Expert: John T. Aney - 12/1/2009

Question
My 14 year old daughter has the opportunity to earn an equity card within a years time getting paid to rehearse & perform in plays through out the year with a Theater Group offering this program. What are the pros and cons at this age of obtaining an Equity Card?  She loves theater and this is her Major she wants to go forward with in College.  Thank you for your answer.

Answer
A lot depends on where you are located.  Pretty much, unless you are in New York, at 14 there is no reason to get an equity card.  I live in the Bay Area, one of the top theatre cities in the country, and the well-known theory is that if you are tired of working, get an Equity card, and you will guarantee you won't get much work.  There just aren't that many Equity houses, even in this area, and non-Equity theatres can rarely hire equity actors.

If she is passionate about theatre, tell her to focus more on her education and getting experience.  It will be a great experience to work with this theatre group you mention, but I don't think she needs necessarily to get her Equity Card (unless it is required).  Oftentimes, actors earn "points" towards their equity card by working on equity houses.  If this is the case, I would encourage her to worry about her equity card later.  She's 14 - she should focus on finishing high school, going to college, getting a good, solid liberal arts education, and then if she is still interested in working in the theatre, she can get her Equity card at a later time.

jta