It's very rare that I can't handle AD problems without asking for help. This time I thought I would before, me being headstrong, I charge in like a bull in a China shop.

SITUATION: The AD never returns my phone call!

Chronologically...

I played for this AD 72 times in the last 10 years (I counted them) at her previous location. By coincidence, she moved to the present location where I already had the account about 5 years. In this present location I've done 12 events for her in three years.

I love this place...a very large, expensive, prestigious senior residence. They have a beautiful Yamaha grand piano in the auditorium where I give my performance. I love that piano!

And, I've become very attached to the residents on a personal level and they with me. They're always asking me when I'm coming back.

That's where the problem starts. I have no answer. Every time I leave a message to the AD to return my call I hear nothing back. This has been going on for 2-3 years now. Then suddenly she'll call me out of the clear blue, and ask can I play there like nothing happened. It gets better. Last week, I was playing in the other side of the building and stopped in at her office. Spoke face to face. I asked for some future dates. She replied with "call me in the morning." I replied with "you never return my call." She replied with "I'll call you back for sure." That was 4 telephone calls ago.

She's not doing her job properly. Who knows who else she's doing this to?

The only option I see is to leave her a message stating that if I don't hear back from her, then I'm going to either administration or the Director himself and explain to them what's going on here.

My dilemma is....that can go either way. I have a good reputation in the place but that might mean zilch to management. So, they will either get on her back about why she's not returning calls from established performers, or.....I'll be told to take a hike! And probably never get hired there again.

My practical side says "wait it out." My vindictive side says "tell her off" for talking to me like I'm stupid! Now, unless they look like Arnold Schwarzenegger, I don't let anyone make a monkey out of me like she is doing (this is the way you become living in the Northeast!).

Anyone have another way to approach the situation without me putting my head in a noose and ending up never playing there again?

This is not unusual. It happens all the time to me too. There are several places I work, I get a standing ovation when I just walk in the room because they really like me, but the A D doesn't. I am very freindly to her and she seems nice to me, then hires someone else. Same
price as me. She will then call me at the last minute and say help her out, the person she hired can't make it or she forgot to book someone for that date. I always say yes when possible to get in her good graces
but she responds by thanking me and not booking me in the future. This happens in a lot of my steady jobs. I think some of the A D's bosses are telling her to cut her budget and they are using free musicians. When I look on the calanders posted on there walls, there are people I never heard of and I know most of the entertainers in the area.

MEL

I gotten this too. No need to make a fuss.... move on and look for other venues. As Mel pointed out there’s so many variables. Could be, despite your warm reception by the residents, she has other entertainers that she prefers or she gets lots of volunteers to fill up her calendar.

Once I pressed the issue as to why I was getting so few calls from a senior center where I also felt well received. The AD said she preferred karaoke shows where residents see the lyrics on the screen and performers wear customs,wigs and stroll around. That’s not my thing, and that’s OK.... There’s other venues....

Too many fish in the sea, just move on to the next one....
nobody cares they just have to have some kind of entertainment for the residents and they are a dime a dozen out there. No need to let it get to you,
there are so many out there and more being built every day.
If your not willing to start chasing them down in your car at the facilities PERSONALLY to book work you will probably be sitting home more then you would like. On top of that there are so many FREE entertainment options for ADs to consider using their budget wisely and the residents enjoy them just as much. Plus the ADs get the credit from their bosses too for their thriftiness. Then there is the fact that maybe they just don't enjoy your act anymore for whatever reasons, due to song repetitiveness, bad resident critiques, and a host of other who knows what reasons true or false.

This is what I think too. They use all of their free or cheap options first and rely on the real entertainers in a pinch. I remember one place where millionaires lived that used school programs which were of course free. This discussion reminds me why I no longer work nursing homes. There's no money to be made in my area anyway.

I had an AD that never returned a phone call, which was a real PITA. I solved the problem by just stopping in with my calendar in hand, sat down with him while he was on a lunch break and booked the entire year. I had to do that with this guy every year for 20 years. He was just totally irresponsible and wasn't going to change.

If this doesn't work, screw it - as DNJ said, there are lots of venues out there, more than any, one OMB performer can handle.

Good luck,

Gary

Most of these “ up scale” places have a shoe string budget for entertainment. Around here the pay is low and they make you wait months before they send you a check and many places need frequent reminders and copies of old invoices resubmitted in order to get a payment.
Total PITA!

Mark
Your not alone. The no call back has become a very disrespectful way of business. The Ad is probably just too lazy to commit to anything until the last minute. All you can do is be polite and request that she contact you with more lead time as you need to plan your calendar in advance. Confronting her or upper management never goes well, sorry to say your replaceable in their minds. Too many free "entertainers" knocking on those doors.
For the money they pay and the work involved booking and then doing the job I have little inclination to chase gigs in these places. Good Luck.

No doubt any of us who work the 'senior circuit' have faced this one time or another ... Late last year one facility I've worked at fairly often changed ADs ... a young man who worked as an assistant AD was promoted to the top spot ... he had seen me perform many times, and was always interactive with the residents while I played ... for this year I have left 4 voice mails which have never been returned ...

Good comments...I read all of them.

I don't take it so personal now. BUT.....it's NOT about moving on. It's about her lack of professionalism and maturity and just plain not doing the job properly that she's being paid to do. I've been going through this with her for a total of 15 years now and about 60-70 gigs. I have a perfect performance track record there so I'm really ticked over her lack of respect to an established performer. The residents told me they ask for me back every time I play there. Her job is supposed to be to accommodate the residents and she's not doing that.

I think what I'm going to do is....leave a message on her machine saying something like: "Hi, I've called a few times and didn't hear back from you. You're too professional and polite not to be returning my calls. I'm guessing they're not going through to you. If you happen to get this one, let me know. Otherwise, I'm going to turn to Administration or the Director to find out why my calls are not being returned." If she still doesn't respond, I AM going to do that and hope they come down on her for playing her games with the entertainers. Of course, I'll probably lose the account since I'm small potatoes in a big pot of stew! But nothing really to lose...I'm not working there as it is.

When I was 16 years old, a very wise and mature friend happened to say to me (out of the clear blue sky)...."You know, everything, good or bad, comes to an end!" Years later, reading the Ann Landers column, she said "don't think about the loss...think instead about how lucky you were to have had the many good experiences leading up to the loss." I think about that to this day every time I experience some kind of a loss. And how everything, EVERYTHING, tangible and intangible, is on loan from God! It helps cushion the blow for a hot-head like me!

Mark