Las Vegas Chippendales Join Actors’ Equity Association | Cats | Entertainment

In a twist, the men at Chippendales want coverage.

The famous adult revue at the Rio has announced plans to merge with the Actors’ Equity Association. Union representatives officially announced the move on Monday.

The production is the first all-male revue ever in Las Vegas to attempt unionization.

A vast majority of the roughly two dozen cast members signed union authorization cards last week. This move reinforced the cast’s intention to hold a formal vote on the merger with Equity.

The Chipps artists have also filed paperwork with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to hold a union election. The schedule for this vote is in the hands of the NLRB, likely within a month.

Chippendale producers have been informed of the move and have not responded to the union’s notification at this time. Representatives for Chippendales did not return requests for comment about Equity’s new partnership with its cast.

If management does not offer equity recognition, the dancers plan to move forward with their approval vote. Membership would cover the Chipps residency show in Las Vegas and their national and international touring productions.

A Vegas success story

Chippendales has had uninterrupted success (COVID aside) since opening at Rio in 2002. The show remains the best-known international brand among men’s revues.

The Las Vegas production has added such prominent “stunt” performers as actor/model Tyson Beckford, “Jersey Shore” star Vinny Guadagnino and, last spring, “Dancing with the Stars” pro Gleb Savchenko.

The show prides itself on its notoriety and durability, having performed over 8,700 shows in the 22 years it was originally held at Club Rio for two years before moving to the mezzanine.

Dancers rock out today in a $10 million, 400-seat theater equipped with stage-wide LED panels and a catwalk leading to the audience.

Dancing with Justice

Members of the force began investigating union membership about a year ago. Actor Freddy Godinez was among the Chipps seeking an equity partnership. He has been with the company for two years.

“The biggest issue that surprised me was the health benefits and sick leave in particular,” Godinez said in a phone conversation. “There are artists who have been on the show for seven years, one of them has been on the show for 10 years, and there are no benefits offered to the artists.

“To me, that’s kind of a minimum that companies should be able to provide, especially for their full-time employees.”

Godinez was a Vegas newbie when he arrived from California. But his husband and fellow performer Alex Stabler has been performing in Las Vegas for nearly two decades.

Stabler was a member of Zumanity in New York-New York and later Le Reve in Wynn. Both shows were closed during the pandemic. He then performed with the Chipps.

The entertainment veteran was impressed with the show’s production quality rather than the compensation. Godinez and Stabler both said it was “common knowledge” in the Vegas entertainment scene that the Chipps dancers were underpaid compared to those in other revues.

“When I started, they offered me the same rate as my ex-boyfriend 15 years ago,” Stabler said, participating in the same phone conversation as Godinez. “I was told, ‘That’s how it is,’ and I said, ‘No, it’s not like that.’ As artists, we’re kind of trained to believe that we’re available, and so you have to be grateful for what you can get because it’s such a competitive market. But Freddie was the one who really encouraged us, pushed us back and said, ‘No, we deserve better.'”

Where to put the benefits?

Those who choose to join a union seek health benefits and higher wages, among other things. They argue that their salaries have stagnated for more than a decade and that they have no health insurance coverage or sick leave.

As representatives of an international brand, performers receive a base price that includes appearances, posing for photos with ticket holders, hanging in the Flirt Lounge next to the showroom, rehearsals, image rights for merchandise and advertising, and press and promotional appearances.

They seek better compensation for these work demands, which can add many hours to the regular workweek. Some may not be able to relate to the fact that hanging out with a bunch of bachelorettes at the Flirt Lounge is a hassle. But it can tire an artist who does it after every show, especially after a night of two shows on Friday and Saturday.

“We have to mingle with the girls after the show, we’re asked to do promos and other things and we don’t get paid, it’s all part of our contract,” Godinez said. Stabler interjected: “Their usual repetition was, ‘Well, that’s how it is,’ but that doesn’t mean it has to be that way.”

Men at work

Indeed, Chippendales belongs to a competitive subgenre of male revues that have historically garnered impressive repeat business on and off the Strip. The show competes for attention among screaming bachelorette party guests with “Thunder from Down Under” at the Excalibur (which opened a few months before Chippendales in 1922) and starlet Channing Tatum’s “Magic Mike Live” at the Sahara.

Union representatives, as expected, welcomed the Chipps’ decision to organize.

“The entire Las Vegas equity community is pleased to welcome the Chippendales to our ranks,” Las Vegas head of equities Marci Skolnick said in a statement. “The recent victory of the Culinary Workers Union, which successfully unionized hotel workers across the Strip, proves that Las Vegas is and always has been a union town.”

Equity wants to extend this identity to the city’s stage shows.

“The Actors’ Equity Association is here to help the Chippendales get union contracts,” Skonick said, “complete with union benefits that allow them to make a living doing what they do best.”

Unions among us

Currently, the “Equity Community” in Las Vegas is officially represented by one show: “Menopause the Musical” at Harrah’s. The ill-fated relaunch of Jersey Boys at the Orleans Showroom was a rift between Equity and a non-Equity cast and crew. The original show at the Palazzo and later the Paris Theater, which closed eight years ago, was an Equity production.

The most recent major production shows to use equity contracts were Jubilee at Bally’s (closed in 2015) and Folies Bergere at Trop (closed in 2009).

The main entertainment unions in Las Vegas are the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), which has about 2,100 members. The Musicians Union of Las Vegas, American Federation of Musicians Local 369, reports a membership of 435. Nevada Ballet Theater dancers joined the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) in September 2022.

Equity represents approximately 51,000 professional actors and stage managers on Broadway and live theater throughout the United States.

The Chipps fallout

The Chipps move to equity status could spark a series of similar efforts at shows across Las Vegas. Production companies like Cirque du Soleil, Spiegelworld and Adam Steck’s SPI Entertainment group (which has “Thunder” on its schedule) are not unionized. But none of these occupations have officially begun to organize.

Nationally, Equity also represents strip club employees and Disneyland character actors. Las Vegas is teeming with club artists and atmospheric entertainers (Area15 is expanding by 35 acres, for example) who are entitled to Equity status.

Stock officials clearly want the Chipps Show to serve as a pillar of growing membership throughout Las Vegas. This also applies to the dancers who voted for the organization.

“Las Vegas is a world-class entertainment city, so Equity was a perfect fit for us,” said Godinez. “We want to change the entire landscape of the entertainment industry.”

John Katsilometes’ column appears daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” The podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.