artist who is not good at Twitter
