The call for a South African Stagehand Guild has become increasingly urgent amid the persistent instability of the country’s performing arts industry. Stagehands—those responsible for the technical and backstage elements that bring a production to life—are overwhelmingly employed on a freelance basis. This precarious mode of employment leaves many without job security, benefits, or formal recognition for their work.

Despite being vital to any theatrical production, stagehands are often relegated to the lowest tiers of the industry’s value chain. Yet, without them, the show quite literally cannot go on. From preparing the stage and striking the set to packing away costumes and handling technical equipment, stagehands are the unseen backbone of any performance.

The Botle Ba Matsoho Guild of stagehands is a developing organisation that is attempting to allow stagehands to organise professionally, define clear standards for skills and qualifications, and advocate for fair employment practices and benefits. More importantly, such a body is attempting to help restore dignity to a role that, while often invisible to the public eye, is essential to the success of any production.

There are existing organisations like the South African Guild of Actors (SAGA) that advocate for performers, but no formal structure currently exists to protect and uplift the technical workers behind the curtain. A stagehand guild would not only address this gap but also foster a more equitable and professional theatre industry.

The lack of policy that has emerged from the Directorate for Technical Services in the Department of Sports and Culture in terms of worker rights or workers social benefits exacerbates the difficulty that stagehands face. Dr Ismail Mohamed, Director of the Centre for Creative Arts at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, notes that the White Paper on Arts, Culture and Heritage (1996) that was adopted by Parliament during the time of Minister Nathi Mthethwa, “made absolutely no progress”. Although this is partly due to Covid, Mohamed stresses that the greater part of that was due to Mthethwa’s own poor leadership and apathy to direct the Arts, Culture and Heritage sector to become an economic hub in South Africa. As a result, there has been an overall high level of instability around health and safety, talent identification and career development for people who work in theatre. Mohamed asserts that there is no consistent plan across all the theatres for the conditions of stagehands’ employment, which carries from theatre to theatre depending on the nature of productions and theatre. At institutions such as PACOFS (Performing Arts Center of the Free State) and Nelson Mandela Bay Theatre, where third parties put on the productions, stagehands have very little security and are employed on a production-to-production basis. 

Moreover, the Basic Conditions of Employment Act and the Department of Health and Safety is neglected by most theatre companies with regards to stagehands, whose work often includes high-risk activity such as the loading and off-loading heavy sets and climbing up ladders to access lighting bars. “They are supposed to be given protective apparel for doing the work, and the majority are not provided with this despite it being the responsibility of employer to provide protective apparel for all workers who do work that is of risk”, says Mohamed.

Andi Colombo, a young director, lighting designer, actor and stage manager, expresses her concerns with the safety challenges involved in her work. “In a lot of cases, stagehands are not insured”, she notes. “If you are travelling, you are not insured, for example, to be up a ladder. But time pressure makes you get up a ladder.” If, in this case, you are injured and most likely not insured, it’s the financial responsibility of the stagehand to pay for medical bills. “The pressure to take the risk is there because the job needs to be done”, says Colombo. “If something goes wrong, it is an enormous issue, but stagehands are often not aware of safety law, and don’t know the kind of risk they are taking.”

Grant dependent 

Ismail Mohamed urges the Department of Arts and Culture to reconsider the current “unsustainable model” of the theatre industry, calling for greater investment in theatre companies and their infrastructure. He emphasizes the need not only for growth but also for building human resource capacity within institutions that are leading the way in producing outstanding work. “The majority of theatre companies in South Africa are grant dependent”, Mohamed explains. “The fact that in South Africa, you get funding and have a few months to put on a production, doesn’t allow production companies to build a strategic audience development plan. As a result, the productions are not given the capacity or tools to plan for long term development. Sustainability requires long term planning and investment, which is not existent in South Africa.”

