Gainesville may welcome art in all its forms, but its job market for professional theater is about as bad as the rest of the country’s.
While UF’s School of Theater + Dance graduates a steady stream of students, the Hippodrome State Theatre is the primary place to get a paying theater job in Gainesville, said Charlie Mitchell, a UF assistant professor in the School of Theater + Dance.
A survey by the Actors Equity Association showed that from 2010 to 2011, 58.3 percent of actors in the association were employed per season, a percentage that increased more than 10 percent from the 2000 to 2001 seasonal unemployment rate.
Mitchell came to teach at UF four years ago after working as an actor in New York City during the worst part of the economic recession. Barely anyone was producing shows, so he came to Florida.
“It was fortunate I got this job, because it was really sort of a desolate time,” he said.
Mitchell teaches Theater Appreciation with the help of teaching assistants from all over the country, he said. They are attracted to Gainesville for the education and teaching potential rather than the acting scene.
UF acting professor Tim Altmeyer came to Gainesville from New York for the same reason.
However, he said, acting jobs in Gainesville are sparse.
“Professionally speaking, it’s limited,” he said. “I would say it’s not a place where you want to sort of settle if you plan on just working Gainesville as an actor.”
To move forward in their careers, UF graduates travel to major cities in Florida like Orlando and Miami, where there are greater theater and commercial markets, Altmeyer said.
Altmeyer and Mitchell said that the School of Theater + Dance provides students with extensive training for the professional world.
“It’s a very creative community,” Altmeyer said, “so I think a lot of exciting talent is born here.”
Paul Poppe, a 19-year-old theatre and advertising sophomore, has been acting since fourth grade and opted for a double major to continue what he loves.
“I can pursue a passion and also something that can give me a possible career in the future,” he said.
He’s found a student acting outlet through the Florida Players and enjoys performing in Gainesville.
“It’s a very open community to perform in,” he said. “It overall helps portray the message.”
Salary jobs don’t come easily, Mitchell said. However, actors with a “relentless drive” can do well in the business.
“No one gets in this business because they think it’s easy,” Mitchell said. “They do it because they love it.”
Lauren Wilkinson, 12, auditions for Gainesville Community Playhouse’s rendition of “White Christmas” on Monday night.
