Do Understudies & Swings Deserve This Broadway Backlash?
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- Опубліковано 20 січ 2022
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We are avid supporters of theatre and the broadway community, so you know we love to chime in when there's a larger discussion amongst the community. SO much love and respect to anyone who is, has been, or will be a broadway understudy or swing.
Enjoy the video!
- Sam & Ryan
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We're Sam & Ryan! Samantha Fekete is a content creator/ production manager who works full time for Project 863 at Spellbound Inc. Ryan McCartan is an actor who you may recognize as Diggie from Disney Channel's Liv and Maddie, JD from Heathers the Musical, Hans from Frozen on Broadway, and more! We create content to entertain and inform. Subscribe to take a deep dive into out content! If you subscribe, you officially become Daddy, a part of the best fan base out there.
100% agree!! one of my fav shows is six and from an audience perspective the way they handle swings (at least in the australian cast and performances at the moment) is incredible! all of the swings get to rehearse almost as much as the main cast and are allowed to go on for numerous shows even if main cast members aren’t sick or unable to perform for whatever reason. they seem so much more comfortable on stage and prepared to fill these roles in a safe and healthy way, both physically and mentally.
I completely agree and I also LOVE Six. But I do think it is a bit easier to do with Six since it isn’t a conventional musical. It is an hour long musical, with only six cast members (unless you count The ladies in Waiting), very few lines, and 9 songs. I love six and completely respect the entire cast (including the swings) but I will say it is a bit easier to be a swing in that versus some others.
We really do need to normalize understudy and swing shows. It gives those people so much more comfort in their roles.
This is a really strong point. The theatre industry is pretty dodgy and we need to fix a lot of it. I'm really thankful that we have voices out there trying to change things.
I used to be a ballerina and I got thrown in mid act into a number when another dancer got sick but I also had been rehearsing that role for weeks and wasn't in a position that was potentially hazardous. The fact that broadway swings don't get to rehearse before getting thrown onstage is insane to me.
Ballet actually has a good system now that I think about it. Multiple castings instead of a main and understudy. And at least when you have people understudying the corps the geometry/symmetry of dance makes it’s a lot easier to learn multiple spots than it is for a broadway swing to.
Grace Romanello is a woman I have so much respect for. She is a swing in The current Mean girls national tour and has on TikTok commented on how unfair it is & has been criticized for ‘being dramatic’. She can cover all 8 female ensemble tracks and is as well the assistant dance captain. She just tried to talk about her mental health. I’m such a fan of the show and you can see how hard some of the dance numbers are! Like imagine. Also why the heck are they paid less! Like Ryan said they work so much harder! And one of the dance captains, so she also has to watch the show closely when not performing! Swings needs to be paid more! And on a tour your on different stages and in different theaters. Swings need to be appreciated more! Okay that was a lot bye!
Note* she is also the fight captain
I agree 100%
It's all about money and big business
And I’m pretty sure she also had done Gretchen AND Karen along with knowing all of that!
Amber Ardolino, who is a swing in hamilton on broadway, has become one of my favorite TikTokers. She is the kindest, most talented human ever! I love her so much! She posted recently how she learned at PLACES, she was going on for a role she’s only covered once! I respect her and all swings so much!
It really is wild how normalized it is and how better solutions haven’t been implemented by now.
Yeah i totally agree
In the last show i preformed in ( Matilda ) i played an ensemble member as well as a swing for all eight of Matilda’s class mates, you know: Bruce, Lavander, Nigel, etc… it was so much work, but a ton of fun!! I had to learn a total of nine roles in the time most everyone else only had to learn one. Like i said, A LOT OF WORK! I had to swing for them all the time in rehearsals and even had to last minute swing for TWO characters for a couple days during tech week. Now as the swing i had to learn each of the characters lines and all of the dances, which means learning the individual moves, solos, and blocking during the numbers for each of the eight kids. I put my heart and soul into each performance i gave as a swing for those characters. So hard! It was a crazy amount of work and memorization!! Unlike a lot of broadway swings, I was given so much appreciation for my work. My director even gave me a big shoutout at the end of our last show, much like the one Hugh Jackman gave. I cried like a baby! My director even talked about me to Broadway star Laura Osnes, who came to see our show!! It is an indescribable feeling that feeling of appreciation, that feeling when you know someone notices how hard you work and gives you the appreciation your heart longs to have. Almost directly after we concluded our last Matilda performance the video with Hugh and his swing an understudy speech blew up. I remember my mom sent it to me and i just resonated with it, almost like he was talking to me lol. Anyway thank you for making this video, love y’all’s channel and what you do. Thank you for covering this topic, and giving such wonderful opinions on it. If you got to the end of this freakishly long comment, congrats!!
