The September festival happens in a small, relatively isolated town, and management had planned a new reservation system, distanced seating, more outdoor venues; they’d even sourced a big supply of 15-minute coronavirus tests. “Our audiences go along with what the rules are,” executive director Julie Huntsinger said, “and we thought we could have great compliance.” Here she tells a reporter when and how she realized that wouldn’t be enough. – Variety
Category: AUDIENCE
Audiences Are Feeling Even More Reluctant To Come Back Than They Were Three Months Ago
“As coronavirus numbers continue to rise in most U.S. states, the willingness of theatre patrons to return to their old theatregoing habits has plummeted, two tracking surveys show. … The earliest date most theatregoers say they’d be comfortable returning, according to [one] report? May or June of 2021.” – American Theatre
Some Ideas To Reconfigure Theatres In The COVID Age
“The West End is full of wonderful historic theatres, but they’re now completely outmoded. People are four inches taller than when they were built, so the seats are too small, the sight lines are terrible and a huge number of seats are restricted by columns. The air is bad and the loos and bars are always too small to cope. With the government’s funding announcement, now is the time to make them fit for purpose.” – The Guardian
The Problem With The “Right” Kind Of Theatre Fans
“What is wrong with the theatre fandom is the belief that objectively, some musicals are better than others, and that if you like a certain show, you aren’t the right kind of theatre fan. Gatekeeping is the practice of musical theatre fans who feel that they have the authority to determine who belongs and who doesn’t belong based on whether or not someone is a “true fan.” – OnstageBl31
Podcast Growth Cut In Half By Virus Shutdowns
The exploding audio medium is forecast to generate nearly $1 billion in 2020 advertising revenue, with an expected growth rate of 14.7%, according to the fourth annual Interactive Advertising Bureau Podcast Ad Revenue Report prepared by PwC. Before the pandemic, the industry was expected to grow as much as 29.6% this year. Revenues are expected to rebound in the third and fourth quarters. – Los Angeles Times
When You Can Actually Be What You Can’t See, But Then You Finally See Yourself Onscreen
Author Candice Carty-Williams (she of the hilarious, sexy, sad, and moving 2019 novel Queenie) says that Michaela Coel’s new series is the first (and perhaps only) screen depiction of what it truly means to be a writer in today’s world. – The Guardian (UK)
Nielsen Reverses Course About Measuring Who’s Watching TV
They weren’t going to include bars, airports, hotel lobbies, and other public places for a while – because, after all, what kinds of numbers are in those places now? Then the studio ad execs got involved. – Variety
How COVID Is Impacting The Commercial Music Business
Nielsen Music/MRC Data says activity on streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music began 2020 up 20.4% over 2019 — then ratcheted back to an increase of only 13.8% between March 13 and July 2 as listeners spent far less time in the car or at the gym. – Los Angeles Times
The Crazy-House World That Is YouTube
The more dark, wiggy videos you consume, the darker and wiggier your playlist becomes, until you inhabit a so-called “filter bubble,” while Google makes ad money off of your addictive radicalization. – Columbia Journalism Review
Theater, Zoom, And Coronavirus: Four Times Critics Discuss The State Of The Art In 2020
“Though we are still miles and months away from a resuscitation, who would have guessed that, in the meantime, the savior of the stage might turn out to be its perpetual enemy, the screen? … To sort out this new world, Scott Heller, the New York Times theater editor, convened a virtual conversation with Ben Brantley and Jesse Green, the chief theater critics, and Maya Phillips, the Times‘s arts critic fellow.” – The New York Times