“A sprawling, 44-day anniversary program has been mostly postponed until next year. It has been replaced with a reduced, 30-day schedule, through Aug. 30, of concerts, plays and two (instead of seven) staged operas.” Artistic director Markus Hinterhäuser says “we have measures for cultural institutions — which are 200 percent necessary — that respect the health of the people working and the audience.” And those measures, it turns out, were designed partly by a baritone-otolaryngologist. – The New York Times
Category: AUDIENCE
As COVID Cases Continue To Rise, South Carolina Reopens Performance Spaces And Cinemas
“Venues newly allowed to reopen to customers include movie theaters, auditoriums, stadiums and performing arts centers. Those represent the last of the business restrictions not rolled back two months ago. However, they must keep capacity at 50 percent or 250 people, whichever is less.” – The Post and Courier (Charleston)
Want A COVID-Safe Space For Your Play That’s Easy, Quick, And Cheap? Try A Circus Tent
“Every day we read about a new proposed seating plan or air-filtering system being trialled in an Edwardian playhouse to enable safe, socially distanced theatre in a building designed for the opposite. A big top is far more spacious.” You can fit in hundreds of people with plenty of social distance, and raised sidewalls provide plenty of air circulation. What’s more, argues Circus250 ringmaster Dea Birkett, a big top offers plenty of advantages in terms of diversifying your audience. – The Stage
Think TikTok Is Ultimately Too Silly To Matter? Think Again
“The ubiquitous app built on short video clips seems frivolous at first, with its lip-synching, dance challenges and goofball celebrities. But this is how a rising generation communicates across the globe.” (It is also, writes Daniel Malloy, “the uncut heroin of social media apps.”) “And the app — thanks to its obscenely valuable Chinese parent company — now is at the heart of geopolitical strife between the world’s biggest powers. Today’s [OZY] Sunday magazine explores TikTok’s rise, its addictive joys, its challenges and what will replace it if it crumbles.” – OZY
Regal Cinemas Says It Will Reopen In August
Along with AMC and Cinemark, Regal closed down U.S. sites in mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic — which profoundly altered the spring and summer slate. “Wonder Woman 1984” was moved to October and James Bond title “No Time to Die” has been slotted for November while many major titles have been taken off the schedule, gone out on streaming services or dated for 2021. – Variety
Hollywood Finally Gives In – Will Release Big Movie Outside US First
Warner Bros. finally acknowledged reality: The U.S. is simply not ready for big films to return, and the country has lost its position as the most important movie market in the world. – The Atlantic
New Orleans Without Live Music Is A Weird, And Economically Devastated, Place
New Orleans has more than 130 live music venues, most of them smaller (some far smaller) than the average size venue in the country. The city’s restaurants and tourist industry rely on the live music, of course. And “until there’s a vaccine, an entire musical ecosystem is in suspended animation—and with it, the rest of the city.” – Slate
How I Got Audiences To Pay More For Streamed Performances Than I Would Have Asked Them To
Kahlil Ashanti began his performing career as part of an elite U.S. Air Force unit that did shows for servicepeople at military bases and in battle zones all over the globe. One thing he heard over and over from audience members, both soldiers and civilians (in his post-Air Force life), was “I would have gladly paid more for that.” Here’s how he got them to actually do it. – Arts Professional
Andrew Lloyd Webber Tries Putting On A Socially Distanced West End Show
It was a one-time pilot project, performed in front of 640 people spread out through the Palladium, one of London’s biggest theatres. The program: one singer, Beverley Knight, doing two half-hour sets separated by an intermission. Alex Marshall reports on how it went. (ALW’s reaction on seeing the “full” house: “I’ve got to say this is a rather sad sight.”) – The New York Times
Kick The Cars Off 7th Avenue And Turn It Into An Outdoor Arts Center, Says Carnegie Hall Chief
Clive Gillinson: “What would it mean to close Seventh Avenue from 47th to 57th streets to vehicular traffic, creating a pedestrian mall for the arts, anchored by Carnegie Hall to the north and the TKTS Broadway ticket booth to the South. This space could be lined with restaurants, sidewalk cafes, jazz clubs, art galleries and the like, serving as a central area for people to gather — not only those headed to performances in the theater district and concert venues such as Carnegie Hall, Radio City Music Hall and Jazz at Lincoln Center, but city visitors staying in the many hotels close by.” – Gothamist