(Photo: From Calithumpians video on YouTube)
A New Brunswick theatre company has created a fun video with recommendations on how to stay safe during the pandemic.
The Calithumpians perform outdoor summer theatre in Fredericton in the summer. Last year, they did a show about COVID-19.
That sparked the idea of creating a video. Artistic Director Will Pasey says, “We were looking for catchy songs we could use to educate people about the rules and regulations around COVID-19, and Cotton Eye Joe came up.”
Pasey says it took about a week to produce, “The song was written earlier in the summer. We did add another verse about downloading the COVID-19 App because of Dr. Jennifer Russell’s pleas to download the App, so we were taking her advice on that.”
The video was the theatre company’s way of giving back to a community and province they love so much, “We wanted to help keep our audiences safe and keep the people of the province safe as well.”
Pasey says the song was recorded by members of the troupe and the video filmed at home by each member in their single household bubble.
The pandemic has been tough on the theatre company. Pasey says restrictions have meant the loss of their main sources of revenue.
They saw reduced crowds in the summer, due to to the need for physical distancing. They also haven’t been able to do any performance tours across New Brunswick, or at schools in the province.
A GoFundMe page has been set up if you’d like to help.
