{"id":77759,"date":"2021-06-28T09:28:06","date_gmt":"2021-06-28T13:28:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/?post_type=cu_story&p=77759"},"modified":"2025-08-19T09:37:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T13:37:13","slug":"covid-19-reopening-plans","status":"publish","type":"cu_story","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/story\/covid-19-reopening-plans\/","title":{"rendered":"Theatre, live music and other performing arts should be a priority in COVID-19 reopening plans"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Theatre, live music and other performing arts should be a priority in COVID-19 reopening plans\n <\/h1>\n \n <\/header>\n <\/div>\n\n \n <\/path>\n <\/path>\n <\/svg>\n <\/div>\n\n \n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. All photos provided by The Conversation from various sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Before COVID-19 shutdowns in March 2020, my drama students and I at Carleton University were scheduled to attend a live theatre production of Daisy<\/em>, by playwright Sean Devine<\/a>, that opened (and promptly closed) at the Great Canadian Theatre Company in Ottawa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prior to the pandemic, as part of the Ottawa theatre community and the co-ordinator of Carleton\u2019s Drama Studies program, I would typically attend a production of the performing arts \u2014 theatre, dance, opera \u2014 on average once a week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While missing live events due to closures, I have been among the many members of the public who turned to online arts and culture events<\/a>. I also integrated these into my teaching. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were innovative productions shared by many arts companies throughout the past year, such as the series Grand Acts of Theatre<\/a> which engaged 14 theatre companies to create and perform works<\/a> in front of live audiences outdoors, and then shared video performances online. These were co-curated by National Arts Centre\u2019s English artistic director Jillian Keiley with Sherry J. Yoon, artistic director of Boca del Lupo<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These kinds of collaborations that straddle live performance and online content may well have welcome permanent effects on how the arts engages audiences and how diverse cross-Canada audiences<\/a> and creators access theatre resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But we must remember that online experiences not a replacement for live performance. Our policy-makers need to pay closer attention to the critical role of the arts in healthy and vibrant societies and do a much better job at prioritizing live arts in COVID-19 reopenings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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