Trying to find my theatre-going mojo again
17/10/2020
Going from seeing two or more plays a week to nothing was a huge shock. In those early days, I devoured whatever was on offer online, whatever was free, some paid stuff and I took free trials on some of the streaming services to see what they had.
But the longer lockdown went on I started looking elsewhere for different diversions. I didn't want to watch serious stuff or anything worthy I wanted escapism - popcorn movies on Netflix, fantasy, sci-fi, frothy teen dramas - anything that was far removed from reality.
My creative energy was being used up keeping my freelance business going which is what pays the bills - and pays for theatre.
Work didn't completely dry up but for a while it wasn't covering my living costs. Sorting that out had to be my main focus and it was as much adulting as I could muster.
So I found myself watching less and less theatre, cherry-picking bits and bobs. I wrote less here on the blog, recording my weekly theatre questions videos was as much as I could manage most weeks.
My theatre mojo was a pilot light rather than at full burn.
As theatres have started to open up again I've found myself out of the habit.
When demand is high for tickets you need to be on it, joining virtual queues the moment the 'doors' open. With theatres running at reduced capacity there are fewer tickets to go around and even fewer single seats.
I kept missing the on-sale dates and then by the time I remembered all the single seats would be gone or if one happened to remain, it wasn't a price I can currently afford.
The flurry of theatre activity has intensified in the last couple of weeks - the number of press releases I'm getting has trebled (another job I need to get on top of).
So I'm trying to find my theatre feet again. I've booked to see my first live performance in a big(ish) theatre since, well you know when.
I've started marking onsale dates in my electronic diary and setting a reminder. I'm not expecting to be back at the theatre two nights a week any time soon but I do want to start getting out to the theatre a bit more.
Going out in the evening feels alien, another habit I've got out of. I've only had two evenings out since March so I also need to get used to that again.
Small steps but watch this space. The dust sheets are being ripped off and the curtains drawn back.
What has your relationship with theatre been like during lockdown?