In November 2020, The Phoenix Theatre Company implemented an outdoor stage to create a safe space for entertaining patrons during the pandemic, and the venue has continued to receive supportive feedback.
After closing down for the first time in its 100-year history, the theatre installed an outdoor stage in the courtyard of Central United Methodist Church this past November to continue producing shows.
The outside venue brought new aspects that the theatre had to take into account while planning shows they never considered before the pandemic.
Luis Terrazas, the director of patron experience, explained their safety protocols to keep their audience safe. He described the two chairs per pod configuration with each chair surrounded by six feet of space.
As opposed to their general seating practices, their ushers walk every party to clean chairs, so the patrons know exactly where they’re sitting.
“We undertake a very strict cleaning policy where we spray every single chair down between use with a CDC-approved disinfectant,” Terrazas said.
The theatre checks temperatures at the door and dismisses the audience by section at the end of the show to avoid an excess of people clogging up the exit points.
“We want to make sure that we provide a quick and safe exit for everybody,” Terrazas said.
The theatre altered its full-service bistro and bar experience where a bar service isn’t an option in an outdoor church space. Terrazas said without a kitchen on the facility, they offer food service as a pre-packed picnic.
The theatre faced a slow start compared to the audiences they expected to see in their main theatre indoors, where more than 300 patrons could attend at a time.
“During the fall when we first started, we were lucky if we would average between 50 and 70 patrons a night,” said Terrazas. “Now, I’m glad to say, we have several shows that are very close to selling out, especially the performances of ‘Ring of Fire’ that we have right now.”
Terrazas touched on the feedback they received from the audience, both through their responses and increased ticket sales over the past five months.
“We’ve received many patrons that have provided feedback that they feel very safe in our space,” Terrazas said. “Some have even gone as far as to say that they feel like they’re in their own backyard.”
Robert Harper, the Associate Artistic Director, said the weather has played a big role throughout production. Rain put a complete halt to production because the theatre’s equipment is not waterproof and heavy wind led to several cancellations and refunds.
“Ironically, you have the weirdest weather wind-wise,” said Harper. “The theatre can’t get above a certain amount of winds.”
The company has had to be “more mindful with everything.” They monitored what door the actors entered and exited to ensure pathways were not being crossed. The water station is outside “so [actors] have to have easy access to get outside even just to take a sip of water.”
Harper said sometimes, they struggle from being unable to hear what the actors are singing during rehearsal because of their masks. He said, “even though they’re singing full voices, it gets muffled.”
“It’s been really hard and long and tiring but everybody at the theater has been real troopers,” Harper said. “People have been coming out more and have seen how beautiful the courtyard is, and they feel safe.”
Harper also said it requires extra time to get everybody in, but that people have been very patient and appreciative of the safety protocols.
Though the outdoor venue and COVID-19 restrictions came with obstacles, it led to a sense of appreciation and camaraderie surrounding the theatre.
“It’s amazing what you can do in extreme circumstances if everybody works together,” Harper said. “It makes me really appreciate doing theater that regular way. You just get so used to doing something a certain way, so when you have to shift it up completely, you appreciate what you had so much more.”
Terrazas also reflected on the learning opportunity that the pandemic provided.
“None of the folks here at the Phoenix Theatre Company had any experience with producing outdoor shows. It was a challenge for all of us,” Terrazas said. “But the creativity and passion exhibited by the entire team have definitely made the experience successful overall.”
As for the future of the venue, the theatre plans on going back indoors in June, and based on the feedback from patrons, the theatre might consider continuing the outdoor stage.
Contact the reporter at mstaubs@asu.edu.
