Pitch Perfect alum Skylar Astin says it pained him to see his first love, the theater industry, devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s been really hard. It’s been sad for a lot of theater folk…to have the entire industry shut down,” he tells ABC Audio. “It’s been a tough year.”
That is why Astin, 33, is eager to support Broadway when stage productions resume September 14.
“I’m going to be a big part of bringing Broadway back, whether it’s on stage myself, donating and or buying a ticket and showing up all vaccinated and ready to go,” he vowed.
Astin, who teamed with Temptations to help launch their new Meaty Bites and Creamy Purrr-ée treats, explained why it’s important for theater lovers to rally behind the industry when it returns.
“Theater is vital. Theater is so important. And not only is it as important to the craftsmen and women who perform it, but that relationship and that experience should never die,” the Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist star explained. “That medium is so important of going to a show and seeing a play from start to finish and being changed.”
“The best way to support theater is to just go buy a ticket, make a trip to New York, be safe, get vaccinated… and the show will go on,” he added, saying theater “changed my life.”
Astin, who starred in Broadway’s Spring Awakening and the Hollywood Bowl’s Rent and Into the Woods, promised a return to his roots.
“Theater is my first love. It is something I will always return to, to sharpen my skills,” he expressed. “Any time I do a play and then go back to a TV gig or a film gig, I find myself even more capable and just a bit more evolved.”
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