Advice from One that Toured Too Much
How to be at your best on the road
I’m lucky that in my acting career, I have experienced a lot through schools tours and children’s theatre. I’ve toured around Great Britain, Ireland, Denmark and Germany, played famous literary characters, as well as pantomime dames, comics and villains, and done it all every seat possible in the touring company van.
Through these times, I’ve experienced every emotion possible. I’ve had good times, I’ve had horrible times. In today’s blog, I’m going to dispense advice for anyone who’s considering a touring job when we’re able to resume regular life from the point of view of every possible position.
In each touring group, there’s going to be a team leader or tour manager. They’re the ones that will oversee the quality of the show, set travelling times, give feedback and relay information to the cast from the management. I’ll be honest right away — I wasn’t a great tour manager. While I was organised in many ways and took the role seriously, I didn’t delegate responsibilities and took too much on myself. That resulted in fractious relationships with cast members and over sensitivity on small issues.
If you’re going to be a tour manager, you really have to find the right line between each of these things. Do not do what I did for a while by going every day without leisure time because you’re too bus doing the costume wash on top of everything else you’ll have to do. Delegating is a great thing. Not only does it help your sanity, it shows trust in your colleagues, who in turn will appreciate that.
You may be told that you’re there to do a job, not to be anyone’s friend. You do need to keep that in mind at all times. However if you’re able to really get on with your team, then that’s a thing to be cherished. It’s something that will make the tour fly by. At the same time, if you’re part of the cast and you’re being given a note by someone you think is your mate and not to be taken too seriously, you need to get shot of that opinion. Your tour manager has a lot of responsibility, so take on board their requests and notes and let them do their job. If something is really getting to you, take the time when appropriate to discuss it. The last thing anyone needs is someone throwing a tantrum in the middle of a get-in with teachers walking past wondering who they’ve let into their venue.
One of the biggest issues that comes from touring is the travel. Just be aware from the start — there will be a lot of early mornings. In my personal opinion, the earlier you get to a venue, the better. A relaxed get-in and set up means for a more relaxed environment for the show. The tour manager has to set the travel times and sometimes they will be harsh. Consideration has to be made for traffic and routes. If it’s a time you don’t like, then tough. Unless you’re the driver or the TM, you can have a nap in the van. At the same time, don’t do what a TM I worked under used to do which was to set the call time for insanely early, arrive at the location a good 30–45 minutes before the school and then have a nap themselves before entering the venue. That’s just taking the piss.
Drivers of the van, whether they are the TM or not, need to be given a lot of respect. They are the ones that have to be fully awake at silly-o’clock for potentially very long drives in all sorts of weather to get you to the venues safely. ALWAYS thank them! I would get so irate as a driver when we would pull up our accommodation at the end of a long day only for everyone to exit the vehicle and go in without so much as hint of gratitude. It makes for a bad atmosphere! Also, let the driver listen to whatever music they want to. They are the ones that have to stay awake, so indulge them in their listening choices. If you don’t like what they like, you have earphones.
If it’s a multiple venue day, for goodness sake bring food with you! There may not be good time to stop for lunch or find a decent shop. You must be prepared. Do not take it out on the TM for the fact that you’re hungry — that is not part of their job desciption. If you do have time on your side, then by all means find a nice pub or town to hang around in. A bit of relaxation between shows will do you the world of good.
Overall, it’s important to be respectful to each other. A tour can be a lot like the Big Brother TV series. You’re thrown into an environment that’s unfamiliar with people you’ve just met and have to work with. There could be individuals you end up clashing with. An every day situation for a lot of people for their work, but when you work, journey and live with these individuals, it can get very messy. The tour manager may have to make decisions you disagree with. Bear in mind that some of those decisions might not be something they want to do. It may be something coming from the office. At the same time, any budding tour managers should probably be aware of this very little known fact — some actors have egos! I know, astonishing information. Some will make requests and dmeands that will seem utterly bonkers. You may have to find that balance where the actor and you are both satisfied.
Finally, being on the road away from loved ones is tough. You’ll likely be staying in places that are far from local towns (mostly for security reasons — less likely to robbed somewhere away from busy areas). If you’re in a relationship, it’s going to be hard to see your other half. Of course if it’s a job where there are very few weekends where you’re working, it can be easily arranged. Just bear in mind you may need picking up from a rail station — the nicer you are to your drivers, the better the chance they’ll be okay with being your chauffeur. Do not go into a tour thinking you can take whatever time you want off. A lot the time you’ll be spending a week in on area, the next in an entirely different one. The start of the weekend will usually be spent driving to your new location for the week. Don’t mess your team around by expecting them to drop you off somewhere en route several hundred miles out of the way. Be accommodating.
I suppose to finish this off I should sum up everything in some kind of phrase that encapsulates everything I’ve written……Just don’t be an arse. Does that work?
