<p>All the very interesting discussion about double majoring led me to think about what flexible careers/jobs are around that would be able to be combined with auditioning, rehearsing etc.?
I’m a realtor which is a very flexible job- it’s all commission based so I schedule all my own appointments. (It will be better, of course, when this market recovers) To become a realtor in PA, you need to take only two college courses and pass the real estate exam.
Substitute teaching might be another possibility. Any other ideas?</p>
<p>Temping in office work - you can also do night work here, especially if you are in the presentations department of a large firm doing power point presentations. Pays well and if you work hard when you are there it pays off. Gym instructor. Waitressing. Ushering/box office at theatres. Granted the last two don’t really pay enough usually. Hair dresser/beauty therapist that has their own business visiting people and/or employed somewhere that allows you flexible hours. Self employed accountant. Teaching tends to be the most popular option, as it’s pretty flexible and still creative. But it can be unreliable. Working as a sales asssistant in a shop like a book store etc but rarely pays enough really. Modelling work - if you can get it. Voiceover work - if you can get into that competitive market. Tour guide if living in a big city. Corporate acting/role play is another popular choice. Working as a nanny (I know a few actors who do this). Dresser - very popular option in London, dressing actors in West End shows, pays about £10 an hour. There are loads more jobs that actors do like dog walking, house sitting etc, I have heard pretty much everything really!</p>
<p>I think if you can work for yourself, you have flexibility that can work around going to auditions and so forth. I am pretty sure what my kid will be doing when she graduates to earn money while hitting the audition circuit because she already does this kind of work for pay and is turning a bunch of it down as she can’t fit it into her current life as a student. In her case, she can earn money by accompanying (on piano) either for voice classes or MT auditions or in recording studios, can write arrangements for composers or performers who want them, can teach youth MT theater classes, entertain at Broadway themed parties, record (as a singer) on cast recordings, play singer/songwriter gigs in NYC venues, play piano and sing in bands to entertain at functions, teach private piano and voice lessons to youth, record accompaniment tapes for singers, perform in cabarets, and musically direct shows. She has done all of these things already for pay before graduating. I think she will continue to do these things. She may turn down musically directing shows initially because these involve a commitment that could put her out of contention in auditions/casting for shows as a performer, whereas the other jobs are more flexible and she can take as many or as little as she wants and still audition as a performer and hopefully get jobs as a performer. These jobs have all paid well, too. So, that’s one MT kid’s plan. :D</p>
<p>Like Soozievt’s D, I worked as a pianist/vocalist/musical director all through my career in NYC. That’s a great option if you have the skills. Currently, my D is learning to be a travel agent, and hopes to have a steady clientele built up by the time she graduates in 2 years. We have our own online travel company, which we are able to operate part-time at home. So far it’s working out very well, and we feel it will provide her with a decent income and still allow her to audition and work in theater. And if anybody out there needs to make travel plans, be sure to contact me!</p>
<p>Freelance graphic design and conceptual / copywriting work are excellent flex gigs if you have the knack for it and can hit deadlines quickly. It’s what I did when my kids were young and something my D has always had an interest in. I have encouraged her to build a portfolio of work samples just in case. </p>
<p>A performer we know loves working in a spa in NYC. Says it’s a great way to keep yourself looking good, too!</p>
<p>People will always spend on weddings and babies…you don’t have to be too clever to sew up custom crib linens and nursery window treatments. I want my D to take a calligraphy class because if she gets good, she can do invitations freelance. I was a freelance editor/proofreader for years, and that is as flexible as you can get. A working actress I know does legal transcriptions on the side and that pays really well.</p>
<p>I plan on double majoring in addition to Theatre / Musical Theatre, in Graphic Design or Speech Pathology. I want and need a good day job. I don’t know if I’ll ever make it in Theatre and I want options. =] Besides, my parents won’t pay my way if I JUST major in Theatre / Musical Theatre.</p>
<p>I’m graduating from a college in California with a B.A. in Theater and a minor in Music, and my plan from there is to move to New York and finish the ASL interpreting program at La Guardia Community College and then work as an interpreter in the city. The classes are 2 nights a week so I can work and audition during days/nights I’m not in class, and then after that interpreting is a really flexible job that actually pays pretty well I hear. Until I get my license for interpreting I’m planning on either interpreting in jobs that don’t require a license, or working as a waitress. New York, here I come! =)</p>
<p>In response to elbie’s post 2 up 
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<p>Speech Pathology is a GREAT career for someone who has a good ear and loves voice-related things, especially if you can manage to snag a job working solely or primarily with voice disorders, like I do (those jobs are fairly scarce) - BUT I wouldn’t consider it a “flexible day job”. It CAN be that eventually, once you have completed your education, done a required year of clinical fellowship, and gotten experience under your belt so that you are marketable enough to be wanted as a part-time or PRN (as-needed) employee. But the schooling for SLP is intense - you must have a Master’s degree to be clinically certified, and that’s a six-year commitment to a very science-heavy and demanding program where you have to do clinical rotations and go to class at the same time. Last year, my final year of grad school, I had clinical 8am-4pm every day and class from 5:30 - 8:30 two nights a week. I’m not saying any of this to discourage people here from investigating SLP - like I said, medical voice therapy is an amazing career for people who are passionate about both medicine and the arts!! Last week, for example, I worked with 2 veteran performers with Broadway credits AND got to go see them in the show they were both working on later that week, to check on how their fatigued voices were holding up under real conditions (I can’t tell you more because of patient confidentiality, but it was COOL!), and I also worked with a well-known broadcaster, an almost-major rock singer (MTV presence), 2 MT students, and lots of “regular” people, too! But I work 8 am - 4 pm or 10 am - 7 pm, and I’m only able to coach a lot also because I control my coaching schedule. :)</p>