EPISODE 176:
PAY NEGOTIATIONS FOR AGENTS & DESIGNERS
Host: Ethan Steimel
Release Date: 12/16/2024
Release Date: 12/16/2024
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Theatre designers and their agents come together for an in-depth discussion on navigating agent-designer relationships, contract negotiations, and strategies for fair compensation in the theatre industry.
Topics: ⭐️ Preparing for contract negotiations ⭐️ Challenges and solutions when negotiating ⭐️ Meeting and building relationships with agents ⭐️ Advice for early, mid-career, and high-profile designers |
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Links and Resources
Youtube Version
https://youtu.be/y8rnJ1BPO8E
Patreon Version - with PDF Class Supplement
https://www.patreon.com/posts/176-pay-for-118020495
Daniela Hart - Sound Designer
https://www.uptownworksnyc.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniela-hart-ab066234
Jack Lavey - CPK Artists
https://www.jacklavey.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-lavey
Jason Lynch - Lighting Designer
https://www.jasondlynch.com/
Skyler Gray - Gersh Agency
https://www.linkedin.com/in/skyler-gray-30a9a545
Johanna Pan - Scenic & Costume Designer
https://johannapan.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanna-pan-42385533
Lucy Powis - Michael Moore Agency
https://www.lucypowis.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-powis
Cookie Jordan - Hair & Wig Designer
https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/cookie-jordan-485223
Russ Rosensweig - Summit Entertainment Group
https://www.summitentertainmentgroup.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/russ-rosensweig-8886b63
Cookie Jordan
COOKIE JORDAN (Hair, Wig, and Makeup Design): Broadway credits include Merrily We Roll Along, Camelot, The Piano Lesson, Into the Woods, for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf, Slave Play, Trouble in Mind, Choir Boy, The Cher Show, Sunday in the Park with George, Eclipsed, and Fela! (Broadway and West End). Off-Broadway highlights: The Welkin, A Strange Loop, School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play, Fairview, The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World, and An Octoroon. Other credits include Hercules (Public Theater), Once On This Island (US Tour), High School Musical (West End), and Into the Woods (US Tour).
Russ Rosensweig
RUSS ROSENSWEIG is the founder and Managing Director of Summit Entertainment Group, a talent agency that has represented over 200 designers, directors and choreographers of theatre, opera, dance, museum installations, emerging new technologies, corporate and live performance for over 35 years. She has worked with artists and companies throughout the world; the firm’s talent has been honored with numerous awards including Tony Awards; Obie; Drama Desk; Lucille Lortel; AUDELCO; Bessie and regional theatre awards.
After receiving her BA in Theatre from the State University of New York at Binghamton, Russ worked at the Cider Mill Playhouse in Endicott, NY as their Production Manager, waiting to start the MFA program at Yale University School of Drama. While studying at Yale she had the opportunity to work with Athol Fugard and continued that relationship after graduating, serving in several capacities including assistant director for the Broadway show “Master Harold…and the boys” and the world premiere of “The Road to Mecca”.
Prior to starting Summit Entertainment Group, LLC in 1988, Russ joined the Broadway general management firm of Joseph Harris and Associates, where she was associated for six years on many Broadway productions including, “My One and Only”, “Noises Off”, “Sweet Charity” and “Glengarry Glen Ross”.
Daniela Hart
DANIELA HART is a New York City based sound designer and composer with an MFA in Sound Design from the Yale School of Drama. Daniela is also a producer, film editor and sound supervisor with their company www.UptownWorksNYC.com under which they often co-design with fellow sound designers, Bailey Trierweiler and Noel Nichols. Some theater credits include The Ghost of John MaCain (SoHo Playhouse); Pipe Dream (Berkshire Theatre Group); Tiny Father (Geffen Playhouse); Las Borinqueñas (EST); Importance of Being Earnest (Pittsburgh Public Theatre/Baltimore Center Stage); Murder on the Orient Express (Syracuse Stage); Munich Medea (WP); Lady Day (Baltimore Center Stage),Tiny Father (Barrington Stage/Chautauqua); Black Odyssey (Classic Stage); Espejos (Hartford Stage, Syracuse Stage), Blues Clues Live (Round Room); Happy Life (Soho Rep); Queen (Long Wharf Theater/A.R.T.NY); Choir Boy (Yale Rep); Fires In The Mirror (Baltimore Center Stage & Long Wharf Theater);The Juniors (Colgate University); How to Save the World in 90 Minutes (Cherry Lane); References to Salvador Dali...(ART, Harvard); Julius Caesar (Vermont Shakespeare); Neighborhood 3 (Rattlestick Theater).
