On Monday, March 16, I walked into a theater for the last time in 2020. It was at Theater Wit for their production of Mike Lew‘s Teenage Dick, a Richard III-meets-high-school-angst dark comedy-drama. The show was supposed to have a regular run but then . . . well, you know.
Theaters can’t ignore budget restrictions. Yet if they think too small and safe, they won’t necessarily win back the live audiences they need who have become more comfortable seeing shows online. There is a difference between screen and stage, and leaning into what makes theater thrilling and immediate and intimate is the best argument theaters can offer for supporting live performance.
