Covid-19 Update – August 2020
At the most recent meeting of the Board of Directors, after months of optimistic discussion about our 2020-21 season, we concluded there was little hope of getting live theatre in our space in the foreseeable future. Determined to make the best of the opportunities before us – yes, Covid offers us a chance to “be awesome in new ways” one board member noted – we decided to move past the disappointment and focus our attention on a season of (mostly) virtual projects.
This means we have now postponed The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, A Christmas Story, Scissoring, and Blue Stockings until the 2021-22 season. That leaves Lobby Hero, Ada and the Engine, A Doll’s House Part 2, and She Kills Monsters for our 2020-21 season. For the first three of these, we are seeking streaming rights and hope to produce them between September 2020 and May 2021. We still hope to produce She Kills Monsters with live performances next June or July.
In addition to these full-length plays, we are considering other online events of various lengths that will include some combination of a monologue series, play readings, and play discussion groups. If you have a particular interest in any one of these ideas, we would love to hear from you (email us at contact@ssstage.org). We hope to have a schedule of events to post in the near future, though it will probably remain a work in progress as we engage with the complexities of making our art in an unaccustomed medium while continuing to wrestle with the difficulties imposed by the pandemic.
Our aim with these projects will be to sustain the high level of quality you have come to expect of the Stage while also exploring new dimensions of what it means to be a community theatre in the time of Black Lives Matter. We will charge admission for the plays that we stream and, under the terms of the streaming rights, we will likely be required to restrict access to those who have paid to view the play. All other events will likely be available on a pay-what-you-can donation basis. Watch for future announcements about our activities and how to take part in them over the coming year. Meanwhile, we continue to tend our ghost light, keeping hope burning until this difficulty has passed.
For the Board of Directors,
Bill Hurlbut
Chairperson, Silver Spring Stage
Silver Spring Stage stands with the black members of our community in the fight for equality and justice. The brutal murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless others are a result of systemic racism in our society.
Theatre exists in part to provoke conversation and shine a light on the stories that otherwise remain untold. We recognize the need for us to do the work to bring more black voices, and other voices of color, to the conversation about how we make theatre in our community.
Black lives matter, now and always.
If you would like to get involved with Silver Spring Stage and/or share your thoughts and feelings with us, you can reach us via social media or at contact@ssstage.org.
