“I was a huge watcher of livestreams when the whole thing started. They kept me company in a very lonely time. I’ve kind of started thinking of them as a separate art form, to be honest. They can’t replace live anything, but they are a platform for people to at least make some music! That being said, I do worry about giving it all away for free.”

“I also think the other challenge that performers, particularly theatre performers and musicians are a little bit better equipped to deal with something like a shutdown because we go through long periods of time of “I don’t have a gig”. There are periods of non creative output in terms of jobs.”

“We are artists. We are suffering as an industry, but we know what we are worth and what our purpose is in the global community, we’ll get through. Invest in yourself, be kind to yourself and be kind to others.”

“I love creating new work as that is probably my greatest love. One of the things I have been continuing to work on is a new musical that I’ve written with Eric Holmes who’s one of the writers on ‘The Good Fight’. He was one of the writers on ‘Smash’. He’s a fantastic guy, very talented and he and I have been working on this new musical for a couple of years.”

To the younger generation [including theatre graduates], don’t let your tools get dull, don’t let your dreams sink into the dust, don’t let the negativity weigh you down. You WILL get a chance. Time is a pendulum. It always swings both way

“Even before all this whenever I’ve mentored, taught, lectured, I’ve always said to theatre students, “Get a Business Degree”. You are a business! You are a business and you’re going to have to know how to pay your agent, pay your taxes, maybe start a theatre company, pay a publicist. Do all those things and you need to have that ability.”

“I feel optimistic that people will be creative and find ways. This is what I hope, my dream and hope is that people will want to connect with the performing arts even more than they did before.”

“This is an incredible opportunity to look at how we do things in the theatre and hold them to the light to see if we’re interested in doing them the same way again in the future.”

“I love the transformation and resiliency which is the crux of being a good storyteller. We have the ability to adapt to whatever situation in which we may be placed, and we must hold fast to that and remember that these are transferable skills.”

“If we’re making things over again, we should be making things that contribute more to our society and to our communities by giving more opportunity to do something new. That’s the place to look for hope and encouragement.”

“Given all the craziness going on right now, the irony is we now need performance more than ever. There are so many stories that can be told. It’s a healing thing.”

“I think that in the moment a show begins, the artists make a sacred contract with the audience; they are going to create an unforgettable experience for everyone present to share.”

“I love the work of a theatre actor and I miss it terribly. Without it, there are times when I feel lost, at sea. On those days, my family is likely wondering if I will ever get out of my pajamas.”

“The joy I have felt over the years working with people in the theatre will stay with me forever. And I am by nature an optimist, so I have to believe we’ll get back there.”

“As a multidisciplinary artist, I view art as a form of communication that allows us to connect with some of the most profound parts of one another, as well as ourselves, in a way that transcends the confines of language.”

“I look forward to performing again, in a theatre, with an audience. I find gathering in a space with a group of strangers and sharing a communal experience to be very moving.”

“I think if the plan is to simply wait for an audition and to book a gig, then I really think you’re in trouble. It is going to take years before we are back to where we were. You must be entrepreneurial.”

“What I do is what I do. I love telling stories to people either through song or on the stage. That’s what I do for a living and I’ll never stop loving that. Nobody can take that away.”

“I think the wakeup call of Black Lives Matter and addressing white supremacy in the arts is a tidal shift that will never let us return to where we were before. It’s a very positive shift. I hope we can see real change and I hope I am allowed to be some part of that change.”

“Just hang in there. This is just now. Tomorrow is something different.”