"Those ushers who once carried proud armfuls of programs now wander the lobbies, outfitted (sometimes literally) with oversize QR codes, waiting to be scanned by passing patrons like a can of soup at the self-checkout." - Washington Post
Dreams of the company building a global base of 700 million or even 800 million paid memberships now seem far-fetched, given the company has stalled out at around 220 million. - New York Magazine
"When we think about the virtual plane of existence where the impossible is possible, it's likely that many of us are going to want to use that to enrich our connection to the stories and characters we love most." - MSN (Los Angeles Times)
And yes, theatre folks on social media absolutely lost it. "All of this getting out so soon made what could have been a difficult-but-privately-handled situation into a messy, public shitshow." - Slate
"Google nearly decided to call the internet TV service 'YouTube Air,' because an early version used an over-the-air TV antenna," and then internally it was YouTube "Unplugged." The service has a million more subscribers than its fellow "Live" at Hulu. - Variety
"In response to a precipitous slide in attendance during the 2021-22 season, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra has canceled 10 concerts originally scheduled to be performed next season at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall. ... By the end of last season, attendance at BSO performances was averaging about 40% of capacity." - The Baltimore Sun
The longer that this new “business model” is allowed to operate, the harder it will be to change. I often think about how 25 years ago the introduction of the DVD became a cautionary lesson in when you choose to fight. - Deadline
"Recent data collected by Artnet from more than a dozen museums around the country suggests that attendance recovery has slowed, with some cultural institutions finding that audience levels have stagnated or dropped over the last year." - Artnet
"Venues and organisations are frantically having to deal with a programming backlog and process delayed projects still 'on the books'. And from the visitor's perspective, there is a kind of 'just do it' attitude – the urge to attend events regardless of the semi-expectation of contracting a COVID variant." - ArtsHub (Australia)
Older audiences will only be around so long. If you teach the rising generation that the theatrical experience is completely extraneous, that experience probably won’t be around for the next one. - Washington Post
Ben Glover is a creative captioner, integrating captions for the hearing-impaired into set and lighting design. Nadine Beasley provides live audio description for the visually impaired and even leads advance touch tours of the set and costumes. Shona Louise consults on everything from wheelchair access to website design. - The Guardian
"For some, the drop has been small, but for most, the average decline is about 50 percent of 2019 sales. Local theater leaders say they're not certain why sales have fallen," citing several possible factors. - The San Diego Union-Tribune
But it's not directly because of COVID - it's more that "dozens of record-pressing factories have been built to try to meet demand in North America — and it's still not enough." - St. Louis Post-Dispatch (AP)
Young violinist Vijay Gupta "was shocked by the poverty and neglect he saw on Skid Row. The injustice and inequity upset him. He was also disturbed by what he saw as the airless insularity of the classical music world." So he decided to do something about it. - NPR
