Supporting Holistic Wellbeing for Performing Artists During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Recovery: Study Protocol

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the abrupt closure of circus schools, venues, and companies, introducing a myriad of novel stressors. Performers and students must now attempt to maintain their technical, physical, artistic, creative, and cognitive abilities without in-person support from their coaches and must manage the isolation from their training and performing spaces. For circus artists, the transposition of the work space to a home environment is not possible, which creates novel stressors that could lead to the exacerbation and escalation of mental health issues. The purpose of this study is to develop, implement and evaluate a holistic interventional program based on the socio-ecological model of resilience and operationalized through physical literacy. This will be a prospective longitudinal study with a retrospective comparison to data from a similar student cohort pre-pandemic. Interventions were designed using a population-specific, participant-based developmental model within a knowledge translation framework. The interventional program includes group webinars, small group information sessions, and one-on-one Zoom meetings, in addition to the distribution of electronic educational materials. The interventions will holistically provide psychological, physical, social, technical, artistic, and creative supports. Resources will be deployed throughout the closure period and through recovery, as transitions to return to training after prolonged hiatus will magnify known psychological and physical difficulties. Repeated, longitudinal assessment of students will be utilized to track changes over time at key transitions in the pandemic and school year and will be compared to a pre-pandemic school year. The framework for this program will be translatable to other performing arts and high-performance contexts. The program has implications for the mental health and overall wellbeing of artists and for cultural and economic recovery of the industry.

When the world stops: The impact of COVID-19 on physical activity and physical literacy

“…Interestingly, for developing a post-pandemic recovery strategy, these results point to the use of the intrinsic valuation inherent in PL (Cairney et al 2019, Stuckey et al 2021, rather than instrumental valuation PA (meeting guidelines to avoid non-communicable disease), as PL necessarily requires an individualized or perhaps sub-group based approach consistent with the sub-groups reported here.…”

Enjoyment of Physical Activity—Not MVPA during Physical Education—Predicts Future MVPA Participation and Sport Self-Concept

“…The PL cycle encourages a holistic development of an individual’s relationship to PA by ensuring facilitation of movement confidence, competence, and active participation [ 22 ]. This study adds to the evidence of the important opportunity for exercise facilitators to make a difference in future health behavior by thinking about how PA opportunities are delivered to children in a PE context and beyond.…”

“…Each of these constructs—cognitive, emotional, and social—theoretically affect the full experience of PA, such as enjoyment. As a general tenet of intrinsic motivation according to self-determination theory, children who enjoy a variety of different activities will be more likely to be physically active throughout their lives [ 21 , 22 ].…”

Considerations for the Medical Management of the Circus Performance Artist and Acrobat

“…According to the socio-ecological model of resilience 39 "environments that provide resources to develop or maintain optimal psychological, social, and physical wellbeing facilitate the capacity of individuals to withstand, overcome, and adapt to adversity". 40 This type of community-based approach is relevant to professional circus contexts as it ensures the development of both internal and external resources, so the individual feels fully supported. 41 The development of resources can also optimize preparation prior to show.…”