APF, COVID, & Behind the Buzz

Let’s talk about the future.

To be honest, over here at APF headquarters we all thought that this would be over by now.  Nevada moved quickly and, as with most of the country, shut down nearly all business and industry back in mid-March.  We quarantined and isolated and worked together to “flatten the curve”, halt the spread and bring this pandemic to heel.  But the virus had other ideas and as of this writing the number of infections continues to rise, not just in Nevada but all across the nation.  And as some businesses have moved towards re-opening in the hope of some return to a type of normalcy, we in the arts community continue to remain in limbo, unsure of how to proceed in a manner consistent with guaranteeing the health and safety of our staff, our performers and, of course, our audiences.  For us, the future remains entirely uncertain.

So what’s happening?

Although the making of long-term plans remains an elusive goal, we do have a couple of announcements to make here at A Public Fit.  First, we have not been entirely idle during this down-time:  APF has been holding weekly Zoom readings of scripts from our long-list of plays under consideration for future seasons.  Hearing these works out-loud has been an immeasurable aid in helping us whittle down our choices for potential productions in up-coming seasons and we’ve all benefited from the practice.  Secondly, work has begun on Season One of Behind the Buzzz, a podcast exploring the behind-the-scenes processes that led up to the production of your favorite APF shows featuring interviews and stories from designers, performers, and even the occasional surprise guest.  We’re still very early in the development stage, but Behind the Buzzz promises to shed some light on what can often seem a very fascinating process:  exactly HOW does a play happen?  More info to come!

We know that in these unusual times, the last thing most of you are thinking about is attending a theatrical event.  That’s OK – the theatre has been around for literally thousands of years; we’re not going away anytime soon.  But until we can provide a safe, comfortable environment for everyone who shares a space with us, we’re going to have to remain on hold a little while longer.  Please stay healthy; wear the mask; keep your distance; help defeat this virus so that in the future we can all get back to a modicum of our usual lives.

Joe, Ann-Marie and the staff of A Public Fit