SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Addressing mental health concerns is something people have been doing during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially people working in high-stress, high-risk jobs.
That stress was felt by workers in the restaurant industry pre-pandemic and even more so now, as businesses and customers feel the pinch of shortages in staffing and supplies.
That's why Sacramento Chef Patrick Mulvaney, who owns Mulvaney's Building & Loan restaurant along with his wife Bobbin Mulvaney, launched the I Got Your Back project, which ABC10 previously featured in 2019.
The Mulvaneys collaborated with Sacramento Contemporary Dance Theatre to create a performance that sheds light on mental health struggles within the restaurant industry.
"Something that I think is really important, that we step into the restaurant and see the person before the server," said Jacob Gutiérrez-Montoya, Artistic Director of Sacramento Contemporary Dance Theatre and choreographer of "Behind the Apron."
Gutiérrez-Montoya said he wants people to stop and think about how they're treating restaurant employees.
"Sometimes we just get, 'Oh, my food's not warm enough,' and then...there's this interaction that's negative," Gutiérrez-Montoya said. "It's just treating someone with respect, and I think this show is about respect."
Holly Welpott, principal dancer in "Behind the Apron" knows this firsthand, through her experience working as a waitress while in college.
"You would get those customers who would get mad at you for something that you have no control over," Welpott said. "It hurts. Like, you try not to take it personally, you kind of have to put that barrier up. But when people are upset with you, you kind of do take it personally."
The project places mental health resources in restaurants. All Proceeds from "Behind the Apron" are going to support the I Got Your Back project, which is active in some nine Sacramento restaurants and is available to be used elsewhere.
The show is scheduled for two shows 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 7, at the Sofia, home of the B Street Theatre in Sacramento. Tickets are available HERE, for $30 each plus fees.
"I just think by the end of the show...I want there to be hope," Welpott said.
ABC10: Watch, Download, Read
Watch more from ABC10
Sugar Bear, the U.S. Capitol Christmas tree, leaves its NorCal home and heads for Washington, D.C.