THAT’S EPIC AND YOU’RE INCREDIBLE HOLY COW
@@alenanela1743 oh my gosh! Ur so sweet!! Thank you!!
Not far into the video, but had to say, the Hamilton swing cast TikTok accounts have become one of my favorite things lately haha they're all great
SAME LOL
Do you have any of their @‘s? I wanna go watch some of their videos :]
@@krisjustexists_ i do as well!
Last swing job I took I was 13 and also in the ensemble. The girl I was covering for was late, so the stage manager said I got to go on and I was ecstatic! Then the girl shows up and the stage manager violates my contract and tells me to change costumes and let her on. I cried the rest of the show. My agent said I did the right thing by “not making a big deal”, even though the company BrOkE uNiOn LaW.
In Australia at the moment six is on in Sydney and when they first introduced the actresses playing the queens the 3 swings were also included and I love how much love the swings get in six
They put a post up saying it’s the first swing coronation tonight and to show her some love and the comments on the post had so much love and the show hadn’t happened yet
I saw six few weeks back & I had Karis who is a swing & she was amazing.
I know for Hamilton too they introduced the swings as well. They got the swings & understudies to go like once a week even when the person wasn't sick/well before lockdown later last year so they knew how it would go for a live show not just practise/rehearsal rooms.
my high school is doing rent and i’m understudy for mimi, maureen, and joanne. i love being there and doing it, but it’s been pretty stressful and hard for me. thank you for this video, it makes me feel so much better. i love you guys
you are INCREDIBLE (but i wish you didn't have to do them all or got more rehearsal time!!)
@@AllySheehan YOU ARE SO SWEET
thank you so so much i cant tell you how much i appreciate that
I have a question. How many performances will your HS be doing to warrant the need of multiple understudies? Or is it just one of those like we have some many students and everyone has a role.
Please do a tier list on off Broadway musicals
Swings amaze me. The memory and confidence they have; I could never.
I saw Hadestown on Broadway and it was backup for half hour after start time. And I got 2 understudies as amazing they are. The guy who went in Orpheus hadn’t played him in months. He was amazing but that should’ve of happened.
As someone who’s been a swing for many a show, most places treated me like I wasn’t even a person. Usually unpaid 🙃 including rehearsals. There was some silver lining theaters, but not a lot. One time I had to beg and plead just to get a rehearsal schedule and contact info, they gave me less than a day of tech and unpaid rehearsals but $50 for a show if I went on.
For reference this is in Philadelphia. And I’m not naming names, but it’s a popular theatre company.
Where was this kind of attention 3 years ago? It’s nice to see its getting more attention. One of the reasons I left the business.
This is a great video. I was in my school's production of Peter Pan fall of 2021 and was the narrator. Less than a week before opening, our Tinkerbell had to quit. I was chosen to go on for 1 scene that we needed a person as the role. I studied the script and blocking and went on without any proper rehearsal. Swings have an incredibly difficult job and deserve more positive attention.
I’d also like to say this also applies to theme park shows and parades. Swings and understudies have that same expectation which is wrong
I am so happy you guys talked about this! The backlash is so undeserved because understudies and swings work so hard and are so under appreciated. Because I live in South Carolina I and cannot afford a plane ticket or pay for gas all the way to New York every three months I have only seen one Broadway show, something that I cannot wait to change as the world starts slowly getting back to normal. I saw Aladdin in 2018 and was thrilled. It was not the original cast and I wasn’t in the best seat but I got chills during the whole thing and honestly wanted to cry when it was over because I never wanted to be pulled out of the experience. At that point I knew very little about Broadway so I did not know how much work the understudies and swings put in nor what stagedooring was so I didn’t get to see the actors so I didn’t get to meet anyone. When I saw the show, Jonathan Freeman (the one who voiced him in the movie) was supposed to be playing the role of Jafar. For some reason he was not able to be in the show that night and his understudy, Patrick R. Brown played Jafar instead. He was wonderful! His comedic timing was perfect and I doubt his performance left anyone underwhelmed. I have heard about people trying to get refunded tickets because they were supposed to see a big star and then got someone they’d never heard of. Well I say this is ludicrous and I want to send all the love I can to the people whose talents may be overlooked because they aren’t a big named. Have a wonderful day! I live your channel and the positivity you put out!
