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Inside the Rockettes’ 100th Season: Workload, Pay, and Offstage Lives

The season highlights union-defined pay, a heavy workload through Christmas.

Overview

  • The 2025–26 Christmas Spectacular runs Nov. 6 to Jan. 4 at Radio City Music Hall, with shows on Christmas Day as dancers fit in family visits, Secret Santa exchanges, or a “second Christmas” in January.
  • After casting, dancers complete a six-week intensive and perform more than 100 shows in under two months, with schedules that can reach up to 17 shows a week and as many as five performances a day.
  • An open 2025 casting call lists a weekly base rate of $2,884.95 under an AGVA contract that includes year-round health insurance and optional 401(k), with no housing or travel provided.
  • Most performers hold second jobs outside the season — including accounting, HR, data analysis, and freelance dance — and they also appear at off-season events like the Tony Awards and the VMAs.
  • Thousands audition for a roster of roughly 80–84 Rockettes split across two casts, with this year’s lineup featuring two dancers from Utah selected through the nationwide process.