Volunteer

Get involved at the Ordway

From ushering to events, volunteers help make the Ordway's programs possible! Volunteers also receive benefits for every hour they work.

Whether you prefer to be in the center of the action or to work behind the scenes, there's a volunteer opportunity for you.

Become an Ordway volunteer!

Volunteer opportunities

Ushering is our most popular volunteer opportunity! Ushers welcome guests to performances and assist audience members with questions and directions.

If you are interested in volunteer ushering, it is required that you are available for one shift a month.

The Ordway has ongoing administrative opportunities for individuals that are interested. Opportunities include photo archiving, collating and stuffing of letters and season tickets, data entry, helping with registration at auditions, and more.

Throughout the year, the Ordway Education department has different programmatic events ranging from annual events, to greeting school buses at student matinees, to master classes. Different Education events are offered each year, depending on the season, the programs, and the various community engagement opportunities.

Made possible by a 20-year partnership between the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts and Flint Hills Resources, the Flint Hills Family Festival is celebrated each year with a week of school performances and a weekend of free and low-cost performances and art activities for families. The Festival has successfully served over one million people in our community since its inception in 2001.

In order to make the event a success, we need several volunteers throughout the week to help with a variety of tasks!

Proceeds from the Ordway Garden Gala help the Ordway produce dynamic and joyful theater, concerts, and arts learning initiatives. The funds raised also benefit the Arts Partnership—a unique collaboration among the Minnesota Opera, Ordway, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and Schubert Club—and our collective ability to maintain the Ordway venue and connect with communities through magical performances.

In order to ensure this event is a huge success, we will need several volunteers throughout the evening to help with everything from set-up to running games.

Work alongside our Marketing staff at events like Rondo Days, Selby Jazz Festival, and the Twin Cities Pride Festival to promote the Ordway, answer questions about the organization and its events and programming, and help us connect with the community.

This volunteer opportunity can also include marketing material distribution.

Current Ordway volunteers

Click on the button below to log in to your Better Impact account and sign up for current volunteer opportunities. For volunteer questions, contact volunteer@ordway.org, or call 651.282.3063.

Current Ordway Volunteers

Volunteering at the Flint Hills Family Festival, 2018. Photo by Laura Alpizar.

Benefits and policies

Tickets for volunteers

For every 30 hours that a volunteer accumulates, they are eligible to receive two free tickets to an Ordway performance.

Ticket availability is subject to contractual agreement for tour productions; not all shows are eligible to be redeemed for volunteer hours.

The number of volunteer hours contributed impacts the Ordway’s ability to fulfill mission and vision. All volunteer hours are equally tracked and acknowledged to ensure all volunteer contributions are recognized. If a volunteer does not participate in a volunteer activity for 18 months, their volunteer balance is returned to zero.

Transportation reimbursement

The Ordway will reimburse volunteers for parking and/or public transit expenses incurred as part of the volunteer activity. At large-scale events, volunteers may receive a parking voucher for parking instead of a reimbursement.

Screening requirements

All volunteers must successfully complete a background check, and abide by the Ordway's policies and procedures.

All volunteers interacting with children will be subject to an additional layer of screening.

To protect the safety of its employees and customers and to protect the assets of the business, background checks will be conducted on all applicants to whom a contingent offer of employment has been made. Human resources will conduct the background check through its resources and in full compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act. If there is any substantive information included in the background check received, human resources along with the appropriate Ordway personnel will, in their sole discretion, determine the relevance of such information to the vacant position’s responsibilities and the hiring decision.

Having a criminal history, a criminal conviction, or a motor vehicle violation does not necessarily preclude employment. The nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it and its relevance to a particular position are evaluated on a case-by-case basis. An evaluation shall consider, but shall not necessarily be limited to, the following factors:

Date of conviction(s).
Subsequent employment record.
Number and gravity of crime(s) committed and the nature of the crime(s) in relationship to the nature of the work to be performed.
Potential opportunity, through possible abuse of work-related functions or situations, to cause financial or property loss or other harm.

All decisions relating to the background check received shall be made in Ordway’s sole discretion.

Volunteer FAQ

What are the qualifications to become a volunteer?

All Ordway volunteers must complete a background check to volunteer. Some activities also require training, which individuals must attend before they can serve as a volunteer for those activities.

How frequently are volunteer notifications sent out?

It depends on the time of year. Sometimes we have multiple activities going on at once, but we like to send out only one email a week with a summary of all the available opportunities.

What is the commitment required to volunteer?

There is no specific hour commitment required, but if you do not volunteer for 18 months, your volunteer balance will be returned to zero.

What if I have a skill that I would like to offer the Ordway on a volunteer basis that is not listed above?

Please let us know if you have a professional skill (Accounting, Legal, HR, etc.) that you would like to volunteer on a pro bono basis by emailing volunteer@ordway.org.

Can I volunteer to build sets, make costumes, or help with other technical theater aspects?

We have no volunteer opportunities in technical theater. We sometimes have temporary opportunities in Production Management and Stage Management when we are producing performances, so please check out Careers & Auditions for current openings.

I am a high school or college student and need volunteer hours for credit. Can I volunteer with the Ordway?

Yes, we will fill out any paperwork you need to recognize your completed hours. Please let us know if you have a specific project you need to complete for a class, and we can see if we have any opportunities that would match your project requirements.

What is the youngest age you will accept volunteers?

We will accept volunteers as young as 15. Any children under the age of 15 need to be directly supervised by a parent. Any individuals under the age of 18 do not need to complete a background check.

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Volunteer

Volunteer with the Ordway

Get involved at the Ordway

Become an Ordway volunteer!

Volunteer opportunities

Current Ordway volunteers

Benefits and policies

Tickets for volunteers

Transportation reimbursement

Screening requirements

Volunteer FAQ

What are the qualifications to become a volunteer?

How frequently are volunteer notifications sent out?

What is the commitment required to volunteer?

What if I have a skill that I would like to offer the Ordway on a volunteer basis that is not listed above?

Can I volunteer to build sets, make costumes, or help with other technical theater aspects?

I am a high school or college student and need volunteer hours for credit. Can I volunteer with the Ordway?

What is the youngest age you will accept volunteers?

Become an Ordway volunteer!

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