“What do I miss? Being in the room. In an interview about his films, Ingmar Bergman was once asked “Don’t you do plays as well?” And apparently, he really perked up: “Yes; now, being in a room with a group of artists working on a great text; that is work for adults.” I agree.”

“These last 18 months have allowed my husband and I to really See what we have accomplished in our over 40 years together. And to reflect on the later season of our lives and how we might want to nurture it. This has been an unexpected and precious gift of time for us and for our family.”

“I miss the spontaneity of art popping up where you least expect it: a reading at someone’s house because they’ve just finished their play and need to hear it read out loud; a coffee concert, a grassroots project some folks are just throwing together, catching that show that’s only open for a weekend, an exhibit at that gallery. You know – Living Art.”

“I’ll never take for granted that the joy of being in front of an audience is a celebration rather than a paranoia of performance or the worry of how I’m doing.”

“I still deeply identify with the label of “emerging artist.” I feel sometimes like I look at fellow “emerging artists,” my peers, and they seem to already be developing a strong vision, a confident voice, good relationships, be blossoming into lovely and interesting butterflies of artists.”

“The industry has to remember and allow that it’s not about tickets. We may have to do theatre in very unconventional places as we, the audiences and artists, return and emerge into this new understanding of the world. I’m looking forward to be challenged as an artist and audience member.”

“I’m not looking to accomplish things so much as I am looking forward to continue questioning. I still have lots of questions I want to ask. Sometimes they’re about specific roles – what’s up with Willy Loman? Or as a director, what’s going on in ‘Measure for Measure’?”

“I miss the laughs in the dressing room from the half hour call to the places call. I miss the satisfaction of a full day's work in my chosen field.

I miss the boisterous rush of adrenaline-fuelled chat walking from the stage to the dressing room after a curtain call.”

Yeah, live theatre should be the last thing to return. We should miss it terribly, achingly, so we can rededicate ourselves to its value…Let’s get back to live people engaging our actual active imaginations. I want to do some beautiful skits in the rubble of lost potential.

The one thing that I would like to be able to accomplish...wow…I like to be able to accomplish effecting somebody who is younger and who wants to be in the profession…It is so hard to break into this profession, and even if you do, to maintain and sustain a career in it.

I hope that when we get back to working, creating, and playing, we’re also going to slow down. And that, to me, means being able to take care of everyone who is in the room and be able to be present with everyone who is working on the project, everyone who has come together.

I am mostly missing seeing the community at live theatre performances, as well as dance and opera. The feeling of being with other people together in a theatre is impossible to replicate virtually.

Further, if the theatre industry is to survive and remain relevant, it must be reflective of the communities it serves on stage, off stage and in the audience. In the musical theatre, where my work is focused, more inclusiveness in storytelling will only make the work that much richer, powerful and desirable to all audiences.

One of the things I learned and loved about the Toronto theatre community … was the power of supporting each other. They’re really good at that. I mean, hell, I was a stranger, essentially an interloping outsider welcomed and supported and ended up winning a Dora Award.

As much as I miss performing in front of a live audience, what I miss the most is the rehearsal space. It’s the place where you get to create art onto a blank canvas, explore your craft, tell stories, crack jokes and most importantly build a community… build a family.

More women in writing, directing, and at the artistic directorship level, please, so that we can explore the female stories later in life without it just being Grandma making something in the kitchen.

I think a life in the theatre primes you for various forms of not knowing. It makes theatre people good in a crisis. But I miss the very spaces and projects that help us get good at dancing with the unexpected. The helpful edges that keep the sand in the sandbox

More than ever, I’m glad that to be a working actor, at least in Canada, one must develop one’s talents in many areas, and learn many mediums. I’ve come from the theatre and my delight and curiosity continues to lead me back to the theatre…

I would hope that future audiences can feel changed from my work, and that it’s an experience. It’s not merely coming in to watch a show or film, it’s an experience they can take with them and it sparks change, a way to care, to love people more, to be more empathetic.

When things get back to normal, I will be even more aware of how precious time with friends and family is. I think we all will be.