Volunteers

Interested in volunteering at Raleigh Little Theatre?

There are over 500 people who volunteer some of their time at RLT. Some of those have been at the theatre over 25 years and there are some who have just joined this year.

So why would I want to get involved?

Here are some reasons:

• Learn a new skill. For example, wood-working, making props, sewing, project management, leadership, organization. There are many opportunities where no prior skill is required.
• Act on stage. Perhaps you’d like to try “treading the boards”? (no, you don’t have to work backstage on a show before you can audition at RLT)
• Have a sense of accomplishment. There’s nothing better than to see a show open that you know you had a hand in getting off the ground.
• Make new friends. There are plenty of friendly people who will always greet you with a smile and are happy to see you.
• Spend quality time with your family, or away from them 😉
• Community Service. Perhaps you just want to “give back” to the community you’ve grown up in (or are new to). Some schools give you extra credit for this.

Where do I start?

If you’re new to the theatre the best place to start is work on a show as one of the crew members (props, lights, sound, running, dressing) or to work as an usher (handing out playbills, showing patrons their seats). Here’s some simple steps:

1. Join the volunteer mailing list on our Email Newsletters page.
2. Watch out for emails from crew chiefs asking for crews or other emails from people asking for volunteers
3. Reply, saying you’re interested and you’re new
4. The crew chief will provide training

What can I do? As you can imagine, activities at RLT revolve around the shows we do. The theatre typically puts on 11 productions every season (July-June), so its just about one per month. And each production runs for 2-3 weeks. So as you can see, as one show closes, the next one is just about to start. As to the shows that are planned for this season, see our Shows and Events page. So here are some of the tasks volunteers do at the theatre:

Construction:

• Set assembly and construction (woodwork, metal work, painting, etc)
• Costume construction (sewing, etc)

Advertising and box office:

• Assemble mailings for member ticket order forms, etc.
• Other office activities

Back stage during productions:

• Assistant Stage Manager
• Props crew member
• Light crew member (including follow spotlight operators)
• Sound crew member
• Running crew member
• Dresser crew member

Helping patrons during shows:

• Ushers
• House Managers
• Concessions crew member

I just want to usher

We’re always in need of ushers for every performance of every show, so you’re in good company! Here’s what our ushers do:

• Greet patrons
• Scan tickets (paper & digital)
• Stuff inserts in playbills
• Distribute playbills
• Assist patrons in locating assigned seating
• Assist concessions volunteers during peak activity
• Provide general information regarding the facility, i.e. bathrooms and water fountains
• During the performance, alert the House Manager of any patron or facility irregularity, i.e. sick patron, use of recording devices or camera, HVAC issue
• Assist with light-duty straightening of the House and Lobby after the performance, e.g. picking up any playbills or trash left behind

Note: Although we do our best to accommodate all physical abilities, prolonged standing (30-60 minutes), bending, and the climbing of stairs may be required. We have an online system to organize our front of house volunteers, ushers, concessions, and house managers — hostedgroups.org. Go to our Front-of-House Sign Up page on how to sign up and volunteer. In addition, you may also want to come to the next RLT Volunteer Open House (see below). Once you’ve been on a crew, next you could try another crew, or try your hand as a crew chief. You could also help with construction (set, costumes or props). If you’ve tried ushering, perhaps next as a House Manager.

Volunteer Open House Night

The theatre holds a Volunteer Open House every six months or so. This is where members of the public are invited to see how the theatre operates behind the scenes.

• You’ll hear about the different volunteer positions
• You’ll meet the RLT staff members
• You’ll be invited to go on a tour of the building, with stops at various areas such as the scene shop, both indoor stages (main stage and the Gaddy Goodwin), costume shop, and more
• You’ll have the opportunity to chat to other volunteers out in the lobby with drinks and snacks

Volunteer Open House is advertised via the volunteer mailing list and on this web site.

How much time must I commit?

You pick the activities you want to do, based on how much time you have. For example:

• As an usher, 1 night of your time.
• A crew member will probably need to commit to 2-6 nights of time. One of these will be during a rehearsal where you can get taught how to perform your duties, and the remainder will be the nights of the performances you will be working on.
• As someone who’s helping during a construction session, or a strike (where the set is pulled down at the end of the show), just that time (eg 4 hours)
• As a crew chief, you’ll attend many of the shows, all of the rehearsals in the week before opening night plus other time away from the theatre organizing your crews
• As Assistant to the Director, you’ll attend many if not all of the rehearsals. Rehearsals typically go for 4-6 weeks, 4-7 days a week, depending on the show and the Director.
• As Stage Manager, you’ll attend every rehearsal and every show. You typically are the first to arrive, and the last to leave. The Stage Manager has to commit the most amount of time of all volunteer positions.

Volunteer Access Fund

We are interested in working with our volunteers to identify and help address barriers to volunteering at RLT, and to better understand how we can help break down those barriers to volunteering. As a first step in this process, and in partnership with Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, we are creating the RLT Volunteer Access Fund Pilot Program. Please click here to learn more!

Theatre Jargon

If you’ve just started, maybe you’ve heard a term back stage that you don’t quite understand the meaning of. Check our list of theatre jargon – that might help!

Who do I contact for more information?

If you need more information about volunteering, call or email Cari@nullRaleighLittleTheatre.org. If you want to volunteer in a specific role, that’s great! Here are the people you can contact:

Pre Production:

• Business Office: Marketing, mailings and more, contact Cari@nullRaleighLittleTheatre.org.
• Costume Shop: From hats to shoes and everything wrapping the actor between, our costume shop constructs the threads that cover our casts. Typical hours are Tuesday through Fridays 1-5pm, with additional evening and weekend times as needed. Contact Jenny Mitchell.
• Scene Shop: Building all the scenery and props seen onstage, we’re usually making sawdust Wednesdays from 6:30-9pm, Thursdays from 1-5pm, Saturdays from 10am-1pm and 2-5pm. Contact Dennis Berfield.

Production:

• Front Of House: Ushering or staffing the concessions area during performances. Contact Emily@nullRaleighLittleTheatre.org.
• Back Of House: Working on the backstage during performances in the areas of scenery, lights, or sound. Contact Dennis Berfield.