The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed lives, disrupted economies, and changed daily existence as we know it. It has also shown us how strong we can be, and how creative, even in isolation. For this portfolio, part of our special June/July issue, we asked seven friends of Vogue—actors, singers, writers, and producers of the stage and screen—to show us what their lives have looked like these past weeks.
Ben Platt, Los Angeles
“At the beginning, I felt so much pressure to be creative; the first thought was, how am I gonna make use of the time?,” says the actor. But I’ve learned, like many people hopefully have, that you have to be very forgiving of yourself. If you need to spend the first few days or weeks watching RuPaul’s Drag Race or doing whatever you need to do to make yourself feel better, that’s okay. But one of the things I did was order a little white piano. I thought it would be a nice project to assemble it, and I put it together with my little hammer and nails. It’s a bit uneven, but it does work, at least! Singing and playing and kinda getting lost in the piano has been a really comforting thing.”
Yara Shahidi, Los Angeles
“I’m really grateful to be social-distancing at my house with my brothers, Sayeed and Ehsan, our puppy, Win, and my momma and my Baba,” the actor says. “We’re all each other’s best friends, so the days here are never dull, and the house is still full of laughter. But as a family, we’ve focused on how we can continue to be of service in our communities and at large—everything that we’ve been doing has centered around how we can be consistently engaged.”
Jordan Roth, Long Island, New York
“Levi and I are tricycling … well, he’s tricycling. I’m the engine, and that’s my husband Richie’s shadow as he takes the picture,” the Broadway producer says. “We’re all lovers of routine, so we’ve tried to establish a new one to take us through this time. It helps to feel less unmoored. And while there is so much to do every day, between caring for our children, our business, and housework, we’re trying to make sure a good night’s sleep is part of it. As my father always told me, everything is clearer in the morning.”
Billy Porter, Long Island, New York
“Barbra Streisand is someone I always turn to when I’m looking for joy,” Porter says. “Her singing ‘When the Sun Comes Out’ in one of her old black-and-white television specials is still beyond. I’m also working on the first draft of my memoir that’s due in October, I’ve just been hired to rework a musical, and I have new music coming out—so I got a lotta shit to do. But being with my husband is the biggest source of joy right now. We haven’t had a lot of time together this past year, so it’s been really great to just be with him and love on each other. I’m using this time to focus on that and not let the fear and the panic of the moment paralyze me.”
Tessa Thompson with Coltrane, Los Angeles
“I’ve become really aware of waste in a way I wasn’t before,” the actor says. “I’m so much more mindful of what I consume, and that’s something I want to take into life after this. When I take a walk in my neighborhood in L.A., I’ve never felt the air this clear. And I’m aware that this has to do with there being less people driving on the road, and there is something really important about that. I think we will need to look back at this time and remember this.”
Tracee Ellis Ross, Los Angeles
“Fear comes in waves, grief comes in waves, both for our world and also for the disappointments of plans that I had, ideas that I had, and for the things that are different: being able to touch your family and your friends. Being able to be in physical contact with people,” says the actor. “This Balenciaga suit is what I wore for my conversation in February with Oprah on her 2020 Vision Tour, right before all of this hit. It feels good to put on a power suit even though it’s just to sit in my favorite spot on my couch. A reminder that all that brought me to that conversation is not gone, but life has just shifted direction. I remain the same woman even though life is very different now.”
Cynthia Erivo, Atlanta
“I’m still picking outfits that make me feel good— even if I’m just going downstairs,” says the actor. “I’m still getting up and doing my little facial and skin-care regimen. I’m still wearing my jewelry because I love that, and it’s a part of who I am. . . . So that stuff hasn’t fallen by the wayside yet. I would say I’m staying fashionably cozy.”
Originally Appeared on Vogue