Jack Lavey
JACK LAVEY (he/him) is a New York-based theatrical literary agent, representing playwrights, composers, and designers, including Lortel, Obie and Hewes Award winners. Previously, he worked in the Theatrical Literary Department at A3 Artists Agency.
Before A3, he served as Interim Office Manager for Broadway’s Thompson Turner Productions, managing Book of Mormon, Mean Girls, and Company with Patti LuPone. Previously, Jack has worked as a script evaluator and editor at TCG, Cherry Lane Theatre, Sanguine Theatre Co., Pascal Theatre Co., and The Playwrights Center. BFA - Boston University.
Jason Lynch
JASON LYNCH is a Chicago-based lighting designer for theatre, dance, opera, and other live performance art.
Regional: Alley Theatre, Alliance Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, City Theatre Company, Dallas Theater Center, Denver Center Theatre Company, George Street Playhouse, Geva Theatre Center, Goodman Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals, Huntington Theatre Company, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Northlight Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, The Old Globe, Trinity Repertory Company, among others.
Lynch was also the recipient of the 2022 Equity Jeff Award for his work on Choir Boy at Steppenwolf Theatre and the 2019 Michael Maggio Emerging Designer Award, which recognizes emerging theatrical designers within the Chicago area. Jason is represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE and The Gersh Agency. jasondlynch.com, @jasonlynch.design
Skyler Gray
SKYLER GRAY is a Theater Agent at The Gersh Agency in New York. Prior to becoming an agent, he spent ten years in the new works departments of various regional theaters across the country. He was most recently the Director of New Play Development at Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago, IL and the Literary Manager at the Alley Theatre in Houston, TX. He has also worked in the literary departments at South Coast Repertory, Williamstown Theatre Festival and William Morris Endeavor in New York City, as well as serving as the Artistic Director of Children’s Musical Theaterworks and The Underground @ CMT in Fresno, CA. As a producer and curator, he helped create the Alley All New initiative at the Alley Theatre, produced the Pacific Playwrights Festival at South Coast Repertory for five seasons, and helmed the Ignition Festival for two seasons at Victory Gardens Theater. Gray holds a B.A. in Theater from the University of California, Irvine with Honors in Directing and Stage Management.
Johanna Pan
JOHANNA PAN is a Costume and sometimes Scenic designer for Theatre, Film, Dance and Opera, a textile and visual artist, host and co-producer of the podcast “Dirty Laundry: Unpacking the Costume Closet”. They first discovered theatrical design while competing in the creative thinking competition Odyssey of the Mind and has never looked back. Johanna’s artistic practice is centered around decolonizing the imagination, breaking down the notions of feminized labor, and anti-racism. They continue to harbor hope for a more sustainable humankind in the face of adversity and dreams of a future filled with equity, inclusion and diversity. BFA:Ithaca College, MFA: NYU/TISCH, @jpandesign
Lucy Powis
LUCY POWIS works at Michael Moore Agency as a Theatrical Literary Agent and previously spent 5 years at A3 Artists Agency. She has held positions in the artistic/literary departments at Roundabout Theatre Company, Williamstown Theatre Festival, and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Her producing and dramaturgy credits include work at The Public's Under the Radar Festival, Next Door @ NYTW, New Georges, Ars Nova's ANT Fest, Rattlestick, The Segal Center's PRELUDE Festival, HERE, and the LaGuardia Performing Arts Center. Lucy hails from Toronto and holds an MFA in Dramaturgy from Columbia University.
