Ushers, stage hands, dressers and those who work on the stage door of the nation’s empty theatres are struggling to survive during lockdown, with some even contemplating suicide according to the industry charity, The Theatrical Guild. Now Sir Ian McKellen, the renowned stage and screen star, has helped to launch an emergency fund to support them .

英国剧院空无一人,居家隔离使引座员、舞台管理员、服装师,以及后台工作人员生活艰难,该行业的慈善机构The Theatrical Guild说其中有些人甚至企图自杀。现在著名舞台和荧幕明星伊恩·麦克莱恩爵士推出了一个应急基金来帮他们过活。

(图源:Getty Images)

The actor, famous for playing Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s Tolkien films, has kicked off the fundraising drive with a donation of £40,000 of the money raised from his recent 80th birthday tour of British theatres.

这名演员最著名的作品是在彼得·杰克逊拍摄的托尔金的作品中饰演甘道夫。他捐出了最近80岁生日时在英国剧院巡回演出筹得的40,000英镑,并发起筹款活动。

“Many people who work in the theatre industry have seen their livelihoods disappear due to the coronavirus lockdown,” said McKellen. “I, for example, have received a distressing letter from a stage manager who is facing eviction from his home and can’t access government relief.”

麦克莱恩说:“很多在剧院工作的人受疫情隔离影响没了生计。比如说,有一个舞台经理给我写了一封令人痛心的信,家人要把他赶出来,他又得不到政府救济。”

The actor, who has recently announced a plan to play Hamlet again, 50 years after the last time, and who is now attending virtual rehearsals for the role, added that the emergency fund scheme is “a wonderful opportunity”.

这位演员最近宣布要再次出演哈姆雷特,距离上一次演出已经过去了50年,他正在参加这个角色的虚拟彩排,他说这个应急基金计划是一个“良机”。

The guild was set up 125 years ago to support those who, with their varied sets of skills, are the unsung heroes of staged performances. Most are low-paid, self-employed or on zero hours contracts and as a result many have fallen through the safety nets put up by the government to protect those who lost work during the pandemic.

这个协会成立于125年前,就是为了支持那些有各项技能的舞台表演背后的无名英雄。其中大多数人要么拿着低工资,要么是自由职业者,要么签的是零工时合同,所以很多人都得不到疫情期间政府为保护失业者而提供的社会保障。

翻译:菲菲