From Convention to Desperate Innovation: The Impact of Covid-19 Lockdown on Live Theatre in Nigeria

COVID-19 plagued the world in the first half of the year 2020 and has continued to evolve, prompting one form of lockdown or another across the globe. With an estimated 526 million cases of infection worldwide and over 6.38 million deaths, the Virus became so dreaded to attract government intervention for lockdowns to minimize spread and mass transmission. Limits were placed on all forms of mass gatherings worldwide, including in Nigeria. Lockdown became a threat to all forms of entertainment, particularly live theatre performances. There was the need to devise other avenues to keep the industry alive. Using statistics from around the world, this paper referentially discussed the effects of the Pandemic on live Theatre worldwide and Nigeria in particular. Seven case studies were selected to interrogate the challenges, contingencies, strategic innovations, and marketing alternatives put in place by theatre companies to cope with the Pandemic when freedom of movement and public gathering was restricted. Data was qualitatively analyzed. Findings reveal that digital alternatives became the norm while online streaming and recorded skits became highly patronized. However, it still has not displaced the need for an in-person audience experience.