Instagram Handles
@danielavhart
@jacklavey
CPK Artists
@jasonlynch.design
Skyler Gray
@thegershagency
@jpandesign
@lucytp7
@michaelmooreagency
@cookiewigger
@russrosensweig
@summitentertainmentgroup
@unitedscenicartists
@ethansteimel
@nicolevsteimel
https://youtu.be/y8rnJ1BPO8E
Patreon Version - with PDF Class Supplement
https://www.patreon.com/posts/176-pay-for-118020495
Daniela Hart - Sound Designer
https://www.uptownworksnyc.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniela-hart-ab066234
Jack Lavey - CPK Artists
https://www.jacklavey.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-lavey
Jason Lynch - Lighting Designer
https://www.jasondlynch.com/
Skyler Gray - Gersh Agency
https://www.linkedin.com/in/skyler-gray-30a9a545
Johanna Pan - Scenic & Costume Designer
https://johannapan.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanna-pan-42385533
Lucy Powis - Michael Moore Agency
https://www.lucypowis.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-powis
Cookie Jordan - Hair & Wig Designer
https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/cookie-jordan-485223
Russ Rosensweig - Summit Entertainment Group
https://www.summitentertainmentgroup.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/russ-rosensweig-8886b63
Cookie Jordan
COOKIE JORDAN (Hair, Wig, and Makeup Design): Broadway credits include Merrily We Roll Along, Camelot, The Piano Lesson, Into the Woods, for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf, Slave Play, Trouble in Mind, Choir Boy, The Cher Show, Sunday in the Park with George, Eclipsed, and Fela! (Broadway and West End). Off-Broadway highlights: The Welkin, A Strange Loop, School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play, Fairview, The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World, and An Octoroon. Other credits include Hercules (Public Theater), Once On This Island (US Tour), High School Musical (West End), and Into the Woods (US Tour).
Russ Rosensweig
RUSS ROSENSWEIG is the founder and Managing Director of Summit Entertainment Group, a talent agency that has represented over 200 designers, directors and choreographers of theatre, opera, dance, museum installations, emerging new technologies, corporate and live performance for over 35 years. She has worked with artists and companies throughout the world; the firm’s talent has been honored with numerous awards including Tony Awards; Obie; Drama Desk; Lucille Lortel; AUDELCO; Bessie and regional theatre awards.
After receiving her BA in Theatre from the State University of New York at Binghamton, Russ worked at the Cider Mill Playhouse in Endicott, NY as their Production Manager, waiting to start the MFA program at Yale University School of Drama. While studying at Yale she had the opportunity to work with Athol Fugard and continued that relationship after graduating, serving in several capacities including assistant director for the Broadway show “Master Harold…and the boys” and the world premiere of “The Road to Mecca”.
Prior to starting Summit Entertainment Group, LLC in 1988, Russ joined the Broadway general management firm of Joseph Harris and Associates, where she was associated for six years on many Broadway productions including, “My One and Only”, “Noises Off”, “Sweet Charity” and “Glengarry Glen Ross”.
Daniela Hart
DANIELA HART is a New York City based sound designer and composer with an MFA in Sound Design from the Yale School of Drama. Daniela is also a producer, film editor and sound supervisor with their company www.UptownWorksNYC.com under which they often co-design with fellow sound designers, Bailey Trierweiler and Noel Nichols. Some theater credits include The Ghost of John MaCain (SoHo Playhouse); Pipe Dream (Berkshire Theatre Group); Tiny Father (Geffen Playhouse); Las Borinqueñas (EST); Importance of Being Earnest (Pittsburgh Public Theatre/Baltimore Center Stage); Murder on the Orient Express (Syracuse Stage); Munich Medea (WP); Lady Day (Baltimore Center Stage),Tiny Father (Barrington Stage/Chautauqua); Black Odyssey (Classic Stage); Espejos (Hartford Stage, Syracuse Stage), Blues Clues Live (Round Room); Happy Life (Soho Rep); Queen (Long Wharf Theater/A.R.T.NY); Choir Boy (Yale Rep); Fires In The Mirror (Baltimore Center Stage & Long Wharf Theater);The Juniors (Colgate University); How to Save the World in 90 Minutes (Cherry Lane); References to Salvador Dali...(ART, Harvard); Julius Caesar (Vermont Shakespeare); Neighborhood 3 (Rattlestick Theater).
