Attendance Policy

Triple Promise Attendance Policy, Terms of Commitment, and Missed Performance, Missed Rehearsal, or Program Withdrawal Penalty Fees

Attendance at rehearsals is crucial for the success of the children and the show. It is imperative for each child individually, as well as the collective student body. We do understand that things come up from time to time when an absence may be necessary. While we do not have a “set number” of allowable absences, we do ask that everyone be as committed as possible. This may mean that children have to sacrifice a birthday party or two. While we understand this may be disappointing, please understand that there are approximately 30 students in each cast. If each student has 30 classmates at school, it is inevitable that SOMEONE will be invited to a birthday party almost every week, which means that we would NEVER have full attendance if everyone accepts every birthday party invitation. In the event that absences become excessive, you will receive one warning. After that, the missed rehearsal fee is $100 per child.

Attendance at tech rehearsals, dress rehearsals, and performances is absolutely mandatory. Please be sure that you have all of the tech and dress rehearsal dates as well as the show dates marked in your calendar and be absolutely certain that your child can FULLY COMMIT to all of these dates PRIOR to registration.

If for any reason you cannot commit to the required dates, you should not enroll your child in this program at this time. Except in the case of extreme illness or emergency, tech rehearsals, dress rehearsals, and performances are mandatory and cannot be missed. The MISSED PERFORMANCE PENALTY FEE (for a tech, dress, or show) is $250 PER CHILD.

The penalty fee for lateness for a tech rehearsal, dress rehearsal, or show call time is $5 per minute after a 5 minute grace period

Why do we charge a missed rehearsal or missed performance penalty fee?

When a child misses a performance, regardless of the role or size of the role, there are certain things that have to be done in order to make sure the show still runs smoothly without the missing child or children. Those things cost money. Some examples include:
  1. Rental fees on rehearsal space to run the scenes/numbers with the other children, who will have to reconfigure their blocking and choreographic formations in order to accommodate for the missing child. This means that we have to call the kids in early and pay for extra time at the venue in order to do this.
  1. STAFF FEES. When a child is missing, our choreographer needs to come in and reconfigure all of the spacing. Our music director also has to come in and make sure all vocal parts are covered, and review the missing child’s lines with other children who will have to fill in for them. These artists must be paid for their time.
  1. Rental fees on body mics. We pay for each and every microphone and all of the equipment that comes with them by the day. When a child or children are not present, their microphone is sitting there going to waste, but we still have to pay the rental fee on it. We cannot call the sound company and ask them to take a mic off of our bill when a child is missing; it doesn’t work like that.
  1. Costume rental fees. Any costumes or costume pieces that wind up being rented are billed by the day. When your child is missing, the costume is sitting there going to waste, but the bill on said costume is still due.
  1. The sound design has to be re-equalized to accommodate for the missing child. This means the designer will have to come in early and do a separate EQ for all of the numbers in which the missing child would have appeared. The sound designer needs to be paid for their time. We will also have to pay for an extra half hour of time at the venue for the sound designer to do this important work. Nothing we do is free. 
  1. Paying the lighting designer to make any adjustments. The designer will already have written the cues specific to the number of kids in the show. The designer will have to be paid for their time. We will also have to absorb the cost of additional time at the venue in order for the lighting designer to do this work. Again, every single thing we do costs money.
Please understand that this policy is not intended to be punitive. Please understand that putting on a show is very different than running an acting class (more on that later). The bottom line is that Triple Promise shows cannot succeed and thrive without a firm commitment from all participants.
Please understand that removing an actor or actors out of a performance is a domino effect. Every single role is important. Every single thing that each and every child does matters. And every move that we make costs money.

PROGRAM WITHDRAWAL

Please understand that enrolling in one of our production programs is not the same as signing your child up for an activity, such as baseball, soccer, ballet, or even an acting class. Our production programs culminate in a large-scale, professional musical production. This means that enrolling in this program is a FIRM COMMITMENT. If for any reason your child cannot commit to all of the dates required, you should not enroll your child in this program at this time. (But we do welcome you to enroll in a future season when your schedule aligns with ours!)

Additionally, this program is NOT a “try-it-and-see” program. If for any reason your child is unsure about whether or not they want to see the program all the way through to the end, you should not enroll your child in this program. 

If your child is unsure about acting and wants to try it out and see how it goes, we welcome you to enroll your child in one of our acting classes which do not culminate in shows. These classes provide a high-quality theatre education experience in a more relaxed atmosphere; there is no culminating performance, nor obligation, and students may enroll or withdraw at any time without penalty.

Additionally, we often offer free trial classes in these programs so that children can explore the idea of acting and make an informed decision about whether or not to enroll. We understand that not all children are ready or interested in taking the full plunge of performing in a huge production right away; this is why we offer an alternate, exploratory experience for anyone who is unsure or just wants to try it out. If they decide they like the exploratory class and want to take it a step further, they can join the musical theatre production program the following season, either as an add-on or as a roll-over. 

Before enrolling your child in the one of our production programs, please have a serious conversation with your child about commitment and what it means to be a part of a team. Make sure that your child knows that they will be expected to uphold this commitment every week, even on weeks when they are tired or have other things they might rather do. For the overwhelming majority of our students, this is a non-issue; Triple Promise students love coming to rehearsal and eagerly look forward to attending each week. But again, if your child is unsure, you should not enroll in this particular program.

In the event that you withdraw your child early from the program, both the missed rehearsal and missed performance penalty fees as described above will apply.

Please understand that it gives us no amount of joy to hit parents with missed rehearsal fees, missed performance fees, and early withdrawal fees. The unfortunate reality, as described above in this document, is that replacing a cast member costs us thousands of dollars for a wide variety of reasons. If a child drops out mid-season, not only does Triple Promise have to absorb the administrative costs of marketing and recruiting a replacement, but we also have to provide private lessons for the replacement child in order to catch them up with the rest of the cast. Our staff will need to be paid for their time for these private lessons. Studio rental fees will have to be paid for these private lessons. If costumes have already been ordered, we will have to re-order for the replacement’s size. As mentioned above, every single role in the show matters. Every single child is crucial to the success of the team. And every single thing we do costs money.
Again, we completely understand that some children just want to try acting out to see if they like it. We know this, and we encourage it. But if that is the case, then our production programs are NOT the programs for you. If your child is just interested in exploring the idea of acting, we encourage you to call us to request a free trial of one of our acting classes.
Any questions about excessive absences, missed performances, or program withdrawal will be kindly redirected to this document.