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California Museums Have To Figure Out What Qualifies As ‘Outdoors’ – And What’s Safe Even Then

The Getty won’t open even though it has quite a few outdoor spaces, because those must be access from indoor spaces. But elsewhere: “The Huntington will institute a timed ticketing system, in which guests will pay for reserved slots in advance, so there won’t be any in-person exchange of money. Visitors will be required to wear face coverings, given hand sanitizer and asked to maintain social distance. The Huntington also is tweaking the flow of foot traffic so pathways don’t become congested.” – Los Angeles Times

How Ballet Dancers Are Staying In Dance Shape At Home

Ballet dancers don’t know when they’ll perform again, or even when they can dance with others again (aside from those in their own homes). One advantage to online classes: Dancers can join them from anywhere. Two Pacific Northwest Ballet dancers “have enjoyed taking classes taught by dancers they know in other companies. ‘It’s cool how we can connect with friends that we wouldn’t be able to see in our normal jobs,’ Ryan said, calling it a ‘silver lining.'” – Seattle Times

The Horrific Ecstasy Of Burning Your Own Writing

Or, more usually, why writers instruct others to do it after their deaths. “The elemental annihilation of destruction by fire is so absolute, and this is where the horror lies for me. If writing is slow, quiet, creative work, burning pages is quick, loud, and flagrantly destructive. Where once there was something, afterward there is nothing. There’s something irresistibly dramatic about the act of applying a naked flame to the corner of a page and watching the paper disappear in a sheath of fire.” – LitHub

Fred Willard, The Master Of Comic Cluelessness, Has Died At 86

His collaborations with Christopher Guest and Guest’s mockumentary ensemble were epic. “He played an Air Force colonel in This Is Spinal Tap (1984), then was travel agent/amateur actor Ron Albertson in Waiting for Guffman (1996); dunderheaded announcer Buck Laughlin in Best in Show (2000); Mike LaFontaine, blond-haired manager of the New Main Street Singers, in A Mighty Wind (2003); and smarmy newsmagazine host Chuck Porter (supposedly modeled on Billy Bush) in For Your Consideration (2006).” But that was far from all; his IMDb credit list runs to over 300 appearances, many of them as “self.” – The Hollywood Reporter

How Two Film Productions Have Begun Again

Carefully, with medical staff on set and stringent guidelines, and in one case, by essentially taking over a small town in Australia. “For Foster, who said that the extra precautions added at least 20 percent to the initial $10 million budget of his indie film, the most crucial decision he made was to house his entire cast and crew together, including the guardians for more than 25 child actors. He even quarantined an actor’s dog.” – The New York Times

The Ancient Art Of Creating Theatre At Home, But Make It Streaming

Professional playwrights still need commissions, and honestly, people still need theatre even when we can’t go to the theatre, so: “Theater companies big and small across the country, including Berkeley Repertory Theatre, New York’s Public Theatre and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., have asked dozens of professional playwrights to create short dramas for people to perform at home. The play scripts, part of a new initiative called Play at Home, have been downloaded 20,000 times since the start of April.” – KQED

Director Lynn Shelton Has Died Of A Rare Blood Disease At 54

Shelton created and directed many small-scale, intimate indie films, funding those well-reviewed passion projects with tons of TV show work, including, recently, four episodes of Little Fires Everywhere. Her partner, the actor and podcaster Marc Maron, said, “Her spirit was pure joy. She made me happy. I made her happy. We were happy. I made her laugh all the time. We laughed a lot. We were starting a life together. I really can’t believe what is happening. This is a horrendous, sad loss.” – The New York Times