KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As many industries suffer from the fallout of the Coronavirus pandemic, the arts and entertainment industry is also taking a big hit.
Nick Padgett is the owner and Producing Artistic Director of Padgett Productions. Based in Kansas City, he's involved in events like stage shows, charitable events and music festivals across the country. He's already had to reschedule at least one musical in the Kansas City area. Many of these events are scheduled years in advance. Each time something changes it has to be rescheduled with the venue, the band, the cast, the crew and even caterers, creating a ripple effect on workers. Despite the disruption to his schedule and income stream, he's optimistic about the future.
"One of the phrases that is going around I'm not a huge fan of, not the new normal. I prefer to call it "temporary normal", Padgett said. "When we get through this I just feel everything will have a boom. entertainment, theater, sports. So when we come out on the other side, and we will, we need people to stick with us so we can come out strong."
Artists are trained to use their emotion in their craft. Theaters are dark, but many people are watching videos and movies to keep themselves entertained and distracted from current events.
"I believe the arts are essential. If you're listening to a song, TV show, a song helped you get through a dark moment, people are going to need an escape after this. We're working behind the scenes to make sure we're there when things open back up. But we do need people's help with that. We need them to buy the tickets, donate to theaters."
Padgett hopes to start rehearsals for his next project in May.
"I was actually working on a couple of music festivals and its really sad to see those go because in entertainment our projects are like our children, so it feels like we've lost a child," Padgett said.
"Evil Dead" the musical is currently set to open in June, "Mamma Mia" in July and "American Idiot" in August. Due to the impact of the Coronavirus on business, Padgett Productions has created a fundraising option on its website. Proceeds will be put towards future productions.
"When we get through to the other side, we'll all be stronger for it and perhaps we might all appreciate every moment even more."
