Australian Ballet industrial action

[Sophoife]

Australian Ballet dancers will hold the curtain for 15 minutes tomorrow night. I shall report, as I will be there.

 

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/jun/22/australian-ballet-dancers-strike-first-industrial-action-42-years?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

[Ian Macmillan]

This planned action tomorrow appears to move things on somewhat from the first word of unrest at the company a couple of weeks or so back.  Not surprisingly, the Australian papers also cover it ... in very similar terms to those used in the Guardian piece.

[Sophoife]

It's only, as you say @Ian Macmillan, the first public word a couple of weeks or so ago. It's been simmering away for quite some time, but I've not been at liberty to mention it until the dancers chose to go public.

 

Depriving Serena Graham and her dancers of their mainstage Bodytorque Up Late opportunity seems to be a very petty retaliation by the company.

 

After all, the double bill starts at 7:30pm and is scheduled to run 132 minutes including interval, so 9:42pm, add on 10-15 minutes (from previous Bodytorque Up Late experience), it's an 8-minute piece, so would finish between 10pm and 10:05pm. Would adding a 15-minute curtain hold, pushing that out to 10:15-10:20pm, really make that much difference to the company costs, or the backstage/lighting/music people? I'll try and find out.

[Emeralds]

Oh my goodness.  😮 The company is not huge. Surely two fundraising galas this season and two next season should be able to top up their finances to be able to pay the dancers (who took temporary pay cuts of 20% and then 50% during the pandemic) the level that they’re asking for? 

[Sophoife]

@Emeralds I don't think that would work.

 

A couple of galas this year and next wouldn't raise sufficient money - it wouldn't be a charity gala, where very often goodwill on the part of venue, musicians, dancers, and the essential backstage/lighting/stage management staff mean the costs of staging the gala are minimal. Added to which the State Theatre in Melbourne will be closed to the company for approximately two years starting in 2024, so venue hire is certainly an issue.

 

The dancers are trying to keep a provision (increases in line with CPI) that was inserted into their contracts some time ago, and they want it to remain in future contracts. So the funding needs to not rely on one-off galas.

 

Today's dancers, like those of 42 years ago, are fighting on both their own behalf and that of future company members.

 

Just today, the Victorian state government announced a public transport fare increase from 1 July of 8.6%, nearly 2% higher than the CPI increase in the last 12 months. Public transport fares are normally "adjusted" in January but this year the Vic govt says it delayed the increase to help ease pressure on Victorians.

 

Today the company has 77 dancers. After Saturday night it will have 75 (bye bye Adam Bull and Chris Rodgers-Wilson). In 1980 there were 56 (counts from programmes).

 

Slightly incoherent but hopefully comprehensible.

[Emeralds]

Thanks @Sophoife, that’s useful to know the background. I was just thinking  about their loss of revenue following so many cancellations over the course of the pandemic (2030-2022). Things are supposed to be “back to normal” now but I noticed one thing recently. Didn’t they used to have a second company or group doing a regional tour of cities and towns not covered in the main company visits? I remember a tour of Giselle, for example, where a number of soloists got to make their debuts as Giselle and Albrecht, which they might never have done in Melbourne and Sydney, for example, once all the principals had their turn.

 

I don’t know what ticket sales or prices were like, but if they managed to make a profit as opposed to a loss, stopping these regional tours would be a reason for not having as much income coming in. Unlike London and New York City experiencing a bit of a post pandemic, cost of living increase crisis saturation of too many shows aiming for the same market share, a lot of the reaction from the public across Australia seems to be “when are you coming to visit our city”, and “why aren’t you coming to our city” and “really enjoyed this show” which suggests that there is a market for AusBallet to visit more regions, even if they don’t bring the entire company to every location.

 

Looking at the ticket prices and sales figures for ENB currently at Royal Albert Hall, which has 5,272 seats (probably about 4,800 for in-the-round productions) which is more than double that of Melbourne State Theatre (2079) and London’s ROH. Without being 100% or even 95% sold out, ENB already earn more revenue from that than performing at Sadler’s Wells or London Coliseum, even if the higher rental cost of RAH were counted. It seems like AusBallet would have to look into staging some productions at bigger venues just like ENB, and doing more touring of shorter stays at more theatres. (Dancing in  more cities with fewer nights in each one is more profitable than dancing more nights in fewer cities.)

 

Additionally, the galas (using a bigger theatre, unless they decide to go for much higher prices, eg $500 a ticket!) would have to become an annual fixture - Hallberg would be used to these from ABT where they are a necessary and normal part of company life for all ballet companies, who don’t get much taxpayer subsidy. Many dancers also enjoy dancing in the galas as well as dressing up and attending the fundraising balls that follow the performance, and they usually have two or three a year (the third might be a mini one but still raises revenue).

 

If they can only afford 1%, then they need to get more revenue in to pay the dancers what they’re promised in their contracts (and dancers aren’t paid a lot to begin with). The alternative is losing dancers due to the poor pay, which would mean being left with a much smaller and poorer (in terms of reputation and works they’re able to stage) company. 

