Ever since starting my internship at Nationale Opera & Ballet in Amsterdam this past February, the reaction that I have received most often from others when I tell them about my internship position is ‘An internship? At a theater? Is there even any work to do now?’. Well, dear reader, nothing could be further from the truth than the assumption made in that last statement. Even through the building itself is closed to visitors and most of the staff, the heart of the organization is more alive than ever. This lockdown has forced people to gestate new ideas and reinvigorate their creativity that in ways that would be unimaginable before. A few weeks ago, a new ballet (METAMORPHOSIS by David Dawson), which was completely created over Zoom, had its world premiere. Talk about innovation!
Of course, the current societal climate has had its impact on my internship position (I am a digital marketing intern) and the marketing & sales department as a whole. Most importantly, what once were regular performances have turned into livestreams. This, of course, has impacted the way programs are marketed towards the public. For example, advertisement posters started showing tablets and playbuttons, and slogans changed from ‘Almost sold out!’ to ‘Bring Dutch National Opera to your own living room!’.
In addition, supplementary online content has been created to satisfy the audience at home and keep the choir and dancers working on their craft. This content includes online ballet classes, vocal opera warmups using popular songs, and much more. Here, marketing activities focused on promoting this free content and creating a bond between the consumer and the company. Playing an active role in this, by being the main writer and designer of the ‘online ballet class’ emailing campaign, has been eye-opening in the process of understanding what comes into play when creating a series of educational and recreational content for an organization of this size.
If I were to choose, would I rather have done my internship in person? Of course. However, this situation has given me the opportunity to reflect on what I believed was possible and look beyond that. National Opera & Ballet is the perfect example and metaphor of how we should all try to cope with the COVID-19 crisis. Most likely, we have been unable to continue our lives as they were before February 2020. Instead of waiting until a ‘normal’ pace can be picked up again, this time should be used to reflect, reconsider, and renew. How have we behaved thus far and how has this impacted me? How can the status quo be improved with the tools that are available to us? Only this way, self-improvement and resilience can be reached.