22 Dec Blackmore Players Tread the Virtual Boards to Beat Coronavirus Restrictions
A local amateur theatre group has fought back against the coronavirus restrictions that have seen all performances cancelled since March this year, and have recently staged their first online production.
The medium was a first for the Blackmore Players and incorporated both pre-recorded scenes, and live scenes, utilising the video conferencing software, Zoom, bringing individuals together and allowing them to interact on screen. The pre-recorded scenes were shot using a green screen to enable individuals to be recorded separately to ensure covid rules were not broken.
The coronavirus pandemic has decimated the amateur theatre world as the very nature of the beast means close contact is inevitable when performing productions on stage. The group have been holding online read-throughs of scripts to provide interest to the group members, but much of the enjoyment comes from performing to a live audience.
The idea was the brainchild of former Blackmore Players Chairman, Keith Goody, who found a short Christmas inspired play which was initially just to be shown within the group. However, with stalwart of the Players, John Riley, on board as director, and a technical team with a vast array of skills at their disposable, the idea grew into presenting the show live on youTube.
So on Wednesday 16th December, the show was shown live on youTube and was very well received with viewers commenting that it must have been very difficult to perform without being able to see who you are talking to!
Speaking of the production, Keith Goody said “We wanted to find a way to present a show amid the coronavirus restrictions, not only for our members, but also to reach out to our loyal audience and give them something different, and in view of the change to tier 3, entertain them while they are stuck at home!”.
