Finding Your Fun: Entertainment in a Pandemic

It is difficult now to remember the ease with which music enthusiasts piled into dancing amphitheaters, friends chatted over drinks in bustling bars, and new couples held hands in sold out theaters. Just over a year ago, entertainment was everywhere.

The outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic has drastically shifted the world of entertainment. In just one year, rules have changed beyond imaginable measures and altered the way in which people enjoy their time.

Some entertainment industries such as bars, gyms, and theater have been hit hard by the wrath of the pandemic. However other virtual platforms have flourished, and people have been forced to be creative to find alternative measures for keeping themselves engaged during the most turbulent of times.

Night Life: Back at the Bars

Santa Barbara’s downtown bars, also known as the “Funk Zone,” once pulsed with life. Weekdays were fun, and weekends were a circus. But the COVID-19 pandemic has tamed a once wild adult playground.

Nikki Gomez has been employed at Baja Sharkeez since the beginning of 2020, shortly before the pandemic began. She originally worked as an assistant in the promotions (promo) department, putting parties together for reserved table guests. With the rise of Covid, the promo department ceased to exist, and she now works as a hostess.

Gomez has witnessed the demise of the bar scene as both an employee and participant.

“The atmosphere at Sharkeez before was wild, it was anything goes,” Gomez said. “You’d see people dancing on the bar or just going with it. Besides no fighting or underaged drinking there weren’t really many rules, it was known as the party bar for the college students.”

Due to CDC guidelines, bars are not allowed to be open, so Sharkeez is required to operate as a restaurant rather than a bar. According to Gomez, this has brought in more families and older customers. While the new customer base isn’t necessarily a letdown, Gomez said that it has left the overall atmosphere of the bar feeling less like a community.

“I think it’s different because you’re more reliant on the people you go out with like your friends or your family. You’re not really relying on meeting a group of cute guys to make it that much more exciting. You’re more focused on the people you're with at that moment,” Gomez said.

The shift from a bar to a restaurant has been a financial hit for Sharkeez. According to Rose Amalfitano, Gomez’s coworker, the requirement for food to be bought along with drinks has brought backlash from customers and decreased the bar’s popularity.

“Friends of mine used to go bar hopping but now it’s so expensive they barely go because they have to buy food items,” Amalfitano said. “Now literally no one comes which is hard because we’re really struggling financially. Since college nights used to be such a big thing and now they’re not we’re just not making as much revenue at all.”

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Sharkeez has become increasingly understaffed. According to Amalfitano, following their reopening in 2021 no servers were employed in order to save dwindling funds. On slower weekdays the responsibilities can often be left to a single employee.

Sharkeez is not the only bar struggling. Gomez is friends with the owner of James Joyce, another bar in the area, and said that he has been struggling to make ends meet as well.

“The appeal of his bar was the pool table, the dart boards, the karaoke nights, the open mic, and even these big barrels of peanuts that people would eat and throw the shells on the floor. So the whole vibe he had around his bar is completely gone. He doesn’t have any of his personal touches anymore. People would go to that bar to get that feeling, but now it’s just like any other restaurant,” Gomez said.

The bar scene has changed drastically not only for its employees, but also for its original customers. Gomez used to go out downtown around 4 to 5 times a week, but stopped drinking completely in August of 2020. She said that her motivation to go out has decreased since she can’t interact with new people while out.

“100% before the pandemic I was a little party girl. And now, like I’m currently sitting in front of a puzzle that I’ve been working on, I just finished watching Sex in th City and eating a healthy dinner,” Gomez said. “That’s not to say I won’t be able to feel motivated again but it does just feel so different now.”

Live Entertainment: Backups on Broadway

Not only has night life taken a hit, but the live entertainment industry has been stalled immensely in the midst of the pandemic.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and President of the Broadway League Charlotte St. Martin announced the shut down of live Broadway performances on March 12th of 2020. For aspiring and current theater actors this has been a major obstacle.

According to a Variety article published in early October, 31 musicals and plays have been halted before opening night, costing New York City an estimated $15 million in ticket box revenues.

