LESSONS FROM LOCKDOWN

Three instructors on how COVID-19 has transformed arts education—permanently

By Matthew Nerber

WITH PERFORMANCE VENUES AND THEATERS STARTING

to reopen across the country and around the world, the entertainment industry is beginning to settle into a new sense of normalcy after more than a year of pause. Of course, the long-lasting effects of the pandemic—virtual performances, discussions around the safety of performers and audiences, and renewed calls for meaningful equity—will take years to unpack.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the academic world, where students and faculty alike have had to adjust not only to ever-changing guidelines for educational settings, but also to a brand-new way of looking at live performance and what it means to be a working artist today.

So what is the state of performance education, after so much uncertainty and change? Here, professors from institutions across the country share their perspectives on the challenges and adjustments they’ve had to make in their classrooms and beyond. Though there have been hardships, a common thread has emerged: one of innovation, dedication, resilience, and even some optimism. more self-tapings anyway. And, look, they know more about it than I do now! They are so much better equipped to go into the industry than they probably were three, four years ago, because they’ve done so much of it in the last year. They’ve also done it under the guidance of professionals, and I think that will really, really give them a leg up.

André Garner, assistant professor of acting at Ball State University Department of Theatre and Dance

Since so much training is happening over Zoom, have you shifted your teaching to focus on a more filmic style of acting?

When it comes to showcases, there has been a definite change, especially since I am on the New York showcase, which is generally done live. But it was taped—all self-taped. To tell you the truth, I think it’s going to be really beneficial to the students, because I think the industry was already starting to steer toward

What have in-person classes looked like after factoring in COVID-19 safety precautions?

Right before the pandemic hit, there were fears about intimacy and violence and how we’re going to structure that so that

everybody feels safe. Now, it’s a matter of trying to have some sort of intimacy when you’re six feet apart from the person. When we’re teaching now, instead of really having that feeling of connection with someone physically, it’s like, How are you working with that emotionally? It’s almost trying to turn it on its ear from the way we’ve always approached it. It’s interesting, but I can tell the students are so frustrated by it. How do you have this romantic moment with someone, and what do you do? Extend your arm? After a while we’re doing, like, silent movies from the 1920s.

What advice would you offer students looking to get into the performing arts in college, and also those who are leaving to enter the industry?

Have a strong understanding of who you are, and that will evolve as you continue to live and experience and love and hurt, and everything else that comes with it. When you have that understanding of how you fit, it’s like getting away from the idea of type and just [thinking] more about essence. What is your essence? I think that will serve you well if you’re going from high school to college, as well as going from college into the industry. That way, you’re not relying on other people—because, let’s face it, so many of us are insecure and fearful. But when you have that stronger sense of who you are and what you offer, nobody else can take that away from you. It’s yours.

Jesse Jou, associate director + assistant professor of directing at Texas Tech School of Theatre and Dance

What was it like in class the first few months after the pandemic hit?

I was lucky because I had done some online teaching prior to this, and so I had some sense of what was possible and not possible. I found that I preferred synchronous education, so I was just like, “I’m going to move my classes online; I’ll meet them over Zoom.” And that’s what we did. We tried to make that work as best as we could. Where it really impacted them was [that] we had several students who were deeply involved in rehearsals when the news came down. It was a little bit harder to say, “It’s time to shut your productions down.” That was a big disappointment for a lot of students. But they understood why; it was a question of their safety first and foremost.

How did you approach your directing students who had to direct their acting peers in this new environment?

It became about having that conversation with students, saying, “Hey, you’re gonna direct this scene, but you’re going to direct it over Zoom,” which made them think about other things. They had to think about cinematography, camera placement, and all these kinds of things that are not traditionally thought of in a directing class. Also, there was the initial sort of uncertainty. Most of them had had no experience of doing anything like this, so they weren’t even sure what it was like. I directed a show in the fall over Zoom, and that was one of the first things we experienced with actors who were just like, “I don’t know that I like working this way.” But what’s interesting—and again, it sort of speaks to the resilience of our students—is that the more they sort of did it, the more they sort of said, “Oh, OK!” Because creative people will be creative, and it’s like, OK, this is the limitation. Then, what can we do with it?

What advice would you give someone thinking about pursuing an education in performance today?

If I were approached by a high school senior, I would say: Get as much information as you can, and make the decision that’s right for you. Some people have opted to wait and take a gap year and see what will happen. Others have said [they] need the structure of an educational setting. And I respect that as well. I think that it’s important, first and foremost, to just get as much information as you can, especially if you’re looking at programs. Make a very specific point of talking to current students, because no matter what the faculty might tell you, the students will give you a much clearer perspective of what it’s like to actually be in the middle of what is happening.

Christine AlbrightTufts,

assistant professor of acting at Syracuse University College of Visual and Performing Arts

How has the hybrid format— some students in the classroom, others online—worked for performance classes?

We have one student in my class this semester who is in California, and he and his partner are doing this amazing version of a scene from “Angels in America”—there’s a scene that is a simultaneous hallucination and dream—and she’s in-person. We’ve set it up so he’s on a giant TV screen, and they’ve whipped the TV screen so it’s close to a mirror. So, as an audience—the people who are in the space— we’re looking in the mirror, we’re looking at her; we’re looking at the screen. And then the folks who are watching from home are getting all of that as well. It’s kind of [turning into] an extraordinary experiment. I’m so proud of the work they’re doing.

You’re directing a play this semester. What has that experience been like?

I am co-directing “Love and Information” by Caryl Churchill— an entirely Zoom version of this play. We have a cast of 24 actors. It’s a series of short scenes that can be performed in any order; there are no character delineations; there are only lines of text. And as a cast, you have to figure out how many people are in this scene, which person is speaking which line. We’ve had to create scenarios and characters, and take [the actors’] homes and make as many different sets as we can. We are also working with as many modes of communication as we possibly can. To steal a line from my co-director Katie McGeer: The play feels like the bright screen that you’re scrolling through during this dark time. And to have that be online is really cool and exciting.

What do you think are some of the long-lasting effects this pandemic will have on the theater industry?

I am seeing accessibility to the art increase. For example, my husband is doing [Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare’s “An Iliad” at Ensemble Theatre Company in Santa Barbara]. He is performing live to an empty theater. There are five cameras and one actor in that space, and a household can buy a link to see that play for $30. And his mom, who just had a heart attack and cannot travel to California, can watch her son do a show from Georgia. Families that cannot afford childcare can gather together for the price of one ticket and watch a show. I think that, as far as access is concerned, if theater does not grab hold of this opportunity and work with our unions and figure out a way to make sure that we are sending theater into homes, we are missing a huge, amazing opportunity to invite audiences into a theater, but in a new way.