Past or Future?

The summerstock where I worked for the summers of 2005 and 2006 contacted me this week and asked if I would be willing to design part of their season for 2009. The producers are retiring, and they are planning an ENORMOUS season, and are reaching out to past designers with experience to try and get the job done. In the past it was a 13 week commitment, but I was single, working freelance, and... younger, frankly. They want an 8 week commitment this time, 3 shows. But I'm not 100% there yet.
  • The shows are good, that isn't a worry, but at least one of the shows is BIG and difficult to pull off even in the best of settings, with their limited resources... sketchy.
  • I'm not single anymore. 8 weeks away from someone is a lot to ask. I am trying to negotiate a less full time schedule, possibly splitting my time between here and there, but nothing is certain yet.
  • 8 weeks is also a lot of time to ask off from a job. I have 2 weeks of vacation (that I would clearly rather use for other purposes!) but the rest would be unpaid leave, and the theatre is offering me less that I'd be making here, and it isn't really negotiable.
  • Luckily they are shows that I am interested in. I really miss designing actual "theatre" and not corporate meetings and unveilings and the like.
  • I like the area, being in the country, seeing stars, having camp fires.
  • I know a lot of the people who are returning, so that could be fun.
  • I'd like to get in on the good side of the new producers who are taking over next season so that if they run a different style of hiring (ie: not the same designer for the whole seaosn, or a huge chunk of the season) I could be in on the ground floor of potential candidates.
I just don't know yet... I haven't discussed it with my boss at all, I plan to do that tomorrow. But for now this is a possibility that both intrigues me and scares me.

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