Feeling bright | 1001 Stories

#36 Helen Feeling bright

Helen

Feeling bright. Sheets and towel wash in. Pilates and exercises. Prime Minister’s statement at 8pm. Lockdown. Stringent measures announced. Stay home, social distancing, essential travel only in the UK. Cancelled our week’s holiday to the Lake District and a London trip for the end of May. Mm, not feeling quite so bright now. Chatted to the next door neighbour, whose son is a police officer. He was in Pontefract on Friday night. It was horrendous. The first night of the pubs being closed, and they were having to break up fights. I hope this is not a sign of how people are going to react to the restrictions.

Precis

On 16 March 2020, one week before official government guidance, and just as Covid 19 was turning into a global epidemic, the Performance Ensemble went into lockdown. Our weekly company workshops came to an abrupt halt, and we disappeared behind our individual front doors. The easy ways of communicating, face to face, were no more. But we still needed to connect. Nine of the company started to keep diaries of their experiences, as a way of overcoming the isolation. Here they are: 31 days of lockdown, recorded during the months of March and April, beginning on 16 March and ending on 1 May, just as restrictions started to be eased. Edited by Barney Bardsley

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#36 Helen Feeling bright

Precis