BWW Blog: Theatre in the Time of Quarantine

By: Jun. 03, 2020
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Hi everyone! My name is Victoria, and I am rising Junior at Oklahoma City University, majoring in Entertainment Business and minoring in Directing. Broadway, The West End, and the theatre as whole has been shut down for about two months, so with live theatre, internships, and jobs in the theatre industry off the table for a while, it's been hard to stay fresh and experience theatre when it isn't happening at the moment. That being said, I thought I would share some ways I have been experiencing theatre and staying fresh in quarantine.

The first way is reading plays. With more free time on my hands than normal, I have been using some of that time reading plays I've had on my shelf for months. I have read 26 Pebbles by Eric Ulloa, The Sound Inside by Adam Rapp, and Slave Play by Jeremy O. Harris. I loved all of these plays because they shed light on topics that aren't really discussed in society but should be (in my opinion) such as the effects of gun violence on communities like Newtown, Connecticut, and how power influences romantic relationships as well as student/teacher relationships. I would highly recommend reading all of them if you have a chance. I have been watching shows like Kinky Boots, She Loves Me and Present Laughter on PBS as part of their Great Performances series. Additionally, I have been watching a lot of live streams on YouTube and Facebook like Seth Rudetsky's Stars in the House, The Actors Fund stream of Bombshell in concert, Broadway Cares Livestream of Disney's 25 years on Broadway, and a livestream BroadwayCon did with set designer David Korins. Reading and watching as much theatre content as possible has been crucial because it has shown me how resilient the whole theatre and arts community is, and how important the arts are in times of unrest and uncertainty. I am incredibly proud to be a part of the arts community. Reading and watching content has also been so important to me as an aspiring director because these incredible works have kept me inspired and helped get my "creative juices" flowing; keeping my mind on the kind of projects I want to work on and be a part of once I get back to school and beyond.

One final thing I've been doing to stay fresh during quarantine is reaching out to people in the professional theatre industry whose careers I admire, getting words of wisdom, and building some great connections. Recently, I had the amazing opportunity to talk to Stephen Sposito, who has worked on Broadway as an associate director, directed shows at Point Park University and various cruise lines, and has helped mount non-equity national and international tours. He walked me through the responsibilities of an Associate director, talked to me about how he got started directing, and was even gracious enough to give me some advice on how to start down the path towards becoming a director.

I hope everyone reading this is staying safe and healthy wherever you are. Remember... this is only an intermission.



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