31 Useful Theatre Things You Can Do on StageAgent from Home

With theatres and school campuses shut down around the world due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, many thespians are quarantined at home.

While anxieties are understandably running high, we eventually will come out on the other side. Auditions and performances will return. Being stuck at home does not mean your work as a performer is on hiatus. It is important that you make the most out of this ‘downtime’ so you can be prepared when things return to normal.

With the rise of theatre e-learning tools like StageAgent.com, there is no shortage of useful activities that can be accomplished online. If you take advantage of your at-home time to focus on improving your craft, you will be much better prepared when quarantines are lifted and live theatre opportunities return.

Here are 31 things you can do on StageAgent while still in your pajamas!

Research shows

Read the StageAgent guides for shows with upcoming auditions in your area.
Input your age, gender, vocal part and dancing ability in the StageAgent Character Search to find parts that you could play someday.
Take StageAgent theatre quizzes and earn a spot in the top 25 leaderboard.
Learn about opera!
Read full scripts for plays.
Do a compare and contrast of shows from different historical times. Read guides for shows such as Hamilton, 1776, Titanic, Wolf Hall, and The Scottsboro Boys.
Take a look at shows that are adapted from other mediums and analyze how they make the switch. What is cut or added? Which characters stay as-is or are expanded? How is the original plot changed for the adaptation? For example, review:
- Street Scene the play vs Street Scene the opera
- Pygmalion vs. My Fair Lady
- Most Disney shows (adapted from animated film to stage musical)
- Hairspray (straight film, then stage musical, then film musical)

Practice monologues, scenes and songs

8. Choose a monologue on StageAgent and film yourself performing it

9. Choose an audition song from StageAgent and film yourself performing it

*For smart phone tips, see this article!

10. Choose a scene on StageAgent and consider the different ways it could be interpreted/performed

*For example, pick a Shakespeare scene and transport it to a different age. What would be the technical/staging/costuming challenges? To read up on the debate surrounding modern adaptations of Shakespeare plays, read this article!

11. Pick a scene and retell the story using only emojis / GIFs / memes. Then analyze what is gained / lost without the words. If it’s a class, a whole play could be translated into emojis!

12. Record yourself performing a scene but take the lines of all characters involved. Do this in the style of many YouTubers who have conversations with their ‘girlfriend’ or ‘Mum’ by changing the camera angle and wearing a wig. Skills could involve creative costuming, acting, line reading, interpreting characters, character research, video recording, simple video editing.

13. Improve your singing warm up routine.