This pandemic has snatched life from live artists.

 

Live artists and stage performers are in great danger now. They don't have any source of income to maintain their livelihood. In these whole months of lockdown, they left in the home without any work. COVID-19 pandemic has a profound effect on the arts. All the theaters across the country, are suddenly dark. The entire human activity, life, and the world have come to a complete halt. Every industry is being immensely affected due to this pandemic. This has not only had a devastating effect on the economics of those institutions, but it is also isolating the public from one of the things that's most needed right now the essential connection that comes from sharing art experiences. Live artists and live performers are also facing recession in this pandemic period.

As we know, due to social distancing, live events and concerts are being canceled. The live artists and performers are going through a very hard time. As all live events being canceled, social media is flowing with digital concerts now. Several artists are performing for their audience virtually but they are missing the true essence of the audience. The warmth of millions of people is a major missing in virtual concerts. A professional musician Mr. Sumit Banerjee said "An artist performs his or her artform on stage only and only for the audience. The appreciation, the sound of cheering and clapping is the ultimate reward for any artist. While performing live, I always feel a strong warm connection with my audience. In these virtual concerts, we definitely get appreciation but unable to feel that excitement of the audience. The overwhelming appreciation of the live audience is like oxygen to us". These words emerge his intense love and respect for his audience as well as his art form.

                                                    Musician Mr. Sumit Banerjee

Art is the lie that enables us to realize the truth.  Art is genderless and art is meant to soothe the soul, bring smiles to people's faces. But for many people, art is the way to live. This pandemic must teach us many things but take the one-to-one interaction from us. This pandemic brought arts to digital platforms. According to data collected by Instagram, in India, live views are increased by more than 60%. Lots of new ways and out is being developed for the live artists in this pandemic. ISRA (Indian Singers' Rights Association) has set up a series of virtual concerts called 'Sangeet Setu' (music bridge). Funds raised through this digital concert will be donated to the PM Cares Fund which is to help people afflicted by Covid-19. Another artists' platform which has already started raising funds for fellow artists in music, performance, and dance is ADAA (Assistance for Disaster Affected Artistes). They are trying to raise an amount of Rs 35 lakhs which will provide over 100 families of artistes and individuals working in the field of performing arts with monthly assistance of Rs 5000 for the next 6 months.

Live performances on social media work beyond the boundaries of a venue and come without the worry of organizing an event. Live gigs on various online platforms are also proving that digital platforms are appropriate for live artists. But virtual concerts don't involve sponsors. Also, performers do not have any scope to experiment with the performing art form. Recitation artist and voice-over artist Ms. Gita Chakraborty quoted "as a live performer I need the instant reaction of my audience. Due to the lack of direct communication with the audience, I became under-confident to execute any experiment on my art form. We get the reaction of the audience through our chatbox and for a live artist that is not enough". But Mrs. Sanchari Bandyopadhyay, who works as a freelance singer, talked about some opportunities that lockdown brought for live artists. According to her, "In a lockdown, we get enough time to rediscover and improvise our skillsets. There is no end to betterment, so we have to spend this lockdown qualitatively. We have to use our network and connectivity to continue our work now. We also should stay connected with our fans and clients in this lockdown. I started using social and digital media to enhance my network"

 

  Freelance singer Mrs. Sanchari Bandyopadhyay 

 As a live art form, the theater is particularly affected by the coronavirus, along with concerts and stand-up comedy performances. Due to the closures, a reduction in revenues for cultural organizations reliant on ticket sales was expected to cause devastating effects on revenues. This also directly affects organizational staffing, and on independent artists and professionals, because the arts and culture is an economic sector characterized by a particularly high proportion of self-employment. Many professional theater artists have to peddle essential food commodities to earn money for their families during the lockdown. They are compelled to accept different professions to manage their livelihood in this pandemic.  Mr. Arani Sen, an active theater artist in an eminent theater group ‘Punoscho' quoted "live feedback of the live audience is the motivation for any performing art. Live artists can upgrade themselves based on live feedback. Due to the pandemic, thousands of theater professionals have suddenly found themselves unemployed. Performers, designers, production staff, and technical crew alike had no means of earning money during a time of crisis. Without projects in the foreseeable future, they are left vulnerable. These also affect their mental health as well as their creativity badly.  The theater is not at all well-funded in India and especially in West Bengal, we always have to work within certain constraints and with a very limited budget. So, it will be very expensive for us to continue our work while maintaining the 'new normal' protocol. Especially, for a small organization like 'Punoscho', it is impossible to raise funds according to the new normal protocol. So, we are now trying to shift ourselves from offline to online. For the next few months, YouTube and other virtual platforms will be our stage." 

 

   Mr. Arani Sen, Theater artist in ‘Punoscho’ 

 Especially, artists are living in a crystal cloud full of uncertainty. Artists out there became depressed and even attempt suicide because of this recession.  An artist doesn't perform only for money, they also live every moment of stage performance. For any artist their performing art is like meditation, they stay motivated through this. In this recession, live performers should fight with all odds positively. They have to reanalyze their strength and weaknesses and work on them positively with patience. According to eminent on-stage anchor Mr. Sandip Ghosh, "people should engage themselves in several artforms even in this lockdown. Live artists also stay positive with the help of their artform because performing art is not only provides entertainment for the general public but also helps impressionable teens to stay on the right path. Along with motivations, it teaches us essential life skills like teamwork, respect, and problem-solving – all vital for preparing us for the workforce and our future lives."