By submitting your application to join BBMGOS, you confirm that you have read and understood these terms. They explain what membership means, what BBMGOS commits to doing for you, what is expected of you as a member, and how bookings work when they happen. If anything is unclear before you apply, contact us at botlebamatsohoguild@gmail.com.
Botle Ba Matsoho Guild of Stagehands (Pty) Ltd is a professional organisation building South Africa's first verified database of theatre backstage professionals. We produce original theatre work, and we connect verified crew with external theatre productions looking for reliable, credentialed people to hire.
BBMGOS is not an employment agency, a labour union, or a staffing company. Membership does not create an ongoing employment relationship between you and the Guild.
02When your application is approved, BBMGOS will create and maintain a professional profile on your behalf. That profile will include your name, primary discipline, verified credits, skills, and availability status, drawn from the information you provide in your application and updated over time.
Your profile will be visible to theatre productions that approach BBMGOS looking for crew. Being in the database means you are findable and contactable through BBMGOS when a relevant brief comes in, whether that is a Guild production or a production from an external company.
Membership does not guarantee work. It does not promise any minimum number of bookings or any specific income. What it provides is professional infrastructure: a verified, permanent record of who you are and what you can do, maintained by BBMGOS for as long as you remain an active member.
All information you provide at application and thereafter must be accurate and truthful. Providing false credits, fabricated references, or inaccurate qualifications is grounds for immediate removal from the database.
Let us know when your availability status changes, when you complete a theatre production that should be added to your profile, or when any other significant information becomes outdated. A message to botlebamatsohoguild@gmail.com is all it takes.
When BBMGOS contacts you about a potential booking, please respond within 48 hours. Consistent non-response may result in your availability status being updated to inactive.
On any production involving BBMGOS, whether a Guild production or an externally placed booking, conduct yourself professionally in all dealings with the production team. Behaviour that damages the Guild's relationship with a production company, or that brings the organisation into disrepute, may result in removal from the database.
BBMGOS works in theatre specifically, meaning live, staged, scripted production performed in front of an audience. The Guild does not facilitate events, corporate production, film, or television work. You may continue to work in other sectors independently. These terms apply only to work involving BBMGOS.
Membership does not prevent you from finding theatre work through other channels. You are free to work independently or through other organisations at any time.
05When BBMGOS produces its own theatre work, database members are approached first for all crew roles. You will be contacted by WhatsApp or email with the details of the production, your proposed role, the dates, and the rate. Nothing is committed until you have confirmed your availability and interest.
When an external theatre company contacts BBMGOS with a crew brief, we search the database and reach out to matching members. Again, nothing is committed until you have confirmed you are available and willing to take the role.
Once you confirm availability for any booking, BBMGOS will issue a placement agreement for that specific production. This is a separate document covering your role, your agreed rate, the dates, and the production-specific terms. It is signed by you, BBMGOS, and where applicable, the production company, before any work begins.
BBMGOS handles all invoicing and passes your full agreed rate to you promptly on receipt of payment. You never pay a fee to BBMGOS and your rate is never reduced.
You may decline any booking at any time before the placement agreement is signed. Once signed, the placement agreement governs that specific engagement.
BBMGOS collects and processes your personal information to manage your profile, facilitate bookings, and communicate with you about Guild activities. This is done in compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).
Your contact details will not be shared directly with third parties, including external productions, without your prior knowledge. Your profile information, including your name, discipline, and verified credits, will be visible to theatre productions that access the BBMGOS database. You consent to this visibility by submitting your application.
For questions about your personal information or to request access to or deletion of your data, contact us at botlebamatsohoguild@gmail.com. For full detail on how we handle your data, see our Privacy Policy.
07You can end your membership at any time by sending a message to botlebamatsohoguild@gmail.com. We will remove your profile from active circulation within five working days. Any placement agreement already in place at the time of your request will continue under its own terms unless both parties agree otherwise.
BBMGOS may remove a member from the database in the following circumstances:
We will give you reasonable notice and an opportunity to respond before removing you, except where the reason involves serious misconduct or dishonesty.
08BBMGOS is early-stage. While we commit to the obligations listed in these terms, we cannot guarantee any specific number of bookings, any minimum income, or the volume of productions we facilitate in any given period. The value of membership grows as the database, the Guild's production slate, and its industry relationships grow.
BBMGOS is not liable for loss of earnings, missed opportunities, or other damages arising from a production's decision not to engage a particular member, or from circumstances outside the Guild's control.
Any dispute about conditions on set, payment from an external production company, or the conduct of a production is a matter between you and the production, except where it directly relates to BBMGOS's invoicing or arrangements with that company.
09BBMGOS may update these terms as the organisation grows. Members will be notified of any material changes by email at least 14 days before those changes take effect. The current version of these terms is always available on this page. Continued membership after the effective date of any change constitutes acceptance of the updated terms. If you do not accept the updated terms, you may end your membership as described in section 07.
10These terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.