ROH Orchestra Strike

[Sim]

I have posted the following in Not Dance/Opera:

 

I have just read about this here:

 

https://slippedisc.com/2023/09/royal-opera-house-dresses-down-for-an-orchestra-strike/

 

It seems that they have decided to strike, but we don’t know when yet.  It will affect opera and ballet (although conceivably ballets could be danced to recorded music in order to avoid cancellations.  However, this is not an option for the opera).  Would the RB dance to taped music in case of an orchestra strike?  
 

I do hope they come to an agreement so that strike action is averted. 

[bridiem]

1 minute ago, Sim said:

I do hope they come to an agreement so that strike action is averted. 

 

So do I! I wonder if taped music would even be allowed. It would be awful anyway...

[Guest oncnp]

27 minutes ago, Sim said:

I have posted the following in Not Dance/Opera:

 

I have just read about this here:

 

https://slippedisc.com/2023/09/royal-opera-house-dresses-down-for-an-orchestra-strike/

 

Would the RB dance to taped music in case of an orchestra strike?  
 

I do hope they come to an agreement so that strike action is averted. 

Would the dancers, who are unionized except for the Principals I believe, cross a picket line? 

[capybara]

This casts a dreadful pall over the start of the ballet season.

I do hope that the ROH will be able to sort this out, not least for the members of the Orchestra who will have been on reduced pay for over three years now.

I don’t think that the dancers’ pay cuts have been fully restored either (hearsay).

[Guest oncnp]

Also reported in The Stage this AM (paywall but a couple free articles if register) with statements from both sides. Didn't sound very hopeful

[Sim]

37 minutes ago, oncnp said:

Would the dancers, who are unionized except for the Principals I believe, cross a picket line? 

I was wondering the same thing…

[capybara]

Doubtful but, since the only recorded music for Martin Yates’s version of Don Q will be that from the ROH musicians, the issue is unlikely to arise.

[Henry]

Could the orchestra strike on the same days as the Tube/Rail strikes?  Please??

[LinMM]

Inspite of the seriousness of everything just at the moment your comment made me laugh Henry. 
Yes seconded by me! 

[Silver Capricorn]

I hope the orchestra strike would have been announced well in advance. Not like at the Paris Opera where we found out about the cancellation of the performance due to the dancers' strike at 12:00 on the day of the performance, after we had landed in Paris and checked into the hotel ...

[Lizbie1]

IIRC at least two weeks' notice is required, unless the employer agrees to cut that to one week (I don't know why they would).

[LinMM]

Well Silver Capricorn that won’t exactly get people on their side will it 😮

Edited September 29, 2023 by LinMM

[Lizbie1]

11 minutes ago, Silver Capricorn said:

I hope the orchestra strike would have been announced well in advance. Not like at the Paris Opera where we found out about the cancellation of the performance due to the dancers' strike at 12:00 on the day of the performance, after we had landed in Paris and checked into the hotel ...

 

8 minutes ago, LinMM said:

Well Silver Capricorn that won’t exactly get people on their side will it 😮

 

Back before Covid I stayed in Paris to see four PO and POB performances and all four were cancelled in this way. All was not lost as I ate very well and caught up on a few museums

 

On another trip (just before Covid stopped everything) one POB performance was cancelled and one went ahead but with a statement read out at the start; I was also at the Opera Comique on the same trip and a similar statement had a "mixed reception". I think sympathy was beginning to run short by then.

[Emeralds]

3 hours ago, Henry said:

Could the orchestra strike on the same days as the Tube/Rail strikes?  Please??

Was just thinking that....lol. 

 

18 hours ago, oncnp said:

Would the dancers, who are unionized except for the Principals I believe, cross a picket line? 

I was just thinking about whether the dancers would be joining them (in principle they should as artistic partners or else they would be scabs). If the RB leadership force them to perform without an orchestra they would have to but I can’t see the RB board and leadership who are former dancers or fellow performers  (can’t remember if eminent pianist Sir Stephen Hough is on the board this year) would make them do it, as they understand the importance of good working relationships with musicians - who include their daily class pianists.

