When the country shut down on March 13, artists walked out of the stage door at their Broadway shows, not knowing if it could be  the last time they  sing, dance, act, laugh, and  express their passion as  professionals doing what they love and for people who love to watch them do it. 

   Since the shutdown, New York City Broadway productions are completely cancelled, tourism has ceased, and hundreds of thousands of dancers, actors, backstage assistants, directors, and writers have lost their jobs. The systematic vendetta, a repeated history of the lack of appreciation for and against the arts in our society has made it even harder for people to return to work and do what they love. Many people consider a job in the arts, especially in theatre, as not a serious profession.

   Many jobs and opportunities of work for a majority of the population are conducive to working at home and can be done in order to still earn a living for your family, but the arts is an immersive experience that cannot not be nearly as effective when done virtually. Producing artistic director of theatre company, Theatre Raleigh, has come up with creative ways to keep people’s love of the arts alive.

   “Since we are unable to gather in person, we are pivoting our efforts to virtual programing from offering free concerts from Broadway and regional stars directly from my living room to in depth conversations about the craft of acting,” said Lauren Kennedy Brady, who has been producing weekly shows called “Living Room LIVE.” These concerts highlight professional actors that entertain the audience while also talking about their theatre experiences to teach up-and-comers about how the industry works.    

   “Nothing really replaces life in person theatre and we look forward to dipping our toes back into producing small, manageable, safe concerts this winter,” emphasized Brady. As the world slowly heals, and life moves forward theatre needs to be in the forefront of these efforts. 

   People never truly understand the importance of the arts until it is no longer there. So many good memories throughout our lives are because of the abundance of creativity and talent the arts has to offer.