Yes to ALL of this. I also think that this appreciation for swings and understudies needs to start at the educational theatre level. I'm currently in undergrad and am one of 2 MT majors, and when I asked to understudy one of the roles in our musical (I'm in the chorus), I was told no because that's just not something our department does. Educational theatre needs to do better at teaching an authentic and equitable appreciation of swings, understudies, techs, etc.
This is an aspect I've never considered, and you're absolutely right. Even worse, it's only a matter of time before someone gets seriously hurt because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
we need an in depth reaction to west side story from you guys!!!
Thank you for this, my daughter is an understudy / swing on Harry Potter on the London West End.
She does as much if not more, rehearsals than the principles.
Anyone notice Bailey in the background, what a cutie!
Yessss!! 🥰
Back when I used to do local theatrical productions, I was always understood to be a swing. I would get cast in smaller roles, but the creative team always knew that if a principal couldn't make it to a rehearsal, I most likely knew their track and could fill in. Its just how my brain works. I only needed to fill in on a show night once or twice.
I stepped away from it. I got tired of the lack of respect. They would offhandedly comment about how I knew everyone's roles, so they were aware of how valuable I was to their production. But it was more like they saw it as a quirky trait of mine. When they needed me, there was rarely much appreciation. (This wasn't professional by any means. Majority of it was for charity.)
Hope the praise for them is not only with applauses but also with a fair treatment in general
Great video, guys! ✨
My friend Maria is one of the swings in music man right now. And before that she was in like-six other shows as a swing? She’s a rockstar they deserve so much more love and respect and credit and just everything.
I like seeing you too talk about what what you believe in, there are so many people that stay quiet.
THANK U FOR THIS I WAS HOPING FOR SOMEONE TO TALK ABT THIS
Great video guys!👏❤
I love this kind of videos because they're so real and also give a lot of info/deeper point of views on the subjects👏
Had to watch twice, the first time all i could see was Bailey in the background omg adorableee❤
I've known about swings for years and always found it interesting that they have to do more work than the leads who get paid significantly more. I never realized they didn't consistently rehearse the roles they have to play. That's insane. If you expect a person to cover multiple roles, they need to be rehearsing each role at the very least once a week. I honestly think it's inhumane to expect someone to learn that many roles and be perfect at all of them. Swings should cover 3 roles at most with an ample amount rehearsal time regularly.
Thank you so much. I was in a regional production of Great Gatsby and I had to go on for Myrtle on opening night (and every following night because they got fired last minute) without any rehearsals and I still remember the tension backstage especially when she **spoilers** gets hit by a car. We talked through the blocking before hand but that was it.
