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The creative sector in France has been especially hard-hit by the effects of the pandemic, with live theater, music, dance and circus performances all canceled.
As theaters remain closed in the country, a group of actors and playwrights in the capital have tried to re-invent their shows, so they can continue to put on performances while adhering to social-distancing and sanitary measures.
Their new play is called 'Contact,' but ironically, there's none involved. It's a new form of theater created ad hoc for post-lockdown times: it is immersive but socially-distanced silent acting.
The city acts as the stage as the actors move through its streets, accompanied only by the buzz of a Parisian evening and followed by the audience, listening along to the pre-recorded script.
This format means that the audience avoids the problems of trying to catch every word spoken by the actors, which could be easily swallowed up by the burble of a Saturday evening in the French capital.
"It's different because for me, as an actress, we don't talk," says actor June van der Esch. "It's only in our thoughts, so we have to play what we think, and that's very different, as an actress because that never happens on stage, of course."
Parisians go about their daily lives in the middle of the show, with passers-by often confused as to why a dozen people are watching two persons act silently in the middle of a pavement.
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Audience following the two actors performing through the streets and squares of Paris. Credits: CGTN Europe
The effects of the pandemic have rocked the creative sector here in France, leaving a markedly changed image of what a theater performance looks like right now.
There has been a 72 percent fall in turnover this year for live venues like concert halls, dance studios and theaters in the country. The government has tried to support the industry with rescue funds worth $6 billion to address the impact COVID-19 had on the sector.
"A lot of the solutions that the government proposes are totally disconnected from the reality of our work," says Hanna Lasserre, one of the co-writers of Contact.
"When they want us to open theaters with only half the places available for spectators, they ask us to put on plays with masks. It's not possible. It's not the reality of our work. This disconnection is very hard for us."
When it comes to the so-called new normal, this is a totally different experience from the established drama performance in pre-pandemic times.
"This is the start of a new theatrical possibility," reckons Gilles Vajou, the other actor in 'Contact.' "I think this will allow the writers to work on new material. I also think the people watching might come up with their own ideas.
"Nowadays, this is what we must do: to create new experiences in theater. Our optimism is there. The future relies on it."
