COVID-19 Update: June 22, 2020: It Ain't Over Til It's Over

Welcome to summer. It's going to be a wild one, as the pandemic continues to defy official denials and the best laid plans.

The world enters "a new and dangerous phase," thanks to the untamed pandemic, warns the World Health Organization: tinyurl.com/yd4g8alo. To prove the point, WHO on Sunday reported the largest single-day spike in COVID-19 cases: tinyurl.com/y7y9m5kw.

The US reported 30,000 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, the most since May 1: tinyurl.com/yao8s6f5.

As infections surge across the South and West, more local authorities are insisting on the wearing of masks: tinyurl.com/y78hrc4l.

Major League Baseball suspends operations indefinitely in response to the pandemic: tinyurl.com/yb7a72tu. But Governor Cuomo says that the Mets and Yankees will hold spring training in New York City: tinyurl.com/ybphyzow.

Certain politicians insist that COVID-19 death rates are inflated. Here's why that is almost certainly not true: tinyurl.com/y8aospq7. The president says he asked the administration to slow down testing, to make the numbers appear lower: tinyurl.com/yd6rhsx5. The White House later claims that the remark was a joke; health experts aren't laughing: tinyurl.com/y8vk82cf.

Major cruise lines suspend trips out of US ports until September 15: tinyurl.com/yannndoc.

Here's a roundup of what countries around the world are doing to financially shore up the arts. Note which country is missing: tinyurl.com/y8xmjpxm.

Food for thought:

Masks save lives -- so why are they so politically divisive? tinyurl.com/y8l43ul9.

Around the country:

In California:

Rising infection levels are linked to confusing messages from the authorities: tinyurl.com/y8obe7n9.

Disneyland's July 17 opening plan is getting plenty of pushback: tinyurl.com/y8tcoql8.

La Jolla Playhouse is streaming a new play. The catch: It's 12 hours long: tinyurl.com/ybu7j6ad.

Pala Sun Casino Resort, in the San Diego area, plans 12 socially distanced outdoor concerts; the first is June 28: tinyurl.com/y863og25.

The summer season of So You Think You Can Dance is off: tinyurl.com/ybt3hely.

Here's to the Auntie Sewing Squad, which makes and distributes masks to at-risk communities: tinyurl.com/ya9xz3uq.

In Florida:

The state reports the highest weekly number of new cases since the pandemic began: tinyurl.com/ya93p6nk. And today it hits the 100,000 mark: tinyurl.com/yaxjxntf.

Why the state has "all the markings of the next large epicenter of coronavirus transmission:" tinyurl.com/y99pjbda.

The pandemic is aging in reverse, as more younger people become infected: tinyurl.com/ycgcgfdc. Which, the governor insists, is good news: tinyurl.com/yaybp6vc.

Unlike Orange County, Seminole County will not mandate the use of masks, despite health authorities acknowledging that they are the single most effective guard against the coronavirus: tinyurl.com/ycahokkp.

But if you're going the Florida Keys, bring a mask: tinyurl.com/ycgy7emo.

The governor says that farmworkers are driving the state's infection rate; he is cherry-picking his data. In any case, most of the testing of this group is being done not by the state but Doctors Without Borders: tinyurl.com/y8b3ubyx.

At Disney World, Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is off: tinyurl.com/y77tcqa5.

In Illinois:

On Friday, Chicago moves to phase four of reopening: tinyurl.com/y8hu57p4.

In New York:

New York City enters phase two of reopening: tinyurl.com/yd3bpxvd.

The city's contact tracing program is off to a rocky start: tinyurl.com/y9z2v62s.

In South Carolina:

Anti-racism demonstrations are canceled as some protestors are diagnosed with COVID-19: tinyurl.com/ycmxu2uw.

In Tennessee:

The House of Representatives passes a resolution stating that the media has sensationalized COVID-19: tinyurl.com/y96tnq2y.

Comedian D. L. Hughley is diagnosed with the coronavirus after he passes out onstage: tinyurl.com/ycywbruf.

In Texas:

The Alamo Drafthouse cinema chain will require its patrons to wear masks: tinyurl.com/ybjhe84n.

In Vegas:

Two weeks after the casinos reopen, Vegas sees record numbers of infections: tinyurl.com/yboh8skk.

Around the world:

In the Bahamas:

Traveling to the islands? Get a COVID-19 test first: tinyurl.com/ybbdnl7a.

In Brazil:

The number of infections passes one million: tinyurl.com/y9b4z8yd.

In Croatia:

Tennis players begin withdrawing from Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour, as two of their colleagues are diagnosed with COVID-19: tinyurl.com/ybhm2joy.

In Germany:

Previously, a success story, the country has seen its R rate soar: tinyurl.com/y7nl53do.

In the UK:

The country lowers its coronavirus threat level: tinyurl.com/ycq5px2q.

The West End musical The Prince of Egypt is now selling tickets for performances starting November 2: tinyurl.com/yawy2bn.

Company news:

Screen Goo writes: "We shut our factory down in late March out of an abundance of caution and out of concern for the welfare of our employees. Shortly after the shutdown, we were contacted by Federal and Provincial authorities here in Ontario, Canada and arrangements were made for us to concentrate on making hand sanitizer and other PPE. Employees returned on a voluntary basis to assist in our small efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19."

"In the last week or so, our government agencies have been able to return to their pre-crisis sources for sanitizer and PPE, so we've been able to get back to making Screen Goo, the world's finest projection screen coatings!"

"A not unwelcome consequence of the COVID precautions is that many of the world's theme parks have used the opportunity of an unanticipated shutdown to refresh existing attractions and to "Goo" brand new attractions in key markets for us, especially the US and China. This activity has allowed Goo Systems Global to navigate the difficult economic circumstances of the last quarter with few negative consequences to our business and to maintain an optimistic outlook for the times ahead."

Training:

Starting today, Meyer Sound launches a refreshed comprehensive summer webinar program. It follows the same schedule as the spring season, with English-language webinars hosted Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and Spanish language webinars Tuesday and Thursday. New is a "Festival Fridays" feature, with special guests discussing case studies. Check out the schedule at tinyurl.com/rluxk5n. English webinars are at tinyurl.com/ycbeglz4. Spanish webinars are at tinyurl.com/ybdmf3lb.

On Thursday at 12:00pm EDT, Tony Wikner, of Ultratec, demonstrates how to set up a floor pocket: tinyurl.com/y8opdbtz.

Scheduling:

The national tour of the musical Anastasia has canceled all summer performances: tinyurl.com/yc9td9h7.

Entertainment:

Selected by director of artistic planning Dennis Alves, this new audio stream features beloved Boston Pops Orchestra recordings, conducted by the orchestra's three most recent (and famous) conductors: Arthur Fiedler, John Williams, and Keith Lockhart. For this week, the theme is favorite marches and includes John Williams leading the Pops in "76 Trombones" from Meredith Wilson's The Music Man (arranged and orchestrated by Leroy Anderson) and the Imperial March from Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, among other selections: tinyurl.com/ych73sp4.

For your pleasure:

Dancers from Hamilton join with poet Carvens Lissaint to celebrate Juneteenth: tinyurl.com/ybqlalzl.

That's all for today. Stay safe. -- DB.

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