Performance shutdowns have left all in the theater industry at an economic standstill, from on-stage stars, to stage hands, to costume designers. Restaurants and hotels that cater to theatergoers have also been massively affected by the now ghost town that was once the bustling Broadway street.

According to aspiring Broadway performer Krystina Morrill, who is currently studying for a Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A) in musical theater at The Hartt School through the University of Hartford, the stagnancy of the industry has driven many older actors as well as new performers entering the industry to more financially secure professions.

Broadway has been offering virtual experiences featuring top actors who are unable to perform in-person, although it hasn’t been as successful as in-person performances. The newfound career shift of these seasoned actors has opened up room onstage for upcoming graduates such as Morrill, bringing her a more hopeful outlook for the future.

“So many people have left the industry on Broadway so now there’s room for all of these people coming from programs like me. The top 15 B.F.A programs in the country, all of us are about to graduate into an industry that’s newly reopened. I don’t see the industry dying because it’s been around since ancient Greece,” Morrill said.

Irwin Appel, a chairman and professor for the UCSB Theater and Dance department, emphasized the potential this pandemic has brought for B.F.A. students.

“What I am hoping is that this pandemic will bring back a sense of how much we appreciate being together and how much we appreciate live events,” Appel said. “We need them. I’m hoping that this is going to generate more work for our students as they graduate.”

For Morrill, the delays in live entertainment on Broadway has benefited her educational experience. She has now had opportunities to learn from seasoned actors and actresses who come as guest speakers in their newly freed up time. Morrill has engaged with and received critiques from renowned actors such as Damien Thompson, Ronnie Goodman and John Rubenstien.

For now, the theater industry continues to struggle as New York is shut down.

“People always want to be entertained. The industry is New York City itself. Broadway is so much of that draw, of show business and New York. It’s a tourism industry. And that’s struggling right now, but people are going to be more than eager to get back to it” Morrill said.

Staying Active: Going Back to Nature

While the bar scene has dulled and Broadway’s curtains have closed, some have found more simple pleasures to sustain entertainment during lockdowns. Carlyn Bacci, a former employee at UCSB’s Recreation Center, or the Rec Cen, has learned to focus on both herself and appreciating the outdoors.

When the Rec Cen closed due to the Coronavirus outbreak, Bacci moved her workouts from the weight room to the mountains. She now gets her exercise-induced endorphin rush from hiking, running, or walking on the beach.

“I feel like when I’m outside it reminds me that there’s more than just coronavirus, and there’s more than our limited social interactions,” Bacci said. “Nature is kind of grounding in that way because it shows you all of these living organisms that are doing their own thing, and they don’t know what the hell Coronavirus is.”

Bacci has struggled to cope with strict social distancing rules, but said that it has also allowed her to become more comfortable with doing activities individually. Exercising outside has kept her entertained and allowed her to practice her independence.

“I’ve learned how to have fun with myself. I look forward to and make time out of my day to take myself on a hike or go get a coffee and go on a walk. All of those little things that I do by myself are kind of my social interactions now,” Bacci said.

Wren Wise, the Outdoor Program Manager for UCSB’s Adventure Programs, also encouraged using the outdoors as an outlet for entertainment.

In the past, Adventure Programs has provided an outlet of entertainment for students. The Department of Recreation-run club allows student members to choose their adventure. This can range from a week-long backpacking trip through Joshua Tree or attending a surf lesson at UCSB’s on-campus surf spot. Wise is also in charge of running the Leadership Training Course, which is a stand-alone 5 month course that also serves as our outdoor staff training and onboarding system.

The Coronavirus outbreak has limited Adventure Programs immensely, as the Leadership Training Course requires experiential learning opportunities in a field setting. The promise of the great outdoors has moved to online workshops offered through UCSB Shoreline with no additional cost to students.

However, Wise noted that virtual workshops have allowed for national and international attendance at workshops for outdoor skills and learning, nature connection and social interaction, virtual National Park Ranger tours, outdoor film festivals, and trivia contests.

