Opinion with David Mitchell

Sitting here with a cuppa and a bit of shortbread in hand, I find myself caught between preparing the final bits and bobs for the opening of our live school performance and watching the latest events unfold in the United Kingdom – my homeland. I am scared for family and friends, their health, their jobs and what looks likely to be another set of uninformed lockdowns.

I ask, and believe you me we discuss this in the staff room, how have the UK and the US got this so monumentally wrong? When I compare the handling of the situation to where I am living, Taiwan, I just cannot see why it had to go so badly. We have not had lockdowns, we do not have tiers, we do not have issues with mask-wearing and, unlike the UK and the US, we do not have school closures! But, owing to the crisis in the UK and the US, something has impacted us here, something rather magical: the opening up of drama and theatre professional development opportunities.

Since moving to the far east, I have always – as have many teachers of theatre and drama – found it difficult to attend and engage in professional development. This is largely owing to lack of provision online and most courses and workshops being site-based in other areas of Asia. Up until the outbreak of COVID-19, professional development was limited due to time and funding constraints. But since it has reared its ugly head, there seems to have been an explosion of online provision for quality professional development for drama teachers across the globe.

The way many wonderful companies have moved their CPD online has been inspiring and the companies have not only facilitated subject, topic and concept delivery, but they have allowed us to network and develop relationships with teachers in every part of the world.

This is testament to the ability of the arts to reach audiences when it seems impossible. The arts are here to support, to develop, to listen, and, although the current situation is awful, it is the creative worlds we work within that help make the days a little brighter for all concerned.

My hope for a post-Covid world is that the brilliant online provision doesn't disappear but continues to grow into a magical little corner of the internet where we can develop and connect.