Whoever wrote the old theatrical adage, “The show must go on” clearly did not anticipate a global pandemic. They were by no means alone, with those across the world taken off guard by the outbreak of Covid-19, and its subsequent global impact.
The world of theatre is no exception, with plays across the country cancelled as a response to government social distancing measures.
In a piece for the New York Times, Matt Wolf writes: “it feels like time’s been put on hold” as he walks past his local theatre during what one hopes is his state sanctioned daily walk. From Pinter to Pulitzer-winners, plays have been cancelled, with no clear plan in place for their future.
Greg Ripley-Duggan, the executive producer of the Hampstead Theatre, said that: “None of us, realist or optimist, knows anything.” His honesty is equal parts refreshing and concerning.
Yet Ripley-Duggan has perhaps demonstrated a plan for the future by accident. With pre-planned plays including Tennessee Williams’s lesser-known The Two-Character Play, it seems that social distancing is easier to respect when the cast is smaller.
The sentiment of good things coming in little packages is echoed by the reinvention of Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads, currently being filmed while respecting the social distancing measures which have become the norm.
This new model for theatre does not exclude larger works – consider Alan Cumming’s one-man Macbeth, for example. Times such as these require creativity more than ever.
While the theatrical world may be ready to take on a post-Covid world, it is unclear, as yet, whether their audience feels the same.
