“You don’t want to make all the health stuff too obvious. Because if it feels like they’re checking in for a flight, they aren’t going to come. But you have to let them know somehow. So it’s really hard.” – Washington Post
Category: AUDIENCE
The Uncounted Lives That ‘Rocky Horror’ Has Saved
Sorry, Cats!, “It’s the ultimate cult movie. The first. The biggest. The one cult movie to rule them all.” And despite the Covid-19 shutdowns, Rocky Horror Picture Show devotees have found ways to be with their found families across the globe. – BBC
AMC Theatres Backtracks, Will Require Audiences To Wear Masks
The theater chain’s CEO, Adam Aron, had previously said that the company’s plan to reopen locations would not require patrons to wear masks as they “did not want to be drawn into political controversy.” – The Daily Beast
Nearly Two-Thirds Of U.S. Arts Groups Surveyed Expect To Resume Performances By End Of 2020 (Brits Aren’t So Optimistic)
“If already not performing, … 50% of U.K. clients are planning a return to the stage in January 2021. Only 25% expect to be performing pantos in December 2020. In contrast, 63% of U.S. clients expect to return to performances in 2020. Dance and multi-disciplinary organizations are the most optimistic; dance’s optimism is likely fueled by the requirement of Nutcracker revenues to bring stability to the balance of the 2020-21 season.” – TRG Arts
Drive-in Performing Arts Gigs Are Catching On In The UK
“We have an extraordinary opportunity to still mount a show in a way that we fully expected to, not only without compromise, but actually potentially even with enhancements. We’re able to do things from a compliance point of view that feel like they are quite Big Brother.” – The Guardian
Library Use Is Dramatically Up Since The Lockdown
Weekly library e-book lending across the country has increased by nearly 50 percent since March 9, according to data from OverDrive, a service used by many libraries to let patrons check out media for e-readers, smartphones and computers. Audiobook check-outs are also up 14% — not quite as large a shift, likely because fewer people are in their cars commuting to work. – NPR
Relieved Yet Wary, Customers Start Returning To London’s Bookshops
This week book retailers in England have reopened to the public (with limits on how many people may be on the premises at a time) for the first time since the pandemic-induced shutdown began three months ago. Alex Marshall visited half a dozen bookstores around the capital to check on the mood. – The New York Times
Audiences For Children’s Theater Are Quite Diverse. The Creators, Not So Much.
“A new study finds that about 80 percent of the shows presented around the country are by white writers, and 85 percent of the productions are led by white directors. Also of concern: Much of the industry’s diversity is concentrated in a small number of productions about people of color, while the shows that dominate the industry’s stages, generally adapted from children’s books and fairy tales, have overwhelmingly white creative teams.” – The New York Times
U.S. Museums Are (Finally) Developing Art Therapy Programs
“Although psychologists have long recognized the benefits of art therapy, … few American museums have devoted resources toward creating programs. But the demands of a grief-stricken public are now compelling cultural institutions around the country to create trauma-aware initiatives that put their art collections and educators at the forefront of a mental health crisis created by the pandemic and the worldwide protests over police brutality and racism after George Floyd’s killing.” – The New York Times
Internet Archive Ends Its Free Library Initiative Early After Publishers Sue
The Internet Archive announced the National Emergency Library project on March 24, in response to the widespread closures of libraries and schools during the Covid-19 crisis. The temporary initiative unilaterally removed the usual one copy/one user restriction on scans borrowed from the Internet Archive’s Open Library project, allowing unlimited borrowing of the roughly 1.4 million titles scanned, unless an author or publisher opted out. The NEL was set to last until June 30, or until the crisis is over. – Publishers Weekly