How has the pandemic changed how we engage with storytelling? 

On the one hand, it robs us of being together: the collective experience of laughing and crying in a dark room with 3,000 other people. And we’re eager to get back to that, when the time is right. At the same time, this moment highlights our interconnectedness with people halfway around the world, or who have different jobs from ours, or who live in different circumstances. For many people, the pandemic is creating new and deeper empathy, and a greater curiosity to hear the stories of fellow humans they’ve never met.

And Pop-Up Magazine is adapting to those changes accordingly, it seems. 

Our job, as we see it, is to find amazing stories you’ve never heard, craft them in ways you’ll never forget, and hopefully change how we all see the world. Media formats and delivery channels evolve to fit the times, but our fundamental work remains the same.

What did Pop-Up Magazine do to collaborate with Google? 

Google and Pop-Up Magazine have been working together for several years. For this show, Google wanted to celebrate parents and teachers who are trying to keep education moving forward while traditional classrooms have been shut down. One part of the collaboration features Tabatha Rosproy, 2020’s National Teacher of the Year, who shared some encouraging words for all us beleaguered parents attempting to teach our kids this semester. We also used Google Meet to recreate the experience that normally happens after Pop-Up Magazine shows in the theater lobbies: a chance to meet the contributors and producers and learn how their stories came to be.

Why is supporting teachers like Tabatha Rosproy important to the Pop-Up Magazine community? 

In the past few months, many of us have gained a new appreciation for the work of teachers, as we all try pinch hitting for them. They make it look easy, especially when compared to us amateurs! We’re overwhelmed with gratitude and delighted that we can be a part of celebrating the essential workers at the frontlines of education.

Can you tell us about your own favorite teacher? 

Mr. Chemerka, my tenth grade history teacher, used to dress up in period garb a few times a year. Never as presidents or generals or famous activists, just as common people from earlier eras. He never took sick days, but he missed school a few times to play extras in Civil War movies.

Lastly, we have to know. What’s your favorite Pop-Up Magazine story that has ever been told? 

That’s like asking me which of my daughters is my favorite!