OUR COVID RESPONSE
Testing: As required by the University, we all had received three negative COVID tests before participating in on campus activities. Everyone involved in this production continued to be tested every three days for the duration of filming.
Room capacity: We filmed this performance in the Ryder Theatre Lab which had a 15 person maximum. During filming, we only ever had 11 people in the space.
Masks: For this process, all cast and crew members wore masks the entire time. When actors were being filmed, they switched into clear masks.
8 foot Rule: We learned from the University, that in this space we needed to be 8-12 feet apart. In dealing with a play about sexual contact, we needed to get clever with blocking.
In Act One, the aesthetic is inspired by Candyland where the Players are moving ‘spaces’ in between scenes. So to compensate for social distancing, we measured 8 feet on the floor and placed the lights accordingly. Each actor was in their own colored square throughout this act.
In Act Two, there are a few crucial moments of physical touch between the Players. I knew these moments were crucial in telling the story. To compensate for the distance, we established that in this act Player 1 would be wearing pink gloves and Player 3 would be wearing blue gloves. For the moments of touch, we utilized establishing shots and extreme close ups to trick the audience’s eye. We had the actors switch glove colors to achieve these moments, so each actor was touching their own body.