Thread: Should I respond to Entertainment Agency?

Hi!

I was contacted by an entertainment company to do a birthday party, and since I am not knowledgable about the companies around town, decided to check them out on the net first. The heading that comes up under a Yahoo search for their name is "Strippers, Bachelor and Bachelorette Parties." I looked on their site, and it seems they have many more strippers than any other acts.

Should I even bother responding?

Thanks!

If the agency represents other acts than strippers and other acts of that nature, what's the harm? Unless they're looking for a bellydancer that strips in her act.
..l;,

Contact the agency and see what they're looking for.

I wondered the same thing a while back when an agency contacted me! It turned out to be a good thing, actually. The agency I worked with had worked with belly dancers before, they *clearly* understood that my act wasn't racy or appropriate for bachelor parties. The agency I worked with also did gorilla grams, Marilyn & Elvis impersonators, and lots of humor. Strippers was their highest-demand and highest-profit entertainment, so that part of the business got a good share of the billing in their advertising.

But my relationship with the agency was great! They did all the advertising, took all the calls, if I was available & liked the terms they offered I accepted the gig, but I could turn a gig down any time I wanted. Of course, they kept a share of the profits, but running a yellow pages would have cost me more than I paid them.

I'd say call them! The worst that can happen is you'll discuss things & find out it's not a good fit.

ditto what lauren said.

I've worked for years for agencies that also send out a lot of strippers. a really nice thing is that the agency screens all of the clients, and it's made very clear: if they want a stripper, they get a stripper. if they don't want a stripper, they don't. in hundreds of gigs I only once got sent to a gig where I felt a little uncomfortable (but not unsafe!) and that was because the booker had to call in an inexperienced sub to answer calls the day they took the booking (nothing like getting sent to a bachelor party where you are CLEARLY the Plan B, because the guys all wanted a stripper but the bride had a hissy fit so they had to go with a tamer act!).

I definitely echo the sentiments here. I've worked with a lot of entertainment agencies. Most of their business comes from strip grams but they often offer other forms of entertainment and shouldn't been discredited just b/c of that. As Elisa said, if they want a stripper, they'll hire a stripper -- and I'm sure they have plenty of those dancers to call for such gigs.

Give them a call and feel out the gig and the agency. If you like each other, it can result in a mutually beneficial relationship. What you'll probably find is that once they know you and know they can rely on you, they'll "sell" you more often and you'll get more and more gigs thru them. So they next time they get a call from someone who wants something "exotic" but doesn't want a stripper, they'll say something like "we have an amazing belly dancer who can provide a fun but tasteful show." Whammo -- you're booked!