Behind the Scenes: Making Theater in a Pandemic
The cast and creative team on making MOLLY SWEENEY in the age of Covid-19
Lantern Theater Company’s newly filmed production of Molly Sweeney, streaming January 22 through March 7, 2021, was the company’s first project entirely conceived and executed during the Covid-19 pandemic. Chosen in part because its structure — three monologists tell pieces of a single story — three actors could film the show without interacting. Amid first-time negotiations and contracts with film union SAG-AFTRA and schedule changes in response to evolving state and city regulations for workplaces, the production prioritized safety while still producing a profound artistic achievement.
This was, of course, no ordinary rehearsal experience. The first several weeks of rehearsals took place virtually. “I thought I would hate rehearsing on Zoom. But it turned out to be much easier and more effective than I imagined,” said Peter DeLaurier, who directed the production. “I was working generally with just one actor at a time. We would get together for run-throughs once a week.”
Actor Anthony Lawton, who plays Mr. Rice, found himself missing the parts of in-person rehearsal that are outside of the play. “I do miss the camaraderie of a rehearsal room…There’s a certain amount of fraternization in a Zoom rehearsal, but…when there’s no hugging, ever, it’s weird.”
The absence of in-person rehearsals was felt on the design side as well. Costume Designer Leigh Ivory Clark Paradise found that she “missed unplanned conversations. There’s a freedom to being in the hallways with people and chatting with them during breaks. Often, the most illuminating details come during those conversations.”
Associate Producer Rebecca Smith missed those connections as well, but was gratified to see that eleven months without in-person rehearsals had not dulled her instincts: “We were working a scene on Zoom with Ian [Merrill Peakes], and he and Peter were trying to set his chair in such a way that he was framed well in his Zoom square…Peter said ‘That’s perfect! Set it right there.’ Now, normally in a rehearsal room I would go get some spike tape to mark out the chair’s footprint on the floor so we could make sure to set it in that same spot every time. As soon as Peter said ‘That’s perfect!,’ I pushed my chair back from my desk and stood up — only to realize that I was in my house, and Ian was in his house, and there was no way for me to spike the chair in his dining room. My body just acted independently from my mind, entirely on impulse.”
But missing the in-person connections did not dull the creative team’s excitement to be working on the piece — or with each other. Actor Ian Merrill Peakes, who plays Frank, says he most enjoyed “speaking and discovering bits and pieces with Peter. Watching Geneviève [Perrier, playing Molly] and Tony work their magic and watching it grow.” Even over Zoom, the joy of discovery and in watching peers work was ever present.
Once the team moved into the theater space for technical rehearsals and filming, the careful safety precautions made the experience even more unique. A small crew headed by Lantern Artistic Director Charles McMahon built a transparent wall in the theater, allowing for an actor to be safely unmasked on one side while a very controlled and specific number of people remained masked at all times on the other side. The entire show was filmed through this transparent wall. “The Lantern took great care for our safety,” said DeLaurier. “There was extensive testing, clear barriers, and massive flow of outside air. We never had two actors in the building at the same time.”
That flow of outside air was due to an elaborate system specially made to ensure constant ventilation. “It sure was cold in the theater,” Lawton said. “I’ve never made theater under circumstances like that (it’s usually too hot, if anything!), and I bet I never will again!”
The strict precautions made for an unusual tech and performance period. “I spent the entire tech time upstairs in the stage management booth watching and listening in my own hermetically sealed environment because of the safety protocols,” Sound Designer and Composer Christopher Colucci said. “I wasn’t even in the room where it happened!” Often, the actors weren’t there, either. “We teched the bulk of the show without the actors present,” Smith said. “Alex (our assistant stage manager) would walk their movements and sit in their places on stage so we could see what it looked like.”
The move to film offered opportunities as well as challenges for both the cast and the design team. “The camera is, for me, a beautifully intimate partner to work with,” Lawton said. “The camera and mic are sensitive enough to catch even the smallest choices; there is no need to magnify anything beyond the needs of nature.”
As for Molly Sweeney’s design, filming and Covid precautions opened up new ways of doing things. “A lot of the sound design didn’t get created until after we had filmed,” Colucci said. “I had some music composed and recorded…but about half of the music didn’t happen until we went to post. That’s super interesting and different from what we normally do.” Paradise used this as “an opportunity to focus on costuming sustainably and decisively. I rented shoes and even some clothes from the actors and other theaters, rather than purchasing new…The shorter timeline, lack of shipping certainty, and pandemic-related fitting issues made it necessary to make firm choices and then to make those choices work.”
With the steady hand of lead filmmaker Andrea Campbell, the cast, creative team, and crew were able to make a thoughtful, grounded, and nuanced piece of theater, calibrated precisely for home viewing. “We wanted this production to be clearly characters speaking in a theater,” DeLaurier said. “We didn’t want an impression of characters on location, attempting ‘naturalism’ like a film actor. At the same time, we had seen recorded stage productions where the necessary ‘bombast’ of stage acting failed to translate to the small screen. Instead of refining all of our work in rehearsal and tech for the clearer perception of a large audience, we were doing so only for Andrea who had very particular needs in order to bring that work to the larger audience. We were very glad she was so good at what she does.”
Audiences watching at home should know that while they cannot be in the same theater as the actors, they were always there in spirit. When asked what he missed the most from a traditional production, Peakes said “The audience. Period. Full stop. This is what I miss the most every day.” Smith agrees. “I missed the audience so much,” she said. “Working without one really served to highlight how important the audience is. When people are there with you in a theater you are all part of the performance; you start to breath together, and develop a rhythm together.”
While the team looks forward to sharing the same space with audiences again, the experience of Molly Sweeney was special. “To be able to go through the process of learning lines and rehearsing a role in this time in the world is something I very much don’t take for granted,” Peakes said. “I was blessed to have this experience and meet this fellow I got to portray and wade around in Friel’s head for a couple of months.”
According to Smith, this unique experience was a nourishing one: “It was really great to be able to create a piece of art with people again…This whole year has seemed so isolating to everyone, and to share both a physical and an emotional space with friends and colleagues was a real joy.”
More behind the scenes: Lantern Artistic Director Charles McMahon on filming Molly Sweeney and bringing theater alive safely onscreen
Molly Sweeney was filmed at St. Stephen’s Theater in Center City Philadelphia in fall 2020, with strict adherence to all CDC, state, and local health and safety guidelines, and is streaming January 22 — March 7, 2021. Visit our website for tickets and information.
