NH Professional Theatre Association

The NH Professional Theatre Association is a collection of theatre companies from New Hampshire that operate year round and in a summer stock format.

The New Hampshire Professional Theatre Association has a two-fold purpose. It is a resource for the theatre community, providing information on events, jobs, and theatre news; it is also a source for the public to find information about the Granite State’s professional theatre productions, as well as information on lodging, dining, and other attractions near each member theatre.

Currently the Association is a collaboration of 21 theatre companies. Their goal is to create a resource for those not only interested in the craft but for those who are searching for the arts in New Hampshire.

The hiring process for these theaters is vigorous and involves attending an audition. These auditions can consist of many visits over a number of days or weeks. Other auditions are weekend events where a group of theaters like the NH Professional Theatre Association come together and see hundreds of performers during the day.

These theater companies consist of both equity (AEA) and non-equity houses. The Actor's Equity Association is the union of actors and stage management professionals that have chosen to join. The equity houses tend to hire actors who have been working for some time and most are located in New York City. The non-equity houses tend to hire current college students who are working on their craft and their undergraduate degrees in Performing Arts.

Actors' Equity Association ("AEA" or "Equity"), founded in 1913, is the labor union that represents more than 48,000 actors and stage managers in the United States. Equity seeks to advance, promote and foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of our society. Equity negotiates wages and working conditions and provides a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans, for its members. Actors' Equity is a member of the AFL–CIO, and is affiliated with FIA, an international organization of performing arts unions.

External links

• NHPTA official website, with links to member theatre companies