We have a deep bench. The resident company consumes about half of the approximately 700 actor work-weeks in the Rep's season. Juggling their performance and rehearsal schedules gets so complicated, artistic associate Sandy Ernst uses a computer program to find overlaps and conflicts. Actors often rehearse a show during the day while performing in another at night, but that type of scheduling has its limits. It's like an athlete having 45 hours of game time a week.
Actors break when asked to do too much.
Too many roles results in relying on technique and what has worked for you in the past. For that reason, the Rep tries to limit each actor to three or four major roles a season. Actor scheduling is one of the factors that determines the order that plays are presented in a season. For a hard play, there is not enough rehearsal time if the actors are performing in something else at night. If all of your actors are in the previous production, you don't have enough time to do quality work.