Live theater closed down on a global scale starting in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. It was surreal. I was in the middle of a run of Bright Star at Hale Centre Theatre, a regional theater in Sandy, UT. I ignorantly thought we would sit things out and return to performing in a couple weeks. But those weeks turned into months and as it stands now for the majority of my peers who work in theater across the nation there is no end in sight.
Actor's Equity and other unions affiliated with theater and film artists determined that the health risks were too great and that the easiest, and most efficient solution for the time being would be to restrict members from participating in any live theater and film production as it normally operated. I think this was wise. They cover areas like NYC and LA that were hit especially hard during this pandemic and they have hundreds of thousands of union members across the nation they needed to protect until things could be figured out. As a result many theaters in Utah that hire union actors decided to postpone their seasons until 2021. That included Utah Shakespeare Festival, Pioneer Theatre, SLAC, Sting & Honey, Plan-B Theatre, Lyric Repertory, Tuacahn, and Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre. Things are bleak and uncertain for the majority of artists right now.
Around April and May community theaters in Utah started to open up, limiting their seating, and requiring masks. They were immediately met with criticism from the theater community that had aligned themselves with the direction that the theater and film unions had given. They were adamant about it not being safe. But, some theaters in Utah looked at things not from a national lens, but a local lens where the case numbers were much lower than NYC or LA and because they found themselves in a financially dire situation, they wanted to find a solution on a more local level. Part of their argument was, "If we can't stay financially viable there will be no theater for actors, technicians and creatives to come back to!"
I want to clarify that each theater has its own system of sustaining itself. All theaters I am sure are suffering hugely in some shape or form financially and I do sympathize with that. But, there are variables as to what that looks like from theater to theater. Those may include having little to no overhead, academia support, major donor support, and/or grants that keep them afloat while other theaters have mortgages and rely mainly on ticket sales to stay operational. And I have noticed that primarily those in the latter category are the theaters in particular that felt compelled to move forward, navigating new waters in the process.
But, this isn't just a financial discussion. This is mainly about art itself and how important it is. I know the Grand Theatre in Salt Lake was feeling this when in June they announced they would open Aaron Sorkin's adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird starting in early July. But they were met with severe push back on social media. Again, mostly from artists in our theater community who were agreeing with Actor's Equity and other union's restrictions. Everyone seemed to forget themselves and jumped into the fray. And the popular opinion clearly appeared to be that live performance in any form was still unsafe. It was irresponsible and we should keep all theaters closed until is was "safe" to return. But, the question remains, "Who" determines when it is safe? The director of the show asked, *"If we can't trust local government officials, health officials and the health dept about it being safe to re-open, who can we trust?" The aforementioned authorities had determined by that time that theaters in Utah could start to reopen under certain guidelines with a specific safety plan in place. But, ultimately, the Grand announced they would not open the show even though they had worked with said officials, had their safety plan and the actors were even going to perform in protective masks on stage.
It seemed popular opinion and pressure had won out. Or common sense had won out, depending on which camp you were in. And the war cry continued from the Salt Lake theater community, "SHUT IT DOWN!"
Enter Hale Centre Theatre...They had started toying with the idea in April of bringing back Bright Star. They sent out an email to all of the cast and crew asking about our availability and willingness to be a part of the remount. We had two members of the cast who belonged to Actor's Equity that were not able to continue with the show under union restrictions. So, those roles were recast by non-union performers. Other emails followed to those that were on board that gave us different scenarios of when we might open and close. Different time frames were determined and we would give them feedback on what would work for us and what we were comfortable with. It seemed hopeful, but not like it would become a reality. But, as they worked out a plan with the health dept and local government officials it started to become real...
And I had a real decision to make...
*paraphrasing, not their exact quote
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