If the pandemic has reaffirmed anything for the Theatre Arts Program at Montgomery County Community College (MCCC), it’s that the show must go on. Even if that means the show is performed from your own home and the audience is watching on a computer screen.

The College will host two spring online productions with “Men on Boats” and “Nothing is as it Seems: An Original Play Festival.”

The West End Student Theatre and the Theatre Arts Program present “Men on Boats” April 15-17. The virtual curtain rises at 7 p.m. A final performance will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 18.

The satirical comedy, based on the real journal entries of the expedition explorer John Wesley Powell, is about 10 clueless explorers chartering the Colorado River into Grand Canyon in 1869. The show features an entirely non-male identifying cast.

The Drama Club and Theatre Arts Program present “Nothing is as it Seems: An Original Play Festival,” running April 22-24 at 7 p.m. A final performance begins Sunday, April 25 at 2 p.m.

These series of short plays were written, directed, performed and designed entirely by MCCC students. Born out of a pandemic and crafted for a virtual performance, these quarantine-inspired plays will journey beyond our screens into the unknown!

Each online show is open to the community and tickets are on sale now. Please note both Virtual Theatre Events contain some mature content.

For Theatre Assistant Professor Timothy Gallagher, witnessing over 40 students will these two shows to life, in spite of the challenges of a pandemic, has been applause-worthy in and of itself.

“These really impressive groups of students persevered to hold these live performances during a pandemic from their own homes,” he said. “They designed everything, acted in everything and have taken great ownership over each production. They are very different plays that offer audiences two different experiences. You’ll come away amazed at how talented these students have been to put these productions on despite the circumstances.”

In what’s increasingly becoming a “Zoom-fatigued” world, Gallagher noted that each production finds innovative ways to mask the video-chat technology needed to showcase each performance.

“We’re using a new online broadcasting software to create a more polished product,” he said. “We’ve gotten better at theatre from home or remote theatre. We’ve had so much support from the College. That’s pretty great,” he said. “You can’t have theatre without collaboration.”   

Read more about Montgomery County Community College’s Virtual Theatre Events.