“While it may have deterred responsible outdoor gatherings due to travel restrictions and area closures throughout the year, many soft skills and learning opportunities have been silver linings and taught us how to learn and operate in different ways. Just the act of change as a challenge is a learning tool,” Wise said.

Wise has honed in on appreciating the small spaces he can occupy. His experience throughout the pandemic has encouraged him to learn more about local outdoor opportunities and reconnect with nature.

“In general, I try to appreciate the outdoors for itself and there is much to be said for quiet sit spot time on a local trail or beach, slowing down a little to truly understand our natural environment and our place in it,” Wise said.

While both Wise and Bacci have found the positives through activity in the outdoors in the midst of the pandemic, both said that the potential of the Rec Cen reopening for UCSB’s spring quarter will be positive for UCSB students.

For Wren, the opening of the Rec Cen may be a chance for in-person Adventure Programs to begin again. For Bacci, the Rec Cen will provide a place for productive entertainment that will allow for healthy social interaction.

“We’re in college but we’re also not in college. We’re not seeing other students, we’re not seeing classmates other than on a computer screen. So even though we still have to socially distance I think that it will be really comforting for people to work out again and to see other people there,” Bacci said.

Alternative Entertainment: The Spell of Social Media

As in-person entertainment options have died out, many have turned to social media as an alternative form of entertainment.

According to a recent article published in Computers In Human Behavior 119, limitations and restrictions in daily life have sparked higher levels of anxiety. The article, written by Margraf Brailovskaia, discussed a study conducted in Germany that surveyed 550 German social media users, testing how their mental health has been influenced by the burden of Covid-19.

A loss of control due to Coronavirus accompanied by the disarray of the pandemic is linked to increased anxiety symptoms. This has in turn sparked an increasing addiction to social media.

According to Brailovskaia, “in the short-term, social media use can reduce the feelings of loneliness and isolation and foster the experience of social support. However, in the longer-term, it can contribute to the development of addictive tendencies and negatively impact mental health.”

Social media acts as a way to preserve self image and substitute social interaction that’s been restricted by the pandemic. While this can be a positive impact in maintaining relationships, it can also become an addictive form of entertainment.

According to UCSB student Alex Moro, the pandemic has spurred the rise of Tik Tok, a social media app that allows users to share videos. Tik Tok uses an algorithm to personalize users’ feeds, feeding them an endless stream of entertainment.

Moro first downloaded Tik Tok in March of 2020 after being sent home from school due to the Coronavirus outbreak. She quickly became addicted, saying she would spend up to 10 hours scrolling through her feed.

“I feel like at first it made it more light hearted. It was nice to see that everyone was suffering and that it was confusing for everyone. Everyone was in this really weird stage, so it made me feel like I wasn’t the only one,” Moro said.

Moro related to the feeling of needing control during the turbulent times of the pandemic. Tik Tok quickly became an outlet to ease her anxiety.

“Tik Tok feels like something you can do to take your mind off everything else,” Moro said. “It sounds so bad, but I for sure know if I go on Tik Tok I can calm myself down. It’s so much stimulation that I don’t think about anything else.”

Moro said that Tik Tok not only provided her with a virtual community, but also showed her other ways to entertain herself. Choreographing dances, learning quick crafts, or watching trendy meal ideas gave her inspiration for things to do during the initial days of quarantine.

This is not to say that addiction to social media is entirely positive. Moro has wasted hours of time on the app unproductively, describing it as a platform with an ability to suck its users in.

“I’ll watch Tik toks that say, ‘you should get out into the world and have fun, and live while you’re young,’ and I just think ‘oh that’s cool’ and then I keep scrolling. So it’s a time waster for sure,” Moro said.

Compared to the beginning of the pandemic, Moro has gotten better about leaving her screen and opted for more productive pastime activities. Like Bacci, Moro has started hiking often to reemerse herself in nature and find more self-helping methods of entertainment.

In-person entertainment may not be as accessible as it once was, but many months of quarantine have made people creative in finding ways to stay entertained. So while the dancing amphitheaters, bustling bars, and sold out theaters are missed, there are more opportunities than imaginable to remain engaged with the world.