What is success in the field of musical theatre?

This past Sunday, I was in Idaho, conducting the national tour of Come From Away at the same time that the Broadway production was doing it’s final performance.  I felt a sadness that the show was closing in NY, not least of which because it meant a lot of people were losing their jobs on a show that they loved.  But also because there were two actors in the touring company who had been with the tour since the beginning—who I had done hundreds of performances with—who were leaving the tour and heading back to NYC, uncertain of what would be next for them.  It was the last time we would share a stage together, in this production at least.  But, of course, that’s the gig right?  Shows open, shows close.  People come, and people go.

It got me thinking.  

This business is so transient.  

We never know when a job will come.  When it does come, we sometimes have no idea how long it will last.  And with every job, we have to navigate working with a new “boss”, a new group of people, a new location, new lines, new steps, new everything.  Can you think of any other field of work with this much uncertainty and change? 

And with all of this uncertainty and change, what then constitutes success in our field?  

Is someone who books a lead role in a Broadway flop still a success?  Or is are they a failure because the show closed in a week? 

What about someone who stays in an ensemble track on a show that runs for 20 years?  Are they a success because they found stability and worked for 20 years?  Or are they a failure because they stayed in an ensemble track and never did more than one show?  

What about folks who never book Broadway, but work in their community theatre?  Are they successful because they get the opportunity to work at their craft?  Or are they failures because they never made it to Broadway?  

What about the people who spend years in between bookings?  Are they successful because they are booking jobs even though they might be years apart?  Or are they a failure because they don’t book more often?

These are the kinds of questions that I often hear people in this business struggling with.  We want so badly to define our experience and to have validation that what we are doing is “successful”.  But here is a question to consider instead, from writer Elizabeth Gilbert.  

“What do you love doing so much that the words failure and success essentially become irrelevant?”

Are you as blown away by this idea I as am??   Because the truth is, I love theatre, and singing, and music SO MUCH that if I really think about it, I’m going to do it anyway, whether I make money at it or not,  and whether anyone deems me a “success” or not.  

It’s why I love our community of artists.  We show up, and we do what we love.  We witness and celebrate each other’s artistry.  And yes, we work towards goals, absolutely!  But, here’s the twist (because every great story has a twist!):  often just the act of showing up and doing the thing you love is what leads to transformations you never thought possible, and connections and opportunities that you never expected.

I invite you to do it because you love it. 💙💛

-Cynthia