First Aid for the Artist's Soul. Christina Barandun

rights, such as the inviolability of the individual.

      The creative process during rehearsals is quite a different matter. Artistic collaboration is clearly subject to the provisions of health and safety at work, and here the stipulation that the mental health of employees must not be put at risk applies. The work process and the protection of the physical and, above all, mental health of workers must not be undermined, even in artistic enterprises.

      Of course, nobody should try to constrain the artistic process If you consider the day-to-day work that goes into development of a piece, you will see that this ‘artistic’ process is often anything but. At the end of the day, the making of theatre and opera is a craft, not only in terms of stage design and technology, but also in terms of the preparation of texts or scores. This craft requires clearly defined processes, time limits and soberminded instructions. If an artistic manager, for example a director, does not respect the need for these frameworks by demanding his ‘artistic freedom’, he will not, in the end, be able to do justice to the art. If information is provided too late or not at all, if at the last minute ideas are changed or an extensive redesign is demanded, the logistical effort and unnecessary pressure would overwhelm the staff, both on- and offstage, as well as the organisation as a whole.

      Artistic managers must raise their awareness of their responsibility to their employees, who have the right and the opportunity to establish boundaries within the rigid time and organisational architecture of a theatre.

The Daily Theatre Madness

      As well as the work of the artist, the general conditions in the theatre themselves can be very demanding. Sometimes I’m astounded that premieres actually happen. A stage production is a Sisyphean task, accomplished with a great deal of effort, under pressure and stress, with sweat and tears. As long as outsiders only see the creative lightness offered in the performance – and this is the projection surface of theatre – “the magic of the theatre” is maintained. But, unfortunately, the effort often shows on the stage as well, not least when your leading actress passes out in the middle of her monologue.

Workplace and work organisation

      Let’s look at the external circumstances in which artists work.

The daily work in an orchestra is a nightmare for the ears. No fewer than 30 per cent of musicians under 35 have impaired hearing.⁴ Rehearsing for the chorus is likewise a daily challenge. Day after day, 40 to 60 people sit side by side, chair next to chair, and work together for several hours. The narrow shared dressing rooms offer few possibilities for withdrawal during breaks.

The time pressure people work under is unusually high. At major theatres and opera houses there are not only many new stage productions every season, but previous productions are also remounted. Städtische Bühnen Frankfurt, for example, had 34 new productions in the theatre and 13 in the music theatre in the 2013-14 season, with a total of 96 stage productions.⁵

      Generally, each production has a rehearsal time of around six to eight weeks. The complex dovetailing of various technical departments – such as lighting, stage, sound, make-up and costume – must be reconciled with a number of different artistic requirements and areas. There is little time to test, to optimise, to fully develop. Inevitably things are done in a hurry and under pressure. The art of improvisation is in high demand; of course, to some degree, improvisation is inspiring and broadens horizons, especially for artists. But once improvisation has become the norm in response to unworkable organisational structures and weaknesses in internal communications, it becomes exhausting and wears people out. If you are constantly playing catch-up, unable to complete tasks to your own professional standards (if at all), your creativity will be severely undermined, as we will see in the Chapter 4: Methods for Coping with Stress. As well as this, you will be unable to find any deep sense of satisfaction, which is a great source of motivation for an artist – especially when taking into account the lack of other motivating career factors, like reliable career opportunities and solid professional development. Uncertainty due to temporary contracts, poor pay and many hours of overtime also have a debilitating effect, likewise the unsocial working hours: rehearsals in the morning, performances in the evening or on the weekends, in shifts. Family and friends are often neglected; outside hobbies fall by the wayside. A closed-in culture develops that shuts out invigorating stimuli from outside the theatre.

      At some theatres, the situation is aggravated by touring, and the poor performance and rehearsal conditions it entails. But the conditions at one’s own theatre – e.g. lack of recreational spaces – can also trigger stress. In some theatres there isn’t even a decent cafeteria, even though the positive impact of having a place to meet – and serves good-quality, healthy meals at convenient times for theatre staff – cannot be overstated.

Social structures and relationships

Both in-house and outside, the theatre is often called the last stronghold of dictatorship in Germany.⁶ Rigid hierarchical structures that developed over centuries continue to define the theatre system, and the trend for having a constant rotation of directors doesn’t help matters much.

While a change of director is certainly justified and may be a good thing for a city and its theatre, it is often too fast and too jarring a change (when the entire artistic direction and a large part of the ensemble are replaced, for instance). Such rapid transformations necessitate radical change on the structure of the entire organisation, and unless this confronted by a full organisational development process, it will be met often (and understandably) with vehement opposition from the theatre’s longterm employees.⁷

      It takes decades and a good knowledge of viable organisational forms to affect these kind of transformations in a theatre’s structure. As well as this, any real, institutional change has to be based on trust, and trust takes time. With the frequent changing of directors, time is in short supply, so in order to get anything done the only option is pushing one’s own ideas through dictatorial power-mongering. In the already-tense atmosphere of the theatre, there is little here to reassure staff that there will be any attempt at a long-term alignment of the company.

      Relationships within the workforce are hardly any healthier. A tricky labour market means that there is huge competition between the ensemble. While soloists see themselves as lone warriors, members of the chorus believe themselves to be merely a face in the crowd, feeling underappreciated and unchallenged – unaware that they themselves are envied elsewhere for their safe and secure jobs. The usual group dynamics occur within these ensembles – smouldering conflicts left unresolved are passed on to the next generation; insecurity of older members around their seniority over new recruits – that have a huge affect on the working climate.

      Another problem for all theatres is that of communication – both within a department, and with other areas of theatre operation. Staff are not be kept up to date, instructions need to be repeated time and again. Many artists are simply unaware of the technical processes that go on elsewhere, and blithely request changes without a clue as to how much time and effort they will take.

      The administrative staff deal with employment contracts and many other concerns vital to the artists, but their ‘normal’ working hours, regular tea breaks and bureaucratic focus means that they are seen by the artists themselves as glorified civil servants.

      All this inherent discord surely aggravates stress.

       So, what needs to be changed? And more importantly: How can we change it?

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