The Prince George Symphony Orchestra is doing it.
Theatre NorthWest and Gypsy Entertainment Group are doing it, too, while Judy Russell Presents had to take a different approach.
Providing live entertainment during a pandemic comes with plenty of challenges but it seems that the face of live entertainment is still smiling in Prince George.
The Prince George Symphony Orchestra (PGSO) had their Autumn Revival Bringing Back the Joy of Live Music, fall season featuring four concerts sponsored with a free venue at the Prestige Treasure Cove Hotel.
Following COVID guidelines and restrictions during the fall, the PGSO enjoyed a successful if adapted season and hope to do the same thing in the spring of 2021 for the start of the new season.
"That's been our motto - we're going to go forward until we can't," Teresa Saunders, general manager for the PGSO, said.
"These live concerts have been very well received by people who are just so grateful to have live music back in their lives and who have a place to go outside their homes to do something enjoyable and in a sense something social as they are with other people."
The next season will echo what worked during the last COVID-restricted season.
"Every concert had four performances and each performance was an hour to an hour and a half with no intermission," Saunders explained.
PGSO conducted a survey of patrons who attended the shows and 99 per cent of people said they felt safe in that environment and some even preferred the seating style and musical experience to the traditional concert that saw a big orchestra on stage with hundreds in the audience, Saunders said.
The series was a sellout.
"This style of presenting the music has brought in an audience of a younger age and we're so happy about that," Saunders said. "It's appealed to people beyond the seniors and the seniors were the very first people to buy tickets, which was quite amazing considering the state we were in in September."
Saunders said the non-profit organization is delighted with the outcome.
Financially it was a viable option to do the shows with smaller audiences thanks to federal and provincial grants that supported orchestras and other artistic groups, Saunders added. The PGSO also gratefully accepted a grant from the City of Prince George.
Theatre NorthWest remains positive but is realistic about the coming year.
"First and foremost we are always going to be in compliance with provincial and regional health orders," Marnie Hamagami, general manager of Theatre NorthWest, said. "We are not going to go ahead with any production with things as they are."
It's also not financially feasible for the professional theatre company to present full-scale productions when the safety protocols restrict seating to only 50 patrons in the audience for each show as was done in the fall.
"Live productions cost quite a bit of money, the bulk of the cost is not the live actors on stage but everything that comes before that so we will need to take that into consideration before we decide to go forward or not," Hamagami said.
One positive that comes out of the pandemic for Theatre NorthWest is to continue to host stage readings as a way to showcase local artists, including actors, playrwrights and directors.
"The stage readings were so wonderful for us - there are so many positive aspects - I think that's a program that we will continue well into the future."
As far as getting back to full-scale live productions go, it will be a wait and see.
"The tradition of attending live theatre is literally ten of thousands of years old and it's survived plagues and wars and it's survived human history in a way that really shows the importance of live art and entertainment in our society. I think that there a lot of people who when it is safe again will be excited to come back to see live theatre, live music, to go to art galleries, return to dance classes, and all of that kind of stuff."
Accessing entertainment through a virtual platform will never be the same as being there in person.
"I think audiences - when it's safe - will return and I'm sure that will be a graduated return because there's definitely people who won't feel comfortable returning right away, they may never feel quite the same about it again and we have to make room for that," Hamagami said. "We know that everyone needs to take care of themselves in the way they see fit but the waitlist we had to see the live stage readings shows us that people want to come back and they want to engage again."
Gypsy Entertainment Group Inc. has been offering COVID-friendly live entertainment by presenting comedians on stage in the banquet hall at the Rockford, in the Sandman Signature Hotel in Prince George until the most recent pandemic restrictions were put in place.
Derek Andrew and Dominic Oliveira are the duo that is the entertainment group that not only provided live entertainment but also chose to have proceeds for some shows go to charities that benefit local residents.
"We're always looking for ways to help the community so we're asking people to reach out to us and bring a cause to our attention and we'll try to help out," Andrew said.
They've already done fundraisers for BC Children's Hospital on behalf of local residents who have needed their services, the Prince George Hospice Society and a local resident who got help in her time of need.
The fledgling entertainment group offers all kinds of entertainment and will continue to do so following all pandemic protocols.
"We're just trying to get some normalization into the world," Andrew said. "We know there's not much for people to do - suicide rates are through the roof, overdoses are through the roof, so we know people still need to get out and try to enjoy life and everybody needs to laugh."
The group has enjoyed some success in the recent past and, when COVID restrictions are lifted, they will return to offer more entertainment following pandemic protocols.
Judy Russell Presents has had to put their usual full stage live productions on hold and, depending on the type of COVID restrictions, the dance studio remains open either providing in-person lessons or those that can be taught virtually.
"We all want to consider that we're going to return to normal and that's an awesome thought but the problem is when is that going to happen," Russell said. "That makes planning almost impossible. I have discussed with the symphony that next year is a Nutcracker year (Judy Russell presents The Nutcracker every other year to local residents) and they are desirous of moving forward on that project. I have booked time for dance recitals for the end of June and I might be a little premature on that but it might still look a little different. We lost everything (all live shows) in 2020 and I think we're going to have to be really careful about what we plan for 2021. We need to not be surprised if we're pushing into winter of '21 and then really 2022 when we see our world recover in a healthy way when events will be able to go ahead."
Russell said her concern is that it's never going to be the same.
"Mankind has managed to survive and not without huge setbacks and this of course is very serious and we know that because we are so connected these days we all understand the magnitude of this disaster and that puts it on a different footing," Russell said.
With all this in mind Russell said she's taking a different approach when it comes to presenting live shows.
"I've had to transform myself from always being the hare to becoming the tortoise," she said. "It's always more important to keep people safe and healthy."