Jack Lavey
JACK LAVEY (he/him) is a New York-based theatrical literary agent, representing playwrights, composers, and designers, including Lortel, Obie and Hewes Award winners. Previously, he worked in the Theatrical Literary Department at A3 Artists Agency.
Before A3, he served as Interim Office Manager for Broadway’s Thompson Turner Productions, managing Book of Mormon, Mean Girls, and Company with Patti LuPone. Previously, Jack has worked as a script evaluator and editor at TCG, Cherry Lane Theatre, Sanguine Theatre Co., Pascal Theatre Co., and The Playwrights Center. BFA - Boston University.
Jason Lynch
JASON LYNCH is a Chicago-based lighting designer for theatre, dance, opera, and other live performance art.
Regional: Alley Theatre, Alliance Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, City Theatre Company, Dallas Theater Center, Denver Center Theatre Company, George Street Playhouse, Geva Theatre Center, Goodman Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals, Huntington Theatre Company, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Northlight Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, The Old Globe, Trinity Repertory Company, among others.
Lynch was also the recipient of the 2022 Equity Jeff Award for his work on Choir Boy at Steppenwolf Theatre and the 2019 Michael Maggio Emerging Designer Award, which recognizes emerging theatrical designers within the Chicago area. Jason is represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE and The Gersh Agency. jasondlynch.com, @jasonlynch.design
Skyler Gray
SKYLER GRAY is a Theater Agent at The Gersh Agency in New York. Prior to becoming an agent, he spent ten years in the new works departments of various regional theaters across the country. He was most recently the Director of New Play Development at Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago, IL and the Literary Manager at the Alley Theatre in Houston, TX. He has also worked in the literary departments at South Coast Repertory, Williamstown Theatre Festival and William Morris Endeavor in New York City, as well as serving as the Artistic Director of Children’s Musical Theaterworks and The Underground @ CMT in Fresno, CA. As a producer and curator, he helped create the Alley All New initiative at the Alley Theatre, produced the Pacific Playwrights Festival at South Coast Repertory for five seasons, and helmed the Ignition Festival for two seasons at Victory Gardens Theater. Gray holds a B.A. in Theater from the University of California, Irvine with Honors in Directing and Stage Management.
Johanna Pan
JOHANNA PAN is a Costume and sometimes Scenic designer for Theatre, Film, Dance and Opera, a textile and visual artist, host and co-producer of the podcast “Dirty Laundry: Unpacking the Costume Closet”. They first discovered theatrical design while competing in the creative thinking competition Odyssey of the Mind and has never looked back. Johanna’s artistic practice is centered around decolonizing the imagination, breaking down the notions of feminized labor, and anti-racism. They continue to harbor hope for a more sustainable humankind in the face of adversity and dreams of a future filled with equity, inclusion and diversity. BFA:Ithaca College, MFA: NYU/TISCH, @jpandesign
Lucy Powis
LUCY POWIS works at Michael Moore Agency as a Theatrical Literary Agent and previously spent 5 years at A3 Artists Agency. She has held positions in the artistic/literary departments at Roundabout Theatre Company, Williamstown Theatre Festival, and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Her producing and dramaturgy credits include work at The Public's Under the Radar Festival, Next Door @ NYTW, New Georges, Ars Nova's ANT Fest, Rattlestick, The Segal Center's PRELUDE Festival, HERE, and the LaGuardia Performing Arts Center. Lucy hails from Toronto and holds an MFA in Dramaturgy from Columbia University.
Instagram Handles
@danielavhart
@jacklavey
CPK Artists
@jasonlynch.design
Skyler Gray
@thegershagency
@jpandesign
@lucytp7
@michaelmooreagency
@cookiewigger
@russrosensweig
@summitentertainmentgroup
@unitedscenicartists
@ethansteimel
@nicolevsteimel
