Based on the experiences of actors in the theatres of the Nord department as well as in the southern city of Montpellier, this article demonstrates both the continuity and change in their recruitment during the Revolutionary period. Recruitment remained endogenous and attractive for all social classes, especially the bourgeoisie, who since the 1770s had developed an absolute passion for the theatre. The theatre also attracted increasing numbers of individuals who were experiencing diminished social class, such as the children of aristocrats or ruined planters, artisans, workers who had lost their jobs when their employers emigrated, and so forth. However, careers in theatre were often temporary affairs. Both theatre management and professional careers were vulnerable to various financial, military, and economic crises.