Chatham University’s drama club has been around for at least a decade, but this past year has been a whirlwind for the group as it had to quickly adapt to COVID-19 restrictions. 

Despite the challenges, the club continues to perform. The next show, “She Kills Monsters,” will be available for streaming on March 19-20. 

“‘She Kills Monsters’ is the first production we have done pre-recorded this year,” H.R. Liotta, general manager of the drama club and the play’s producer, said. “We weren’t sure if we wanted to do the production pre-recorded or live. We settled on it being pre-recorded and planning that has been such a new experience for all of us.”

The show explores the life of Agnis, a typical American teenager, and her younger sister Tilly, a huge nerd who loves Dungeons and Dragons (D&D). Agnis learns about her sister Tilly through a D&D campaign she created. 

“The show is interesting, fun and campy because it’s about D&D and all of these different D&D characters, nerdy jokes, but at the same time, there’s a larger plot line that’s really about all of these characters coping with loss,” Liotta said. 

Chatham students are able to watch the show for free by using a code when they sign up for a ticket at onstage.com. Tickets are $3 for the general public, and they will be available from now until March 20 at 11:55 p.m. People will have 24 hours to watch the show after purchasing a ticket. The performance will go live at 7 p.m. March 19 and stay available until 24 hours after March 20 at 11:55 p.m.

Creating a pre-recorded production has been a new experience for Liotta. However, she said that editor Liam Lyons, a student who is majoring in film at Chatham, has “been doing a great job helping us navigate what filming is like because none of us have really ever done it before.”

In addition to Liotta and Lyons, the production team for “She Kills Monsters” includes directors Nora Robb and Clara Laube and stage manager Elsa van Beek.

There are also six student officers: Zoe Levine as artistic director, Liotta as general manager, Robb as managing director, van Beek as technical director, Jada Weichman as communications manager and Laube as special events coordinator. 

“We are really excited because doing it pre-recorded has given us the opportunity to do a lot of neat effects and things like that, and we get to do a lot more with costumes,” Liotta said.

Last spring, the drama club rewrote its constitution to be more inclusive to COVID-19 restrictions. It had to change the ways in which it put on performances, events, workshops or even club meetings. 

“I’m not going to lie — theater is on the stage together, it’s a sense of community. You have an audience and live reaction and that has totally changed,” Levine said. “Especially over Zoom. For instance, the production we had last semester, we were not able to see the audience at all or get any feedback. You’re performing to your camera, which is totally different than normal.

“We would [also] normally go to see shows together, getting student discounts to go downtown and see a show as a group,” continued Levine, “[but] we can’t do that now.”

Despite the limitations posed by the pandemic, the drama club is determined to keep sharing a love of theater with the Chatham community.

“No matter where your level is with being part of theater or watching theater, there’s room for you,” Levine said. “This year, we have a member that has never acted before. He’s done a ton of roles, and … it’s awesome being able to see people come into the theater with an open mind.”