Student Blog: Design School VS. Musical Theatre School in a Pandemic

So many basic aspects of living have been altered during this journey we've been on since March 2020. The whole world has seen so much change. Whether you were let go from your job, if you haven't seen your family since 2020, if you have been continuing your education completely virtually, life as we knew it has changed. Back in March, many students were notified of the pandemic through an email. That email told us to pack up our things and go home because it was simply not safe to go to classes in person, do our laundry around other people, go to the gym, or even walk around outside unmasked. Our adjustment period to virtual classes was quick, moving home on March 13th and starting completely online on March 23rd.

As a Fashion Studies major at Montclair State University, becoming accustomed to classes being entirely online was, to be honest, not easy. Thankfully I have experience with online school, having done online education since 6th grade and into high school. When that adjustment period started, Montclair State communicated openly with students, providing a space for any and all questions during such a confusing time. However, even though my school was communicative and supportive, there were aspects of this big period of change that proved to be difficult. So with being a Fashion Studies major as

well as a musical theatre minor, most of my classes are pretty hands on. I only have one general education class left so the rest of my classes are design classes and musical theatre classes. Because I love the in-person aspect of my musical theatre classes, I decided to focus on my major this semester and devote more in person time to theatre classes when I'm back on campus. When I'm on campus, Montclair's design classes like Perceptual Drawing, Color and Light and Textiles, are scheduled to go for six hours at a time. So imagine now in 2021, sitting at your desk, staring at a zoom meeting for SIX HOURS STRAIGHT with ONE fifteen minute break. That seems almost impossible doesn't it? Now when you're in person, those six hours fly by so quickly. When you're in a studio working with your peers and learning with hands-on experience, those six hours feel like 2. That was the biggest stressor for me once Montclair announced everything was moving to virtual. I was so nervous about sitting in the same chair, trying to focus on the same topic for six hours twice a week. So when my school sent out an email before classes resumed saying all six hour design classes would be moved to three and a half hours, I was so relieved. Three and a half hours is definitely more reasonable.

This semester, I am in a class that teaches students about different digital softwares used in design like Adobe Photoshop, Procreate, Premiere Pro, etc. This class has been my only synchronous class, so the only class I have to tune into a zoom meeting for, as well as the only class that I'm finding particularly difficult but in a great way. It's challenging me to think outside the box creatively and I really feel like I'm growing as an artist. This year I feel I've registered for classes that are pushing me beyond fashion. It's allowed me to find a passion for graphic design as well as collage work. What I'm trying to say is, being home in Wisconsin and being able to make art in the comfort of a space that I feel motivated in has been really strengthening for me as a college student as well as an artist. So even though my design classes are completely online, and that I'm not getting the full in-person experience of critiques with my classmates, hands on help from professors, I'm still being challenged as an artist, as a learner. There are a few days a week where I feel so unmotivated and frustrated that I am still completely online, however when I remind myself that I'm home with my family, getting all As in my classes, and succeeding as a college student in a pandemic, I remember that I am doing fine. The other five of my six classes this semester are asynchronous, so without worrying about attending six zoom classes every week, I've been able to explore other forms of expression. I've been able to publish articles for BroadwayWorld as well as HerCampus Montclair (a lifestyle online magazine through my college). Publishing my own work has been such a valuable experience. It's really allowed me to grow as an individual and a writer and to explore a possible career in journalism, something I haven't seriously considered before. So, being locked up in the house for a year has proved to be successful in some ways. It's allowed me to explore a thought that's been in the back of my mind for a while, pursuing writing. The pandemic has changed so many aspects of regular life. But because of the people in my life, my boyfriend, my sisters, my parents, my best friend, and even certain professors, I've been able to grow as an artist, a friend, a performer, and most importantly, a person. I have signed the housing agreement in order to live back on campus next semester so that is definitely something to look forward to. To be quite honest, living at home has been wonderful. Sure there have been ups and downs, but I've been safe, I've been able to watch my younger sisters grow up for one more year before moving away, I've gotten closer with my parents, I've pursued the healthiest relationship with my partner and I've been able to work on my mental health through therapy. Even though the pandemic took so much away, it also gave me a lot. It gave me a newfound appreciation for long talks with my parents, for laughing on Facetime with my friends, for playing music with my sisters, for cuddles with my dog, for zoom calls all day with my boyfriend, for getting an A in that essay I spent way too much time on, for yoga at the end of a long day, for so many small things. I've been able to let the good overtake the bad instead of vice-versa. I hope you were able to do the same.

Through all the change brought on by 2020, I've been interested in talking to friends of mine who are in college going through these changes caused by the pandemic. My best friend, Mattie Kantor, is a Musical Theatre major with minors in Dance and Arts Administration at Viterbo University in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. Mattie is entirely enrolled in in-person education at Viterbo, going to all her classes on campus, living in an on-campus apartment with her puppy, dancing in rehearsal rooms on the weekends with her boyfriend, and going to the gym weekly, all masked of course. Life is almost back to normal for Mattie. "We are lucky enough to be in person but of course that comes with a lot of precautions. Every morning we do a health check which involves answering questions regarding exposure and symptoms and then we also take our temperature. Once we've put all of this information into our app then we are sent a "health pass" which we show to our professors at the beginning of class," says Kantor. In dance classes, Viterbo has made sure to tape off squares for students that they are forced to stay inside of in order to ensure six foot separation at all times. The university has also limited the size of the class in certain dance classes. Now, one would think after being online and being separated from all civilization for long periods of time, you would be a bit nervous about being exposed to other people all day, knowing only few students are vaccinated at this time, however Mattie feels the exact opposite. I asked Mattie if she's ever felt unsafe in her in-person classes this semester and last, she said, "Never! All the students really want to be there so everyone is really great at staying a safe distance and making sure we are following all the precautions." If you trust everyone and see that most people are putting in the work to make sure everyone is socially distanced and feeling safe, I can understand how you would feel safe. I would feel the same way. It sounds so comforting knowing that the people around you understand the situation as urgently as you do.

There is one portion of her on-campus life that is still virtual and that is her voice lessons. Viterbo analyzed the situation and felt it would be most successful for students if they're able to reserve small individual vocal studios and remove their masks while joining their professor on zoom. Continuing voice lessons online allows voice coaches to study the student's vocal placement without worrying about masks being in the way. Mattie said, "We are super lucky to have access to a piece of technology called soundjack. Soundjack cuts down the lag time to almost nothing so we are able to work in real time with our accompanist and voice lesson and still learn effectively and improve!"

Even though most of Mattie's learning experience is completely back to normal, there are some aspects that Kantor is still missing out on. "The biggest difference has to do with life outside of classes. I spend much less time hanging out with friends, going out to dinner, exploring places. It definitely makes it more difficult as a student because you don't have as much of that time to unwind with friends since you're trying to be so safe." I feel we all can connect to Mattie on this feeling. I know I miss the simple things in life right now. Going out to dinner, going to dance classes without masks, going to museums. I asked Mattie what she misses the most while this new way of education barrels on, she said, "Smiles!!! I miss seeing people smile. With all the masks I never get to see people smile and I really miss that." I think that's something we can all connect with. You don't realize how much human interaction affects the positivity levels in your day until it's taken away from you.

So if you're a college student still stuck participating in virtual learning, or if you're an employee still working from home, keep breathing. This will all be over soon. Think of what you do have right now. You have family, you have work to keep you busy, you have Netflix to distract from loneliness, you have life. And before we know it, we will be back to in-person auditions, seeing new movies in the theatre, back to Broadway, back to birthday parties, back to normalcy. Just keep pushing, get vaccinated when you can, wear your mask always, and wash your hands.