North Little Rock High’s theater department is hosting their first play of the year called “Alone, Together”. Due to COVID-19, students will be watching the play virtually in their flex class on  Nov. 16 and 17.

Head Director Deandre Lewis describes what it was like producing the first virtual play. Rehearsals started back in September. The cast and crew rehearsed every day after school via Zoom and Google Meets from 4:15 PM to 6 PM.

“I only saw a certain amount of people on those days, however, and that is because of how this show is written,” explained Lewis.

The cast and crew put a lot of time and effort into making the play a success, though it was hard at times due to restrictions.

“There weren’t many difficulties I ran into producing this play,” said Lewis. “I had some great student directors and a cast that took the show into their own hands, which made it easier than usual. If I had to give a challenge, however, it would have been the fact that the show is virtual. Connection is hard to sense when not face-to-face, and I felt that at times. However, their readiness to perform and excitement subsided those feelings throughout the process.”

Alone, Together is an anthology of 39 scenes and monologues created at the start of March that are all surrounded in the world that we currently live in – the coronavirus pandemic. It details the lives of different people and the challenges they face during the pandemic. The entire performance is performed over Zoom.