Yes yes YES! It's so healing to hear people talk about this
This video hits so much closer to home now than it ever did before. I would never have diminished the role of swings before, and especially not now. Just yesterday, my high school finished up our production of the neverending story. We had four shows: a matinee for the third graders in the district during school on Thursday, and then three shows (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) for the public. On Saturday, our Atreyu got sick. If you don't know the story of the neverending story, Atreyu is one of the two leads. So, he's a little bit important. The winter play at my school is the hardest to get people for because the musical attracts the show choirs, the spring play attracts the speech and debate kids, but the winter play happens in the middle of both the show choir and the speech season. Most of the cast that weren't leads were double or triple cast. So we didn't have an understudy. I was the assistant director, and since the show was already happening, I was just kinda chilling in the tech booth during the show. I helped out where needed, but they could easily do it without me. We'd already been preparing mentally for the scenario where I needed to go on for one of the roles and maybe memorize the lines just before the show, as we almost always had people missing from rehearsals and everyone was getting sick. Also, I helped block the show and watched it all the time and would look for ways to improve the blocking, so I knew it, which is a big help so I'm only reading lines and not blocking as well. And I already knew the lines decently well for the same reason, just not well enough to go on without a book. And thank god, because we had to do it that way. I found out at 11:15 am on Saturday (in the middle of a speech tournament) that atreyu was sick and I'd most likely have to go on as atreyu at the 7:00 performance that night (assuming I was comfortable with it, but there also wasn't really another option). And so I did. I got there from the speech tournament at 5 and had 2 hours to get in costume, run through all the scenes in my head to make sure I wasn't missing any blocking, check with stage crew so I'd know when I'd need to bring on/off set pieces and where they'd be, and run a couple of the scenes with more complicated blocking so I wouldn't be crawling under Falkor's 3-person costume (as they were moving) for the first time that night because I guarantee, I would've tripped them and it would've been bad. Thank god the original atreyu and I are about the same height (especially considering we're both super short) and even more thank god, the shoes fit me! I did have to do the whole thing with a book in hand because there was no way I'd have been able to confidently learn every line before the show, but it turned out ok. I mean, I didn't fall off the ladder climbing up the tower, so I'd classify it as a win. And then I wound up needing to play atreyu for the Sunday performance as well. Again, I never would've diminished the role of swings or understudies before. But even if I did? Hell no. I can't imagine having to do that at the drop of a hat all the time. I'm sure I'd have been more prepared for the role if I were an official swing, but it also would've been much more of a given that I'd have had to do it at some point. It's scary to do scenes for the first time ever in front of a paying audience. Even momentarily entertaining the idea that swings are somehow less than just because they don't play the role 8 times a week and their name isn't the main one in the playbill? Absolutely ridiculous. I won't stand for it.
As someone studying theater right now to go into it professionally, I appreciate this insight.
RYAN YOU SHOULD RLLY GO ON THE MASKED SINGER THO FRFRFRFRFR
I wish this video had more views because of the great points it makes. I'm an actor (not professionally, but it counts) and I've had some awful experiences with treatment backstage. Understudies and swings who've never even set foot onstage or gotten music, unsafe conditions, and not enough attention to cast needs. My last show's leading lady couldn't make opening night. The show required Heelys, but we had to learn how to use them on carpet, and swings/understudies didn't get practice. They were barely thought of. This became a problem on opening night. Our leading lady's swing (for Ariel) hadn't worn Heelys until 3 hours before the show. We got almost no practice onstage with them as the leads either. I almost fell into dry ice backstage because of them. The understudies and swings were treated like hot garbage. They had to use the leads' Heelys, which didn't fit, didn't get the proper instrumental tracks to rehearse, had to basically safety pin their costume until it was the right size, and never rehearsed with the other cast members. They were phenomenal and surprised us all, including myself. For example, I had a scene with Ariel and Scuttle in the Little Mermaid as Flounder and our swing Ariel was perfect. She knew her marks, had cast chemistry, and honestly did a better job than the lead imo. That was because we taught her in our free time. She only knew what she was doing because the original cast took the time to work with swings and understudies. I've been in the position of an understudy, swing, lead, and ensemble member, and I've noticed that swings are treated the worst of all. They need more proactive respect. Thanks for speaking out about that.
Commenting to boost video engagement act 22
Swings deserve so much more respect and attention
:0 I’ve been waiting for your upload. This should be interesting. 💅
Loved the video, people need to hear this. But we all know that Bailey, sleeping in the backgroung next to Sam, is the real star of this video :p
Seriously though all parts of all shows deserve equal love .
