Outdoor theatres could be the latest solution to reopening the Arts and entertainment industry in time for summer 2021. Following a string of creative and pioneering ideas that have taken shape in the last year including Zorbing balls, drive-in shows, and good old social distancing indoors, it could well be that the ancient Greeks and Romans held the key to putting on shows throughout a pandemic all along – minus the cup of tea in one hand and umbrella in the other, of course.
Virtual Theater Burnout…How do you support theater when you’re tired of supporting theater?
Are you feeling messy, stressy, and depressy lately? You’re not the only one. Widespread job loss, global pandemic and less sunlight can all contribute. But there is a major thing it feels like no one ever talks about: the emotional toll of switching careers. Whether you choose to pursue a career in a new field, or you are forced to by circumstances beyond your control, and whether the decision is permanent, temporary, or concurrent, going in a new direction with your career is never easy.
So I’ve done something completely new and totally not what I’d thought I’d be doing, but hey, new lockdown, new me…again….for the third time.
Well, here we are. We made it to 2021, and at the time of my writing of this blog, I don’t know if it’s better. We are still drowning in a pandemic, unemployment insurance hit a big snag when the CARES Act expired in December of 2020, the President of the United States attempted to stage a coup by inciting his supporters to storm the Capitol, and yes, the entertainment industry is still shut down. It’s been almost a year. My youngest daughter, who is in the first grade now, has yet to have a school year where she did not have distance learning for at least part of the year. This is obviously not what I planned for my family. I didn’t really prepare to be out of work for months and months when I left my full-time residency in 2019, and none of us were prepared for the emotional/mental toll all of this would take. As dark and sometimes hopeless as it seems, there seems to be some light at the end of the tunnel.
Stagehands often joke that we aren’t paid to run a show track. We’re really there to fix problems and (on tour) load the show in and out. With a little bit of direction, anyone can follow a track: page a curtain, swap a microphone or move something from one place to another. You hire a prop master because she has specialized knowledge and can rebuild or repair a prop that breaks or get an audio technician because she actually knows the components of the system and can suss out a problem.
Over the last year we have experienced historical challenges that cannot be understated. A global pandemic, intense political division, a rising social justice movement, and the closing of theaters across the country, have made 2020 the most taxing and difficult year I have ever known. As I look back over the grueling 9 months of shutdown, this cock-eyed optimist sees some positive takeaways. So here’s the top 10 lessons from 2020 about stage management and theatre.
2020 was anticipated a new year. A new year of theatrical productions in the West End, Broadway and around the world. The stage was set (as the story goes).
While many colleges had to switch to distance learning in the spring due to the rise of Covid-19, starting the new academic year in the Fall of 2020 was a very different obstacle. For most colleges, there was a sudden shift to utilize online tools to facilitate learning. What was thought to be a two or three week interim continued on through the rest of the spring semester. Students and faculty had no choice but to quickly adapt to the virtual classroom. Faculty had only a few goals in this transition: 1) continue regularly scheduled classes, 2) become flexible with virtual meetings, 3) keep up with new directions and requests from administration, and/or 4) decide the fate of current productions.
It’s difficult to put a year in review, when most of the year was, well, cancelled.
Covid-19 has shut down the theatre industry. Our entire profession has stalled, and thousands of entertainment workers are stuck in forced unemployment. The immediate economic downside of a year-long lockdown is incalculable. Worst of all, there is not much we can do about it.
The UN Women is campaigning for equality with 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based violence which runs from 25th November until 10th December. The #16Days of activism is part of the larger UN campaign, “UNiTE by 2030 to End Violence against Women” which is an ongoing effort working to prevent and eliminate violence against women and girls around the world.
In March this year, when the world moved into its first Covid- 19 lock-down, none of us could have imagined the devastation on the Theatre Industry. As we tentatively stepped back out into the European summer, we didn’t foresee we’d be back for a second lockdown as we head toward the new year.
England entered its second lockdown on Thursday 5th November, which is due to last until 2nd December. The new rules have been put in place due to fears over rising numbers of the virus, which sparked similar preventative measures in other parts of the UK in recent weeks. Just as some areas and industries were starting to feel more ‘normal’, many entertainment and arts organisations have now had to revise their practices to align with the current restrictions, which have been made in an attempt to stop a second wave coming over the festive period.
A few weeks ago, I got a call from a production company. They were doing a telethon and needed another sound engineer. This was the first live job offer I had gotten in seven months. I was wondering what this moment was going to feel like, and maybe because it happened so much sooner than I anticipated, I just didn’t feel mentally prepared to handle this situation. The situation of simply discussing the details, negotiating, and then accepting or declining the offer. I have done this thousands of times. I did not expect my mere act of participating in the offer conversation to be rusty, but it was, I guess because I had a lot of new things to consider.
Kevin Massey is an American musical theatre actor who has performed extensively on Broadway for almost 20 years. He also has many opera credits to his name, and is married to Kara Lindsay, a fellow actress. Most recently, Kevin is the founder and owner of Empowering the Artist. Empowering the Artist is a new site […]
Sir Paul McCartney has announced a new solo album release this December, titled McCartney III. The former Beatle follows on from his previously named solo works McCartney, released in 1970 and McCartney II, released in 1980. McCartney III is his 18th solo album release, and has given it the descriptive tagline “Made in Rockdown.” Made […]
I feel it’s an understatement to write 2020 has been a wild ride. But honestly, owning a business for the past 13 years has been a crazy roller coaster. We’ve gotten good at dealing with curveballs, and this latest is just more extreme than usual.
The owner of G-A-Y nightclub Jeremy Joseph released a press release on 5th October outlining his instigation of legal action in order to challenge the UK’s current Hospitality Curfew. Leading barristers at Kings Chambers have been assembled by Mr Joseph, and have been instructed to serve Pre-Action Protocol for Judicial Review. The background The 10pm […]
Cahoots NI is a Belfast based theatre company producing boldly innovative work for children and their families. Their distinctive style combines magic and illusion, physical theatre and original music. Cahoots NI tours to ever-growing audiences at home and across the world and their work is acclaimed in Ireland, the UK, Asia, America and has been enjoyed in theatres, schools and healthcare settings since 2001. With a new online show launching in October, we spoke with Cahoots Creative Engagement Manager, Emma Wilson, and founding member and Artistic Director, Paul McEneaney to find out more.
Following his continued efforts to reopen theatres by way of his involvement with safety testing and even trialling a new Covid-19 vaccine, Andrew Lloyd Webber has voiced his ongoing concerns that the arts are at the point of no return.
Jono Ayres is an Aerialist, Teacher & Classes Manager at Circomedia in Bristol where he has revolutionised the online move of its Youth Circus.
I’ve often compared Theatre and Sports, specifically football. But not just because I love both theatre and football! Our actors are like the athletes, and the support staff, designers, creative team, all function as various coaches, coordinators, while the team owner and the lead producer are almost identical. Finally, sports and theatre both are emotional and communal experiences that exist in the moment.
Some good news for Fringe fanatics has dropped, with an announcement that the Edinburgh Fringe festival will be reimagined online for 2020.
