SHELBURNE FALLS — A Shelburne Falls playwright is developing a play about the life of an emergency management coordinator during a global pandemic, and is looking for audience feedback.

Two free readings of “How to Fold a Fitted Sheet and Other Pandemic Pastimes” will be performed on Dec. 12 and 14 in Buckland and Greenfield. 

Carmela Lanza-Weil is an actor, director, writer and producer who has worked on a number of theatrical productions since the early 2000s. Outside of her artistic endeavors Lanza-Weil worked as the volunteer coordinator for the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) of Franklin and Berkshire Counties during the COVID-19 pandemic, and was inspired to write a play about her experience working as a public health coordinator during the pandemic.

“My experiences were a little different than other peoples because I was working more than ever while a lot of people were working less due to lockdowns,” Lanza-Weil said. 

While many people were cooped up inside trying to figure out how to adjust to remote work, and school, Lanza-Weil was running around the two counties managing and training volunteers, organizing vaccine clinics, and completing other various tasks. 

Inspired by her journal entries and interviews with others on how the pandemic impacted them, Lanza-Weil crafted a script about her daily life during the pandemic; her work with MRC and the various hobbies and pastimes she picked up to keep busy, including learning how to fold a fitted sheet. 

“It’s a play about my experiences during the height of the pandemic,” she said. “One of the things I learned during the lockdown was how to fold a fitted sheet.”

Lanza-Weil said like many people, she took up a number of things throughout the lockdown, reading more, trying new recipes, but learning how to fold a fitted sheet was what she was most proud of. 

She began writing a play about her experiences in 2022 as the world began to go back to normal. That script was presented in stage readings, but has since been re-envisioned and rewritten to become “How to Fold a Fitted Sheet and Other Pandemic Pastimes.”

“Its completely different now,” Lanza-Weil said. “It’s funny and poignant and let’s people reflect on their own experiences.”

The latest version of the script is not quite ready for a fully staged production with costumes, props, and sets, but Lanza-Weil said she’s ready for a stage reading where she a few actors will read the script and get some feedback from audiences. Cast includes Lanza-Weil, Jane Barish, and Josh Perlstein. Rebecca Daniels serves as dramaturge and collaborator, and Raymond Lanza-Weil, producer and sounding board.

The development of the play, and the upcoming readings are supported by a grant from the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, in collaboration with MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists Program, and the Franklin Medical Reserve Corps.

Lanza-Weil said the reading will take about a hour, after which there will a discussion, allowing audiences to share their thoughts and own experiences from the pandemic.

“The pandemic was a collective trauma that needs to be acknowledged,” she said. 

After the stage reading Lanza-Weil plans ton continue working on the script, and hopes to have it ready to become a fully staged production next spring. 

Two readings of the play will be held. One at the community room of Franklin County Coop on Main Street in Greenfield on Dec. 12 at 6:30 p.m. and one at the Buckland Public Library on Upper Street on Dec. 14 at 4:30 p.m. 

Reach Madison Schofield at 413-930-4579 or mschofield@recorder.com