Week 2 of living in the COVID-19 world

With the first wave of COVID-19 related closures now in effect, we'll revisit the situation again this week to update things and add some observations from your humble scribe on the way matters are unfolding.

For the most part, people are adhering to government requested restrictions such as going out unnecessarily and at least trying to maintain some semblance of social distancing.  I still find people too close for comfort in many situations such as at the grocery store, but by and large I am able to increase my distance even if they won't.

It really isn't that much of a hardship keeping your distance, unless of course you were on a beach in Florida this week for March break with other like-minded misguided souls unconvinced they'll catch the virus.  One even commented he would rather get it than give up his partying on the beach!  Yeeesh...check back with us once you get through the two-week quarantine buddy and let us know if you still feel that way.

I am a walker by nature and thankfully I can keep my exercise levels up while the YMCA is closed by walking several times a day.  I have been logging up to 11 miles a day most days, so it can be done.  My far better half is not thrilled but hey, a guys gotta do what a guys gotta do...

As far as the arts are concerned, we have some updates to pass along since last week's posting in this space.  In local community theatre, Firehall Theatre in Niagara Falls has announced their spring production of Separate Beds will be postponed until the fall season, so those who already have tickets to the spring scheduled shows will not have to return them; those tickets will be honoured for the fall shows.  They'll update us on more developments as they occur.

I wrote last week the Stratford Festival had delayed the start of their season, which was scheduled to get underway early next month.  Now they have pushed the start date back even further, cancelling all shows and even rehearsals through to the end of May.  The rehearsals simply were not compatible with social distancing, so everything had to be put on hold.

Actors the world over abide by the maxim "The show must go on!" but indeed, this is not the first time they have not.  The Festival noted in their news release this week the bubonic plague of 1608 forced the closure of all theatres as actors were terrified of contracting the disease.  Some feared the theatres would not reopen once it was safe to do so but indeed they did, and people returned to the theatre to be entertained once again.

This will happen again I am sure.  Yes the closure is painful for all on both sides of the footlights but it is necessary to stem the growth of COVID-19 at this time.  But just think of how great it will feel to celebrate the return of normalcy later this year with some great theatre that was worth waiting for!

Similarly the Shaw Festival has altered their season as well, although there does not appear, as of yet at least, to be as much of a delay in the start of their season than at Stratford.  They plan to reopen their offices April 6th and begin performances for the season by May 1st.  That could change of course, but right now that is the plan.

Meantime the Hamilton Philharmonic will reopen their offices on April 5th and hopefully they can resume their performance schedule sometime next month as well.  They did, however, offer in their news release this week some worthwhile diversions to keep you occupied during the hiatus of live performances at the moment.  For example, the Met Opera is streaming some past live performances beginning this past week, so that will be worth checking out.  This week they live-streamed a 2008 production of La Boheme, for example.

You can check out Google Arts and Culture where users can virtually tour more than five-hundred museums across the globe, including The Met, London's National Gallery and the Museum of Modern Art.  And the Berlin Philharmonic has made their Digital Concert Hall available to all  for free during the suspension of live performances, so that will be worth checking out as well.

So while the present situation is not ideal, at least there are options out there we would not have had years ago before the digital age.  Besides, you can't spend your entire time shopping online now, can you?

Can you?!

Have a great weekend and hang in there!

March 21st, 2020.