BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Occupational Burnout and Structural Support Systems in Live Theatre Production

This independent industry white paper examines occupational burnout among theatre professionals using a cross-sectional survey design (N = 92). Grounded in the Job Demands–Resources (JD-R) framework (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007), the study investigates two core dimensions of burnout: Exhaustion and Disengagement, alongside organisational and interpersonal protective factors including Perceived Organisational Support and Team Relatedness. Findings indicate a significant and systematic increase in exhaustion during the Technical Rehearsal (Tech Week) phase, suggesting that burnout is structurally embedded within production timelines rather than attributable to individual-level resilience deficits. In contrast, disengagement remains comparatively low, indicating a sustained affective investment in theatrical work despite high physical and emotional strain, consistent with patterns of “passionate exploitation” observed in creative labour contexts. Inferential analyses further demonstrate that perceived organisational support and team-related cohesion function as significant psychological buffers against burnout outcomes. This report is intended as an exploratory, non-clinical, and independent student-led research output. It was not reviewed or approved by a university Institutional Review Board (IRB) or equivalent ethics committee. All data were collected anonymously and voluntarily.