 

Besides using recordings the other option is hiring pianists from outside ROH to play the whole score on a piano (or two pianos) just like in rehearsals, although it wouldn’t sound great. U.K. professional pianists are unlikely to agree to do that as the music world is small and they’d be scabs as well, and might never get hired again. There is no graceful way out of it if they tried to dance while an orchestra strike is on; I hope they come to an agreement in talks and restore the musicians’ pay. It’s the right thing to do. They do have the funds if they look [as they managed to pay for a lot of new productions of questionable quality].

[JohnS]

21 hours ago, Emeralds said:

They do have the funds if they look [as they managed to pay for a lot of new productions of questionable quality].

Would be good to know the spend on consultants, what’s been delivered, and whether the work could have better delivered by in house teams.

[Guest oncnp]

2 minutes ago, JohnS said:

Would be good to know the spend on consultants, what’s been delivered, and whether the work could have better delivered by in house teams.

 

Agreed. Would also be good to know how much they have spent on the endless tinkering with the "new" website and booking system......and an IT department that never seems to check its work. 

[capybara]

Please could we avoid speculation as to what the dancers might or might not do?

We don't know yet whether a strike by the Orchestra will come to pass or (hopefully) be averted and the two groups belong to different unions in any case.

 

Couldn't agree more about the need for the ROH to avoid many wasteful practices AND set prices at a level which will fill the House. The number of unsold seats for Don Q is truly shocking.

[Richard LH]

19 hours ago, oncnp said:

Also reported in The Stage this AM (paywall but a couple free articles if register) with statements from both sides. Didn't sound very hopeful

I wouldn't say that. The Stage article has a lot more depth than the brief slippedisc one. The latter says that a strike is just a matter of timing, but no such inevitability is  referred to in The Stage. The  Musicians Union statements quoted in The Stage just say they would be fully supporting the orchestra if they move to strike action. The ROH refer to the Union rejecting a pay settlement backdated to last September that has been agreed for all other ROH staff. Both sides confirm negotiations are continuing...so let us hope agreement will be reached.

[JNC]

This is very bleak news, particularly after reading about Northern Ballet's situation. 

 

As an audience member, I would expect ROH to notify audience members of any strike dates (once confirmed) and to offer an automatic discount (if the performance was going ahead with recorded music or pianists only instead of a full orchestra), or the option to cancel entirely. Live music is very much part of the experience so I would be incredibly annoyed if ROH decided not to offer refunds if this strike does materialise and performances aren't cancelled.

 

(I guess for me personally as I'm sure I would go to ROH in the next 3 years you could always do the ticket credit exchange minus £4 but for those that aren't so regular/tourists from afar it is maybe not a fair solution.)

 

 

[Mary]

I walked past ROH tonight and spoke to some of the orchestra handing out leaflets outside. I felt very much for their situation and was much struck by their sincerity and love for what they do. But to live in London is so expensive. They are  clearly struggling.

And without the music- what do we have?  A gigantic cafe.

[JohnS]

Yellow T-shirts for full members of the ROH Orchestra with contract players all wearing yellow ribbons in support (apparently it’s one of those ‘too difficult’ steps for contract players not to appear in concert dress). Fabulous to see the whole orchestra on stage at the end of Das Rheingold with Tony Pappano and hear the support and appreciation from the audience.

 

The ROH orchestra are asking people to sign their petition:

https://www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/royal-opera-house-give-us-back-our-10

 

I think there’ll be similar dress/requests for support tomorrow evening.

[jmhopton]

Have just signed and forwarded it to a friend who is very keen on orchestral concerts.

I too wondered if the RB covid pay cut had been restored and, if not, would the orchestra decision to strike (which apparenly was taken in July) make them think about their own pay restoration. Obviously the orchestra hopes the increased publicity for their cause will make strike action unnecessary (as do we all). I doubt the RB would dance to any form of recorded music as this would seem like going against work colleagues.