 

PS how did the performance go?

Edited June 23, 2023 by Emeralds

[Sophoife]

I'm waiting for the curtain to be held, but I've found out that the stage crews are on a flat 5 hours from 6pm and if they finish earlier they still get that pay. So using my timescale from up-thread it makes absolutely no cost difference to show the Bodytorque piece, regardless of the curtain hold - it's a punitive measure.

 

In terms of performing regularly in cities other than Melbourne and Sydney, the travel costs domestically in Australia are much higher than they would be if, for example, we had high-speed trains. 

 

The regional tour which is The Dancers Company aka the level 8 (plus occasionally a couple of level 7s) ABS students plus a couple of up and comers from the main company, is back on this year. From past experience the marketing is appalling and the houses are rarely full. I know in Albury the upstairs is not even opened. It runs at a loss, especially when they go outside regional Victoria and New South Wales.

 

 

[Sophoife]

Addendum re cancellation of Bodytorque piece: stage crew are indeed on 5-hour call, but orchestra call is three hours, 7-10pm. If they go over by even one minute it means they're paid for another three hours.

 

Of course, knowing the curtain wouldn't go up until 7:45pm the orchestra call could have been changed to 7:15pm...

[DD Driver]

The cost of living is not likely to get any easier in Melbourne. People may cut back on luxuries.

Victoria's state's debt is a very very large problem.

The 2 year renovation of the Arts Centre is budgeted at $241 million.

 

A cunning plan is required.  Maybe more shows at The Sydney Opera House and billet out the dancers to friends of the ballet for accommodation.

Joking (not joking).😐

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sophoife]

Not Sydney! Too expensive for me to get to! 😂 I've no idea where they'll be dancing in Melbourne, I know when they did Coppélia some years ago at the Palais, they were uncomfortable dancing on its raked stage.

 

Also don't joke about billeting the dancers...what they often did in former times was swap with Opera Australia company members as the opera would be in Melbourne when the ballet was in Sydney. I understand that the per diem is not exactly on a par with the costs of spending up to two months at a time in Sydney, either (I don't know how unequal it is).

 

Matthew Bradwell, one of the dancers' union reps, was very well received by the audience when he came out on Friday night to explain why the curtain was being held.

 

Tonight was Adam Bull's final show and I'm editing the video I took of the mass appreciation at the end, I'll post it on my Instagram (same username) as a reel, I think.

 

 

Edited June 24, 2023 by Sophoife
Added some.

[Bluebird]

Just received from Australian Ballet:

 

"As a valued supporter, we write to you with reference to a matter you may have seen mentioned recently in media or social media commentary: the negotiation of a new Enterprise Agreement for our dancers.

 

First and foremost, please be assured that The Australian Ballet regards its dancers as our greatest asset, and they continue to be treated with the utmost care and support. We invest heavily in our dancers’ physical and mental wellbeing, and through our world-renowned health facilities, provide optimal care and support to ensure they have extended and fulsome careers with the company and beyond.

 

Since September 2022, the company has held ten good faith bargaining meetings with Dancer representatives - including the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (Union) - to update the recently expired Australian Ballet Dancer’s Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023 (‘Agreement’). Considerable progress has been made towards a new Agreement with agreed enhancements in several key areas including performance and rehearsal schedules, rest days, and livestreaming performance fees. We are continuing to work towards an agreement on the final level of wage increase our dancers will receive, which is clearly a sensitive issue given the cost-of-living increases that all Australians are experiencing.

 

The wage offer we have made to our dancers would see them receive a 5.3% increase over what they were paid in 2022, once a new Agreement is adopted. Over a three-year period, our dancers would receive a minimum 11.3% salary increase, with potential for further increases under a capped CPI clause offer. This proposal is more generous than recent wage offers or finalised agreements in peer dance organisations, and it comes at a challenging financial time for our company with the closure of our home theatre in Melbourne from 2024 to 2026. We continue to await the union’s formal response to the offer before the dancers.

 

A further matter we feel requires clarification relates to some public commentary regarding dancer wage cuts in 2020, at the height of the pandemic. The facts are that in 2020, The Australian Ballet performed just 9 of 155 planned mainstage shows due to pandemic disruptions, with box office revenue dropping from $32 million to $1 million. Nevertheless, dancers received a 2.5% wage increase effective from 1 February 2020, worked reduced hours and ultimately received 82% of their normal salary across the year. This was a good example of the company and dancers working together to find a solution to one of the greatest challenges The Australian Ballet has ever faced.

 

Please be assured negotiations with dancer representatives are continuing. We look forward to concluding a new Enterprise Agreement that provides clarity and sustainability for both parties going forward, particularly as we continue to recover from the losses of the pandemic and navigate the challenges of the next few years when the temporary closure of Arts Centre Melbourne (our home theatre) for renovation poses further financial strain."

 

[DD Driver]

I think that is a well written response from The Australian Ballet.

A very challenging situation for all & yes, further financial strain to come.

Edited July 1, 2023 by DD Driver