Above are the dancing ladies of thirtySomething Dance Co-Op. We call ourselves a group of highly trained amateurs. We are lawyers, doctors, nurses, moms, teachers, and business professionals. We range in age from 20-something to 60 -something. I am the artistic director, production manager and all-around ring-master of our crazy minstrel shows.
On our four-day show run weekends I design and set roughly 200 lighting cues, supervise choreography, and communicate with crew and dancers. I strive to keep us on schedule while still having fun.
The morning of opening night for our 17th annual show Premier McNeil announced the first-ever COVID-19 social gathering restrictions. The lockdown and state of emergency took effect days later.
With no time to prep or plan, we held a group meeting with dancers and the venue crew. We all voted to proceed after an emotional and transparent sharing of concerns and opinions. I quickly oversaw social media rollouts regarding restrictions, re-edited a Missy Elliott song that had lyrics about an “unknown virus attacking all clubs”, and got us back on schedule in time for dress rehearsal.
The next two show days were a surreal mix of fishnets, quick changes and dressing room banter about the global implications of what was now being called a pandemic. Maintaining authentic dancer morale and unity was a challenge. Focusing as a dancer on stage and as the photographer during the photoshoots was a real struggle.
Our house draw was low, but we covered the venue bill. It was both an unexpected burden and a privilege to manage that particular crisis. Our little dance company remains stronger than ever and looks forward to filling the stage with joy again, sometime in the future.
