Theater students get creative in a pandemic

It’s been a year since Fresno State theater students took on the challenge of producing shows in a pandemic. The lack of in-person audiences proved difficult for performers, such as Alexis Macedo, who were looking for that immediate feedback.

“It feels empty. Like, it’s still content being created, but there’s just that audience element as well that is really crucial to hearing and seeing how the work is being received in real-time,” she said.

Despite the hurdles, she said she was impressed by the work students managed to pull off and the amount of creativity that resulted from the restrictions of remote performances.

Though doing shows online is not ideal, it is much safer. Dylan Murphy, a senior at Fresno State, shared his frustration with getting COVID just before everything went virtual.

“I was like, hey tell everyone that I got COVID, and other people were like, no we don’t need to really worry about it. And I’m like, you do need to worry about it because I just came in contact with 20-something people,” he said.

While many students are eager to resume in-person shows this fall, he said this experience has left him hoping the university will wait a little longer.

What audience capacity, if any, will be allowed on campus will be determined by what the ongoing COVID guidelines look like later this year.