Not all of these positions are open to the public. However may of them require assistants and helpers! If you’d like to volunteer and help keep the circus in motion we’d love to have you! Below is a list of ALL the volunteer positions, let us know if you’re interested!
Volunteer Positions for Vaudevillingham:
Stage Manager Duties (1 person)
- Dress up / Dress in costume (6:30 call time)
- Have list of order of acts
- Get performers “on deck”
- Pre-door meeting w/all performers (7:15)
- Safety list (check w/ performers about routines, esp. aerials… crash w/pad taped off area)
- Collect performers for curtain call
Concession Duties (1-2 people)
- Dress up / Dress in costume (6:30 call time)
- Organize the Popcorn peeps
- Keep money-box with change (Organizer will have change ready)
- In charge of collecting all money at end of night (donations, auction money, etc.)
- Attend 7:15 pre-door all-performer meeting
Greeter (1 person)
- Dress up / Dress in costume (6:30 call time)
- Stand at door and greet guests. Examples of things to tell them … briefly tell them about Vaudevillingham… “Thank you for coming to V-ham, our monthly fundraiser for our wonderful Cirque Lab!” Invite them to enjoy the concessions (tell them some of the items we have); invite them to have a seat and enjoy the pre-show music; etc.
- In charge of letting guests know if they need to remove their shoes in any areas or if there are any off-limits areas they should know about
- Attend 7:15 pre-door all-performer meeting
Info Table Person (1 person)
- Dress up / Dress in costume (6:30 call time)
- Tell people about our classes, class schedule, juggle club
- Answer any questions about the space, Vaudevillingham, other shows we do, the email list, becoming a member, volunteering, donations, becoming a monthly donor, etc.
- Attend 7:15 pre-door all-performer meeting
- Bring any donations to Concessions person at end of night
Stage Ninjas (1-3 people)
- Dress up / Dress in Costume… maybe as a ninja? (6:30 call time)
- Be available to move things on and off stage to keep the show moving
- Attend 7:15 pre-door all-performer meeting
Light Person (1 person)
- Come in early to check lights
- Get lighting tech cues from performers from 6:30 – 7:15
- Attend 7:15 performer pre-door meeting for any last tech check-ins
Sound Person (1 person)
- Come in early to check / set up music
- Get music tech cues from performers from 630 – 715
- Attend 7:15 performer pre-door meeting for any last tech check-ins
Set-up / Take-down Volunteers (1-many!)
- Some duties include: sweeping, setting up tables, setting up concessions, decorating, making thank-you signs for donors, putting out sandwich boards, taking out trash, cleaning bathroom, arranging chairs
- Clean-up night of show (day after show noon – 5 as well) some duties include: bringing in signs and sandwich boards, putting chairs away, putting pillows and blankets away, sweeping, taking down tables, putting away concession
Security/ Ambient Performers (1-5 people)
- Dress up
- Interact with the crowd (clowns, mimes, jugglers, roller skaters and stilters are good examples
- Keep an eye out for any inappropriate behavior
- Be prepared to enforce Bellingham Circus Guild and Cirque Lab rules when necessary
Performer Duties
- Call time 6:30 (time for any music / lighting / host / ninja tech things)
- Let host, organizer, and stage manager know in advance (by call time) if there are any potentially dangerous/risky/risqué elements to their acts (aside from the obvious risks associated with their craft) examples: juggling knives, swinging over crowd, breaking and eating glass, using a strobe light, or any such unexpected thing, so the organizer/host/stage manager can determine whether any additional safety measures or warnings to the guests may be necessary.
- Keep performance 5 minutes or less
Host (1-2 people)
- Introduce the show maybe with a clever/interesting scene, thank musicians, introduce acts
- Talk about classes, upcoming events, donors, mention website, sign-up list for circusy stuff, what is Vaudevillingham, we are all volunteers, what are donations for, how to get involved
- Auction donations
- Keep show flow, fast paced w/out seeming rushed; know when to move quickly between acts (ex. not talking much after a slower/low energy act)
- Fill space due to costume change, tech difficulties… good time for auctions
- Make set-list with a god flow (strong start, strong finish) – maybe do with Stage Manager and/or Organizer (keep cheat sheet with them)
- Keep energy high and happy. Always make audience volunteers feel good
- Hat lines at the end of the show, encouraging guests to donate and support the guild so we can continue to have a circus space in town
- Encourage guests to join the email or text lists, and guide them how to do so
- Sponsor and thank you’s at end of the show
Volunteer Coordinator (1 person)
- Let folks know throughout the month what volunteer positions are open
- Organize folks signing up for volunteer shifts
- During the show meet with all volunteers and make sure they understand the duties of their volunteer shift
Organizer (1 person)
- Solicit and collect donations throughout month
- Make flyers
- Organize list of performers throughout month – be contact person for the show
- Make set list with Host
- Show ambience
- Opening and closing musicians
- Buy / collect donations for concessions