The current situation with the pandemic will leave its mark on human history. It has already become a popular topic of discussion, books, TV-shows, etc. Therefore, it is only natural that someday in the future, a number of documentaries, feature films, or even performances will be created. The purpose of this paper is to imagine how I would make a play out of it.
First of all, a certain genre must be picked; however, I do not think that only one particular style would showcase all the events and the meaning behind them. A soul-crushing feeling of hopelessness, while virus and death are making their march around the globe, will certainly fit the tragedy genre. Nevertheless, there are also some humorous aspects to the satiation, for example, how panic causes people to do ridiculous things like buying out the whole store of toilet paper. Such irrational fears may be exaggerated in the performers’ actions to create a vivid contrast between the catastrophic atmosphere of the situation and the laughable shenanigans of the characters. For this reason, I suggest that realism with subtle hints of comedy and absurdism would be appropriate to demonstrate the current situation. After all, the writers of the absurd genre also were involved in a tragic historical event such as the Second World War. During that time, the future was uncertain as no one knew when death would occur. This is similar to the circumstances of nowadays as it is hard to predict whether someone would catch the infection and if it would be lethal or not. Therefore, a bit of cynicism, which is a peculiar feature of absurdism, would be appropriate for the play.
It also would be interesting to display two sides, where one takes the pandemic too seriously, while the other is not bothered at all. These two opposing parties may be portrayed by characters of different ages, which would also present a social issue of conflict between generations. There is no doubt that people that were born between the 1950s-1980s see the situation in a way that is different from the point of view of young people. In order to make these contrasting sides clash, I would make a family of characters. For instance, one actor can play as a caring mother, who, however, is too afraid that the pandemic will lead to a catastrophe. The panic causes her to stockpile any supplies she could gather, even something that is clearly useless. The other actor can play as a grandfather who is obsessed with conspiracy theories and always manages to come up with a story that is crazier than before. The third character can be a careless young adult who does not takes the pandemic as something serious and continues to attend public gatherings, which will cause severe consequences for him and his family.
Moreover, it would be more interesting to put them into one sheltered room where the family is forced to spend weeks in self-isolation. This scenery would create difficult circumstances for the characters, thus, allowing more conflicts to develop between them. In conclusion, such a play can also present this situation as a teaching moment for the audience. After all, while the disease is spreading rapidly around the globe, the economy is experiencing a crisis, many people are stuck in their homes with relatives. In such conditions, the value of family connections, as well as the importance of listening to each other is evident. Therefore, the play can not only display the pandemic but also teach a lesson to the audience.