I worked one show in Philly where we lost power in the middle of a number and did not stop at all. Safety first!
wow I knew swings did a lot but I didn't realize HOW MANY roles they have to know (like 10?? wth??) and how little rehearsal they get. I also think that covid has taught me sometimes the show should not go on...sacrificing your safety for the sake of a show is just not worth it
LOL 3 weeks of rehearsal is also toxic as a replacement for an ENTIRE Broadway show. We are groomed to believe so many toxic things. Just hire more swings, have them cover with less tracks, give everyone more money and let them do a show/week. MOREOVER, there is a significantly darker, shall we say, hue, to those of us more likely to be hired as an understudy or swing. Like, bye 👋🏼 ✌🏼 Theater is INSANITY and they exploit our love for it. LOVE THIS VIDEOOOOOO
Love thé hair sam!!!! And Ryan! Love a Broadway vidéo 🙌
This situation reminds me of us clapping for healthcare workers at the beginning of the pandemic. Did they deserve that praise and recognition? ABSOLUTELY, and still do. But more importantly, they deserve safer working conditions, a pay raise, and systemic change to the industry. On top of the "well done" for doing such a challenging job.
Thank you for this video, these were my thoughts. There were so many knee-jerk reactions when the insensitive comment first came out, but my first thoughts went towards the safety of those involved.
This also is a parallel conversation to Healthcare. I understand your perspective 100%
When I saw Six last year in Melbourne Aus, one of the queens was a swing and she was FANNNNNNTASTICCC!! made me love Catherine Parr even more. Idk why she had to fill in but loved it regardless
"just because you can, doesnt mean you should" YES!!!!
I was a swing my first ever show. It was Matilda the musical, and I was fairly talented as a child but I was so new to the tegater so they just gave me swing. It was unbelievable how many times I went in for people. I was lavender understudy, Bruce understudy, as long as the swing for every single child in that show. It was a lot of fun tho lol
Not just in theatre, but in any and all industries and social areas I see a lot of stories of "heroism" or "dedication" that are just completely unnecessary(ex: young kids getting jobs to support their families, someone walking miles to work everyday because they cant afford a car, etc). A swing going in for a lead with an hour of rehearsal is an incredible feat but SHOULD NOT HAVE TO HAPPEN.
I'm a huge theater fan and a life long amateur actor.
The thought of having an hour to prepare to play are part I've never played before , even if I know the lines and music inside ,out,
It just feels my recurring dream of being thrown out in a part and having no idea what to do. 😳
great video
Y’all are so cute together
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU….I’ve always thought it was complete BS that any kind of cover doesn’t get any real rehearsal until after the show officially opens, and and then is supposed to have their first one and step in only when shit hits the fan, as the was the case with Kathy going on for Sutton?? That has GOT to change, and I’m honestly not sure why that was a union bylaw in the first place, it’s not only potentially unsafe, but just…insulting to expect a cover to do all this and still perform to a polished, well rehearsed level 😡😡
To me the current treatment of the understudies is a LOT similar to the current treatment of nurses and teachers. It's also interesting that these professions are often thought of as "female," and all have issues with lack of pay. It's not a good connection ://
Just want to say y’all are so cute together
If I was a Broadway actress, I get a feeling that I will end up as a swing, because I will do chorus all of the time, but maybe have the potential to play one of the leads.
Have you heatd about the stagedooring controversy? I'd love to hear your opinions on that. Art is precious, but also hard work. People in art need to be payed accordingly, whether you are a lead, a swing or a light technician. Give these people what they deserve, instead of what the CEO's think they deserve.
swings actually get paid more, the one bonus!
3:44 Ryan is dead inside
Sooooo if they're 'untalented' then why are they being thrown on stage without any rehearsal time? Make it make sense. Truly disappointing how much of an afterthought they are. Swings are often cast in multiple shows at once too, I have to assume to cover bills as I doubt anybody would choose to be spread that thin.
So in a very simple sense, understudies go on for one or two roles while swings usually take the spots those understudies vacated when they had to take the lead?
Maybe swings should be routinely included in preview performances…
I was literally the 666th viewer 🤣 you guys are great
The President of the league is simply giving her OPINION....she is entitled to that....
Please tell me you’re joking that swings and understudies get payed less. That is so disappointing and frustrating.
I'm living for short-hair Ryan and natural-looking-hair Sam! She looks stunning!
YoOoO I GoT tHiS vId To 12 LiKeS 💀👏🏻👏🏻
Well... labor rights in the US... go figure.
How are they expected to fully play a part when they are preparing to lead many different roles?! That was not an inaccurate statement, it was an unnecessary one.
Second 💅
The guy looks down too much which is not his best aspect. Maybe he would prefer the camera to be at a lower vantage.
First