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What Are The Implications Of Offering Free Dance Online?

“As dancers, we are taught to problem solve in real-time, so it came as no surprise when,” once the coronavirus pandemic led to the cancellation of almost all live dance, “streamed performances and classes began popping up almost immediately. Dance Magazine asked six voices from our national dance community to share their thoughts regarding the swift distribution of online content.” – Dance Magazine

Hay Festival Director Explains How He Moved This Year’s Entire Event Online

Peter Florence: “In the last three weeks we’ve reshaped the programme we’d been planning for the last 18 months into just 80 online events and we’ve been experimenting with tech platforms to keep that conversation going. I doubt we could ever have assembled the cast who’ll launch our Wordsworth 250 celebrations in real life.” – The Guardian

Florian Schneider, Co-Founder Of Kraftwerk, Dead At 73

“Formed in 1970 by Mr. Schneider and Ralf Hütter, Kraftwerk was credited with bringing synthesizers, drum machines, preprogrammed tapes and sequences to the fore, developing a sonic template that was used in genres as varied as rock, pop, hip-hop and disco. Kraftwerk’s music, techno pioneer Juan Atkins once said, ‘sounded like the future.'” – The Washington Post

Massive Interpol Stings Recover 19,000 Stolen Antiquities

Two international operations culminated last fall in the arrest of 101 suspects and seizure of trafficked objects in Spain, Argentina, Latvia, and Afghanistan. Among the items were ancient ceramics, coins, and weapons as well as a Roman limestone sculpture, three Roman columns, and hundreds of rare pre-Columbian items, including a gold Tumaco mask. – The Guardian

French President Announces Emergency Rescue Plans For Arts And Culture Workers

Among the key elements of the proposal outlined by President Macron are a full-year extension of unemployment insurance for gig workers in the performing arts (known as “intermittents du spectacle“), allowing authors to receive the monthly support payments available to small business owners and the self-employed, and indemnification and loan guarantees for cancelled film productions and small festivals. – The Local (France)

Pandemic Is Spurring Operatic Innovation

The covid-19 crisis has forced a sacrifice of so much of what makes opera so powerful — the massive casts, booming orchestras, elaborate staging and singular thrill of being present to experience it all. But it also presents an unlikely opportunity for the form itself to get more intimate and accessible, reach new audiences and evolve in different directions. It’s an art form in survival mode, and it may well come back stronger. – Washington Post

The Neuroscientific Explanation For Why You Need A Hug Right Now

Without touch, humans deteriorate physically and emotionally. “We know from the literature that lack of touch produces very negative consequences for our wellbeing,” says Alberto Gallace, a neuroscientist at the University of Milano-Bicocca. He explains that humans are inherently social creatures; studies have shown that depriving monkeys of physical contact leads to adverse health outcomes. – Wired

Movie Theatres Can’t Reopen Yet, So They’re Finding Novel Ways To Connect

“The Music Box in Chicago has a kind of tip-line where people can call in and describe what streaming services they have and their programmers will recommend what to watch. It’s been wildly popular and it’s so funny,” she says. “The Brattle in Cambridge, Mass., had a movie trivia night to support them, which became an opportunity for people from all over the country to join each other. Cinema Arts Centre in Huntington, N.Y., has been working with their audience to care for them. Calling them on the phone just to make sure they’re doing all right.” – NPR