ACT is a non-profit association where everything is reinvested into the company and towards the children's musical theatre education program. ACT puts together high quality shows in theatres with hired professional musicians, technicians and staff which makes our overhead costs quite high. Other equivalent programs in the US, UK and elsewhere only pull off such high quality programs with either higher costs or lots of volunteer support from parents and the community.
To keep our expenses reasonable and our course fees affordable, we ask each family to volunteer at least 5 hours of their time over the semester to ACT to help carry out certain tasks (you may choose from the list below). We also understand that some of you might have a very busy schedule which makes volunteering impossible. If this is the case, we request an additional 50€ (per family) to help cover some of the show costs and hiring extra staff to replace volunteers. Please note that ALL parent volunteers work under the direction of an ACT Teacher or Staff member who is with the children from the time they arrive to the time they leave.
Additionally, we have more specific parent volunteer positions which can be taken on in exchange for a discount on course fees, but require more time committed. These positions will help keep things running smoothly, help with communication between parents, and assure that your children have the best possible program and shows!
PLEASE NOTE: We NEVER require parents to volunteer DURING their child's show. We do always ensure we have enough help during shows so that parents can watch and appreciate from the audience, and see how much their student has grown!
Larger Volunteer Roles:
Class Parent Leader - one parent per class who makes sure that all the parents in that class have important information from the teachers, aides the class teacher and group director with communication, and coordinates with other class parents at show time in groups by Cast (usually two to three classes per cast). This is a semester long commitment, and really helps build a sense of community and cooperation among the groups and ensures a smoother, more successful semester for all!
Class Costume Parent Leader - one to two parents per age group who help coordinate costumes. This does not require sewing, but rather an artistic eye for clothing and fashion, and a good sense of organization. These parents will help coordinate the costumes for each age group and work with our costume team to assure that items are pulled from storage, fitted on students, and that the right items are at the dress rehearsals for each cast. If items need to be made, they will help facilitate communication between volunteer sewing parents and the costume staff member to help assure the tasks get divided and accomplished. If you like fashion or organizing, this is a great role for you!
If you are interested in either of these volunteer positions, please email us and we are happy to discuss with you further.
If you do not have this level of time to commit, below are your options of how to still help assure a successful semester. Please note, if you agree to a volunteer category, we do expect follow-through, or else it does put us in a difficult position. We don't have the budget to just suddenly hire more help if parents back out, and this has put us into financial difficulty in the past, and jeopardizes our ability to continue to offer the standard of quality in shows, costumes, performances and experiences that our ACT families have come to expect and appreciate.
Thank you and we appreciate all your support!
Volunteer Option Agreement
As part of our commitment to finding the best ways to utilize your unique skills to support our program, we may request assistance from you in another area.
Opting Out of the Fee:
If you choose to waive the €50 fee in exchange for providing volunteer help, someone from ACT will check in with you to verify your hours or work exchange.
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If you are unable to assist, we will require you to pay the €50 fee to help sustain the program.
ACT is a non-profit organization with a limited budget, and we rely on the support of our community to continue our work. Your contribution, whether through time or financial support, makes a significant difference.