COVID-19 Update: Under Curfew

Protestors keep taking to the streets. So do looters. The president unleashes tear gas and rubber bullets on peaceful protestors, then uses an Episcopal church and a Bible as props in a photo op. The Episcopal Bishop of the District of Columbia denounces him. And as city after city goes under curfew, the goal of reopening seems to recede.

In case you forgot, there's still a pandemic on, spreading unevenly across the country: tinyurl.com/yaqgbv6s.

In reassuring news, more Americans are open to taking a coronavirus vaccine if and when it becomes available: tinyurl.com/y9e66lkk.

The Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and American Guild of Musical Artists are hiring medical professionals to advise on safe reopening of theatres: tinyurl.com/y72ulcwo.

Movie grosses are likely to plunge this year by 50%: tinyurl.com/y89r9pe4.

Food for thought:

Experts weigh in on how to make offices safer for returning employees: tinyurl.com/y9c3p2nm.

As offices reopen, fresh air will be the new hot commodity: tinyurl.com/y7u3ocnt.

Mobilizing:

The livestream of Chita: A Celebration, a tribute to Chita Rivera, raises $100,000 for The Actors Fund: tinyurl.com/y97qyhu6.

In Florida:

Legoland is the first major Orlando theme park to reopen: tinyurl.com/ycrc39an.

In New York:

The Metropolitan Opera cancels its fall season. New productions of The Magic Flute, Don Giovanni, Aida, and The Fiery Angel are postponed, although Jake Heggie's Dead Man Walking will go ahead: tinyurl.com/yd4dqllu.

Met artists cope with life under lockdown: tinyurl.com/y8jktl3s.

Around the world:

In South Korea:

How The Phantom of the Opera survived the pandemic: tinyurl.com/ydzy6f92.

In the UK:

The head of the country's Statistics Authority accuses of the government of misleading the public about the number of COVID-19 tests being carried out: tinyurl.com/y97cth2k.

Two organizations representing the country's stage sector turn to the government to prevent a total industry collapse: tinyurl.com/y9pgl74e.

Under lockdown, British drinkers are reaching for the bottle earlier in the day: tinyurl.com/y77o6dbs.

Losses:

John McCormack, veteran Off Broadway artistic director: tinyurl.com/y8nvwv5u.

Training:

New Martin by Harman webinars: "Tour Design Process Basics for Beginners/Students with Lauren Sego," June 9 at 11:00am CDT. Register at tinyurl.com/y8n9qou8. "Light the Music: A Lecture with a Beat with Luther Frank," June 11 at 11:00am CDT. Register at: tinyurl.com/yctaudek.

New Soundcraft webinars: "Soundcraft Vi 1000 Advanced Training with Gabriel Le Roux," June 5 at 12:00pm CDT. Register at tinyurl.com/y75g3r33. "Soundcraft Vi 1000 Monitor Training with Gabriel Le Roux," June 8 at 12:00pm CDT. Register at: tinyurl.com/yanu25dd.

Entertainment:

Presented in honor of the frontline personnel working during the COVID-19 Crisis, this week's Heroic Performances video concert is An American Salute: Pops at 125. Recorded in 2010 in celebration of the Pops' 125th anniversary, conductor Keith Lockhart leads the orchestra in beloved Americana selections, as well as The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers, a commissioned work by New England-native composer Peter Boyer and lyricist Lynn Ahrens that celebrates the inspiring language and public service of the Kennedy family with a star-studded cast of narrators and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus. Go to www.bostonpops.org/athome. The video stream is available for free on-demand viewing on June 7 at 3:00pm EDT for a 45-day duration. Also available now at the same URL: My Favorite Things, A Richard Rodgers Celebration.

Next at Off Broadway's Metropolitan Playhouse, June 4, at 8:00pm EST: COVID Cabaret with Zero Boy. Running time: 30 minutes. Available via Zoom at: us02web.zoom.us/j/85436625304 and YouTube at youtu.be/EJ5cJnQD0Xg. Viewers can make scenario suggestions via chat, and Zero Boy will turn them into a vocal improv scenario. All links are available at www.metropolitanplayhouse.org/virtualplayhouse.

For your pleasure:

Because there must be, Paula Kelly, Shirley MacLaine, and Chita Rivera remind us that there's gotta be something better than this: tinyurl.com/yb36cfjy.

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

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