When the world came to a standstill with the Covid-19 pandemic, Erinn Dearth and Dan Beckmann, the founders of the Spring Theatre in North Carolina, said that nothing was going to stop them from putting on a show. “We were not ever going to not do something,” said Dearth. “We knew we had to provide opportunities when the pandemic hit.”

Erinn Dearth is an actress, singer, playwright, and entrepreneur who describes herself as an optimistic life-lover. Dan Beckmann is an actor, singer, photographer, and filmmaker who wants to brand himself as a renaissance man (he has every right to do so), and whose personal motto is “try anything twice.”

Together, they formed a creative collaboration named Riley, which got its name from a conversation they had about their love for androgynous names. Underneath this creative umbrella can be found Spring Theatre, the youth-inspired community theatre in Winston-Salem; a USO-inspired two-person show called Letters From Home, and a weekly web show called 'rileylive' which features artists and performers from around the globe. Since 2010, these two dynamos have been hard at work with a myriad of projects with Lin-Manuel Miranda-like levels of passion, humor, and a positive attitude that make them one of the brightest specks of light during this dark point of time.

This kind of fortitude is definitely required when running a community youth theatre company during a pandemic. Last year, Spring Theatre’s “Season of Bravery” had to drastically change when the pandemic struck. “We had to cancel our first production of the season,” said Dearth, “as we were supposed to go into rehearsals mid-March when the first lockdown was happening”. While most theatre companies struggled or unfortunately withered, Spring Theatre embraced their “Season of Bravery,” as Beckmann and Dearth made lemonade out of lemons, first with a music video of Alex Boye's song, “Lemonade” and then with an original, socially distanced, feature film project called Lock-in.

Dearth admitted she and Beckmann had no idea what to make of trading in the actual stage for a virtual one. “Dan and I didn’t know what we were doing in the digital realm at first, but we decided to just jump in and figure it out.”

In an original script by Dearth and Beckmann, and under their direction, the story of the film involves a flamboyant and verdant-skinned alien named Flogg, who hijacks the Earth's communications and forces all its inhabitants to go into lockdown. Sound familiar? Beckmann said he and Dearth like to do projects that have thematic relevance to try and heal what people suffer and ail from. “We knew that the social strains of quarantine were going to make people feel separate from one another and unable to connect,” he said, “We knew we wanted to embody that theme, and one thing lead to another and the plot of ‘Lock-In’ kinda tumbled out.”

The project featured over 100 actors from the US, England, and Australia and 14 celebrity cameos who all filmed their scenes from the safety of their own home. 'Lock-in' also garnered the attention of news outlets across the east coast, was featured in an article by

Broadwayworld.com and even has its own IMDb page.

Beckmann and Dearth kept Spring Theatre busy with virtual camps and talent shows throughout the summer and even came up with another socially distanced film project for the holiday season titled Season's Screenings, which again featured actors from all over filming their scenes at home. Some of the actors were grateful to have a chance to perform and connect with other artists. Lisa Blaylock Moss, whose son, Will Moss, made an appearance in the film, said Beckmann and Dearth created a sense of community and connection with the film. “Will and I enjoyed so much being a part of Seasons Screenings. Filming at home was a new experience for us, and we had fun creating the set and brainstorming how to shoot all of the different scenes.” Another featured performer, Megan Taylor, felt honored to be a part of her first film and said it was a great artistic outlet. “I have always wanted to be a film actress and this showed me an extent of the process of being in films.” She added, “I met new and very talented people that I hope to work with again!”

While Spring Theatre’s aptly named “Season of Bravery” found its place online, Dearth and Beckmann also founded another online platform to add to their resume. A weekly web show called rileylive, which began last summer and airs weekly with Dearth and Beckmann playing trivia games and laughing it up with artists and performers around the world. Some of them are close friends of both Dearth and Beckmann. “We both have a lot of theater family,” says Dearth, “he [Beckmann] has a lot of college folks he's known for years. Riley's been a really neat way to reconnect with people.” She added how the show gives artists a platform to feature their art and be themselves.

They recently aired a Valentine's Day special called St. Quarantine's Day, featuring Dearth and Beckmann singing a medley of fun and familiar love songs, and recently hosted a 24hour pajama party as a fundraiser for Spring Theatre. Dearth and Beckmann certainly have made their presence on the digital stage. But they, like many actors and theatre people, do carry the hope of returning to the stage soon. Last month, Dearth and Beckmann announced Spring Theatre's 2021 “Season of Change” with hopes of returning to the physical stage with productions of Seussical, Hairspray, the world premiere of a new play titled Gil and the Wild Man, and the company's annual traveling holiday show which performs in theaters and retirement homes. They have already started their season with an acting club

and an online self-taped sketch-club. The pair is dedicated to providing as many opportunities as possible, even if things have to change. “We're going to be doing theatre all year in some capacity however we can,” said Beckmann. Dearth added, “If we still can’t have a live audience, we’ll either move our productions outside or produce more virtual productions.” Further proof that this business partnership is adaptable and open to change. As Beckmann said in a recent webcast of rileylive, “You can't control the outcome of anything, but what you can do is control the effort you put in and how you put it in.”

With regards to the future of live theatre, Beckmann stated, “There's no replacing live performance, but I also do think that the positive side of this is we’re going to make theatre and entertainment much more accessible for all people who can’t always go see Broadway shows”.

The couple is also looking forward to embarking on a 50-States tour in 2022 with their original two-person show, Letters From Home, a USO-inspired two-person variety musical

Dearth put together as a tribute to her father, Pat Dearth, who served in the United States Coast

Guard. This particular tour will be launching their new mission statement of “Uniting the Nation”. Beckmann said he is excited to launch the new mission because he feels “unity and interpersonal empathy is the lesson which needs teaching the most right now.” And while a four-month national tour in an RV with a camera crew is a pretty hefty endeavor by itself, Dearth and Beckmann have more than enough energy to spare for other projects.

Yes, indeed, with so many plates spinning at once, it is easy to feel dizzy. But for Dearth and Beckmann, juggling a community youth theater, a weekly web show, a national tour, their entertainment umbrella, friendship, and their upcoming wedding is what makes them shine as that beacon of hope and positivity the theater world and the world itself, needs right now. When they were forced to change their physical stage to a digital one, they created a platform for performers and artists to feel they can be themselves and shine. In addition, hearing their plans for Spring Theater returning to the stage and Letters From Home's 2022 tour is more than heartening.

Riley's website (www.itsriley.com) gives a brief synopsis of Dearth and Beckmann's projects and collaborations, and a brief bio of their vibrant lives. They can also be found with a new webcast of rileylive every week on their YouTube and Facebook page. They are always welcoming of new subscribers and will make both professional and inspiring performers and artists feel welcome with a positive attitude and humorous spirit.

How Erinn Dearth and Dan Beckmann are keeping their creativity alive during COVID

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