BRISTOL/MIDDLEBURY — CVOID-19 forced schools to be run differently this fall — extra-curricular activities in particular.
But theater advisers at Mount Abraham and Middlebury union high schools figured out a way to get the student thespians involved and plan to stage a couple of plays — albeit with no live audiences.
Mount Abe is performing a play called “A Simpler Time,” which is a series of nine non-musical plays linked together by narrators. 
Join them for the comedic tale of three time travelers. When you find yourself fighting with your friends on the night before the Constitution is due, listening in at a telephone switchboard in the 1940s, trying to avoid the more gruesome aspects of medieval times, or exploring a mysterious possible future, only one thing is certain: there’s humor in human nature.
This year the play will be shown on NEAT TV at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Nov. 19-21. Tune in on your TV (Comcast CH1080) or watch online. The livestream link and more information is at bit.ly/mtabeplay.
“We were able to cast small groups that were kept separate in rehearsals for each play and we filmed them all individually,” explained Mount Abe’s Jen Allred. “We appreciate the incredible community support that has made it possible to present this year’s production to you as a free event.  We gratefully accept donations that will help us further our mission to support, encourage and advance theater at Mt Abe.”
To donate, visit bit.ly/fmafmpaypal or mail a check to FMAFM, PO Box 70, Monkton,VT 05469. 
The theater kids at Middlebury Union High School also are salvaging a COVID-restricted drama season by staging a one-act version of Shakespeare’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream” in a couple of weeks. The students, who have been attending in-person classes a couple days a week since early September, are rehearsing in small groups — everyone wearing facemasks, of course.
No live audience will be allowed at the Dec. 11 and 12 shows, but the thespians will livestream the shows so theatergoers can enjoy the shows as they are being performed.
Watch this space for more details on the MUHS fall show.