Report
All the world's a stage ASU theater students reflect on the skills and new technology that emerged during quarantine by Savannah Dagupion
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knock at the door and a box of trinkets prepared theater students in asu’s Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts for their first show of the 2020 season, “Machos.” The single box delivered to the student actors took the place of a green room, a wardrobe and the bustle of backstage and symbolized a conversion to virtual theater. As the theater department returns to in-person performances, the effects of their 2020 virtual season linger. “Machos” was chosen by the ASU theater department two years prior to its pro-
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duction. Intended for a live performance, the switch to an online format posed many obstacles. Jordan McAuliffe, a third-year Herberger student, said because it was the first show of the pandemic season, the department had to figure out how to build a show in the digital world. Ultimately, the production was converted into eight monologues performed in front of green screens in the actors’ own homes. “It was a disappointing first effort, but everyone was learning along the way,”
William “Bill” Partlan, artistic director of the theater department, said. Prior to the online season, the theater department was in the middle of production for “The Crucible,” one of their largest shows in two years, when the pandemic hit. The show was already built in every department — set, lighting and sound. The entire set remained in the Galvin Playhouse undisturbed when classes went virtual. After four virtual plays, the cast of “Heddatron” returned to Galvin Playhouse in March and acted on stage while the performance was live streamed to an audience.
