A quick look at non-union breakdowns on Backstage or Actors Access will quickly provide evidence that adding in non-equity work could only reduce median annual income figures.

If, as you say, your anecdotal experience with actors bears out the $56,000/yr figure found in Salary.com you clearly have a different circle of friends than I. Mine are working professionals on Broadway and in Film/TV and Dance along with scores of students who have gone through our performing arts academy. While I am very proud of all their accomplishments, very few are able to make a living as a performing artist.

I stand by the information sourced by the Actor’s Equity and culled from IMDB. Salary.com in no way reflects the true nature of the business and is misleading for students and parents considering acting as a career choice.

As the Tony-winning actor Cady Huffman once said to students at our school, “If you can think of doing anything else in life than acting, do it. If you can’t, go for it with all your heart and soul”.