Like many other industries legitimate theatre has really been thrown for a loop due to the pandemic. Most theatres, from Broadway to small Community barely hang on in good times. Lots of people lose money. I’m pretty sure that’s always the way it’s been. And theatres close. One or two bad seasons is enough to sink a theatre. Okay, that’s background.
Most theatres are being allowed to re-open after more than a year of the pandemic, and as you can imagine, they’re reeling. If they have trouble making ends meet if only half the seats are filled, imagine 18 months of no one in the seats.
So here’s my radical, controversial, hot-button suggestion: Schedule COMEDIES. Lots and lots of COMEDIES.
Why is that so controversial? Because theatres are under enormous pressure to present material more inclusive, more socially relevant, unheard voices, challenging work, etc. And that’s great, and theatres should embrace those areas; in some cases they are areas too long ignored.
But this year, it’s less a matter of artistic choice and more a matter of survival. Theatres need people in the seats. Lots of people. Every performance. And the surest way to do that is to schedule COMEDIES.
I believe that in this moment of time, audiences want to escape. They’re still going to be a little shaky sitting indoors with a crowd of people. They’re not going to do it unless they feel they’re going to be entertained. Audiences have to want to be challenged, open to new ideas and voices. If they’re not, they just don’t come.
Certainly a theatre season should include one such play. I think theatre has an obligation to introduce people to new ideas and worlds. But in 2021 their primary need is self-preservation. And the way to achieve that is through COMEDIES.
Yes, this might sound a little self-serving since I write comedy plays and am always trying to land as many productions as I can. But theatres have other fine options. Chris Durang, Paul Rudnick, Alan Ayckbourn, Tom Stoppard, Terrence McNally, Michael Frayn, Neil Simon (of course), and many others. Oh, and that Shakespeare guy. So it’s not about me (entirely).
I think there will always be a place for comedy on the stage. But for now there is a huge appetite for it. In two years, things may be very different. Going to the theatre to be thrilled and challenged and shaken to the core might be the number one trend, but for the moment — TRAGEDY TOMORROW, COMEDY TONIGHT.
from By Ken Levine
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