COVID-19 Update, May 15, 2020: The Window is Closing

The number of Americans dead from the coronavirus is now 85,906.

The whistleblower Brick Bright pours a gallon of cold water on the president's triumphalist assertions that the worst is behind us: tinyurl.com/y88xdphp.

Meanwhile:

The new strategy on the right: If you can't explain away deaths from COVID-19, deny them: tinyurl.com/y9rk6u6u.

In fact, the numbers are almost certainly worse than reported: tinyurl.com/y7cw5gdb.

In any case, the CDC has little to offer in the way of guidance about reopening: tinyurl.com/ybxtun3w.

The president's response to the coronavirus isn't doing a thing for the country's status in the world: tinyurl.com/yccvq924.

A new poll finds a majority of Americans aren't rushing to leave the house and go to work: tinyurl.com/ycs9athn.

Unsurprisingly, April's retail sales plunged 16.4%: tinyurl.com/ybx8n8c2.

So how has Sweden's no-lockdown policy been working out? tinyurl.com/ycku9nke.

Food for thought: Michael Strickland, of Bandit Lites, argues that the live entertainment industry needs to speak up for itself: tinyurl.com/y72qxf95.

And a new app shows promises in tracking infections: tinyurl.com/yaeq4qnp.

Around the country:

In Arkansas:

That Travis McCready concert is off, after the state seizes the venue's liquor license: tinyurl.com/y7xka9oq.

In California:

The Screen Actors Guild Awards will now consider films that didn't premiere in cinemas: tinyurl.com/y8tclyg9.

San Diego County wants to keep local casinos closed but tribal nations disagree: tinyurl.com/ybv9huhd.

In Florida:

The governor greenlights businesses reopening on Monday in Miami-Dade and Broward counties: tinyurl.com/y9uwn8vr.

Yesterday we noted that Carnival Cruise bookings for August were skyrocketing. Now, Carnival Corp. is furloughing a significant number of employees: tinyurl.com/ybx9368r.

In Mississippi:

Casinos can open before Memorial Day weekend: tinyurl.com/y76bgysr.

In Nevada:

Starting tomorrow, the state's self-employed workers can finally apply for unemployment benefits: tinyurl.com/ydfacs5d.

In New York:

The central part of the state can reopen, but New York City remains on lockdown until mid-June: tinyurl.com/y7s8hync.

The next domino to fall on Broadway is Disney's Frozen: tinyurl.com/yao5a4kn.

Broadway producers and theatre owners are still working out the issue of rent payments for suspended shows: tinyurl.com/y77jc3xg.

In Wisconsin:

As different parts of the government argue about lockdown, confusion reigns: tinyurl.com/ydcdrkbx.

Around the world:

In Slovenia:

The country is the first in Europe to declare that its epidemic is over: tinyurl.com/y9rk6u6u.

In the UK:

That vaccine trial in Oxford is looking better and better: tinyurl.com/ybxhr522.

Mobilizing:

The Divine -- and Generous -- Miss M: Bette Midler is matching donations to The Actors Fund up to $100,000: tinyurl.com/vmqfglr.

This is good news, since The Actors Fund has distributed $10.5 million in coronavirus relief: tinyurl.com/y8593ybr.

Training:

Next from Barco: The final class in the company's event Master training series is a tutorial on how to program various controllers, single versus mix layer, device control and cues, 4K creation, output AOI, and custom formats/EDI. It takes place May 20, 12:00 - 2:00pm ET. Register at: http://plasa.me/wg1es.

EAW has assembled an extensive training program: tinyurl.com/ydan7xhq.

4Wall Entertainment launches a series of Sunday night roundtables hosted by Drew Quinones and Jeff Croiter. Joining them this week are Bob Barnhart, Ken Billington, Al Crawford, and Emmanuelle Gigi Pedron: tinyurl.com/y8jm4uzr.

Check out the list of Vectorworks' May webinars: tinyurl.com/yb3yqgv8.

Scheduling:

Broadway national tours are dealing with the pandemic on a case-by-case basis: tinyurl.com/yahdr6xn.

Chicago's Goodman Theatre is moving the final four productions of its season to 2020-21: tinyurl.com/y7g6bovy.

The Chicago engagement of the new Broadway musical Six has been moved from July to November: tinyurl.com/y8l2wf3f.

The DC production of Pulitzer Prize winner A Strange Loop is postponed until next spring: tinyurl.com/y7p3vzdv.

Entertainment:

The new streaming service Broadway on Demand beefs up its offerings: tinyurl.com/y946chqm.

The full original Off-Broadway cast of Jonathan Spector's hilarious and extremely relevant play Eureka Day, presented by the Off Broadway company Colt Coeur, will reunite for a one-night only online charity reading, benefitting Colt Coeur and No Kid Hungry. Colt Coeur founding artistic director Adrienne Campbell-Holt returns to direct the event, streaming Friday, May 22 at 8:00pm on www.play-perview.com/. Tickets are $5.

Playbill and Pride Plays team up to present LGBTQ-themed streams during Pride Month: tinyurl.com/yc899zfp.

Streaming next from San Francisco Opera: Bellini's The Capulets and the Montagues (May 16), Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer's Moby-Dick, and Donizetti's Lucrezia Borgia (May 30). Go to sfopera.com.

That's all for today. Have a good weekend. And stay safe.

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