What are co-workers like at Seattle Opera?

Pros

I had a few very good colleagues during my tenure and got to be a part of some good productions.

Cons

As with most theatre organizations and non-profits, the hours can be extremely long, the pay is woefully inadequate for everything you're asked to do (at least for those under Director-level), and nearly all initiatives are wildly understaffed/under resourced. The amount of guilt heaped upon employees to do much more than should be humanly possible given the funding/staffing is enormous and back-breaking. It is not a healthy environment and burn out is incredibly common. Despite sweeping budget cuts, employees were asked (and coerced) to do more with less to please management. It was the only time in my career that I envied hourly workers, as salaried employees were badly taken advantage of and guilted into working much more than was reasonable for the money we were paid. Though hourly workers were also not paid fairly, at least they got overtime for additional hours.

Advice to Management

Pay your employees acceptable wages! Folks should not be asked to work 60 hours a week (including mandatory nights and weekends) for $50,000/yr. If you want to do more programs, make sure you have the staff, funding, and resources to do them appropriately. Otherwise you will continue burning out your existing employees by forcing them to continually do more and more with less and less.

Pros

I worked with some wonderful, smart, caring colleagues, and had some good collaborations. Being part of putting on an opera (or any sort of performance) is always satisfying in some regard.

Cons

Not all the senior staff have the same level of aptitude, so there is some inconsistency between departments and how they function and collaborate.

Advice to Management

During challenging times, the leadership could be more cohesive, and provide clearer guidance. There tends to be some joking/familiarity and "inside" types of banter among the senior staff which looks unprofessional to the rest of the staff--less of that would give staff more confidence in the leadership.

Pros

Working in the arts is rewarding and fun. Great team of people in my department. Company is making an effort to align with their values.

Cons

Pay is far below a living wage. Corporate structure makes change slow going and frustrating. Decisions from leadership can be confusing and frustrating.

Advice to Management

Pay people more. Communicate expectations and progress clearly.

Pros

Incredible staff, rehearsal spaces, and contract details

Cons

I do not have any cons to provide