An actor's life: "It’s a joy to be back in theatres again, it really is"

Nicholas Pound is a professional actor/singer who has performed in theatre for over 35 years. He has played leading roles in Les Miserables, The Rocky Horror Show, Chess, Evita, Notre Dame de Paris and Man of La Mancha.
Nicholas PoundNicholas Pound
Nicholas Pound

He has had a long association with the role of Old Deuteronomy in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats. He moved to Old Town in Eastbourne 5 years ago, having lived in Spain for 9 years where he was the founder of vocal harmony group Tres Divos and hosted his own weekly radio show The Sound of Musicals on Talk Radio Europe.

Nicholas shares his thoughts....

"It’s a joy to be back in theatres again, it really is. However, I am beginning to feel that the great British public are becoming a bit complacent in their theatre etiquette as we continue to navigate our way through this pandemic. At the end of July I went to a Saturday matinee of South Pacific at Chichester Festival Theatre. It was packed, mostly with older patrons (the white hair and glasses brigade, as they are affectionately known in theatre circles). Almost everyone was wearing a mask whilst watching the show.

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"Fast forward to The Congress Theatre, here in Eastbourne, a couple of weeks ago and I’m supporting a couple of mates performing in Disney’s touring production of Bedknobs & Broomsticks. Again, a Saturday matinee, but this time heaving with families, with children and adults of all ages. It’s a great family show after all. My friend had secured me a company seat in the middle of row D in the stalls, but I have to report that I felt rather uncomfortable. As I looked around, for as far as I could see, I was pretty much the only mask-wearer in a not-so-beautiful, briney sea of bare faces!

"As Covid numbers continue to rise in this country (reportedly among the highest in Europe), we can’t drop the ball now as we head towards a winter that threatens to be more devastating than last year. We have a joint responsibility to keep ourselves and everyone around us safe, even if our politicians are not seen to be leading from the top. In my opinion, mask-wearing in indoor public spaces – theatres, cinemas, gyms, supermarkets, etc – is the smallest of sacrifices, the simplest and most respectful of behaviours. We managed it before when it was mandatory, why can we simply not make the communal decision ourselves to revert to this practice? Without waiting to be told? Who wants to return to stricter measures, the reimposition of social distancing and the threat of theatres closing again? I don’t. I’ve got Sleeping Beauty at the Devonshire Park Theatre to perform in this Christmas – my first time back on stage in 2 years!

"As an audience member, wearing a mask for a couple of hours whilst sitting, watching a show is non too demanding compared to what some actors have to endure on stage when it comes to the costume and make up they have to wear. Think of Elphaba in Wicked, painted green from head to toe, or Lumiere, the candlestick in Beauty and The Beast who has a physiotherapist in the wings to massage his arms that are kept in a restrictive brace throughout the show keeping the handheld candles permanently upright. My own experience of nightly onstage discomfort must be Cats, wearing 3 or 4 layers of grease-based make up, glued-on wig and beard and full length woollen coat that weighs a ton, drenched with sweat by the end of the show. Sorry, too much information?

"It’s part of our job, of course, I simply give these examples as a sense of perspective. I mean, if The Phantom can wear a mask for a whole performance, can’t the audience? This Covid show ain’t over yet folks."