As others have pointed out the ROH (like many other huge organisations) has its own fair share of inessential wasteful practices which could be economised on without penalising hard working orchestra members who are essential for all performances. A moratorium on new ballets (even if it's just for a year) will be a good start. They could perform more heritage works and save on choreographers,  sets, costumes etc. I'm sure that would be a start towards helping the orchestra (and possibly dancers too if they haven't had parity restored).

[Peanut68]

I vote RB management is culled to be replaced with a board of knowledgeable & common sense forum contributors who I think are far more clued up as to what audiences want & will do the job democratically & diligently to the betterment of ballet for all!

Contentious??? Moi??? 😈

[LinMM]

Have just signed the petition and shared to Facebook. 

[Richard LH]

9 minutes ago, emmarose said:

it's a show of disrespect to not stand with the orchestra. If the dancers would back them up, I'm sure there wold be a rush to negotiate to get everyone back on stage.

But there are two sides to the pay dispute. We can't assume members of other unions, with their own settlements agreed, necessarily back the orchestra as opposed to the ROH, or that they would be in a position to strike as well, contractually. Meanwhile we are told by both sides that negotiations are continuing.

[Sim]

A post above has been hidden whilst under discussion by the mods, and any subsequent posts that refer to it are also temporarily hidden.  

[capybara]

10 minutes ago, emmarose said:

 

As much as I would love for everything to continue on, I have to agree that if they were to keep on dancing and not stand with the orchestra, who make them look good every night, it's not a good look to show that you can do this without them.

 

It's kind of like Drew Barrymore when she attempted to bring back her show without the writers, it may not have been her union, but it's a show of disrespect to not stand with the orchestra. If the dancers would back them up, I'm sure there wold be a rush to negotiate to get everyone back on stage.

 

Too much speculation here, I'm afraid.

1) we don't know whether the dancers have had their pre-Covid pay restored; for all we know, they might also (through Equity) be in ongoing negotiations with the ROH over that;

2) we don't know whether or not the dancers have indicated any collective support for the orchestra; and

3) we don't know what the contingency plans are or what performance options there might be in the event of a strike by the orchestra.

 

In the meantime all anyone outside the situation can do is to show support for the orchestra, if they are minded to do so, .

[emmarose]

6 minutes ago, capybara said:

 

Too much speculation here, I'm afraid.

1) we don't know whether the dancers have had their pre-Covid pay restored; for all we know, they might also (through Equity) be in ongoing negotiations with the ROH over that;

2) we don't know whether or not the dancers have indicated any collective support for the orchestra; and

3) we don't know what the contingency plans are or what performance options there might be in the event of a strike by the orchestra.

 

In the meantime all anyone outside the situation can do is to show support for the orchestra, if they are minded to do so, .

 

It is what it is, I suppose.

[Anna C]

14 hours ago, JohnS said:

Yellow T-shirts for full members of the ROH Orchestra with contract players all wearing yellow ribbons in support (apparently it’s one of those ‘too difficult’ steps for contract players not to appear in concert dress). Fabulous to see the whole orchestra on stage at the end of Das Rheingold with Tony Pappano and hear the support and appreciation from the audience.

 

The ROH orchestra are asking people to sign their petition:

https://www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/royal-opera-house-give-us-back-our-10

 

I think there’ll be similar dress/requests for support tomorrow evening.

Thank you John, I have signed the petition.

[JohnS]

Excellent news:

 

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid037MBqGQByXCQ9XRVj4G8tUEBiCfuhNEwx9pUiuBLL8PvfFNkpMm9eRCs7qBAGqujZl&id=100064405281048

 

Musicians in the Royal Opera House Orchestra have accepted a significantly improved pay and conditions offer from the company’s management to settle this year’s dispute

This result is a credit to the courage and resolve of all MU members in the Orchestra and a powerful example of how a successful outcome can be achieved when members organise and stand firm, even in the face of great pressure

Read more: https://bit.ly/3uzEV7K

#WeAreTheMU

 

[capybara]

That’s really good news.

 

But has the pay of dancers been restored?

The Musicians’ Union always seems to be more effective in achieving its ends than does Equity on behalf of other artists.