AUSTIN, Texas — The world of live theater took a devastating hit as a result of COVID-19. Theaters large and small were forced to rethink ways to keep entertaining and to stay afloat.

What You Need To Know

  • The venue has moved into digital space

  • Uncertain when in-person shows will resume

“I don’t think I had a concept of how long this would be,” said Jessica Arjet of The Hideout Theatre.

That space located on Congress Avenue in Downtown Austin looks much different now — empty and unused. It's a stark contrast to what it used to look like.

“11 to 12 shows a week, we had classes in here, classes for adults, classes for children, classes for kids on the spectrum,” said Arjet.

With statewide limits on public capacity, among other restrictions, Arjet and the other owners came up with new ideas.

“We have classes every day now. We have shows four or five times a week, so we have a lot of stuff still going on. It’s just in the digital space,” she said.

The future of live performances is anyone's guess. It's unclear when a vaccine will be developed, which to Arjet would be the ideal situation. The initial hope was that perhaps a vaccine would be developed this fall, setting the stage for The Hideout to reopen early next year.

“Then we would start to offer classes again and keep going. Hopefully we would just start up. The problem is that that’s looking less and less likely,” said Arjet.

For now, the future of The Hideout will stay largely in the digital sphere with some small, socially-distanced backyard events.

On top of that, Arjet says there are plans to leverage Zoom as part of the storytelling process for some sketches.

“The exciting thing about improv is that even when it fails, you still have fun doing it,” she said.

The pandemic may not be over anytime soon, but folks at the Hideout are determined to keep entertaining.