Stage & Performing Arts

What Are Sides in a Film or TV Audition?

I have a small ritual before any show or screening: I read everything I can get my hands on, then I stay for the credits. Auditions do not give actors that luxury. In film and TV, you often do not receive a full script, especially in early rounds. You get sides , a handful of pages that are just...

What Is Blocking in Theater and Film?

I grew up in Chicago in the not-so-glamorous places where shows are actually made: backstage hallways, paint-splattered scene shops, and projection booths where you learn quickly that every entrance, cross, and turn has to land somewhere . Long before I had the vocabulary for it, I was watching...

Do Film and TV Extras Need an Agent?

I grew up backstage in Chicago where everyone had a job title that sounded mysterious until you watched them work. That is how I feel about the word “agent” when you are brand new to on-camera life. It sounds like a golden ticket. For most film and TV extras, it is not. Background acting is its own...

Can Background Actors Talk to Principal Actors on Set?

I grew up in Chicago around musicians and set builders, which meant I learned early that the magic only happens when everyone knows their lane. Film and TV sets run on that same quiet choreography. If you are working background, you are absolutely a real part of the storytelling. You are also part...

What Happens to Your Ticket If a Show Is Canceled?

I am the kind of person who reads the whole playbill before the curtain and stays through the last curtain call, so I do not say this lightly: having a show cancel can feel like the universe stole your night out. Sometimes it is weather, sometimes it is illness, sometimes it is a touring logistics...

How to Read a Background Actor Call Sheet

The first time I ever held a call sheet, I treated it like a sacred text. Which, honestly, is not the worst instinct. A background actor call sheet is the production’s way of saying: here is exactly how to get to set, when to arrive, and how not to become the person everyone has to hunt down at...

What Is a Pit Ticket at a Concert?

I grew up backstage in Chicago, which means I learned early that “close to the stage” is not one single experience. There’s close with a comfy assigned seat, and then there’s close with a pit ticket, where you are standing shoulder-to-shoulder with other fans, and you can practically feel the...

Are Film and TV Extras Employees or Independent Contractors?

I have a soft spot for background performers. They are the commuters on the platform, the museum-goers pausing at a painting, the wedding guests who clap on cue. When you are new to set life, though, the most unglamorous question can be the most urgent: are you being paid as an employee or as an...

What Is a Day Player in Film and TV?

I grew up backstage in Chicago, where the difference between “in the show” and “around the show” was crystal clear: who got a cue, who got a costume, who got a note, who got a name. Film and TV have their own version of that distinction, and one of the most misunderstood titles sits right in the...

What Happens at a Background Wardrobe Fitting?

The first time I got called in for a background wardrobe fitting, I assumed it would be like a shoot-day check in: show up, get told what to wear, get sent home. Instead, it felt closer to a quiet, highly focused backstage ritual. Wardrobe was building a visual world, one person at a time, and I...

What Is Dynamic Pricing for Theater and Concert Tickets?

The first time I noticed a ticket price “blink,” I was standing in a Broadway box office line with a coffee going cold in my hand. Same show, same date, same section. The number on the screen was not the number my friend had texted me an hour earlier. It felt personal, like the seating chart had a...

What Film and TV Extras Should Wear and Bring for Wardrobe

I grew up backstage in Chicago, which means I have a reflex: before I even look at the stage, I look at what everyone is wearing and why. On a film or TV set, wardrobe is storytelling too, just quieter. As a background performer, your job is to blend into the world the production is building, and...

Principal Actor vs Extra: What’s the Difference?

I grew up in Chicago backstage, where you learn early that “being in the scene” can mean wildly different jobs. On a film or TV set, the cleanest dividing line is not glamour, fame, or even screen time. It is the contract. A principal actor is hired to perform a contracted role with story...

Do Background Actors Get a Screen Credit?

I grew up backstage in Chicago, the kind of kid who thought the real magic happened in the wings and the projection booth. As an adult covering film and TV, I still get a little thrill when a crowded scene clicks and you can feel the world of the story expand. That thrill comes with a very...

Standing-Room-Only Theater Tickets, Explained

There is a particular kind of theater thrill that only happens on a sold-out night: the lobby buzzes like a beehive, the house staff moves with purpose, and someone near the box office whispers the three magic letters, SRO. A standing-room-only ticket is exactly what it sounds like, but in theater,...

Commercial Background Work vs Film and TV Extra Work

I have sat through enough set holding to know this truth in my bones: “background” is not one job. The vibe, the paperwork, even the way the AD team or director’s world talks to you can shift dramatically depending on whether you are filling out a bustling restaurant in a TV series or playing “real...

What Changes When an Extra Gets a Speaking Line?

I have watched this exact moment play out in real time from the edges of a set: a performer who showed up as background gets quietly tapped, handed a new slip of paper, and suddenly the day feels different. Not louder, not glamorous in a red carpet way, but sharper. There is more attention, more...

Extra vs Featured Extra vs Stand-In: What’s the Difference?

I grew up in Chicago in and around theaters where “background” was its own kind of choreography. Someone had to cross with purpose, land on a spike without looking down, and make the world feel lived in while the leads did their thing. Film and TV sets have the same ecosystem, just with more cables...

John Anderson, Country Music Hall of Famer, Dies at 71

John Anderson, the Country Music Hall of Fame inductee known for a voice that could make a familiar story feel newly lived, has died at 71. The news was shared by his family in a statement posted to his official social media pages. In their message, Anderson’s family remembered him not only as an...

Aerosmith Hint at Hollywood Bowl Return With “& Friends” Shows

Aerosmith do not tend to do anything quietly, even when they are not actually playing music. This week, the band kicked open a door fans assumed was closing for good, teasing two Hollywood Bowl concerts billed as an “& Friends” event. If it happens, it will be Aerosmith’s first live appearance in...