Administrative and Legal Protection:

Administrative and legal protection is critical for South Africa’s freelance stagehands, who often face contract disputes, delayed payments, and a lack of basic worker protections. “It’s frustrating going up against a production company alone,” says Andi Colombo. “There are always excuses, but a breach of contract shouldn’t fall on the freelancer to resolve.”
Many crew members work without contracts, leaving them exposed when payments are withheld. Andi notes that young stagehands, grateful just to find work, often accept penurious rates without questioning them. Early in her own career, she unknowingly undersold herself due to the lack of clear salary guidelines. “If you don’t know your value, you feel guilty for asking,” she says. “And once you lower your rate, it becomes the norm.”
She believes a stagehand guild could provide essential resources — standard contracts, rate guidelines, and basic legal support — helping freelancers protect themselves before learning costly lessons the hard way.

The Botle Ba Matsoho Guild of Stagehands (Transl. “The Beauty of Hands”) was founded by Bokang Ntsutle in February 2025, with the aim of protecting and advocating for the rights of stagehands. “People behind the curtain don’t get recognition or visibility for the talents they have”, says Bokang. 

Bokang Outlines the objectives of the Botle Ba Matsoho Guild:

1. Youth Employment: Drive job creation for 18–35-year-olds in stagehand-related roles.
2. Visibility & Representation: Build a platform and database to spotlight South African stagehands.
3. Fair Pay & Standards: Promote education around fair wages and standardize industry rates.
4. Professionalization: Support stagehands in becoming recognized, marketable professionals.
5. Role Expansion: Broaden perceptions of stagehand roles to include adjacent creative careers.
6. Worker Protection: Develop protective guidelines for stagehands, aligned with SAGA standards.
7. Skills Development: Offer training in proposal writing, budgeting, contract literacy, and IP protection.

The Botle Ba Matsoho Guild is in the process of building their philosophy and seeking grant funding that will support their long-term vision. Although the Guild claims that it exists to fight the undervaluing of stagehands, the practice largely misses the issues that face the South African stagehand space, which indicates a lack of research and understanding into the problems that stagehands face. Bokang says the Guild as “in the business of young people”, incorporating broader industries under the banner of theatre, and compensating them as stagehands. 

Ismail Mohamed warns that if a stagehand guild takes in members who have had no training or experience, we devalue the status of that job and indicate a lack of belief in the power and need for education. Further, Mohamed reminds the guild that there are many South African stagehands in theatres’ employment over the age of 35. Mohamed warns that by reducing the age of the membership to 18, the profession is devalued, because anyone without experience is allowed in the work environment despite being unable to function within the industry standards. “If you focus on ages 18-35, you cut out stagehands who have gained an enormous amount of experience and can offer incredible value to such a guild. We need to ask ourselves why we have so many qualified graduates in our country who are unemployed?”

This is not to say that there is no space youth development within the guild. Mohamed advises the guild to lobby for the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture to use its five performing arts institutions as training forums for a new generation of stagehands. “There must be a mentorship program attached to that theatre, so that anyone allowed to work in a mentorship program and can be trained in the field. This can be an entrance into the guild, after which you can register for it. The guild must not be about numbers, but about the quality of membership who can fight for their rights.” Colombo advises that it would be beneficial for the Botle Ba Matsoho guild to create a program where young stagehands who want to upskill and shadow established stage managers can be mentored. “Directors don’t want to work with someone new because their livelihood depends on the work they produce. Someone is much more likely to employ someone who is recommended”, says Colombo.

She adds that she would also like to see the Guild create access to open workshops, referencing SAGA’s online database. “Open, online workshops on skills such as stage management, people skills, how to deal with challenging directors, safety, basic ladder safety can all be taught via the internet. Having an archive that up-and-coming stagehands can be so useful.” This idea is reiterated by Caroline Calburn, the director of Theatre Arts: “if you are a stage-manager who can rig, operate and actually design lights you would be so much more valuable to the production”. SAGA’s website is open to anyone, accessible even to those outside of their membership. 

Any guild within the South African performing arts sector “cannot operate in silos,” says Mohamed. He points to SAGA (South African Guild of Actors) as a successful model, noting that since its formation, it has fought and won several important cases. Mohamed stresses that any guild — whether for technicians, writers, or stagehands — must work not only to create a better labour environment but also to uphold professional standards within the industry. He emphasises the need for collaboration between guilds, suggesting that formal agreements, such as memoranda of understanding, would strengthen their collective ability to advocate for workers’ rights across the performing arts sector.